Grimm's Reapers: Volume 1-4

by Jack Crosby

“Yes, it is one of the great mysteries of American history. To finish this line of thinking before we move on, the axe has a special spot in the Freemason doctrine. Washington’s axe stands for truth, wisdom, and bravery.”

  And that is how the second condition was fulfilled. I had been a Mason for a time and knew the importance. I made it and mortals turned it into an everlasting symbol. “Where is the axe now? On display in a museum somewhere?”

  The look on her face told me she didn’t know. “Another mystery, the axe has been missing for a very long time. Some say the Freemasons have it locked up in a secret vault somewhere but others assume it is lost somewhere on the grounds of his Mt. Vernon estate.”

  The Freemason vault sounded a lot like the hidden treasure room in the White House. That was likely, but still something nagged at me. “Where do you think it is? I feel a man like Washington would want to keep something close by to him.”

  “My personal feelings? I don’t know if you know, but Washington’s body was moved several times before finally left in peace at his Mt. Vernon home. If the axe was buried with him, we would have accounts of it. If I were to wager, I bet the Freemasons got their hands on it.”

  It wasn’t often, but I was wrong. It seemed the secret vault in the Oval Office was the resting place of my old friend’s possession. I had hoped that would not be the case. “Well look at the time, I think I took up enough of it over idle banter.”

  “Not at all Derrick, to be honest I am quite surprised. I just took you as a booty call, but then you go and spark my intellect.”

  I’d do more than spark her intellect, but I had no time. I had to prepare for a trip to D.C. “Maybe when I get back from visiting family in our nation’s capital, we can have more intellectual conversations.”

  She winked at me as she got up. “Conversations, of course. I do love a good in depth conversation.”

  A good innuendo is as good as a bad pun in my book. She came around the desk and gave me a hug. This was nice, her breasts felt so good.

  Then it happened. As Death, if a mortal life is about to end and they touch me, I can see it. Maggie’s husband was at home, with a gun. As soon as she came in, he would end her life then his.

  “I guess I will go home. I can only imagine what was good for nothing husband has lined up for tonight.”

  I was about to break my own rule. Never interfere with life and death. I smiled at her and touched her forehead with my finger.

  “Derrick, is everything okay?”

  “It will be.”

  Her eyes closed, not really sure what was going on. I did not use my powers often around or on humans, but I made an exception. Khloros was about to have a field day.

  Chapter 7 – So You Want to Die?

  Maggie was laying in the backseat. It was a good thing I put her under the death sleep spell, because Khloros was not keeping his voice down.

  “You have always been a bit of a rogue, but now you are tampering with someone’s death. You created the rules fool! When a mortal’s time is up, it is up.”

  “No one bitched when Famine brought Ireland to a standstill by killing their potato crop. I’m pretty sure he crossed a lot of lines there.”

  “Great, compare yourself to your younger imbecile on a brother. This is on your head if this comes back.”

  He was pissed and for good reason. While it was true I could return a soul if I so desired, I never have. This was going one step further, preventing someone’s death. Realistically, Maggie had no fate after this day written. Yeah, Khloros was right to be pissed.

  Due to me just running away from her house not that long ago, I knew exactly where to go. I pulled up to the driveway. “I know I am breaking the rules, but this man threatened me personally. I am pulling the don’t be a dick and threaten Death card.”

  “Very well, you know I will always support you. But I warn you, his life is supposed to end today as well. It is bad enough that one is escaping, do not make it two.”

  He was right, I could not let her husband live. “Understood. I will personally reap his soul.”

  “I will watch the female mortal.”

  I got out of the car. It was dusk, a perfect setting for what was about to take place. I waved my hand, making sure if anyone was looking this way, they would be compelled to go somewhere else. With the enchantment in place, I pulled out Leviathan and it blazed to life.

