by Nicky Graves
Larue raced over to me as I shoved books into my locker, trying to retrieve my backpack and bolt before Chloe made an appearance.
“Riley, you’re never going to believe who asked me to the dance.”
There was a dance? I was pretty sure I’d missed that memo. However, my head wasn’t really into school. It hadn’t been since I found out I would be training as a reaper. Lawson had deposited me back into my bedroom like I was supposed to act normal. Like my life hadn’t just taken a serious detour.
Since I couldn’t sleep last night, I researched reapers online. I was flooded with websites and articles about the Grim Reaper. He was a freaky skeleton dude with an evil-looking weapon, which I later found out was a scythe.
And while the creepy skeleton guy didn’t fall in line with what I had already seen of reapers, it still worried me. There was so much about the reaper world that I didn’t know.
It would be nice if I had someone to talk to about this. But Mom would think I was crazy. Larue already looked at me as though I might need a straitjacket. At least she was still speaking to me.
“Aren’t you going to ask me who asked me to the dance?” Larue prompted.
“Who?”
“Finn.”
“Really?” I still suspected he was just after a good grade. Maybe I was wrong.
“He’s so nice. And gorgeous,” she said with a sigh.
“I suppose.” He was okay with his quarterback frame and brilliant smile. “You used to like brainy guys.”
“Smart guys don’t ask me out. Finn did. I mean, he’s smart too. Just in other things.”
“Well, have fun.”
“I will since you’re coming too.”
“Not likely,” I said. “First of all, I haven’t been asked. Second of all, I’m not a fan of dances. And third, I don’t have anything to wear.”
“Please,” Larue begged. “All of his friends will be there. I won’t fit in.”
A familiar nervous tingle grew in my stomach and threatened to grow stronger. I wouldn’t succumb to it. Not with Larue near me.
“Please,” she begged again. “I need you there.”
I was going to stay adamant about not going to the dance, but I didn’t have time to argue. The more I attempted to ignore the energy, the stronger it became. It felt like my insides were being yanked out and if I didn’t start moving, my guts would burst from my body. I didn’t want to make that my fourth reason not to go to the dance.
“Okay,” I quickly agreed. “But I’ll have to talk to you about this later. I have to get David to piano lessons.”
“Since when does your brother play piano?”
Since never. It was a paltry excuse, but I hurried away, promising to call Larue later.
Each time the nervous energy pulled me, it was as if my body somehow learned from it. I now understood that my irritable guts were leading me to the park again.
I sprinted to the park’s little pond and halted. This was the spot my angry insides were driving me to, but there was no one here. I looked into the water. Maybe someone had drowned. I couldn’t see anyone, and I didn’t want to dive into the pond to find out. It was murky and had garbage floating in it.
“You’re late.”
I spun around to find Lawson and Boomer behind me.
“Late for what?” I asked.
“If someone had died, you might have missed transitioning,” Lawson said.
“What are you talking about?”
“Training.”
“Already?” I asked. I had just found out my fate last night.
“Yes. Remember? Boomer is your trainer,” Lawson said.
Boomer grimaced as if sentenced to a horrible punishment.
“Just curious,” I said hesitantly. “Why is it Boomer’s responsibility to train me? You’re the controller. Doesn’t that mean you’re a better fit for training?”
“Boomer was the last to become a reaper. Therefore, he trains the newest reaper. It’s been like that since the beginning,” Lawson said. “I have to get back to my shift. Follow Boomer’s lead. We’ve never trained a mortal before, so there will be some things we’ll have to wait on. But the more time you have to understand our world before becoming a reaper, the better off you’ll be later.”
Before I could even begin to ask the many questions that were piling up in my mind, Lawson disappeared and left me at the mercy of Boomer.
Boomer scratched his head. “Never had to train anyone before.”
“This is a horrible system,” I said. Especially since Boomer was going to train me. The guy was a mess. “Why are you still wearing two different shoes?”
“Still?” He looked down at his shoes and then up at me. “I grabbed what was in the closet.”
We stared at each other.
“Is this for real?” I asked the sky. “Am I going insane?”
“It’s for real.”
I knew it was. No matter how much I wanted to pass this off as a dream, I knew it wasn’t one. I had to own it.
“When you died, how did you become immortal?” I asked.
“Well, I’m not really dead,” he said. “Like, I died, but now I’m immortal, so I won’t die.”
“What?”
He scratched his head again. “Lawson should be training you. Let’s just say, I died, but I was gifted life.”
“Then when I die, I’ll be gifted life?”
He shrugged. “No one quite knows what’s going on with you. I mean, you’re a girl. But if anyone can figure it out, it’s Ranger and Lawson.”
“Is Ranger a reaper?” He wasn’t at the Elder Council meeting and I wondered why.
“No, he’s a cambion.”
“A what?”
“A cambion. You know, half human and half demon.”
“I’m definitely going insane,” I muttered.
“That’s what I thought when I died. I thought I was in some sort of hell. But it was just the dead zone. You get used to it.”
“Do you live there?”
