Preparations for our assignment began the next morning. Keira and Josh came over at eight on the dot. When Mr. Dunningham said that he would be checking in on us, I didn't take that to mean he would be present at our very first lesson, but he was. One of his favorite assistants, Doyle, would be leading our lessons. Doyle was a good-looking guy with thick, curly hair, a substantial mustache, and pale skin.
Mother didn't care much for pets, but of course she said nothing when Dunningham ushered his pit bull and bloodhound, named Black and Blue, into our home. At least they were good dogs who sat quietly in the corner. Only Black, the pit bull, would growl from time to time.
Mother had been dispatched earlier that morning and was preparing to leave. There was a very good chance she would not return before we left for our assignment. She kissed us each on the forehead, Keira and Josh included, and told us to make her proud.
She gave me an extra hug. "Be careful, Darkness. Remember their ways are not like ours." She went into the kitchen, and I heard the chamber door open and close. I hoped my mother wouldn't be gone for too long.
We sat around the living room with our electronic tablets, ready to take notes. Mr. Dunningham sat on our father's chair, rubbing his temples and making me nervous. I wished he hadn't come. Father, instead of working in his study, worked in the kitchen where he could still hear what was going on.
Doyle cracked his knuckles. "I'm sure you are already aware of the importance of this task. You must know what it means to Nowhere as well as your families. This assignment is to be taken seriously. Here is your task."
I had my fingers poised on the screen, ready to type.
"You will fit in amongst the students at Kennedy High to the best of your ability. You need to split up, as you will cover more ground that way. You need to have your eyes and ears open. Look for students who appear to be troubled and rebellious. Try to find the culprits. Learn as many details of their plan as possible so you will be prepared to collect the lifestones immediately. Not being prepared will give the Foragers the opportunity to swoop in."
Bram laughed. "That's not going to happen. Trust me."
Doyle raised his dark, bushy eyebrows at Bram. "Don’t underestimate them. They've beaten us to the punch before."
Yes, they had. On more than one occasion a Grim had shown up to collect a life, only to find out a Forager had gotten there first.
That was a sensitive topic for Doyle. He, Dunningham's other assistants, and the Watchers didn't collect lives since they were required to be at Dunningham's beck and call. Their lives depended on the tithes, which meant that each family was required to give ten percent of their accumulated years annually—like a tax. The more lives we earned, the more years Dunningham's staff received. I'd never want to be on Dunningham's staff. I didn't like the idea of the length of my life being dependent on what others collected.
Doyle continued, "In your backpack, you will keep a knapsack." He held up a flimsy black sack. "Once the incident occurs, this knapsack is where you will put the lifestones. Guard this bag with your life."
I stole a look at Dunningham. He stared intently at something. I followed his gaze. He looked at something over Keira's head—or at Keira.
I cleared my throat. "I think if someone is planning something like this, they'd keep it a secret. They're not exactly going to share that info with some random kids who just showed up."
Dunningham's stare shifted to me. I shuddered. He seemed creepier than he'd ever been. "My dear, you are a Grim. You have ways about you that humans don't. You know how to lurk in the shadows. Use your training. Surely you know that any adept Grim can outsmart a human."
"Yes, sir," I muttered, but I wasn't sure. There had been several times when I was positive a Fated had seen me before time.
Dunningham continued. "You will still have your Grimbilities while you are there, however you must not use them in the presence of a human, for obvious reasons."
Grimbilities were granted to us on our thirteenth birthdays. This gave us the ability to become invisible, walk through objects, and to transport ourselves from place to place.
Doyle stood and paced back and forth. "We will spend much time talking about the ways of teenage humans. You need to be aware of their practices and lingo so you fit in, but at the same time, you must uphold the Grim Covenant. This assignment will not be an excuse for you to break the law. The first and most important thing we need to discuss is intercourse."
I sank in my seat. That was the last thing I wanted to discuss in the company of two grown men and my brothers.
"Keira Grim, what does Grim law say about intercourse?" Doyle asked.
"Intercourse is to only take place once a Grim is married and the male has had his Confirmation ceremony," Keira answered, correct as always.
"Right, and how do teenagers where you are going feel about this, Master Dorian?"
Dorian shifted, looking more uncomfortable than I felt. "Opinion varies, but they are a lot more lax than we are."
"They screw like bunnies," Bram added. Dunningham shot him a look, and he immediately looked down. Think before you speak, Bram. "It's not as big a deal to them as it is to us."
Intercourse was a massive deal to us. Partaking in it before marriage or outside of marriage would hinder our life-collecting abilities—at least that's what we had always been taught. Regardless, it was punishable by death.
Doyle ran his fingers through his dark hair. "Young Grims, you must guard yourselves. There is to be no kissing, hand-holding, or affectionate touching of any kind. If we find you are doing this, you will be pulled off the assignment immediately and punished accordingly. Is that understood?"
"Yes," we answered in unison. This was not a problem for me. I had no desire for physical contact with anyone, much less a strange human.
After that, we talked about what kids were watching on TV. This topic seemed irrelevant since there was no television in Nowhere. I’d watched some from time to time when I was following a Fated. Some of it fascinated me a little, and there were some shows I didn't understand.
By the end of the day, we had covered intercourse, television, and music. We'd looked at pictures of several popular artists from different genres and listened to their current hits. Several times I wished I would go deaf temporarily.
The next day, Doyle came over bright and early without Mr. Dunningham. We had six days until we went on assignment.
We spent the day discussing celebrities. Who was in and why. Some of them were famous for being in movies, playing sports, or just for being born. I found myself completely disinterested, and the day crept along slowly.
Once Mr. Doyle left, Dorian shot from his seat on the sofa. "Thank goodness. I have to get to my lab before I officially turn stupid." He ran upstairs to his "lab", which consisted of the microscope and liquid-filled test tubes that sat on his desk. I wasn't sure what Dorian did there, but in my eyes he spent a lot of time pretending to be a scientist.
Keira sighed. "Okay, is anybody else getting less excited about this as the days go by? I mean, the money is great, but I don't think I can pretend to be one of them. And making friends with them . . ."
"I'm looking forward to it," Bram answered. "I think it will be quite interesting to see how I would fit in if I were a human."
Naomi Grim (The Silver Scythe Chronicles) Part 1 Page 5
