she felt for someone who’s long gone. Tomorrow, when the sun comes out, she’ll come back, prickly and surly as always.”
“She’s extremely emotional.” Sissa giggled. “A pleasure to read, if I’m honest. I’m never bored with Joy.”
“Off her rocker would be more accurate,” Loren said. “She scares me sometimes. That volcanic temperament. By the stars, if she gets the wrong idea into her head, it is downright impossible to make her see the truth. I’ve had to bend her spirit a couple of times to calm her down, though she doesn’t remember it.”
“Why? What did she do?” I asked.
“Oh, she worked herself into a frenzy. Cooped up in the village, with a broken heart and no other Reaper to talk to… I’ve always believed Death could’ve organized some shifts to secure our protection, but no. It all fell on Joy. She snaps a lot. It’s out of her control, I’m afraid, but our abilities serve us well in that respect.”
Unending stilled, giving me a dark look. It was so brief, I barely noticed it before she turned and smiled at the king and princess. “Please excuse us for a moment,” she said. “My husband and I need to discuss something in private. We’ll be right back.”
We got up and left Loren and Sissa by the fire. They didn’t seem offended, choosing to turn their attention to the enormous fruit platter that had been sitting in front of them for the better part of an hour. I followed Unending across the village and all the way back to the edge of the protective spell where we’d entered.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Anunit is here,” she said, her tone clipped. “She reached out. Telepathically.”
“When?”
“Just now.” She sighed. “Said she needed to talk to us. It’s urgent.”
I frowned. “Couldn’t she just tell you? You know, while she was on the line?”
“I have no idea,” Unending said. “Let’s just see what she has to say.”
Already nervous, I looked around and over my shoulder, worried that someone might see us. “Do you think we should turn invisible? For our own safety,” I suggested.
“We can’t,” Unending replied. “I think Joy put blockers in place the moment she realized we were inside. We’ll have to be careful, my love.”
By the time we reached the invisible membrane, I was inching closer to the edge. It had gone surprisingly well with the soul fae. Even Joy had sort of warmed up to us, and I feared we could easily screw it up if we weren’t careful. But Anunit had demanded our presence. She’d taken risks herself by coming so close to the village just so she could speak to us. Then again, like I’d told Unending, she could’ve communicated her issue without even approaching this place.
“Something doesn’t add up here,” I warned her.
“We’ll find out soon enough,” Unending replied, carefully looking beyond the protective shield. A figure emerged from the dark jungle, where the night reigned supreme and heavy, keeping every celestial body’s light away. Anunit was here, and my stomach felt heavy with lead. “What couldn’t bear waiting?” my wife hissed, pressing her palms against the death magic spell. The motion served to help the Reaper see us both through the shielding membrane. The spell was definitely easier to influence from the inside than from the outside.
“Ah. That’s pretty cool,” Anunit replied with a flat smile. “Didn’t know you could do that.”
“Talk, Anunit,” Unending warned her. “What was it that you couldn’t communicate telepathically?”
The Reaper crossed her arms, stopping a few feet from the edge. “I wanted to check whether you were both okay. I haven’t heard from you since we parted ways.”
“Are you kidding me?” I snapped. “We’re dealing with your damn trial, Anunit. What the hell is wrong with you?”
“I take it you’ve met Joy?”
Unending cleared her throat. “You cannot be serious.”
“What? I like danger,” Anunit replied dryly. “Plus, I wanted to be here when you got the Mixer in case Joy decides to go all wrathful on you two.”
“You want to be here in case we’re obliterated by Joy? You failed to mention the capabilities of her scythe, by the way,” Unending shot back. “Or the fact that she’s not as powerful as a First Tenner, but rather technically a First Tenner!”
The Reaper shrugged. “I needed you in there. The less you know, the better. Trust me. So, where is it? Where’s the Mixer? I can take it off your hands now.”
“We don’t have it yet,” I said. “We were in the middle of getting to it