Reaper

Chapter 16

As I watched Anna walk along the path that led to the Ravencroft clearing, I heard Unity say, "Are you sure that this is a good idea?"

"In all honesty, not really," Thomas said.

"We shouldn't go, then," Lauren said. Her eyes remained glaring at the ground, refusing to look at me or Thomas.

"We have to, Lauren. We already discussed this," I said quietly. She said nothing. "We should go. The darker it gets, the less time we have."

"Be safe," Unity said.

"We will," Claire assured her.

"We'll try to be back as soon as we can," Thomas said.

I looked at Unity, meeting her eyes. "Make sure Anna doesn't try to follow us." She nodded and my gaze shifted to Thomas. Dark blue surrounded him and he was looking at me, an unreadable expression on his face. I couldn't tell if it was worry, fear, or something completely different. Shaking myself from my thoughts, I asked, "Do you know how to get to the Rabinowitzes?"

"Unfortunately, yes." He sent one last look to Unity that I didn't understand and he turned towards the group of trees Unity had pointed to earlier. Claire, Lauren, and I followed as he started towards them. Once we'd reached the trees, he paused and looked at me. "Are you completely sure about this, Morgana?"

I nodded. "I'm sure."

He held up a hand, his palm facing up. A second later, a small ball of light appeared in his hand, lighting the immediate area around us a little more. "Let's go, then."

The remaining daylight barely broke through thick trees as we walked, Thomas's light allowing us to see through the near darkness. It didn't stop us from tripping over occasional tree roots, though.

"Oof!" Claire grunted as she tripped over yet another root. Thomas stopped to wait for us as I helped her stand. "Why do they have to live in such a dense part of the forest?" she asked, irritation flooding her voice.

"It will get less dense as we get closer," Thomas said as we started walking again.

"Have you been to their home often?" Lauren asked.

"Only a few times. Each time I was with my father."

"Why was your father there?"

"Steven Rabinowitz raises cattle and they occasionally escape their pen. Whenever they ended up near our house, Father and I would take them back."

"Would? You say it like you don't anymore."

"I don't. I stopped going with Father once I found out that they hunted elementals."

"How did you find out?" I asked quietly.

He stopped again, turning to look at me as he did so. In the dim light, his eyes were dark and unreadable. It was slightly terrifying. "Ask Will and Aiden when we find them."

"How-"

"They can explain it better."

"Does it have anything to do with Travis and Zackary?" Lauren asked.

"It's complicated," he said. His voice held a tone of finality, indicating that any further questions that we might have would receive no answer.

As we began walking again, Claire said, "I still don't understand why they hunt elementals. They shouldn't be hunted just because they're able to control something that the rest of us aren't able to."

"No one is certain on why some people started hunting elementals. Some think that it's because people were scared and some think that it's because others wanted them to stop using their abilities."