The Reaper (S E Rise's The Fade series Book 1)

by S E Rise

  Her father let loose of Brin and stepped forward to confront the one eyed stranger.

  “Dad, what’s wrong?” she said and the old man put up his fisticuffs and caught Marley unaware. Marley went down and began laughing. Brin’s father being the honorable man that he was waited for Marley to get back to his feet.

  “You stay away from us.” He said and rotated his upraised fists of fury. That was all that I needed to see, I began to cross the distance. He turned and laughed at my approached.

  “What are you going to do Jack?” He said and the old man looked to me then back to Marley.

  “I’ll take your head off next time asshole. That’s what I’ll do.” Her father said thinking that Marley was speaking to him. He swung again but Marley was much the wiser this time. He ducked and then came up and around the old man. Wrapped his arms around him and pulled a vale of shadow over the both of them. The Shadow ate them and began to shrink. Brin called out to her father and after a moment of receiving no response began to panic. The old man was gone and no one had noticed his disappearance but me and Brin. The fellow trying to gum the unconscious guy to death passed out next to his victim, someone was doing CPR on Kimberly Mabel Long and over a dozen people were crying. Three individuals of the younger generation had gotten on their cell phones and dialed 911. I could hear the sirens responding even as I stood and watched Brin searched blindly for the father that wasn’t there.

  The minister finally saw that Brin was in distress and began to try to calm her. She continued to call out to her father. There was little I could do here. Marley could have taken her father anywhere within the Black.

  Jesus, I really suck at this.

  I saw her had going for her purse and I knew what was going to happen next. I threw down one of the Black Traps and whispered the location to the other. I stepped in and exited at the far end of the Cemetery. The emergency crews had just arrived on scene and my phone began to ring. The caller ID said I had been correct and Brin’s name accompanied the ring tone. The siren went silent as the crews arrived on scene and I took a second to catch my breath. I answered and once again played the fake friend and liar.

  I am getting tired of playing this role but I saw little I could do about it.

  “Hey hey, what’s going on?” I said in the most casual voice I could manage. She, of course, was anything but casual. I could hear the panic in her voice and it nearly broke my heart.

  “Slow down, I can’t understand what you are saying?” I lied because I actually did understand every word she was saying.

  “I can’t find my my Dad. He was here a second ago, people started going crazy. There was some lunatic running around and then people started dying and screaming.” She rattled off and I heard her take an intake of breath.

  “Holy shit, are you okay?”

  “I’m fine but I think something has happened to my Dad. No one seems to be able to find him.”

  “Oh my God, did he go chasing after the lunatic?” I said and hated myself for having to think on the fly. Marley had taken her father and he was more than likely not going to give him back any time soon. And what could I do about it. Not a damn thing.

  Wonderful mess you have gotten yourself into Jack.

  Just fucking great.

  “Maybe I don’t know. Jack my Dad is old. He can’t go chasing after anybody.”

  I know Brin but what else can I say.

  “Are the police there? Tell them what is going on. I am across town but I am on my way.”

  “I can hear them now. I’m fine. Don’t come all the way across town. I’m sure my Dad is going to turn up any minute. I feel foolish for just calling you. I just didn’t know who else to call.”

  “It’s okay Brin. I’m here for you. I’ll be over as quick as I can.”

  “Okay, thank you.” She said and I hung up the phone. This sucked and I was the biggest suck hole of them all. I watched from a distance and waited until everyone began to dissipate. Brin called out for her father over and over again. The female police officer eventually wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and tried to reassure her the best way she could. She eventually shook her head and I saw her shoulders slump in resignation. The officer escorted her towards the waiting limousine and had to calm her once more before putting her inside. Crime scene tape marked the area around the grave site and her grandfather’s casket had still not been lowered into the ground. The Minister spoke to one of the plain clothed detectives and after a moment of consideration nodded his head in approval. The Minister crossed over to the control device and began to unceremoniously lower her grandfather’s casket into the ground.

  They medical examiner and coroner showed up and took Kimberly Mabel Long’s corpse away. The two old men had been gathered up by the first responders and taken to the hospital. A photographer had come in and was taking photos. It wasn’t much of a crime scene and an hour afterwards the crime scene tape was taken down.

  I dialed Brin’s number and continue the farce.

  She answered on the third ring.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t make to the cemetery in time.”

  “It’s fine. There wasn’t anything you could have done anyway.”

  The statement wasn’t an accusation but it felt like it. She was right though. I couldn’t think of anything I could do to fix this.

  “Jack…”

  “I know I'm sorry. I don’t know what to do to make this better.”

  “I know, just knowing you’re there for me helps. I’m going to try and get some sleep. Hopefully they will find my Dad and everything will go back to normal.”

  “Okay. Do you want me to come by?”

  “I would love to see you in the morning if you have the time. Hopefully, all this will be fixed in the morning.” She said and I heard the sound of complete despair in her voice. She knew it wasn’t going to be better but she was trying to remain positive.

  “Okay, I’ll call you in the morning before I come over.”

