“Going somewhere?” he asked.
“What?” It took a couple of seconds for the situation to register. “I mean...” I glared at Hal. “That wasn’t very nice.”
He shrugged. “A little porter humor.”
“What, luring me in so you can drag me to Hell too?”
“You hurt me.” He pressed a delicate hand to his gold shirt. “I told you I’d learned my lesson.”
“No,” I pulled my arm out of Nate’s grasp, “you said you’ve been punished. It’s not the same thing.”
He tilted up his chin and laughed. “You’re clever, Lisa Carron.” Slowly his laughter died. “I will remember that.”
Unsure what he meant, I looked at Constantine. “Are we done here?”
“Yes, I think that’s quite enough for today.”
I looked at Hal again and mimicked Nate’s dismissal of Pick. “Our transaction is complete.”
With that, Hal bowed and stepped backward into the elevator. “Until next time, Lisa Carron.”
Again the urge to move forward gripped me but this time I was ready. It took all my will, but I remained rooted to my spot. The doors closed, swallowing Hal and releasing me from his compulsion. I slowly turned to face the boys. “Okay, would somebody please tell me why I’ve got a psychopath for a porter?”
“I wish I could, Lisa.” Constantine ran his fingers through his thick hair, worry etching his face. The locks fell back into place, but I didn’t find them so alluring this time. “I’ll check into it and let you know.”
“He’s dangerous,” Nate said. My gaze cut to him. “I know I give you a hard time, Carron, but I’m serious when I say you can’t handle him.”
Normally I would have bristled at the insult, but not this time. “No argument here.” I rubbed my arms, trying to chase away the lingering effects of Hal’s creepy impulse touch. “Don’t reapers have some kind of talisman against their porters? Maybe a magic potion I can drink every day?”
“There are a few things but they’re rare,” Constantine said.
“Like what? I’m willing to try anything.” Whatever I had to do to keep out of Hal’s reach, I’d do. “Eat eye of newt. Circle a grave three times at midnight on All Hallow’s Eve. Paint myself green and hop around in the front yard, naked. No matter what it is, I’m all in.”
“It’s not a matter of doing something as it is having something done to you.”
The thought of Constantine doing something to me sent a thrill, and a little apprehension, racing along. Until I’d seen, or more like, felt his power, I would have been all over him like a cheap suit. A little of my bravado fled. “It doesn’t hurt, does it?”
“Not usually.” Constantine gripped the back of his neck and rubbed. “On rare occasions a reaper will acquire an ally.”
I shook my head, not understanding.
“Someone or something adopts them, helps out in little ways. Maybe guides them.”
“You mean like a sidekick?”
“More like a familiar,” Nate said. “You don’t happen to have one of those…do you?”
Automatically my hand went to my neck, searching for the raven charm. I mentally cursed myself for having forgotten my necklace on the bathroom counter this morning. “Maybe.”
Constantine stopped massaging his neck. “You do?”
“I don’t know. There’s this raven named Fletcher. Well, that’s what I named him. Anyway, he’s been following me around, sitting in the trees outside my house.” I shrugged. “And maybe he gave me a raven charm.”
“I take it you didn’t bring the charm with you today?” Constantine asked.
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
“It’s an amulet that will protect you. If you had it on, Hal’s compulsion wouldn’t have worked on you.”
“Well, luckily Fletcher adopted me, otherwise…” The idea of being at Hal Lee Lewya’s mercy sent a ripple of dread that wrapped around my bones and squeezed. I swallowed hard.
“Luck has very little to do with this.” Constantine pressed the button on the wall and the doors to Command Central slid open. Before leaving Purgatory he looked at me. “It seems somebody is looking out for you, Lisa.”
I blew out a long breath. “It’s about time,” I mumbled.
Nate moved up behind me. “Why don’t you go home and get that raven charm?” He stepped past me. “Put it on and don’t take it off—for anything.” I nodded. “Take the rest of the day off and rest up.”
“I’m fine. I don’t need to rest up.” The excitement of Hal Lee Lewya’s arrival had anesthetized yesterday’s soreness. At his words, all my aches returned. “I can get my charm tonight.”