  Reaching the door, I placed my palm on it and blew it off its hinges. Sitting on the stairs with a gun in his hand, was Maggie’s husband. Pieces of the door had flown at him and he was covering his head with his off hand.

  I instantly knew his name. When you are the victim of a reaping by Death, nothing is secret. “Mark Larson, your life is forfeit.”

  He looked up at me. “You? The fuck up college kid? What the fuck are you doing in my home?”

  I waved my hand and he started gasping for air. “You no longer get to talk. Mark Larson, I have judged you and the verdict is guilty. Your sentence is death. May the Almighty judge you and give you your proper fate.”

  I pointed Leviathan at him. Tears were welling up in his eyes. Once you have been judged by Death himself, the façade is no longer there. He knew exactly who I was.

  I do not torture my victims. No matter how much I would like to, to do so would be against my own code. I drew Leviathan back and brought the scythe down onto his head. Splitting ones head open is gruesome, but it is also an instantaneous death. The only suffering Mark Larson came to know was that he was not in control of his own destiny.

  His soul now departed his body, I released it from Leviathan. It would travel upstairs to be judged. I said a quick prayer, asking for a fair and honest judgment. The acts of today were bad, but if the man lived a good life before, he should be judged by the whole, not one act.

  Standing back up, another wave of the hand incinerated the body. Before you ask, I can only do this to the deceased. I created an urn and the ashes rose and entered. Everyone deserves a proper burial.

  This only left one problem, his now widow Maggie. I didn’t think this through at all and now I had to think of something to tell her why her husband was now dead. There was always the truth, but that was a bit hard to swallow.

  “Wow! That was an impressive reaping.”

  I turned to the doorway and Roxanne was standing there. “What are you doing here?”

  “Khloros called me; he said you were doing something stupid and that we might need help.”

  “He called you?” Since when did he have a phone? Or hands to use it?

  “Yeah through his Bluetooth. He said you don’t know how to work a cell phone. We need to fix that too.”

  I was confused and annoyed. Damn that dumb horse for spilling my secrets and for never telling me he could do that! “Thanks for coming, but I think I got this.”

  “So are you going to tell her the truth? She is pretty hot for a mortal. I wouldn’t mind a few rounds with her.”

  Between the know-it-all horse and the Lust demon, I was surrounded by problems. “I haven’t decided yet. And you are not going to use your sex magic on her!”

  “Calm down patron saint of prudes, I was just kidding. Anyway, I will let you handle this then. If you need me, just have Khloros call me.” With a cute little wave, she disappeared.

  “I only have myself to thank for this.” I wasn’t talking to anyone is particular. I walked out the house and headed to the car. I opened the door to the backseat, but did not acknowledge Khloros. He didn’t say anything either, so I knew he knew.

  I carefully picked up Maggie and walked her into the house. My enchantments were still holding strong and once we entered, I sat her on the couch. I waved my hand once more and the door reassembled and took its place on the hinges.

  “Here goes nothing.” I touched her forehead again and her eyes shot open.

  “Wait, where am I?”

  I grabbed her shoulders. “It is okay, you are home.”

  She looked around, panicked. “
What are you doing here? Get the fuck out of here before he sees you!”

  “It is okay, he can’t hurt anyone anymore.”

  “Derrick, what are you talking about?”

  Words would have no more meaning. It was just time I showed her. I reached into my pocket and pulled out Leviathan. Giving it a boost, it took shape into the massive scythe it is. “Maggie, Derrick is only an alias. My real name is Death, the Pale Rider.”

  “What?” Her eyes went from me back to the scythe and then to me again.

  And then she fainted. This was going to be one fucked up nightmare.

  Chapter 8 – Get Outta Here!

  While I waited for Maggie to wake back up, I made some hot chocolate. She had one of those instant hot water machines, so even a hack like me couldn’t screw this up. I made her a cup to, after all, it was her house.

  As I finished the second cup, I heard a groan and walked out to the living room. “Hey there, I made you a cup of hot chocolate.”

