Naomi Grim (The Silver Scythe Chronicles) Part 1 (5 page)

I was never sure how I felt about the
possibility of being betrothed to Chase. He seemed happy about it.
I knew and trusted Chase, so I figured if I had be to betrothed, it
may as well be to him.

Bram threw my bedroom door open. I made a
mental note to start locking my door. "Twelve of them, and we
caught every single one!"

Chase sat up. He idolized my brother and had
probably relished in the fact of being his future
brother-in-law.

"Bram, you know you weren't supposed to go out
there," Keira said.

"I know, but I'm eighteen now and I should
start acting like a man. I don't want to wait for my Confirmation."
If I had said what Keira had, Bram would have told me to shut up.
But he smiled at Keira. "Why, were you worried about
me?"

"No, I didn't think twice about it," she said,
standing up. She slid her feet into her flip-flops, so I knew she
was preparing to leave. She usually fled the scene when Bram
flirted. I didn't blame her. There was no point in loving a person
you could never be with. She pushed past Bram as she
left.

"I'll walk you home," Bram offered.

"I'm good," she said as she headed to the
stairs.

Bram, looking dejected, slunk out of the room.
As far as I knew, Keira was his only weak spot.

"So that's still going on," Chase said after
Bram was gone.

"What?" I asked.

"He still has feelings for her. I thought
losing fifty years would have taken care of that. It doesn't make
any sense. Your parents aren't going to wait two years for Keira to
turn eighteen. The whole thing's a shame really."

"Why?" I asked. "Keira deserves better than my
ass of a brother."

Chase took a marble ball from my dresser and
passed it from one hand to the other. "I think she's good for him.
She calms him down. Keira's the only one he listens to. Besides,
think of the poor girl he’ll marry. She'll always live in Keira's
shadow. His wife will never really have his heart."

"They'll get over each other eventually. Mother
told me you don’t always love your betrothed at first, but you
learn to love them."

Chase shrugged. "Well, we'll never know, now
will we?"

"Want something to eat?" I had the sudden
desire to not be alone with Chase in my bedroom.

"Nah, I should get home. I just wanted to come
by and say congrats."

"Thanks." I walked Chase to the door just as
Father was coming in.

"Chase, how are you?" Father asked.

"I'm fine, Mr. Nox. Thanks for asking," Chase
said as he left.

Father smiled and shut the door behind him.
"He's a nice kid. Too bad his father doesn't know how to play the
game." He kissed me on my forehead as Mother called us all into the
kitchen.

Mother rubbed seasoning onto a chicken breast.
"Rosaleen and her family will be joining us for dinner
tonight."

"Why?" Bram asked, even though he knew very
well why. Our parents had been speaking with Rosaleen's family for
several months about marriage.

Mother flipped the chicken over to repeat her
actions on the other side. "Bram, I expect you to be on your best
behavior."

My older brother slumped. "But Rosaleen looks
like a velociraptor."

"Bram!" Mother said.

Father put his hands on Bram's shoulders. "Son,
you have to understand, your behavior has made it hard for us to
find you a wife." Father was correct. Every girl in Farrington had
a crush on Bram, but parents feared pairing their daughters with
him. To them, he was a reckless boy who would shorten their
daughters’ lives, like he had done with Keira.

"In other words, take what you can get," Dorian
said.

Father shot him a look, and Dorian muttered an
apology.

"Don't you want to be Confirmed?" Father asked.
"That will never happen until you are engaged."

"Why does it have to be her? I haven't said
more than five words to the girl in my lifetime. I'm pretty sure
she detests me," Bram said. "And she has bad skin."

I didn't know Rosaleen, but I felt sorry for
her being talked about like unwanted goods at a rummage
sale.

Father sat in his seat at the head of the table
and took his pipe from his shirt pocket. "Well, I'm sorry, son. We
can't wait for Keira. Even if we did, Emery wouldn't give her to
you."

"Who said anything about Keira?" Bram
snapped.

"Don't worry, Bram. You'll learn to love
Rosaleen," Mother said softly. She said that so often that I
wondered how long it had taken her to love Father. "They will be
here promptly at seven, so do what you need to do. Don't be
late."

That left Bram a few hours to get groomed and
primped for his future fiancée. I planned on spending the time
catching up on some reading. Who knew how much time we'd have once
we began this assignment?

"Imagine what your children will look like,"
Dorian teased as the three of us trudged up the stairs to our
rooms.

Bram shoved him against the
banister.

"Careful!" I shouted.

"Just wait 'til it's your turn and they hook
you up with some loser. I'm going to laugh my ass off," Bram warned
Dorian.

Rosaleen and her parents arrived promptly at
seven, and she looked every bit as velociraptor-like as Bram had
described. If my parents thought this girl would get Bram's mind
off a beauty like Keira, they were sadly mistaken.

Raiden, Rosaleen's dad, scooped some salad onto
his plate. "So it's quite an honor Dunningham bestowed on your
family today."

Father nodded. "It is. We're very
grateful."

I was sure our upcoming assignment made Bram
even more desirable to Rosaleen's parents. If they married before
we moved to the Upper Estates, Rosaleen would move and enjoy the
sweet life with us.

Dorian tried to pretend he wasn't reading the
book that sat on his lap. Bram refused to look up from his plate.
He and Rosaleen sat side by side and ignored each other.

I felt sorry for the girl, so I tried to make
conversation. "I like your bracelet." I did like it. Her bracelet
was silver and dainty with a diamond-encrusted skull and crossbones
charm on it.

"Thanks. I got it for my birthday."

"Oh, what was that like?" Eighteenth birthdays
were a big deal in Nowhere—even more special than the thirteenth
birthday. It was all about rituals. On the thirteenth, you earned
the ability to collect lives. On the eighteenth, you could get
married, live on your own, and have all the privileges bestowed on
the other adult Grims.