“Better to go home and take it easy.” After stepping through the door Nate turned to me. “Tomorrow is Halloween. It will be one of your busiest nights of the year.”
“My busiest night?” I followed him across Command Central. “Why?”
“Halloween and idiotic stunts go hand in hand. Someone is bound to die.” He flicked his head toward the platform. “Have a look.”
A plump woman dressed in a violet pantsuit sat at one of the radars. We approached and I could see a dozen dots jumping around the screen. “Those aren’t all mine, are they?”
The woman turned and smiled up at me. “No honey, just this one, this one, and…” She pointed a purple painted nail at a large green blip. “This one.”
“Three?” I said.
“So far.” She laughed. “But the day is still young.”
She seemed to really love her job. “Do we know who they are?”
“I do.” She turned back to the radar. “But you won’t find out until the information is sent to your phone tomorrow afternoon. No sense flaunting temptation in your face.”
“Oh, yeah.” Despite already knowing this, I felt like a chastised child. “Of course.”
“So go home and I’ll see you tomorrow.” Nate wrapped his fingers around my arm and guided me toward the door.
“But—” I wasn’t sure why I was protesting. Probably because it felt like I was being shuffled out the door, and everybody seemed to have another agenda but me. “There must be something I can do around here.”
“Nope.” He gave me a little push into the elevator. “Not a thing.” Reaching inside the elevator, he pushed the ground floor button. As the doors closed, he smiled and gave a little wave. “Have fun.”
I returned a tight smile, but went willingly. Far be it from me to stay where I wasn’t wanted, or to refuse time off. More than likely Hal Lee Lewya was the cause of being herded out of GRS, and truth be told, I’d rather have them taking care of that issue without my help. Nothing I could really do about it anyway. I didn’t have pull or a clue as to what was going on most of the time.
On the way home, I realized I didn’t have one errand to run or any pressing tasks that needed to be completed. Even the house clean and the laundry was done. So, I took an afternoon nap. Twenty minutes had been my goal, but two hours later I woke to the sound of my sons’ pounding footsteps.
“Mom,” Bryce bellowed, “we’re home!”
No kidding. “I’m in here.” I swept the blankets aside and swung my legs over the side of the side. The boys bound down the hall and launched themselves onto the bed. I bounced several times, laughing. “Have a good day?”
“Tomorrow’s Halloween.” Breck stood and gave two powerful jumps. “Candy.”
“I can’t wait,” Bryce said, throwing his arms around my neck. After that declaration he jumped to the next subject. “What’s for dinner?”
I broke his hold and stood. Cooking was the last thing I felt like doing. Actually, reaping was, but cooking came in a strong second. “How does fast food sound?”
A unanimous “Yay,” erupted from both.
“Is your sister home?”
“Yeah, she’s watching TV downstairs,” Bryce said, taking a flying leap off the bed.
“Get ready. We leave in five,” I called to his departing back.
&n
bsp; Breck followed his brother, performing the same launch and run sequence. I stopped in the bathroom, fluffed a bit, and went to find Bronte. Like Bryce had said, I found her downstairs, snuggled into our big, red beanbag chair. Though she’d taken off her coat, she still wore her favorite black knit hat that had cat ears and a skull and crossbones on the front. She didn’t look up when I entered.
“Hungry?”
She answered with a noncommittal grunt and a shoulder shrug.
“Fast food. Grease and sugar,” I said, trying to coax a reaction from her. Her gaze never wavered from the television. Usually I’d get a cursory glance, but not even a blink in my direction. “What’s wrong?”
“Can I go to Payton’s Halloween party?” she asked, still not looking at me.
The party had completely slipped my mind. Ever since Jeff died, saying no had become difficult. I didn’t like to deny the kids something fun, but I the thought of her going to the party gave me a bad feeling. First off, I didn’t like Kelly Huff. Girls like her bullied or fluttered their eyelashes to get their way. In school I’d gotten the bullying end of the deal. Though I wanted Bronte to make her own mistakes, this one could get her hurt or worse. I didn’t beat around the bush or try to cushion the letdown. “No. I don’t trust Kelly to be a responsible driver.”
