Lady Reaper by Christina Bauer

Author:Christina Bauer [Bauer, Christina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781956114065
Publisher: Monster House Books

12

MYLA

Whoa. Everything has changed.

The trees are now more numerous and hefty. Sticky tar covers the ground. The wind moans. Spots of fire flare to life on the ground, reminding me of bread crumbs from that old fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel. A chill crawls up my back.

“Wow,” says Cissy. “The ghouls have upgraded this ride. Before, it was just a dumb walk through some lame trees. Now it’s really the Demon Woods.”

Cis links her arm with mine. Together, we step deeper into the forest. With every passing moment, my inner wrath monster becomes more alert. All of which means one thing.

Lady Reaper is near.

I smile so hard, my face hurts.

Minutes pass. Cis and I march on. The atmosphere presses in around us. Overhead, the canopy of branches becomes so thick, it blots out the sky. Our only source of light comes from the sparkling embers on the forest floor.

My inner wrath demon roars with excitement. Trouble is close. All my senses go on high alert. Every snapping twig turns deafeningly loud. My tail arcs over my shoulder, ready for battle.

Cis and I reach a decision point in the trail. Four different paths spread before us. We pause.

“Which way should we go?” asks Cissy.

“No idea.”

The hairs on the back of my stand on end. Someone’s watching. Little by little, I angle my head for a better look. Through the trees, I spy a figure striding along an earlier stretch of trail.

It’s Lady Reaper.

Biting my lips together, I stifle a shout of joy. My tail shivers, which is its way of showing excitement.

Regina Reaper looks exactly like she did on TV, including her pale skin, all-black eyes, and fitted gown. She even sports a tiny top hat and walking stick. There’s no sign of her scythe yet, but that weapon can’t be far off.

Heh heh heh. Gotcha.

I refocus on Cissy, who’s still focused on the break in the trail. “Do you mind checking out the different paths?” I ask. “I want to see something nearby.”

“What kind of something?”

“A rogue squirrel.” Not my best lie.

Cissy shoots me the side-eye. “Be honest. Do you see a demon?”

I set my hand on my heart. “No demons, I swear.” I do see a ghoul, though.

“Sure, check out the squirrel.” Cissy nibbles at her lower lip. “I’ll figure out which way they went.”

No question who they are here. Zeke and Paulette. Cissy’s eyes are still glowing red. For now, there’s no redirecting her from Zeke.

Turns out, Lady Reaper is rather spry. While I’ve been talking to Cissy, the ghoulette has stepped off the main trail and walked deeper under the cover of trees. The woods are dark, so it’s hard to see much, but I can still hear Lady Reaper easily enough.

“Zelene, Zelene, Zelene,” she whispers.

I pause mid-step. Who the Hell is Zelene?

Lady Reaper slams her walking stick onto the ground. It expands into a massive scythe. The curved blade rests against the ground.

“Zelene, Zelene, Zelene,” repeats Lady Reaper.

Green light shines from top of scythe’s long handle. That brightness now oozes down the handle-rod to spread across the length of the scythe blade.

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