An Isle of Mirrors (A Shade of Vampire #88) - Bella Forrest Page 0,12
was so against her. It wasn’t just that she refused to let him go. She preached this sanctity for our kin while she went ahead and did everything she’d asked us not to. Leading by example was never Death’s forte, hence all the calamities that transpired. The terrible consequences of her decisions.”
“What can you tell us about Joy, as a person?” Unending asked. “What is she like?”
“She’s cold. She’s a cold bitch. Joy doesn’t care who you are or what you want. Her sole objective is to protect the soul fae, and she will stop at nothing to do that,” Anunit said. “I told her, quite clearly, that I had absolutely no intention of touching or even interacting with them. That I only needed the Mixer. She did not care. Actually, I think my request annoyed her, since she couldn’t give it back to Death without telling her how she’d gotten it, in the first place. How she’d kept it stashed here for Spirit, Death’s arch enemy. In Joy’s defense, she didn’t know what Spirit was plotting at the time, but our maker was never really the merciful type, if you think about it. So, Joy got angry. She came at me with everything she had and nearly destroyed me. Which is why I need you. Perhaps now you understand.”
Unending nodded slowly. “I do. Well, we will hopefully see you soon.”
“Good luck,” Anunit said.
We continued up the path without her, but I could still feel her watching us from afar. “What do you make of Anunit so far?” I asked.
“She’s not to be fully trusted,” Unending said, echoing my own thoughts. “I feel like there’s something missing from her story, but Death wasn’t able to fill in those blanks, so we’ll have to figure it out ourselves. It doesn’t mean Anunit isn’t telling the truth, though. We have something she needs—we can try to fetch the Mixer and who knows what else the other two trials entail. She has something we need in return, so we’re operating on the basis of a trade.”
“So, it just means she might not be wholly forthcoming, perhaps to make sure we get her what she needs and can’t get on her own,” I replied.
“Probably. We’ll have to meet Joy for ourselves and see what kind of Reaper she is. Maybe Joy will have a different side of the story from what Anunit has told us. It’s just hard for me to believe anything a friend of Spirit’s says, especially a friend he trusted with so much of his knowledge. We’ll see where this leads, I suppose.”
Looking around, I noticed more eyes opening on the trees. They followed us as we made our way up the path, their branches rattling in the nocturnal wind. Long black shadows stretched across the moss carpet, blending into the nearby darkness. Only then did I realize what was happening here. “Hold on,” I said, stopping for a moment.
The light from the luminescent veins was concentrated around us but dimmed in the distance. The glow also followed us as we moved, as if the jungle were lighting our way through. That was why there was still darkness dominating the area, yet we had the courtesy of the green glow to keep us company.
“The forest… it’s giving us a guiding light,” I said, looking at Unending.
She quickly understood I was onto something. “Oh, wow. You’re right. This is interesting.”
“Won’t that give us away when we get closer to the village? Joy will see us coming from a mile away,” I replied.
“I think Joy will see us coming with or without the glow,” Unending said. “You heard Anunit. There are charms all over this place. Traps, too. I don’t think it’s just the jungle that makes our presence known.”
“You think maybe she already knows we’re coming.”
“Yes, so we must be careful,” Unending said, and we linked hands as we continued our journey north.
Unease festered inside me with every step I took. I was afraid, and I had every reason to be, but Unending’s presence by my side soothed me. I’d married the most powerful Reaper in existence, and I knew she’d stop at nothing to keep me alive.
Something clicked under my heel, and I froze. Unending gave me a terrified look. “Do not move,” she whispered, then dropped to her knees and cleared some of the moss around my boots, revealing a stone plate with familiar symbols carved into a pentagram pattern. “Oh… crap.”