“In the dead zone?” When I nodded, he answered, “Most of us do.”
“Why not live on Earth?” I asked.
“I did for a while,” he said. “But it gets too hard. Everyone you know dies. It’s better just to live among those who are like you.”
“So, how did we become the lucky ones that don’t die?”
“It’s not luck. Many think we’re cursed.”
Before I could ask him any more questions, the energy returned, churning my stomach.
Boomer straightened as if sensing it as well. “Looks like we’re on.” He grabbed my hand. Within a moment we were standing inside a nursing home. The journey didn’t feel the same as when I had transported with Lawson. That had been jarring. This was as if I was floating for a second and then landed in a different spot. Either Boomer had a different way of traveling or I was getting used to it.
Boomer walked into a community room filled with seniors. Some were sitting in wheelchairs and some sat at tables putting puzzles together. I tried not to stare, but I couldn’t peg which person was about to breathe their last breath.
This was their reality. All waiting together to die. Maybe it was a good thing that I was going to be a reaper, because the thought of sitting here with them, waiting for my turn, was not pleasant. Especially with the underlying odor of dirty diapers.
Boomer stood next to a man in a wheelchair. The man looked as though he was staring off into the distance, recalling a precious memory. But then I noticed his eyes were glassy.
“Him?” I asked, already knowing this man was gone.
“I hated that wheelchair,” someone said next to me.
I looked over to find the same man. He was standing; no longer was he confined to the wheelchair. His eyes weren’t glassy but instead a normal shade of brown.
“I’ll take this one,” Boomer said. “You’ll have to learn how to shift before you can bring them over.”
“Shift?” I questioned.
Boomer rested
his hand on the man’s shoulder, and they both evaporated.
A lady in a uniform walked up to me. “How did you get in here?” she asked. “We have a secured entrance.”
I had no idea what to say. I was pretty sure she wouldn’t believe me if I said I didn’t use the door and had materialized into the home. I was also pretty sure I was in trouble from the look on her face.
I pointed to the man. “I think he’s dead.”
She hurried over to the man. “Vern,” she said, trying to gain his attention. But once she saw his eyes, she said, “Oh, dear.” She pressed the medical alert button on his necklace, which called more staff. Within moments, I was forgotten.
Hurrying out the front door, I set off an alarm. I didn’t stick around to apologize.
“Boomer?” I called once I was at a curb, wondering if he could hear me. But either he was busy transitioning Vern or he couldn’t hear me.
The problem was, I had no idea where I was. And I didn’t have my phone. Mom had a strict no-phone-at-school policy.
“Lawson?” I called. Nothing. “Ranger?” Nothing. Okay, so yelling names didn’t help.
I walked down the street. I was definitely not in my hometown. This place was busier. There was more traffic, more stores, and more stoplights. I looked up and down the road, trying to figure out where to go. I saw a gas station up ahead, so I walked in that direction.
Entering the gas station, I crossed over to the cashier. “What town is this?”
She looked at me with a curious expression. “Hammerton.”
That name didn’t sound familiar. But it wasn’t like I knew every town in Illinois.
“Do you know which way is Cloverfield?”
“Cloverfield?” she asked. “Never heard of it. But there’s a map back by the restrooms.”
“Okay, thank you.”
I followed the path she pointed and found a yellowed map hanging on the wall. I wasn’t the best at reading maps, but I did know one thing. The map was wrong. It said Delaware.
I walked back over to the cashier. “So, what state are we in?”
Again, she looked at me oddly. “Delaware.”
Don’t panic, I told myself. Just because you’re stranded in Delaware and you have no money and no phone doesn’t mean there’s a problem.
“You okay?” she asked. “You look a little pale.”
“Can I borrow your phone?”
“No, management doesn’t like that. But there’s a payphone over by the bathrooms.”
“A payphone?”
“You know, you stick some change in it and then call the person. I never used it myself, but I hear they work just as good as a cell phone.”
“I don’t have any change.”
“You need help? Should I call the police or something?”
Did I need help? Yes. But police involvement might make my situation worse. I’d just have to hope that Boomer would come back for me. Maybe it took some time to transition someone.
I declined the offer of help and walked out of the gas station. Spying a bench just outside the door, I headed over to it. Surely Boomer would be able to find me.
So, I sat and sat and continued to sit, because I seriously had no idea what else to do. It wasn’t until a few hours later when I thought about going to the police when Lawson materialized in front of me.
“How long have you been here?” he asked.
“Boomer ditched me here hours ago,” I said, trying to keep my temper under control. “What kind of training program is this anyway?”
“I’ll talk to him.”
“Just take me home.”
He took my hand and I was whisked back inside my bedroom. I collapsed on my bed in relief.
“You okay?” he asked.
“No. Boomer can’t just ditch me hundreds of miles away. I had no way of getting home. I didn’t even have a phone on me. I tried yelling his name. And then yours and Ranger’s. But I guess that doesn’t work. How do I get in touch with you?”
“I’ll get you a phone that will work through the realms. Obtaining one is a slow process though. Everything goes through the Elder Council. And there’s been resistance from the council when it comes to you.”