  “Sounds good and Jack…thank you. I know this is a lot to take in and I understand if it is too much.”

  You have no idea how much this is to take in and I hope you never find out.

  Chapter Twenty Two

  I called her the next morning around eight and the exasperation in her voice told me that she had slept very little and she had hoped that my phone call was from the police officers searching for her father. I, unfortunately, did not have any news to offer her either. I had stepped into the Fade and let the Marshal know that I had a situation and that I was searching for Brin’s father. He wasn’t exactly the most helpful but then his domain was in the Fade not in the mortal realm. He said he would send out word to a few of his sources and see what he could find. It didn’t look hopeful. The Black was the realm of nightmares and there was no law within the realm. It was chaos.

  I did know of one person that might be able to help but finding Archibald the Reaper was nearly as dangerous as searching the Black on my own.

  I called her when I was outside her door and she opened it cautiously. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. I didn’t expect her to invite me in but she did none the less. I stood in the hall and waited for her to get her jacket. Her abrupt actions and haste made it immediately apparent that she needed to get out of her apartment and into the fresh air. I told her I couldn’t agree more.

  I took her to breakfast at the IHOP five blocks away. She asked for a corner booth and I asked her to order me the bacon, eggs and toast while I went to the men's room. I took my time, though it may have seemed rude, I was happy to see that both of our meals had arrived though they were piled up on her side of the table.

  “They must have thought you were extra hungry.” I said and relocated the plates to their intended spots. “Sorry, I have a bit of an upset stomach.” I said trying to explain my timely absence.

  “Too much information…” She responded, I silently agreed with her and changed the subject. A few of the patrons had tried to be nosy and listen
in on the blind woman talking to herself. I tried to ignore them.

  “So…”

  “So…”

  “I’m not going to say that no news is good news.”

  “Good, because a cliché like that might get you a fork in the eye.” She said and I wasn’t quite sure if she was joking or not. I assumed that she was not.

  “I’m going to take you back down there and we are going to do some searching of our own. It might be that he is there somewhere. We’ll ask around and see what we can turn up. How does that sound?”

  “That sounds like what I had planned on doing today anyway. You are welcome to join me. It will be easier with you along. There is only so much that I can do.” She said and I could see that she did not like admitting that she was helpless or put out by her blindness.

  “Then let’s finish up here and get to work.” I said, inhaled my food and drank the rest of Brin’s coffee. The waitress asked if she would like another cup and she looked up at the woman like she had lost her mind. The woman filled her cup anyway and paid me no attention what so ever.

  “Are you drinking my coffee?”

  “Only because you weren’t and she won’t bring me any.”

  “Okay, well so much for her tip then.”

  I agreed and we gathered our stuff to leave. I left cash on the table to pay for the bill and included a tip anyway. It wasn’t her fault and she had given Brin good service.

  We grabbed a cab and the driver nearly pulled off without me.

  “Sorry, didn’t see you.” He said and forgot about me as soon as his eyes severed the contact with me. He adjusted his mirror to look at Brin and asked where she was headed.

  The driver jumped more than once at noticing I was in the back of the cab with her but the Forget Me spell worked its magic every time. He pulled up to the cemetery and I gave her the cash to give to him and told him to keep the change, opening the door before he could respond.

  The cabbie pulled off abruptly and Brin frowned at the rudeness.

  “Is it me or are people being especially weird and rude today.” She asked and I gave her the best answer I could.

  “A bit.” I said, “Come on we’ll start over by where you last…” I almost said saw him. “knew he was at.”

  “Smooth recovery mister…very smooth indeed.” She said with a laugh and it was good to hear the humor back in her voice.

  The world is not a pretty place when you go looking for something or someone. It's dirty, run down and doesn’t like strangers snooping around or asking questions. After hours of searching and walking around like we had a purpose our feet hurt and we were nowhere closer to finding her father. I steered us back in the direction of the cemetery. I felt the compulsion and the pains of hell begin to take hold in my feet.

  Shit.

  I had two choices. Neither of which I liked. I had to reap a soul and it was across town. I could take her with me or I could send her home in a cab. I wanted to keep her close so I could keep an eye on her but that wasn’t always going to work.

  “Hey, I hate to do this but I have to go across town and take care of some business. You’re more than welcome to come with me. We can share a cab over there.”

  She smiled.

  “Jack, I can see what you’re trying to do. It’s okay, I will be fine. My feet are killing me. I think I’m going to sit here for a while and enjoy the peace and quiet. I’ll call a cab to come pick me up in a little while.”

  I looked around at the solitude of the place and couldn’t blame her for wanting to stay here. The place was an oasis of serenity. Even the city noise was diminished enough that one could hear his own thoughts.

  “Are you sure. You do remember that it’s a cemetery right?”

  She arched an eyebrow and gave me a look. A look that said “I am not a child, I do not believe in ghosts and ghouls anymore.” I wish I could believe that. She would be fine of course, the dead only want you to pay attention to them. It gives them strength. She was in a unique situation to where that would not work on her. Unless they talked to her, then that would be different.

  “Well sunset is about an hour away. Promise me that you will be out of here by then.”

