Crimson Frost (Mythos Academy #4)(57)
Author: Jennifer Estep

"We think the Reapers are inside already, getting ready for the transformation ritual," I told her in a low voice.

"I can’t believe they want to put Loki’s soul into that boy’s body," Grandma muttered. "That’s pure evil, even for the Reapers."

"They’re not going to do that because we’re going to stop them." I made myself sound braver and more confident than I felt. "But first, we need to figure out how to get past the guards and get inside. Logan and the others are probably in the main concert hall."

Grandma’s lips curved up into a sly smile. "You just leave that to me, pumpkin."

She got to her feet and winked at me before heading to the far end of the park.

"Grandma!" I hissed. "Grandma!"

But she didn’t pay any attention to me.

Alexei put his hand on my shoulder. "Come on," he said. "She’s doing her part. Let’s do ours. We can come up on the Reapers’ blind side while she distracts them."

Stomach churning, I nodded and followed him.

Morgan, Alexei, and I left our hiding spot. We went back through the park down to the end of the block, out of the Reapers’ line of sight, then jogged over to the auditorium. A couple of cars were parked on the street, so we were able to move from vehicle to vehicle until we ended up crouching behind the car closest to where the Reapers were standing guard.

Morgan drew an arrow out from the quiver on her back and nocked it in her bow. Alexei hefted his swords in his hands, while I tightened my grip on Vic. I didn’t know exactly what Grandma had in mind, but we were ready in case things didn’t go according to her plan.

Grandma appeared at the opposite end of the street and walked toward the Reapers at a slow pace that was not at all like her normal, brisk stride. She hunched over and shuffled forward, as though she was older than she really was. The sun glinted off the silver strands in her iron-gray hair, making it look more salt than pepper. I don’t know how she managed it, but she suddenly changed from a vibrant woman into an old, decrepit crone. She sort of reminded me of Raven, although I couldn’t imagine Raven ever being young.

The Reapers whirled around at the sound of the coins jingling together on the ends of Grandma’s many scarves, but they relaxed when they realized that it was just one woman approaching them.

Grandma lifted her head as she neared the two men. "Beautiful day, isn’t it?" she called out in a cheery voice.

The Reapers nodded. Grandma kept her slow, steady pace up until she got in between the two men, then she pretended to stumble over a crack in the sidewalk. She tumbled to the ground, scarves fluttering and coins jingling even louder and harsher than before.

"Oh!" she cried out, rocking back and forth on the concrete. "Oh, my hip!"

The Reapers looked at each other, then at my grandma, who kept right on moaning and clutching her left hip. Finally, one of them stepped forward and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Come on, lady," he growled. "It was just a little fall. You can’t possibly be hurt that bad-"

Grandma rolled over, pulled her sword out from underneath her coat, and stabbed the Reaper in the chest with it. He grunted and fell on top of her.

"Now, Morgan! Now!" I hissed.

The Valkyrie rose up from behind the car and drew back her bowstring. A moment later, the second Reaper was down, thanks to the arrow Morgan had just put into his back.

The three of us rushed over to the Reapers. Alexei helped me roll the man off Grandma and help her to her feet. Grandma Frost dusted herself off and looked down at the two dead men.

"No one ever suspects an old woman of being dangerous," she said, twirling her sword in her hand. "I’ll get these two out of sight just in case there are any more of them lurking around out here. You three go on inside, and be careful. You don’t know what you’ll find when you get in there, pumpkin."

For a moment, a blank look filled her violet eyes, and I knew she was talking about Logan and how it might already be too late to save him. Worry knotted my stomach, but I pushed away the awful dread. Instead, I hugged Grandma Frost tight, then turned and followed Alexei and Morgan into the auditorium.

We eased inside the entrance and found ourselves in a long, wide hallway. Most of the lights were off, since the auditorium wasn’t officially open for the concert yet, and shadows stretched out as far as I could see, oozing over everything. Even just standing by the entrance, I could feel that something was very, very wrong here.

The three of us stayed together in a loose formation as we hurried down the hallway. Alexei took point, with me in the middle, and Morgan bringing up the rear, all of us looking and listening for the slightest hint of trouble or danger. We went from one hallway to the next, but we didn’t see any Reapers-we didn’t see anyone at all. No staff members sweeping the floors, no Mythos kids getting a drink of water from one of the fountains, no members of the Protectorate patrolling the auditorium. The silence made me worry that much more.

Finally, we reached a corner and peered around it. Two more Reapers stood in front of a series of doors that led into the main concert hall. Unlike the men outside, these Reapers had black robes on and their swords in their hands. My heart sank. We wouldn’t be able to take them by surprise like we had the other guards.

We pulled back and huddled in the hallway, debating what to do.

"The Reapers must already be inside the main chamber," Alexei whispered. "We’re not going to be able to get past those guards without making a lot of noise. Even if Morgan picked one of them off with an arrow, the other could still shout out and let the others know we were here."

Morgan tapped her finger against her bow, making green sparks flicker in the air. "Maybe we don’t have to go through them. Maybe we can go around them instead."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"There’s another entrance to the concert hall, a catwalk that looks down over the whole area."

"How do you know that?" Alexei asked.

"Because I got totally bored during last year’s concert, so I decided to go exploring with Samson. We paid one of the sound guys three hundred bucks to let us go through the control room and onto the catwalk."

I rolled my eyes. "You mean the two of you snuck off so you could go make out somewhere."

Morgan gave me a rueful grin. "I’ve told you before, Gwen. Sometimes, being the school slut comes in handy. I just wish Samson-"

She bit her lip, but pain filled her eyes, and more sparks of magic crackled in the air around her. I knew what she wanted to say-that she wished Samson were here, that he was still alive. But Vivian had killed him at the Crius Coliseum. Despite the fact that Samson had been Jasmine’s boyfriend, Morgan really had loved him. I put my hand on her arm, telling her that I understood. Her mouth tightened, and she gripped her bow a little tighter.