Can't Fight Time

“It’s time.” Uri’s voice was soft, his footsteps quiet on the rugs scattered around Grim’s study.

Nina looked up from her spot on the couch, seeing Uri a few feet away from her in a grey button down and black jeans, his red hair slightly mussed as if he's just woken up.

Pushing away from the couch, Nina ran her fingers over the crimson upholstery, tracing the intricate patterns there. Over the course of a few months, the study had become like a second home to her. She spent most of her time scouring through books, learning as much as she could. Not that there was a point to the information, it was just for fun, a thing to pass the time.

Shaking her head Nina spun in a slow circle, keeping the tears at bay as she tilted her head further up until her muscles strained from the effort. Millions of books lined the walls, climbing so high she couldn’t even see all of them. It was amazing and useless.

Nina hadn’t really realized what she’d been doing every time she opened a book, every time she scoured through pages; she’d been trying to find a way to stay with Grim, a way to stop time. It all seemed so silly and useless now, all the knowledge crowding her brain made her almost angry.

Sighing loudly, she dashed at the tears leaking from her eyes and steeled herself. Her voice was resigned but strong, “I’m ready.”

Turning away from the library, she stepped into Uri’s arms and felt them close tightly around her. Unlike the other times, she was prepared for the sudden roller-coaster-flight that took them from the study to the portal room in less than a second.

For a few stomach-churning moments, Nina held onto Uri and felt all her organs fall back into place and the bile that had coated her throat disappear. “Never gonna get used to that,” Nina muttered, the words tasting like sawdust as she let go of Uri and took a few steps back.

The first time she'd come to the Underworld, she’d been too concerned with Grim not killing them to really take inventory of the room. Surprisingly the portal room was small, about the equivalent of a walk-in closet lengthwise, with a giant mirror thing in the center.

“It was meant to keep a hoard from trying to jump through the portal. The kingdom wasn’t always this calm.” Uri smiled, trying to break the tension between them.

Nina turned and smiled reassuringly. None of this was his fault. In fact, she was grateful to Uri. The prince had given her something she’d never thought she’d get—even in the human world—a chance to love, and be loved back.

“I’m fine, Uri.” Nina looked back at the mirror. It was about fourteen feet high and oval-shaped. Around the frame were shimmering designs in a language she was sure she’d never heard of. The entire piece thrummed with a sort of power, an otherworldliness that called to Nina.

She ran her fingertips against the frame lovingly. “Who made this?”

“Yin and Yang. Every kingdom has one, so that royals can move between worlds.” She felt Uri’s power slide over her back as he drew closer. “Pretty, isn't it?”

“It’s beautiful,” Nina whispered reverently, tracing the language.

Pulling her hand back, she turned away from the portal and looked directly at Uri. It was time. “Everything has been arranged?”

Uri nodded and reached inside his pocket. “Yup, everything is taken care of. Here.”

Nina accepted the phone and slid it into her skirt pocket. Her hands slid over the fabric reverently, the simple gesture giving her strength. It was her first present from Grim, along with a full wardrobe and half of his closet. She could still remember his sultry voice whispering to her from their bed: “I was serious about wanting you, Nina. Not just in my bed, but in my life. I can give you everything you will ever need.”

A sob stuck in her throat as Nina pulled away from the memory and felt the material crushed between her fingers. You’re doing the right thing. She reminded herself as she forced her hands to unclench. “Great, Uri. Thank you again.”

Before she could blink, she was suddenly engulfed in a bear-hug, its force almost painful. Nina didn’t think twice as she wrapped her arms around Uri and hugged him back fervently. “I’ll miss you bossing me around,” he whispered into her hair, the words lost in the tangle of curls and coils.

Nina felt Uri’s arms close tighter as he shook his head. “I’m so sorry, Nina. If there was another way...” he let the sentence trail away as his emotions took over. Nina felt his power all around them like they were in an ocean, the ebb and flow reminding her of waves.

Squeezing him tight one last time, she drew back and slowly, Uri released her. “It’s not your fault.” Her voice took the edge of a steel blade, “Besides, I refuse to give my father the satisfaction of killing a broken girl. I’ve come too far, done too much, to let fear consume me.”

A flash of pain and shame crossed Uri’s face, but it has gone too soon for Nina to be sure she hadn’t just imagined it. “But if it does… Just know that this will always be your home. You can come here anytime.”

Nina nodded, her throat constricting tightly.

