“Oh?” It was all I could do not to groan.
“But before I sign it, I would make one request of you.”
I tried too hard not to grimace and ended up giving Cindy a phony smile. She saw through in a heartbeat.
“Don’t look so glum. I haven’t even told you what my request is.”
“Well?”
“I want you to complete a two week training course here in Hell to better prepare you for demonic encounters.”
“Do what?” I stepped back as she grabbed my arm and shushed me, casting a nervous glance towards the angels.
“Look, Coreen was Grim’s second-in-command. She died at the hands of renegade demons. Saul, Grim’s previous second-in-command, was more than likely killed by demons too, even though Grim would have everyone believe his death was inconclusive,” Cindy smirked.
“What’s that have to do with me?”
“As Grim’s new and improved second-in-command, you should be skilled enough to elude a similar fate. If another reaper dies at the hands of demons, things could get ugly for us down here.” She sighed and shook her head. “I’m trying to live up to my title as a respectable ruler and as a woman. You should be doing the same. Just take the training course. Then, you and I can both sleep better at night.”
She had lost me somewhere around “Grim’s new and improved second-in-command.” What the fuck? I could have cried, but I just laughed instead. Doubled-over, gasping for air, ridiculous laughter.
Cindy drew away too quickly and nearly tripped backwards. I reached out and caught her arm, still wildly laughing.
“I’ll do it,” I said. “I’ll do it, just leave out the second-in-command bit. You couldn’t have possibly heard that from a reliable source.”
Cindy raised an eyebrow and steadied herself before pulling her arm out of my grasp. “Reliable enough, but no matter. Take the course and you can count on my signature.”
“Everything okay?” Maalik ascended to the balcony with a worried frown.
“Fine,” Cindy answered. “Lana just saved me from a dreadful fall.” She cast me a pleading smile, wanting our little discussion kept private.
I wanted to tell her she could burn the proposal, but then maybe she was right. Maybe I should be reaching for more, making a name for myself.
“Are you ready to retire for the evening?” Maalik settled next to me and folded back his wings.
“I’m ready to retire for life,” I mumbled as Cindy disappeared through the glass doors.
Grim and Josie were dragging me back to school. Horus was pressuring me into illegally tracking potential throne replacements. I had to keep an eye on Winston, the new boy-king. And now Cindy wanted to turn me into a demon-proof ninja.
What had the wise Khadija said?
“This will not be your greatest challenge, and if you are strong, it will not be your last.”
Khadija grant me strength. And truckloads of it.
Acknowledgements
I’m a very lucky girl, and not just because I finally published my first book, but because of all the wonderful people in my life who helped make this crazy pipedream a reality.
Justina Roquet, my lovely genius of a sister, who helped immensely with the treacherous editing process. Thank you for making sure my heroes have shiny black hair and not shiny back hair.
Diana Kindle and Debbie Scotten, who tackled last minute typos and grammatical errors, you ladies are the best! Thank you for your enthusiasm and friendship.
Brad and Tara Justice, thank you for informing me that I had a terrible short story, but a great prologue for a series.
Thanks also goes to my comrades in the business of wielding words, who so graciously took the time to read and critique my work or simply offer advice on the finer points of publishing: Ricia Mainhardt, Charles de Lint, Robert Fanning, Lisa Kessler, Darla Cook, MaryJanice Davidson, Lance Carbuncle, Alex Colvin, Kimberly Frost, Jim Butcher, and Christine Wicker.
Friends and family, whose encouragement and enthusiasm made this whole project worthwhile: Mom and Dad, Wendi, Danetta, Danny, Nikki, Robin, Rachel, Jenni, Jennie, Jill, Candy, Bilan, Char, Ron, Mrs. Brause and her flying perfect, and all my early online readers. Thank you all.
If I’ve missed anyone, go ahead and send me an angry email at [email protected], and I promise to thank you from the bottom of my heart next time.
Book 2 of Lana Harvey, Reapers Inc.
The promise of peace in Limbo City is threatened once again, but this time the terrorists have a more specific target in mind: Lana Harvey. The up and coming reaper thought passing her classes at the Reaper Academy was going to be her biggest challenge, but when a rebel demon sends her apartment up in flames, she realizes that her victories from the previous year haven’t gone so unnoticed after all…
1 Graveyard Shift Page 23