I nearly choke. There’s no way.
I narrow my eyes at him. “A god? As in Hades, God of the Underworld?”
Sin squeezes my hand. “There is no Hades, kitten. Those are myths.”
There’s no mistaking the hint of exasperation in his tone. I’m guessing he has little patience for mortal mythology.
“I’ve been called many names, but yes, Hades is one of them.” He takes in Sin’s dubious expression before adding, “The Mortal Realm is much more closely tied to death than the others. The Underworld may have fallen, but their spirits know where they belong.”
I nod. My necklace doesn’t heat, but I barely pay attention to it. Again, I’m not sure how, but I already know he’s telling the truth.
“So, is that why you think I belong to you? Because I’m mortal?” I ask.
The man in the wall’s eyes lock on me, and I can almost feel the power behind them. There is no doubt in my mind he is a god. “You are immune to my power, Vivian, because you areofthe Underworld. The same power flows through your soul.”
Frowning, I step forward out of Sin’s grasp. “What am I?”
“A great many things, but regarding your darker powers, you’re a Reaper. The first in over ten thousand years,” he answers, his gaze blazing into me.
Pictures of cloaked individuals with scythes play in my mind, and I mull the title around in my head. I think of how I release trapped spirits, knowing they are going free.
It fits.
Sin comes to stand beside me again, eying the man in the wall warily. “Why is she the first in so long?”
The man in the wall holds out his hands in a questioning gesture. “That, I’m not sure of. I’ve been encased in this wall since my realm betrayed me ten millennia ago. The Council wanted to control theFates. As it turns out, the Fates have an insatiable thirst for souls. They consume them like drugs, leaving them at the mercy and control of whoever controls the souls. In a single breath, the Council slaughtered my Reapers, cutting off the source of my power. Without the souls, I grew weak. I’ve been imprisoned here ever since.”
I swallow. “So, you eat the souls too?”
He looks at me like I should know better, and I can’t help but agree.
It was a stupid question.
“The mere thought of consuming a soul is abhorrent. Their presence in the Underworld, their worship. That is what fuels me,” the man in the wall spits.
Sin frowns, suspicious. “So, what changed? Why make a Reaper now? And why are your powers suddenly returning?”
The man in the wall arches a brow. “The Reapers are made by the Fates when they weave together destinies.”
My eyes find Sin’s. “Clotho,” I whisper, remembering how it was one of the Fates who kept trying to keep me alive.
“It would seem that one of the Fates has recently decided to go against the Council’s wishes and wove something extra, something hidden, into your thread of life,” the man in the wall continues, “And before I forget myself, I do thank you for the vast number of souls you sent my way a few nights ago. I am finding the extra mobility and power very pleasing. I was surprised, of course, that something could reap so many souls at once, but it makes sense now.”
I frown at him, not understanding. “Why does it make sense?”
He smiles at me. “You already know, Vivian. You are much more than a simple Reaper. You’re something the likes of the realms have never seen before. A budding Creator and a Reaper. Two powerful and conflicting energies. I imagine, when they combine, you are something truly fearful to behold.”
He pauses, eyeing me further, before adding, “Or at least you will be when that pesky key is removed from your arm.”
His words have my heart jumping into my throat. “You know how to break a Keeper bond?” I ask, trying not to let my desperation show.
I fail.
The bond to Leon looms over my head, always leaving me wondering when he’ll find me and use the corrupted Keeper bond to force me into submission.
The man in the wall nods. “There’s only one way to remove a Keeper bond, Vivian.”
My heart sinks at his answer.