  She shook the cobwebs out and as her eyes focused back in, she got that scared look I was pretty used to seeing. “You! There was a scythe and everything!”

  “Oh, I put it away. I figured after scaring you that badly, it would just be best if you didn’t wake up to see it.”

  She pointed to the door. “You need to leave. Get out of here, get the fuck out of here!”

  I sat her cup down. “Before I go, there are quite a few things you need to know.”

  “What could you tell me right now that would want me to let you stay another second more?”

  “Your husband was going to kill you.”

  “Mark was going to kill me?” Ding, ding, ding! Tell her what she’s won!

  “Yeah, when you hugged me back at your office, I saw it. Being Death you know, I can see when someone’s time is up.”

  “You’re being serious then?”

  “About being Death, yeah that isn’t something you joke about. I could introduce you to my horse Khloros if you want. He is the Ford Taurus outside you came here in.”

  She leaned back into the couch. “Where is Mark now?”

  “He has passed beyond. He was going to kill you and kill himself. I saved you but I did not save him.” For added effect, I pointed to the urn sitting above her fire place.

  Her eyes met mine and no longer did she see me as the college kid who she enjoyed. Fear was at the front and there was also awe. I hated it. Just because I was who I was, people could never look beyond that.

  “I’m still Derrick you know. Being Death isn’t all it is cracked up to be.”

  “Why did you save me?”

  Going right to the heart of the matters. “I broke a rule; I should’ve let you die. The thought of having that lunatic kill you though, it drove me to do something I’d never done before.”

  Again shock. “Whose rule did you break?”

  “My own.”

  The gravity of what I did started to hit me. This poor woman had no destiny after today. In my haste to be her knight in shining armor, I may have inadvertently made her life even harder.

  Maggie stood up and tried to compose herself. “What you have told me shouldn’t be possible.”

  “If it helps, I can show you the vision I had. It does pertain to you after all.”

  She waved her hand. “No, I would rather not see what my husband was planning to do. No, instead I just want to thank you.”

  “Before you thank me, I need you to understand your fate was supposed to end today. You are the first person to ever in a sense escape death.”

  She walked over and hugged me. “No, thanking you is the only thing you can do for someone who saves your life.”

  We stood there for what seemed like eternity in an embrace. Finally, I pulled away. “It seemed like the right thing to do.”

  “And so does this.” She pulled me back in and kissed me. What started as a long slow kiss soon turned into more passionate and rapid kisses. We found our way back to the couch, continuing to embrace the passion building. Before I knew it, her shirt was off and her breasts were pressed up against me. I started to reach around to undo her bra, freeing them from their oppression.

  Then doing something completely out of character, I pulled away. “We shouldn’t be doing this. At least not now.”

  Maggie looked up at me. “It’s okay Derrick. Mark and I hadn’t loved each other in a long time.”

  “I understand, but I don’t want you to do anything gin the heat of the moment you regret later.” The look she gave me told me I might as well kick her puppy too. Time for some damage control. “Let me make a deal with you. Take care of yourself and everything you will need to do tonight. If in the morning you still want to see me, call me.”

  “Okay.”

  “Trust me, once everything sinks in, you will understand.”

  I reached out and gave her hand a squeeze. With nothing else left to be said, I took my leave and made my way out to Khloros. He gave me a few minutes to think before he tried to talk to me.

  “I only reached out to the Lust demon to help you. I know you prefer to work alone, but this was an extraordinary situation.”

  It was hard to stay mad at him. “I know, it just caught me off guard. Plus I had no idea you could make calls from that Bluetooth thing.”

  “Come now, it is the Twenty-First century. The mortals have made all sorts of innovations that can do wonderful things.”

  “Can you set my phone up like that?”

  The engine fired up to life without the key even in the ignition. “All you ever had to do was ask.”