  “Promise.”

  Chapter Twenty Three

  After hovering like a gargoyle outside of her apartment I am called away once again. I am running out of steam. Juggling my personal life with Brin, dealing with Marley and trying to do my job are exhausting me. Not so much physically but mentally. Brin had called to let me know she was home and I had breathed a sigh of relief; not only because she was safe at home but because I could stop…I know this sounds bad but I could stop thinking about her for a bit. It had been a long time since I had cared about someone and I had forgotten how exhausting it was.

  The compulsion pulled me to a place I had not been to in a very long time. In the early hours of the morning an orphanage looks far creepier than one could ever imagine. The compulsion was strong and the pains of hell scream up my legs. I was late and this was my reminder.

  I stepped forward, stopped at the bottom of the stairs to the entrance and watched as the others began to exit through the doorway. As I said before, Reapers are an unsociable bunch and none bothered to clue me in as to what was happening. I looked for Jillian; a friendly face would be welcome right about now. As the last of them filed out the door and Jillian did not appear I had to assume she would not. I opened the door and followed my compulsion.

  Over the many years I have seen such horrors that I am hardly surprised any more. Tonight is one of those nights. The first body I encountered was lying on the stairs; a large ragged gaping wound shown reddish black on the chest of the boy’s pajamas. The boy’s tethered soul crouched in a ball a few steps up and it looked terrified. I waited for him to say something to me; his ethereal eyes darted back and forth in anticipation. Even in death the boy was terrified. I severed the tether of his soul and he ran off into oblivion. Three more bodies awaited me and I started to wonder why the other Reapers had even been here. So far, I had been tasked with the reaping of each body I had come across.

  I got my answer as I crossed the threshold of the open door and stepped in to the children’s sleeping quarters. Small beds ran the length of the room, small bodies lie tossed about like bloody little rag dolls. A dozen or more ethereal figures waited for me. The last two had enough courage left in them to point towards the doorway at the far end of the room. No words, just their pointing fingers hovering in accusation. I heard a cackle of laughter as I severed the last child’s soul and I stepped toward the dark shadowed doorway. I saw the silhouette of the woman standing in wait, watching me as I slowly made my way down the line.

  The compulsion to reap still tore through me and I waited for the figure to step through the doorway. My senses told me that this was the soul I needed to reap but my eyes were telling me something else. The woman was standing deep within the shadow but that didn’t stop me from taking in every detail of Joanna Crabtree’s gore covered figure and the extremely large bloody butcher knife she held in her right hand. I could hear, as well as see, the children’s life blood as it dripped to the floor.

  “Ms. Crabtree?” I asked and received a vicious cackle from the woman that nearly made me jump in startlement.

  “Guess again.” The figure croaked and I saw the tether stretching out behind the grizzly figure. Joanna Crabtree’s soul was hiding just out of view from me and I tried to send her a reassuring message.

  “This will be over in a moment Ms. Crabtree.” The swiftness in which the figure attacked was uncanny and I narrowly missed being impaled. As I leapt from its path Joanna Crabtree’s body continued forward and I brought my reaping scythe down and through the tether. My attention was captured though and I missed Ms. Crabtree making her exit into the great beyond. What held my attention was the raging ethereal image of insanity and hate. The wraith, that was Ms.Henry’s feral spirit, screamed at me as it saw what I had done. It snapped back into Ms. Crabtree’s
reanimated corpse and turned on me.

  It screamed a banshee wail and lunged at me once again. I put the scythe away and drew forth my blade. There was little I could do against this thing anyway. Ms.Henry’s wraith had been haunting this place from the moment I severed her unsanctioned soul during the summoning. Yet, so far as I knew it had never done much more than scare a child or two. How had she become powerful enough to possess the Head Mistress’ body? My God, this thing had killed all of these children and yet deep inside I knew this was my fault.

  To confirm my fear, a commanding word came from across the room and Ms.Henry stopped. Though its hate filled face continued to snarl and bit at me. I turned to the figure that had sent the command and froze in my own steps.

  “Hey Jack, you look surprised to see me.” Marley said and I had to admit that he was right. Why I was surprised I wasn’t sure. I guess I wasn’t expecting him to take it to this level or that he even could. The red glow from beneath the eye patch told me more than I needed to know.

  That’s where his power comes from.

  I remained silent and tried to figure out my next move. I hated this man and I wanted nothing more than to kill him where he stood. But I also needed answers from him. I needed to know what he wanted from me and where he had taken Brin’s father.

  “Want to see something cool?” He asked and didn’t wait for me to respond. He opened a small slim glass container; the red beneath his eye patch brightened and he gave a small whistle. A whistle like one might use when summoning a dog. The wraith of Ms.Henry snarled and fought as it left the body of Ms. Crabtree and as it did the empty shell collapsed to the floor. The feral wraith obeyed though and scuttled past me on all fours. Leapt into the air as it closed the distance to Marley and funneled its ethereal form into the glass cylinder. He casually slid the lid in place and unceremoniously slipped it into a pocket within his coat.