Page 145 of Reaper’s Curse

But Winter and I had been in his workspace and hidden dungeon. Nothing there looked familiar.

Which only meant, he’d held me somewhere different.

My gaze tightened. Was that a tiny smile snaking across his lips?

I wanted to close the distance between us and shred the royal healer to pieces but…

Raven had been working with a deadly threat since her first day at the palace, and… He has his sights set on her now.

Reaper’s hell, I needed to get to her immediately and confirm her well-being.

Turning away from Valen, a.k.a. my imprisoner/torturer, felt like a claw sinking deep into my chest, but Raven was more important and her situation more pressing…if the crows were to be believed. And my gut said they were.

Swinging back to the tower door, I followed Raven’s aroma inside and to the stairwell under the stairs.

I rushed forward, ready for anything. Ready to fight the Killian or any other monster. Whatever measures were necessary to keep Raven safe.

But my speedy trek down to the circle chamber at the bottom (with Aoes on my tail) led to no signs of Raven. And what we did find…

“What in the living hell?” Aoes dropped to his knees beside a broken body lying on the ground, not seeming to care about the mess coating the floor.

Blood seeped into the knees of his pants and the dragging hem of his jacket. His shaky hands hovered around the perimeter of the female’s head, as if wanting to touch her but afraid to do so.

He pressed his fist to his mouth.

The woman appeared to be of reaper kind, as suggested by her coloring, clothing, and the unused tool hanging at her hip. The cut from her shoulder to waist was sharp, clean, and utterly ugly. Likely caused by a scythe wielded by a powerful force in a hard, downward strike.

My nostrils flared, taking in the surrounding scents. Raven had been here. Her strong aroma left no doubt about that fact. She reeked of shock and fear and determination.

The Killian had also been present, his scent lingering. He was likely responsible for the mess on the floor and the reaper’s violent departure. But Raven was no longer present, so⁠—

My chest squeezed, making each breath more difficult.

So…I continued my thought…given the absence of Raven’s body, she was―hopefully―still alive. And if she were alive, I would find her.

Somewhere above, beyond the tower walls, the calling caws of the circling crows found their way to me in the darkened chamber. The black birds appeared to have a special connection with Raven. I’d witnessed the way they were drawn to her, and I had no doubt they would help locate her. Although with my new soul hunter senses, the help was less needed than appreciated.

The flutter of wings drew my gaze upward. A couple of birds flew through the open doorways at the top of the stairs and circled the ceiling of the chamber.

My attention swiveled from the feathered beasts to the scene at my feet. Beneath the deceased reaper, a magical symbol was drawn upon the stone floor. Instinct told me the symbol was not directly related to the reaper’s demise. Although it was likely the reason for her presence in this place. Probably the thing that drew Raven down here…instead of upward, to the blotch-shadowed window above.

Smudges marred the symbol. In some places, the lines fractured or erased by an apparent hard swipe of a hand, and—I bent low and sniffed—blood. Raven’s blood.

She’d done this, destroyed the markings. Had she been injured in the process?

The amount of blood I detected as hers was slight, thank the reaping god, so whatever injury she incurred wasn’t likely to be grave.

Scattered stones and bones littered the chamber floor. Had they been positioned in particular spots on or within the symbol?

What magic had Raven undone?

Aoes drew in a ragged breath. “What happened to you, Chiara? Why were you here? And where is…”

Chiara? As in my distant relative? The one who was sent to the citadel a hundred years ago, never to return? The very relative whose journal was in my possession?

I stiffened. “You knew her?”

“Yes. I mean, sort of.” Aoes straightened the hairs around her face. “I thought I’d told you. Maybe I didn’t. Or maybe I was unclear. I don’t…”