Page 34 of Reaper’s Ruin (Reaper’s Ruin Trilogy #1)

Now I understood why Silverstreak had panicked. It wasn’t the storm. Of course it wasn’t. She lived with storms every day. No. That wasn’t what had sent her racing. She’d sensed this... thing. And from the way she’d ran, I now realized it must have been chasing us.

And with her long gone and me standing alone, I was the only thing left as prey.

I had no idea what it was, only that it was watching me with the focused intent of an apex predator that had just found its next meal.

My mind raced. Which animals were you supposed to run from? Which were you supposed to stand your ground? I tried to remember all the nature documentaries I’d watched, but nothing had ever mentioned giant black badger-bears with spikes crackling with electricity down their back.

It roared.

I ran.

Branches whipped at my face as I sprinted through the underbrush, no longer caring about direction or stealth.

Behind me, I could hear the creature crashing through the forest in pursuit, gaining ground with every powerful stride.

Each step was accompanied by the ominous crackle of electricity. I would never outrun it .

I spotted a fallen tree ahead and scrambled over it, ducking into the hollow space beneath. The rotting wood wouldn’t stop the creature if it found me, but it might buy me precious seconds to think.

The creature’s roars grew closer, accompanied by the sound of snapping branches and the heavy thud of its paws. I pressed myself deeper into the hollow, making myself as small as possible.

A shadow fell across my hiding place as the monster paused, sniffing the air. I held my breath, terror turning my muscles to stone.

Time seemed to stretch as the creature circled my log, growling low in its throat. Then, with another ear-splitting roar, it reared up and struck the fallen tree with its massive paws.

The wood splintered like kindling, exposing me completely.

I scrambled backward, knowing it was futile but unable to simply wait for death... or whatever happened to me if I died again in this temporary body. The creature advanced, its massive form blocking out the light, deadly claws crackling with blue sparks extending toward me.

This is it, I thought. I’m going to die.

Again.

God I wish I knew what would happen to my soul when I got eaten by an electric badger-bear in this form.

The creature lunged, and I screamed. But just before those terrible claws pierced my skin, a dark blur slammed into its side, driving it away from me. The impact was tremendous, sending both figures crashing into the underbrush.

Rhyker .

He rolled to his feet in one fluid motion, positioning himself between me and the beast. For a split second, his eyes found mine—wild with barely controlled rage and something else.

Fear .

For me .

“Are you hurt?” The words came out rough, urgent.

“N-no, I—”

The creature erupted from the underbrush with a bone-rattling roar, and Rhyker shoved me back. “Stay behind me.”

He had found me, and now he was fighting the monster with nothing but the hunting knife from his belt. I scurried toward the bushes, crouching low as I watched in terror.

He circled the beast warily, knife held low, his movements precise and controlled. The creature swiped at him with those electrified claws, but Rhyker ducked beneath them, slashing upward and drawing a roar of pain from the monster.

It was like watching a deadly dance. The beast was all raw power and fury, while Rhyker moved with lethal grace, every step calculated, every strike precise. He darted in and out of range, inflicting shallow wounds that seemed to enrage the creature further.

For what seemed like eternity, they fought, neither gaining the upper hand. Rhyker was faster, but the beast’s hide deflected many of his blows. The few that connected drew black blood that sizzled when it hit the forest floor.

Rhyker lunged in for another attack, his blade connecting once again.

But the monster spun with a rumbling snarl, its shoulder slamming into Rhyker, sending him flying backward.

He crashed into a tree truck with such force I thought he must be dead.

The creature charged toward him, and panic caused my heart to seize.

“Rhyker!” I screamed as he slumped to the ground.

The creature whirled toward the sound of my voice, its attention now fully fixed on me. It charged forward, jaws open, electricity crackling along its claws and between its bone spikes.

I was frozen, unable to move, with nowhere to run. In that endless second, I wondered what would happen if I died in this form. Would my soul simply return to its ghostly state? Or would I be erased completely, never to find my door, never to see my mother again? Never to see... Rhyker again?

It rose up on its hind legs, standing taller than a Grizzly. I stared at it, my heart rattling against my chest as I waited for whatever end awaited me, praying with everything I had that I’d just become a ghost again and still have a chance to find my mother.

But just as it started to descend, Rhyker appeared, launching himself between me and the charging beast. He yanked me against him, one arm wrapping around my waist like an iron band, pulling me tight against his chest.

And then—it happened.

With a sound like tearing silk, massive shadow wings erupted from his back, unfurling with explosive force before wrapping around us in a protective cocoon. Darkness enveloped us completely, sealing us away from the world.

In that sudden, perfect darkness, I could feel his heartbeat thundering against mine, his breath harsh against my hair. I looked up to find his face inches from mine, his eyes no longer gray but swirling with living shadow.

“Rhyker,” I whispered, awed and terrified all at once.

The creature’s attack hit the shadow wings with bone-jarring force, but they absorbed the impact like the world’s strongest shield, not even budging. The monster roared in frustration, the sound muffled through the barrier of Rhyker’s wings.

For one breathless moment, Rhyker looked down at me, his eyes softening as they looked into mine. Then in the span of a second, they transformed, something fierce and protective and deeply possessive burning in those shadow-swirled eyes.

His jaw set with determination. “Stay here,” he commanded.

Before I could respond, his wings snapped open, releasing a blast of shadow energy that sent the beast staggering backward. Rhyker was on it in an instant, his movements now supernaturally fast, his knife seeming to draw power from the shadows themselves.

This time, there was no contest. Rhyker moved like vengeance incarnate, his wings sweeping around to confuse and disorient the creature. When it lunged at where he had been, Rhyker was already behind it, his blade driving deep into the base of its skull.

The beast convulsed, blue lightning crackling along its spine as it collapsed to the forest floor, its massive body twitching once before going still forever.

In the sudden silence, Rhyker stood over his kill, wings spread wide in a display that was both terrifying and breathtaking.

The shadows seemed to pulse with each breath he took, rippling like living smoke in the forest air.

Blood—his own and the beast’s—stained his torn hunting jacket, but he seemed oblivious to his injuries.

Slowly, the wings began to dissolve, wisps of shadow fading back beneath his skin until only Rhyker remained—a man once more, but something far more than a man as well.

He turned to me then, chest heaving with exertion, eyes gradually fading from swirling shadow back to stormy gray.

I stood frozen, unable to move, unable to speak, my heart hammering so hard I was certain it would burst from my chest. My breath came in short, terrified pants, but not from fear of the monster.

Rhyker had transformed. He had manifested his Reaper powers in physical form. For me.

And gods help me, it was the most spectacular thing I had ever seen.