“Well, if my father suddenly has a change of heart and decides not to kill me, I’ll definitely come back. Then you can finally show me where that reaper bus is.”

Uri visibly relaxed and showed his first genuine smile of the night. “Sounds like a plan.”

Turning away from the prince, Nina went to the mirror and placed her hand against the cool glass... only it wasn’t glass, but some other material, almost gel-like. Below her fingers the portal began to shift and move, like small ripples and waves, and then suddenly her hand went all the way through and Nina gasped and snatched her limb back.

“You okay?” Uri blurted out.

Nina rubbed her hand, and laughed nervously. “Oh! It startled me.” She gulped and clenched her fists at her side, head held high. “I’m ready.”

Forcing her feet to move, Nina pressed her body against the glass and let it ripple and give way. She pushed forward as the gel-like-substance closed around her hands, arms, chest. Taking a deep breath, she dove in.

Nina thought she heard Uri mumbled something, but she couldn’t be sure. Than, suddenly, it didn’t matter as she was hurtled through time and space. The first time she’d done it, she had her eyes closed and had hung onto Uri like a baby koala, but now she was alone, and the feeling was completely different.

A blinding light flashed, just before a stygian blackness enveloped her. It all happened so fast that her eyes couldn’t process the change—then just as quickly as it all began it stopped.

Nina’s eyes adjusted to the darkness around her, and brought the landmarks surrounding her into focus. A stone-bench, a bubbling water fountain, Nina recognized it all and knew instantly where she was. She was in the maze inside the chapel, exactly where she’d been when Uri had first marked her hand.

Gasping in cool, crisp air, Nina looked at the maze. It was completely different and exactly the same, all at once.

She brushed invisible mirror-stuff off herself. “Well, okay then.”

A sudden disturbance behind her made Nina whirl and come face to face with...Uri? “What are you doing here?”

Uri reached for her hand, and raised a questioning brow. “Forget something?”

A sharp pain seized her. Air rushed back into lungs that had barely been working, and warm blood flowed heavy through her veins. Every muscle jumped, spasmed, her fingertips—ones that had been chilled for months—burned. She gasped, clenched, reached out for Uri and felt a cold so poignant she screamed, reared back, and fell.

A few minutes past, her body turning back to what it used to be. She realized her body was shaking, and she was cold. Nina looked down at her hand, trying to find where Grim’s mark was. It was gone.

“How?” Her teeth chattered, the words hurt coming out. Only reapers stronger than each other could remove the marks. Was Uri stronger than Grim?

He smiled down at her. “I storred up the energy. You needed the mark removed.”

For a long second, Nina stared up at Uri. He always caught her off gaurd, did something… different. His reasoning made sense though. Grim’s power would have probably, protected her in one way or another. But there was something off in the moment, something that Nina was only starting to realize had been off from the start.

Uri had been the one to take her to the Underworld, and he was the one who’d taken her back to the human world. What had been his goal? Motivations?

Something cut into her palm and Nina looked down. Her wedding rings had become twisted, turned inward to her palm. It was yet another reminder of her impending death. But she was happy for the rings, they didn’t make her feel so alone. She rubbed her fingers across the diamond reverently.

“I don’t think I’ll ever figure you out, Uri.” Nina climbed to her feet and forced back the tears that were clawing at her eyes. “But that doesn’t matter now. Thanks for everything”

—she paused, looked at his myrtle-green eyes— “little brother.”

Uri flinched back, opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, but he just gave her a rueful smile, turned sharply, and disappeared. The portal closed behind him, and the silence rang with a finality Nina didn’t need.

Taking a deep breath, Nina went and sat on the stone bench beside the fountain. Reaching deep in her skirt pocket, she pulled out the phone and then dialed the number for Detective Thompson. Before Grim had come and worked that weird mind trick, the woman had given Nina her card and told her to call her if anything happened. Well, I know I’m about to get murdered by my father, so I think that counts for something.

The phone began to ring, and Nina hoped that the detective would pick up. She had no clue how much time she had before her father came. Every crime show Nina had ever seen had the murderer going back to the scene of the crime, and since he’d killed a girl here and also knew Nina hung out here, it was only a matter of time.

“Hello?” a groggy female voice answered.

Nina pulled the phone back and looked at the time. It was almost midnight. “Sorry to disturb you, but is this Detective Darcy Thompson?”

Some rustling, a curse, and then the detective spoke. “Yes, who is this?”

“This is Nina Strathmore. We spoke a few... days ago about the murder at the chapel. Do you—”

“Yes, I remember you. What can I do for you, my dear?”

