Grimm Consequences Read Online Free Page A

thinking she was as calm as she appeared. She was pissed but good. And I was this close to catching serious hell. “Go ahead and lie to me again, Nate Grimm.”
    For a split second I thought about throwing out another line of bullshit, but now both her dark brows lifted, daring me. She had me by the balls on this one and she knew it.
    Hell’s bells.
    I wasn’t going to let on just how worried I was, but I had to give her something so she wouldn’t be surprised when the Judges finally showed up at my door. If there was one thing I knew about Tess, it was that she’d fight like hell to protect the people she cared about. And that’s what had me worried.
    I released her on a sigh and ran a hand through my hair. “I’m in trouble, Tess.”
    Her expression registered her confusion. Obviously, that wasn’t what she’d expected to hear. “Say what now?”
    â€œBecause of what I did to Sebille.” When she gaped at me, seconds away from launching into a tirade, I pressed a kiss to her forehead, then went to sit on the edge of our bed. “There are . . . rules about taking a person’s soul,” I explained. “When I killed Sebille, I broke a damned serious one.”
    â€œSo . . . what?” she asked, shaking her head a little. “You’re going to get written up or something? I mean, she had it coming.”
    â€œDamn right, she did,” I agreed. “But that might not matter.”
    â€œSon of a bitch,” Tess spat. “We’re already dealing with the Tribunal about Sebille’s body disappearing, for fuck’s sake! You can’t tell me that Al’s now giving you shit about how Sebille died. I swear to God, Nate—”
    â€œIt’s not Al,” I interrupted before she could really get going. Al Addin was a hard ass, but he was fair. And Tess was his favorite Enforcer. There was no way he’d have been critical of me taking out Sebille to protect her. “I’m talking about the Reapers’ laws. We’re not allowed to take people before their appointed time, sweetheart. At some point I’m going to have to face the consequences of what I’ve done.”
    Her eyes narrowed at me. “Which means what exactly?”
    I spread my hands in something of a shrug. “No clue. I’ve never pulled this kind of stunt before.” I took a deep breath and let it out on a heavy sigh. “But I think it’s going to be pretty bad. Tonight, when I was poisoned by the Jabberwocky, I saw one of the Judges.”
    She tilted her head a little, eying me warily. “You were delirious, Nate. You could’ve been seeing pink elephants in tutus playing trombones and it would’ve seemed real.”
    â€œI thought so, too, at first,” I told her. “But then I saw him again.”
    â€œWhere?”
    â€œIn the security footage from the Asylum,” I confessed. “That light anomaly. It was a Reaper in his ethereal state. And I caught a glimpse of his face, just enough to know who it was. But I couldn’t cop to what I saw with Al standing there. It would’ve led to too many questions about who I really am.”
    She ran her hands through her hair and let it fall back onto her shoulders, a habit she had when she was agitated and her thoughts were racing. “And this guy is powerful enough to just waltz outta there with a five-hundred-pound monster tucked under his arm?”
    I shook my head. “Size is irrelevant. Reapers who aren’t connected to a living person have to get their energy from somewhere. They thrive on death, sorrow, chaos.... The Asylum is brimming with negative energy. He probably could’ve carted out half a dozen giants on his back without breaking a sweat. This guy, he’s bad news, Tess. Far worse than any other Reaper I’ve ever known.”
    â€œSo, what, you actually hung out with this asshole?” she prompted.
    â€œWe