  On the way home, he helped me set up my phone to be connected to him. The excitement in his voice told me he had waited a long time for me to ask him to do this. I used to consider myself a very wise being, but lately I think the opposite was true. I could be downright dumb and oblivious to everything around me.

  I was hungry when I got back to my apartment. And after the day I had, I also was craving a nice cold beer. Contrary to popular belief, celestial beings also need sustenance. In fact, food and beer are two of the best things about living life on Earth (and yes so is sex, but I was trying to keep this conversation clean. Thanks for dragging me down.).

  When I opened the door to my place, the overwhelming and delicious aroma of cheeseburgers hit me. We aren’t talking the fast food stuff most Americans eat; no I am talking about homemade and grilled to perfection.

  “Welcome home Mast- err Derrick! I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of making dinner for you!”

  Roxanne hooked me by the arm and led me into the kitchen. I blinked twice at the food waiting for me. “No, I don’t mind at all. I appreciate it greatly, but you didn’t have to go to this trouble for me.”

  She pushed me into my seat. “It was no trouble at all. I told her before, I am used to running the household.” She then sniffed the air. “Holy shit! You didn’t have sex with that lady did you?”

  “What? How would you know that?”

  “I’m a Lust demon, the aroma of pent up sexual tension is rolling off of you.”

  I couldn’t argue with the truth. I desperately needed a cold shower. “You’re right of course, we didn’t have sex.”

  “Why the hell not? She is one hot piece of ass if I do say so myself.”

  I really didn’t want to have this conversation, but then Roxanne opened the fridge and pulled out a beer. Not just any beer, but the Seadog Blueberry Ale. She poured the miracle liquid into a frosted mug.

  “You want this?” I shook my head like an obedient dog. “Then answer the question.”

  “Because, once she realizes what happened, she will hate me. I didn’t want to complicate matters.” Yep, big bad old Death was worried (not scared, piss off) that the hot mortal would hate me.

  Roxanne just stared at me. “You put someone else’s feelings before yours?”

  “Are you really surprised? I’m sorry if I’m not what you expected.”

  She didn’t say anything, but put th
e beer mug down beside me and left the kitchen. As I tore into the burger, and damn it was good, I figured the best thing to do was release her from her bonds to me. I figured she could find another being strong enough to protect her from Beelzebub.

  “Master, I have a surprise for you.”

  “How many times do I need to tell you,” and then I stopped. As I turned around, the perfect picture of a housewife was long gone. In an incredibly hot piece of lingerie that left nothing to the imagination, Roxanne was radiating in pure hot sex. She lifted her finger and it told me to follow her. I obeyed, following those swaying hips into the bedroom.

  She pushed me back on to the bed. With the snap of her fingers, my pants came undone and slid off. “Whoa, that is some trick.”

  “That is just the warm up; the real magic hasn’t even started.” With a wink, my shirt ripped in two. I really liked this shirt, but looking up at those red eyes, sparkling with excitement made me realize I could buy another.

  “Close your eyes Master, let your other senses take over.”

  I did what I was told. Even though she called me Master, I knew who was really in control. The heat coming off her body was incredible. What was even more incredible was the feeling of her nails and tongue moving about, exploring different areas until they came to the area they were truly interested in.

  The feeling took my breath away as she worked. I had to grip the side of the bed to keep from shaking. Roxanne worked slowly, almost cruelly in that fact as I wanted a quick release. She was not giving it to me.

  This slow seduction/torture went on for longer than I could remember. Only when her mouth lifted did I try to open my eyes. She stopped that in its tracks. “No Master, not until I tell you.”

  I thought it was odd her hands were so high up, only to discover she had repositioned herself. The naughty little Lust demon was hovering right over me and teased me for a moment or two. I could feel how ready she was for me, but it was just hovering out of reach. This was far worse than how slow she was working me a few moments ago.

  Satisfaction came when in one swift motion she took me in. I know we just had sex a day ago, but this time it was much different.