“I—” Nina paused. For some reason everything she’d planned to say, the lie that she’d crafted suddenly felt stupid. Truth was always stranger than fiction anyway.

Steeling herself she continued: “My father is the Sweetheart Killer, and he’s planning to kill me. I have some important things to tell you, so please listen. My father’s name is Lucian Strathmore, and...”

***

“Nina?” Grim mumbled as he came awake and reached his hand out for her.

Cool cotton sheets greeted his hands, and Grim shot up straight in bed. He cocked his head and listened for any sound that Nina was in the room. Silence.

He stretched his power out and tried to feel her presence in the castle, but he felt something else. A wave of barely suppressed power hit him, and Grim ducked and rolled off the bed as the doors swung wide and broke off their hinges.

Castoff guards began filling the room as Grim grabbed a sheet and wrapped it around himself, still crouched in a defensive position. His voice dripped venom. “What’s going on here?”

Tinkling laughter heralded Felicia’s entrance, as the child entered his room. “Good evening, Grim. So sorry to disturb you and your—” she looked around, and a frown tugged at her glossy crimson lips. “Oh! Where is that lovely, charming human of yours?”

Grim growled warningly as more guards filed into his room. There were only two ways out of the chamber, and Felicia and her dogs were blocking one of them.

It was obvious enough that they were not there to protect him, but capture him. “Whatever you plan to do will surely start a war, Felicia.” Grim’s tone was severe. “Is that what you want?”

All he needed to do was get to the fireplace on the other side of the room. There was a secret passageway that would get him to where he needed to go. Just a few steps, a flick of his power, and he’d be safe.

Felicia scratched lightly at her arm, a small frown marring her brows. “The war already started, Grim. It started the minute that your whore of a brother brought that human here.” Her voice never lost its childlike cheeriness.

A reaper in full body armor with the Castoff coat-of-arms branded onto the sash around his arm stepped forward. The reaper looked suspiciously familiar, but Grim couldn’t place him. “Mictlantecuhtli Jallgrímur Bloodspurn, by decree of the Castoff King, you have been charged with breaking the laws of the three sovereign kingdoms. You are hereby to be taken into custody by Her Highness, Felicia Castoff, whom you will remain with until sentencing.”

Grim looked around his bedchamber and weighed his options. There weren’t many. He could try and escape, but even he knew his limits. One reaper, even a king, managing to defeat and escape twenty-some guards and a princess successfully? No. Then again, he could always call his own guards. Grim frowned. Why hadn’t they—

Snapping his gaze back to the Castoff guard, Grim finally recognized him. And, as he peered into the faces of the other guards, he knew that his choices were gone.

Almost every guard wearing the Castoff insignia was a Bloodspurn guard. Grim’s nails bit into the flesh of his palms as he balled his fist and choked back his revulsion. Anger would solve nothing in this situation, and it might get him killed.

“Why now, Felica?” Grim asked, trying to understand her motive. It didn’t make sense that she would attack now after Nina had been in the Underworld for nearly three months. What was the point?

The princess sauntered closer to him, her short lilac dress looking like it should have belonged on a doll. But then the woman herself looked like a doll: precise makeup, tiny body, and porcelain skin. If not for the deadly look in her eyes, and the dark aura that surrounded and suffused her clothing, he might have confused her for a living doll.

“Because it was my desire,” she scoffed lightly as she came closer to him. Grim backed away slowly, and, like puppets on a string, every one of the guards moved in closer.

“What does your kingdom hope to achieve by starting a war that will drag on and kill hundreds of innocents?” Grim shifted left and back away, ever aware of the guards and the princess.

Maybe, just maybe, he could make it out of the situation. Hope loomed on the horizon, shining brightly. He could get out, find Nina and his family, and then head to the Darklore Kingdom for refuge. But Grim was assuming two big things: firstly, that the Darklore Kingdom wasn’t in cahoots with the Castoffs, and secondly, that his family was all right.

Felicia lightly tisked, as if she was correctly a child. “The kingdom?” Felicia's tinkling laugh grated on Grim’s nerves as he continued to inch his way to the fireplace. “Silly Grim, I am the kingdom. I am the law. I am absolute and unquestionable.”

The girl was suddenly in front of him, and Grim felt his power flare out even as her guards started in on them. But Felicia did something that no one expected, not even her guards.