I opened my mouth to ask another question, but Lawson put up his hand to stop me.
“Boomer will answer your questions. I’m sorry, but I have to go.”
And then he disappeared.
While I was left with too many questions.
6
It was the following day when I was sitting in study hall that Boomer appeared at the desk next to me. He wore plaid pants and a fluorescent orange shirt.
I glared at him.
“Sorry about yesterday,” he said as he made himself comfortable. “I got sidetracked.”
I couldn’t very well have a conversation with Boomer while the entire room was silent. Well, except for the sound of pages turning or a very loud pencil scratching on paper.
I flipped my notebook open and wrote: You stranded me in Delaware.
“Yeah, Lawson told me. But in my defense, I’m used to hanging out with reapers. We all shift. I forgot you couldn’t. Then I got sidetracked.”
How?
“Well, there’s this girl I’ve been seeing—”
I put my finger up to stop him and scribbled a note.
You ditched me for a girl?
“Not just any girl. She’s hot.”
While I was supremely ticked at him, it made me wonder who she was. I thought reapers were only men. Or was she a cambion like Ranger? Half demon and half human?
I hurried to write down the question.
Boomer shook his head. “No. She’s human.”
Dead?
“No, alive. All the dead ones are either transitioned or roaming ghosts. I don’t do ghosts.” He gave a shiver.
But how can a human see you?
“I can be seen when I want to be.”
Seriously? I glared at him and then scribbled, You could have been visible with me! Instead I looked like a crazy person talking to myself!!!
“Whoa,” he said, watching as my hand furiously wrote the note. “You need to chill.”
I shook my head. Prove to me people can see you, because I’m about to lose my mind!
He sighed. “Do I have to?”
YES!!!!!
“Fine.” Boomer stood and walked out the open door to the hallway. A moment later he stepped inside the classroom. “I’m new here,” he said to the teacher.
“I don’t have any information on a new student,” the teacher said.
“Just moved here today.”
So, he could be seen.
Boomer gave me an I-told-you-so look and then stuck out his tongue. For a one-hundred-year-old, he was very immature.
The teacher pointed to the empty desk next to me. Larue looked at Boomer with an arched brow. Apparently she was not a fan of his wardrobe either.
As soon as he sat down, I scribbled another note.
Did you dress in the dark again?
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” he asked.
“Shhh,” the teacher shushed Boomer.
I shook my head. This was all real, and I was stuck with Boomer as a trainer.
When the guidance counselor had asked me what I wanted to do with my life after high school, this wasn’t on the list.
When the teacher looked away, Boomer grabbed my notebook and pen. He wrote something on the paper and then handed it back to me.
We have to train.
I wrote back, I’m free after school.
Ditch school.
I can’t ditch school.
You’re a reaper. You can ditch school.
While I’d rather be training than sitting at school, I still had my mom to worry about. The last thing I needed was for her to ground me. I’d have a much harder time training if she was monitoring my every move.
Until I’m 18, I have to follow the rules or I won’t be able to train. If you want me
to train, it has to be after school or on weekends.
I didn’t want to tell him that I’d be eighteen soon.
I’ll let Lawson know, but he won’t be happy.
Whatever.
If Lawson had a problem with it, he could talk to me. While they were immortal, I still had to live with my mom.
I dreamt about dead people rising from their graves to kill me. I was pretty sure they were zombies. When a zombie grabbed me, it began to feel too real. He shook me again and again. “Wake up.”
I jolted from my dream to find a shadowed face staring down at me in the dark. I kicked out at it, trying to get away.
The face groaned and muttered a curse. “Stop kicking.”
I flipped on the light to find Boomer crunched over, holding his . . . well, it wasn’t like I meant to kick him there.
“Sorry,” I said. “But you scared me. I was dreaming about zombies.”
“Zombies aren’t real.” He groaned as he straightened.
“But reapers and demons are?” I questioned flippantly.
“Of course.”
“And what about vampires and werewolves?”
“Yes. But we don’t have time for that right now. We have to go.”
He grabbed my arm. Once again, I found myself floating for a second in darkness, and then I was slammed back to Earth. But it was daytime, and we were on a toasty beach. And I was wearing flannel pajamas.
The beach wasn’t overly crowded, but I was getting a few stares at my sudden appearance and wardrobe.
“How do I turn invisible?” I asked Boomer as inconspicuously as I could.
“You can’t until you’re a reaper.”
Annoyance flared, and I didn’t give a damn who heard me “talking to myself.” “Next time, warn me so I’m not wearing pajamas at the beach.”
He ignored me and instead walked along the shore. I stuck close to him for fear he’d forget I was with him and ditch me again. I gave a nod to a man I passed. He looked at me like I was the weird one, but he was wearing a banana hammock for a swimsuit.
“So, where are we?” I asked, not wanting to be surprised this time.
“Australia.”
“Aren’t there any reapers here?” I asked.
“Yes and no. We don’t really do borders. That’s an Earth thing. We just go when and where we get called.”