She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “I knew you wouldn’t let me.”
“Then you shouldn’t be disappointed.” When she didn’t reply, I tried another tactic. “Why don’t you and Fang have a sleepover? It’ll be fun. Invite a couple of girls. I’ll be going out for a while so you’ll have the house to yourself. Watch a scary movie and eat junk food.”
She looked at me. “Where are you going?”
To reap at least three souls. I went with my standard answer. “Vella’s.” She grunted again and I took it to mean my night would be lame. Better her think that than know the truth. “Come on.” I held out my hands. “Let’s eat, then we can discuss your plans for tomorrow night.”
She stared at my hands for a few seconds and finally sighed. Grasping her fingers, I pulled her to a stand and into my arms, wrapping her in a tight mom hug. Even though she stood there, arms limp at her side, she turned her head and laid her cheek against my shoulder. Obviously she wasn’t that mad.
McDonald’s was packed. Obviously a lot of other parents hadn’t felt like cooking either. The boys made a beeline for the play area, while Bronte and I ordered. After our food arrived, we carried it into the kid zone. Instantly, I was struck by the smell of the cleaning fluid they used. A little Pilipino woman wove her way through the patrons, wiping a table here, sweeping up spilled fries there, and keeping the place clean as clean as possible with so many kids around.
The noise level was ten times that of the adult section beyond the glass. I envied the childless people. Sitting and eating without screams of small children piercing their skulls. We commandeered the corner table, and after brushing sprinkles of lettuce off the bench, slid onto the bright red laminate seats.
I doled out the food, prepping the boys’ kid’s meals for their dine-and-dash dinner habits. Bronte was plugged into electronic life support, completely ignoring me, so I pulled out my new phone and thumbed through the screens. Several icons for GRS scrolled by. I tapped on the skull and went to Rules and Regulations. Man, there were a lot of them. How was a person supposed to learn all these?
It is prohibited to purposely make contact with deceased’s family before or after reaping. I still thought that one was stupid and I wasn’t certain I’d be able to abide by it. I wondered what kind of punishment I’d incur for breaking it.
It is prohibited to prevent the reap. Only guardian angels have the right to interfere.
A reaper must remain neutral.
It is prohibited to fraternize or engage in ongoing conversations with the client. In other words, don’t become their therapist.
On and on the list went. I wondered if Nate had actually memorized all the rules, or if he was just putting on a good show. As I scanned through the rest, I gleaned the general message. Keep a low profile and do the job. How hard could it be? Even though I hated to admit it, I’d always been kind of a rule follower. Being a reaper might be the perfect fit.
Breck scooted into the booth next to me and took a big drink of his soda. Pink tinged his cheeks and sweat coated his forehead.
“You having fun?” I said, clicking off my phone and pocketing it.
He shrugged and toyed with his fries. “It’s all right.”
“What’s wrong?” I scooped a hank of sweaty hair off his forehead. “Is somebody bullying you?”
“No.” He bit the end of the French fry and chewed.
Something was definitely wrong. Normally, Breck hog-faced a burger in under a minute, but now he didn’t touch it. “You can tell me.” I hoped it was something simple, like he’d decided he wanted to be a vampire instead of a ghost. “Come on.” I gave him a reassuring smile. “I’m pretty good at solving problems.”
His big blue eyes looked up at me. “There’s a ghost in the slide tubes and she won’t give me back my sock.”
My smile tightened. “A ghost?”
Bronte snorted and shook her head. “Moron.”
“Hey, stop calling your brother names.” I looked back at Breck. “Are you sure it’s a ghost and not a kid that stole your sock?”
“Positive. It’s an old lady and she’s mean.”
Solutions and excuses raced through my mind. My son didn’t need his sock. We had a hundred singles at home he could wear. And what were the chances of a real live ghost haunting the McDonald’s play tube?
“What are you going to do, Mom?” His eyes stared at me, trusting.
“Yeah, Mom, what are you going to do?” Bronte smirked at me.