"It was the best day of my life. I had a
masquerade ball and wore a beautiful gray ball gown. Bram, I
invited you, but you didn't come."

"I was on assignment," my brother muttered,
still staring at his plate. I knew he didn't like her, but he could
at least look at the girl.

I tried to think of something else to say, but
I had never been good at small talk. Anyway, she was there for
Bram, not me.

After the adults discussed the perks of the
Upper Estates and praised Mr. Dunningham to the high heavens, the
men retired to Father’s study. Bram tried to follow, but Father
quickly reminded him that he had a guest. Rosaleen's mother, Mira,
helped Mother clear the dishes. I kicked Dorian underneath the
table and pointed at the ceiling, indicating that we should leave
our brother alone with his date. Bram glared at us as we
left.

Up in my room, I lay on my bed, engrossed in
the dark world of Edgar Allan Poe. I had just stuffed my mouth with
gummy bears when a commotion coming from downstairs tore me away
from a twisted story.

I left my room and stood at the top of the
staircase, where Dorian was already planted. Rosaleen and her
mother were headed toward the door.

"I don't know who you think you are, boy, but
someone needs to put you in your place! You have a lot to learn
about being a man," Raiden yelled at Bram. Then he turned to
Father. "Get that boy under control!" He went on and on about how
he should have listened to everyone else.

Father lifted his hands, about to say
something, then thought better of it. Bram must have really done
something awful that couldn't be defended. I noticed him sitting on
the living room sofa, looking very pleased with himself. Our guests
left, slamming the door behind them.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Father
demanded. He very seldom got upset with Bram, even though he should
have more often. I could hear our mother slamming cupboards shut in
the kitchen. That's what she did when she was upset in lieu of
yelling.

Dorian went halfway down the stairs. "What did
he do?"

"He put the girl in a headlock and said he'd
only release her if she could name every one of her Jurassic
ancestors. Raiden had to pry him off."

Dorian's cheeks puffed as he tried to stifle a
giggle. I held in a laugh myself.

Downstairs, Bram looked even more satisfied. "I
was just joking, Father. No one has a sense of humor around
here."

"Go to your room. I don't want to see you for
the rest of the night," Father said through gritted
teeth.

"I'm a man now, Father. I don't think it's
appropriate for you to be sending me to my room
anymore."

"When you act like a man, I'll
treat you like a man. Do as I said." Bram still hadn't moved.
"
Now
!" Father
bellowed.

I jumped. Father never lost his temper like
that.

Slowly, Bram raised himself from the sofa and
made his way toward the stairs. Each stair creaked underneath his
black boots. He took his time, as if trying to show Father he
wasn't afraid of him. Father went into his study and slammed the
door.

"I know what you're doing," I said as Bram
slunk past me.

"What? What am I doing, smartass?"

"You're trying to buy yourself time until Keira
turns eighteen. It's not going to work," I told him.

He looked like he was going to deliver an
insult before his face softened. "I don't care what Grim law says.
I won't marry someone I don't want to be with."

Bram stalked down the hallway and slammed his
bedroom door. My heart was confused. I didn't want him to be with
Keira, but I also believed that he shouldn't be forced to marry a
girl he couldn't even look at.

Preparations for our assignment began the next
morning. Keira and Josh came over at eight on the dot. When Mr.
Dunningham said that he would be checking in on us, I didn't take
that to mean he would be present at our very first lesson, but he
was. One of his assistants, Doyle, would be leading our lessons.
Doyle was a handsome guy with thick, curly hair, a substantial
mustache, and pale skin.

Mother didn't care much for pets, but of course
she said nothing when Dunningham ushered his pit bull and
bloodhound, named Black and Blue, into our home. At least they were
good dogs who sat quietly in the corner. Only Black, the pit bull,
would growl from time to time.

Mother had been dispatched earlier that morning
and was preparing to leave. There was a very good chance she would
not return before we left. She kissed us each on the forehead,
Keira and Josh included, and told us to make her proud.

She gave me an extra hug. "Be careful,
Darkness. Remember their ways are not like ours." She went into the
kitchen, and I heard the chamber door open and close. I hoped my
mother wouldn't be gone for too long.

We sat around the living room with our
electronic tablets, ready to take notes. Mr. Dunningham sat on our
father's chair, rubbing his temples and making me nervous. I wished
he hadn't come. Father, instead of working in his study, worked in
the kitchen where he could still hear what was going on.

Doyle cracked his knuckles. "I'm sure you are
already aware of the importance of this task. You must know what it
means to Nowhere as well as your families. This assignment is to be
taken seriously. Here is your task."

I had my fingers poised on the screen, ready to
type.

"You will fit in amongst the students at
Kennedy High to the best of your ability. You need to split up, as
you will cover more ground that way. You need to have your eyes and
ears open. Look for students who appear to be troubled and
rebellious. Try to find the culprits. Learn as many details of
their plan as possible so you will be prepared to collect the
lifestones immediately. Not being prepared will give the Foragers
the opportunity to swoop in."

Bram laughed. "That's not going to happen.
Trust me."

Doyle raised his dark, bushy eyebrows at Bram.
"Don’t underestimate them. They've beaten us to the punch
before."

Yes, they had. On more than one occasion a Grim
had shown up to collect a life, only to find out a Forager had
gotten there first.

That was a sensitive topic for Doyle. He,
Dunningham's other assistants, and the Watchers didn't collect
lives since they were required to be at Dunningham's beck and call.
Their lives depended on the tithes, which meant that each family
was required to give ten percent of their accumulated years
annually—like a tax. The more lives we earned, the more years
Dunningham's staff received.