Twining her hands around his neck, she stood up on her tiptoes and kissed Grim. The princess forced her tongue into his mouth, forced him to take her. Everything in Grim revolted, and he tore himself away from her like she burned him, but not before she achieved her aim.

Very quickly he began to feel cold, to feel sick. Reapers didn’t feel the cold and they never got sick. Those born of humans might feel those things initially, but that was before the shedding. Harsh shudders wracked his body as Grim collapsed on the ground, a bitter taste on the tip of his tongue.

“W-what did y-you do to m-me?” Grim forced out through chattering teeth as he gripped his chest where humans’ hearts were. Pain shot through him, directly to the place where a heart would be, but nothing jumped in his chest.

Grim was still a reaper, but exuding symptoms of a human who came to the Underworld without a contract. Falling to the ground in a heap, his body began to shut down as the shudders became so bad that it felt like someone had set his body to vibrate. It was the most excruciating pain he’d ever experienced, and there was no way to stop it.

Felicia crotched down; her lavender dress rubbed against Grim’s arm, and felt like a million tiny needles piercing his skin. “I gave you something to nullify your powers, my king. Now you have the same power as that sweet, little human.”

Through teary, slitted eyes, Grim watched the child stare at him as if he was an exhibit at the zoo. Her chin rested in her cupped hands with her elbows on her bent knees. Then, she smiled at him, a wide, face splitting grin that was all the more terrifying for its sincerity. There was no malice in the smile, no ill will, just pure, unadulterated happiness.

“Do not worry, Grim.” Felicia traced a line down his cheek with her index finger. “I will find that human of yours.”

Her nails cut deep into the flesh of his cheek, and Grim bit his tongue to keep from crying out at the agony of it. “Guards!”

Felicia clapped her hands like a giddy child as the guards swarmed on Grim, beating him bloody before restraining him. Pain grew to a crescendo, and Grim wondered how his body could take any more. By then he was fading, losing consciousness, and he knew he’d reached his limit.

***

The waiting was the worst for Nina. Waiting meant she was able to think, and thinking for Nina was never a good thing. Thinking lead to questioning, questioning to curiosity, and curiosity to a place she could never go: back to Grim.

“Was the weather always this warm?” Nina muttered as her skirt clung to her thighs and sweat formed under her armpits.

She’d been feeling constantly cold, but it was nice. It was like the cold reminded her that she was safe, even though it should have done the opposite. The heat though…

A shiver raced through Nina’s body and made her teeth chatter and ache. Antarctica in the wintertime sounded like heaven right then. Because all the heat did was remind her that, when her father eventually killed her, she’d start smelling bad fast in this heat.

Waiting was really not good for her.

A rustle of cloth and leaves were the only warnings Nina had before her father erupted from the maze. “Nina,” his voice was soft and kind.

Nina looked at her father, a little taken aback by his appearance. Despite the heat he wore a fashionable long black coat, his hair was slicked back and slightly damp, he looked like he'd just shaved, and he had an air of happiness around him that would have been infectious if she hadn’t known her future.

The man in front of her was the man her father used to be. And she wondered what had inspired the change in him. “Dad,” she returned from her position on the stone bench.

The man in front of her smiled kindly and gestured to the spot beside her. “Mind if I sit?”

What? Polite conversation and then a knife through the heart? Nina thought with an internal laugh. She knew her future better than any crystal ball, but the asinine pleasantries surprised her. Whatever her father’s plan, murder seemed to be on the back burner.

Nina shrugged. “It’s a free country.”

Another small smile, before he came and sat by her; “How’ve you been, little boo? I’ve been worried sick about you.”

She couldn't help but roll her eyes, not giving a thought to her father’s quick temper. If the man had been worried about her, it was because he’d thought she’d gone somewhere he wouldn’t have been able to find. Nina doubted that the man thought about anything besides the need to kill, and the high he got from it. Murder was just another drug.

Raising her eyes, Nina met her father’s gaze. His eyes were slightly unfocused and dilated. Nina wasn’t surprised that he was on drugs; if anything, it made the entire situation more believable.

Her eyes roamed his face, trying to find any resemblance of the man who had raised her, loved her, and loved her mom. She couldn’t find it. All she saw when she looked at him was a bloody shirt, and a… Nina flinched back and jerked up from the bench.

“What?” her father asked, his eyes shifting from side to side, “What’s wrong?”

Everything! Her mind screamed at her, as she tried to calm her raging heart. It took a few tries, but she was able to force out the answer. “There’s a spot of b-blood right above your eye.”