“Well…” I gently shoved Breck toward the end of the bench. “I’m getting your sock back.” I narrowed my gaze at Bronte. “That’s what I’m going to do.”
My son let me out and I wove my way through the bevy of children and tables and stopped at the end of a long green slide. Every few seconds a kid shot to the bottom and jumped off to circle back for another go, sometimes turning and crawling back up.
Surveying the conglomeration of colorful tubes and nets, I decided that climbing the padded platforms steps would be a lot safer and less humiliating than trying to shove myself up one of the slides. I glanced around. The other parents were busy with their own kids or ignoring the mayhem. I gripped the edge of the platform and slowly worked my way up the play set. Once at the top, I crawled on hands and knees across a netted bridge. Something wet and sticky pressed into my palm. I cringed but continued forward. The smell of dirty feet, chocolate shakes, and pee enveloped me. I tried not the think of the bacteria clinging to every surface I touched.
Note to self: pick up more hand sanitizer.
A small child in an orange sweat suit tried to squeeze past. “Excuse me.”
“Sure thing.” I pressed my body to the side to let him by. When he reached the end of the netted bridge I stopped him. “Hey, have you seen any…um, another lady up here?”
“You mean the ghost lady?”
My eyes rounded and I nodded. “Yeah, the ghost lady.”
“She hangs out next to the yellow slide.” With that the kid scurried away.
I hesitated. If there really was a ghost living in the play set, she wasn’t my charge. I pulled out my phone and tapped the appointment app. The screen was empty. Maybe I should leave well enough alone. I could always buy Breck more socks. Unfortunately, curiosity was one of my worst vices.
At the juncture where the net bridge ended, I stopped. Taking a deep breath, I poked my head around the corner. Yep, she was there, all translucent and ghost like. My heart jumped to my throat. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to seeing spirits. It’s one thing to catch a glimpse in my periphery. Staring at one full on was intimidating in an I don’t know nothin’ about reapin’ no spirits way.
“I’m not l
eaving, so don’t waste your time trying to convince me,” the ghost said.
I glanced around, but nobody else was there. “Are you talking to me?”
“Who else would I be talking to? Came to try to get me to cross over, right?” She lifted a spectral cigarette to her lips, took a drag so long my lungs hurt, and then blew it out. “Like I told the first guy. I’m not going.”
Her words sort of registered but my attention was fixed on her cigarette. I quit smoking two years ago but sometimes the craving still hit. I scooted farther into the padded area, trying to maneuver myself into the line of her ghost smoke, hoping for a hit. I settled against the netted wall across from her and inhaled. The smell was faint, and not as satisfying as I’d hoped for.
“How do you know I’m a reaper?” I started to cross my legs but they still hurt. Instead I stretched them out and crossed my ankles. “Maybe I’m just a mom, who can see ghosts.”
“Right.” She snorted and held out her hand, indicating the area we sat in. “Because there are so many parents up here.”
She had me on that one. Unless a child was hurt, scared, or physically stuck, no parent would dare enter the germ-pool. And even that was questionable, especially if there was an older sibling to send into the tubes to retrieve the child.
“Okay, so I’m a reaper.” I pointed to Breck’s sock. The end poked out from under her butt. “I wouldn’t have bothered you if you hadn’t scared my son and refused to give him his sock.”
She harrumphed and took another drag.
“So, why are you up here…?” I waited for her name.
“Lily.”
“Lily. Is this where you died?” I couldn’t imagine someone wanting to spend eternity in a fast food play set.
“No, I died in the hospital. Lung cancer.” She squashed the cigarette onto the mat and after a few seconds it disappeared. “But this is where my daughter comes with my grandkids.”
“I’m sorry.” And I really was. Missing family must have been the number one cause for hauntings. I didn’t have any solid stats, but I was pretty sure I was right. “I bet it’s difficult knowing you won’t see your grandchildren grow up.”
Her face scrunched. “I couldn’t give a good gosh darn about my grandkids. They’re monsters. Their parents spoil those brats something awful.”
Myths & Magic: A Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection Page 299