The need to vomit rode her hard, and Nina covered her mouth as her stomach heaved. But by some mercy she kept her composure, kept her food down, and kept the tears from streaming down her face.

As if in slow motion, her father reached up and wiped his brow, his fingers coming away stained red. The color was brilliant, even in the moonlight, an indisputable crimson that no one would refute was blood.

For a tense second, her father stared at his bloodstained fingers, and then, very casually, he wiped his fingers on his coat. The motion stretched his coat and revealed a bloodsplattered shirt underneath. “Thought I had cleaned all of that up; sorry about that.” He said it as if he’d spilled spaghetti sauce and not human blood.

Nina took an involuntary step back and cursed herself. She remembered a time when she’d thought Grim was going to kill her, and she’d gotten in his face and lied her ass off. Where was that woman when she needed her, the one who told off a big, bad Grim Reaper without batting an eyelash?

“Nina, you don’t have to be scared. I would never hurt you,” her father said, with such compassion and sincerity that she almost believed him; almost.

Nina dug her nails into her palm to keep her composure from breaking. The pain kept her strong, kept her sane. “Whose blood is that?”

“Ah.” Her father blew out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand through his damp hair. Nina followed the movement like a hawk and nearly screamed bloody murder when his hand came away red.

Nina’s eyes zoomed in on his hair and saw that some pieces were drying, like there was product in his hair. Or human blood, her internal voice corrected her. But the usual sarcasm and sass wasn’t there.

“Things happen, Nina. I didn’t kill her at first.” He shook his finger, like he was a teacher teaching her a lesson. “I knew she was your friend, and I spared her for you. But then you didn’t come back. I thought she knew where you were, but after a while I knew she didn’t.”

Nina’s voice was just above a whisper, her throat constricted with emotion. “You’re talking about Nicole.”

“I really didn’t mean to kill her. You have to believe me!” her father pleaded emphatically, waving his hands wildly, revealing more glimpses of the bloodstained shirt underneath. It was only then that Nina realized he was completely covered in blood, from his black shoes to the white collar of his shirt. The darkness could only hide the man’s transgressions to a point, but the moon clearly illuminated all of them.

“You are not my father.” Nina’s voice shook with fury, shook with sadness and a soul-deep pain. “You are not my family. You are nothing but a murderer.”

Seamlessly and unsurprisingly, her father’s face contorted into a mask of blind fury. “I have done nothing but love you! And this is how you repay me?” he screamed, face a bright red. “You ungrateful little bitch! You can’t look down on me!”

“Down on you?” She laughed. “I’m not looking down on you, I’m looking past you.”

His coat flew open and a glint of silver was her only warning before her father brandished a large kalapuukko. “You are mine!” he ranted, waving the knife wildly around. “Mine!”

Nina stared at the bloodsplattered shirt, her friend’s blood. Nicole had been innocent, she hadn’t done anything. No, she’d just been a casualty in her father’s effort to have her. That had always been his goal, and all the women he’d killed along the way had just been casualties.

This was her life, narrowed down to the sharp point of a knife. This was her death, the end.

In the distance, Nina could hear the faint sounds of sirens, and she knew that it was time. In a matter of seconds, she would be dead. A sick smile twisted her lips as she shifted her weight and repositioned her feet.

“I was never yours,” Nina whispered more to herself than him. “I was, and will always be, my own person.”

Her father cackled loudly, and Nina heard the sirens getting closer. Watching the knife she waited for her chance. And then, she saw it.

“No, Nina! You. Are. M-ine,” her father yelped as Nina lunged for him and drove the knife into her own heart.

Clenching her teeth, Nina forced her body to move and drive the knife deeper. Blood spurted around the wound and ran down the knife to the hilt, dropping off her father’s clenched fist. Panting she reached up weakly, placed her hand over her father’s. “No… my life… is my… own.”

The irony of the moment wasn’t lost on Nina. For the last three months she’d been sure—dead sure—that her father would kill her. No one had corrected her, and the thought of taking her own life hadn’t even crossed her mind.

If she could have laughed, she would have.

But in those last few moments of life Nina found a realization: she finally realized why her mother had been smiling. Death was an escape from all the pain and torment her father had caused. It was also the ultimate “fuck you!”

Forcing her lids open, Nina looked at her father’s wide, astonished eyes and his open mouth. Smiling through the pain, Nina robbed her father of the only thing he’d ever wanted, and the one thing he could never have, her life.