Deadly Kisses

Two





I stood against the stone wall of Bee’s house and waited for an opportunity. I had to make the death look natural and not a random act of violence.

Being born in Acstead gave me an advantage. I knew where all the cemeteries were for this assignment. I was careful to enter through the one in the center of town instead of the one behind her house. Even though no one could see me, I still felt visible to the mortal world.

My scythe was on the ground. I checked my phone again, mostly out of habit. Not like my voicemail was overflowing with messages. The only two who called were Abe and his other Reaperling, Reina. God, I could manage without hearing her annoying voice. I looked up, calculating my next move.

The edge of the grassed yard looked into the woods to a forgotten cemetery. Laughter echoed off the old head stones and vibrated my bones. I put my phone in the pocket of my cloak and moved closer to watch Bee. Just thinking about her name made me want to be with her again.

I swallowed down a lump of guilt as I walked past the flower garden I helped Bee to plant. The flowers were brown now, and it reminded me how fragile life was.

Bee was prettier than I remembered. She was short, and her curves reminded me of my Fender acoustic, perfectly crafted. The jeans were nice, but the flowery pink sweater and wool gray hat looked to be borrowed from her mom. Straight black hair stood out against her white skin. I remembered how I used to twirl it around my fingers. My heart beat hard and my hand shook. I had to go through with this.

Bee leaned into the oak tree that stood outside of the cemetery. “One . . . two . . . three.” She screamed and small giggles erupted from behind a large boulder.

I stumbled back as twin girls with Bee’s jet black hair ran by, tugging on each other. Their purple jackets contrasted with the vibrant yellows and reds of the leaves. There was no mistaking the Flynt family. They all had the same straight black hair. Well, everyone except Bee’s mother. The twin girls were Bee’s cousins, Sabrina’s sisters—the sisters Sabrina barely knew.

“Four . . . five . . . six.” Bee peeked over her arm to see what direction the twins ran. The rusted gate from the cemetery squeaked and she snapped her head in their direction, sheer panic on her face that the girls had entered the cemetery.

“Seven . . . eight . . . nine.” She said in one breath and half ran toward the old cemetery. “Ten!”

I stood still, the silent observer in the lush pines.

It was quiet except for the occasional chuckle of the twin girls. The geese honked from a distance and wind rustled the dried leaves. Bee pretended not to know where the girls were hiding.

She jumped behind the rock, but they had run to another spot a minute before she arrived. Bee yelled. “Boo! They tricked me. Hmm, where can they be? Maybe Faith and Hope are hiding behind a tree.”

A short squeaky giggle erupted from one of the twins and she yelped, “Ouch!”

Bee took a deep breath and walked toward the rusted gate that opened into the cemetery. She entered into Grim Reaper territory.

“Find me, Bee,” the child squeaked, and her voice carried on the wind from behind the old maple that stood grand and thick in the middle of the scattered gravestones. Some would think it odd to have an old cemetery in your backyard, but in small town New Hampshire, it was considered part of the décor.

“Here I come. Where are Hope and Faith?” Bee’s almost kid-like voice bubbled out.

I blew out a long breath and shook my head. I didn’t want to end her life, but I looked around, seeing what I could use to create her death. I was much better with close contact and with creating a medical death rather than using nature. I looked up to see if there were loose branches, but she ran away from the tree and toward a clustered plot of gravestones.

The two girls giggled and jumped out at her with open arms. They fell onto the moist ground laughing. One of them pulled off her hat, and the other threw leaves into Bee’s hair.

“You’re good at this game, girls.” She sat up, shaking her head, but the leaves remained.

“Bee looks like scary crow, Hope. Look at all the leaves in her hair.” Faith pointed, laughing.

“You mean scare crow.” Bee messed Faith’s hair with her hand. It was smooth, thick, and ran down to her shoulders. The child picked out the dried leaves from her hair releasing them, and they swayed to the ground.

“I wanna snack now. Can we go home?” Hope cradled Bee’s face with her pudgy hands. Her little lips kissed the tip of Bee’s red nose.

The leaves rustled, and Bee leaned forward toward the Kessler family crypt and froze. A red squirrel stopped with its face fat with nuts. It twitched its nose and ran away. “Your mom should be back now,” Bee said, “How about when we get home, I make you hot apple cider. I’ll add extra cinnamon.”

“Cither. Yea!” One of the twins clapped her hands together and skipped around the stones. I watched mesmerized by her hair as it whipped in the wind.

“Cither, cither!” The twins chanted.

“Ci-der,” Bee corrected. They walked behind her, jumping on leaves that fell to the dry ground.

The cemetery gate squeaked as Bee closed it. I noticed a loose branch in the tree ahead. My scythe warmed up in my hand. I should get this over with fast because the longer I hung around, the harder it would be to take her life and soul.

I aimed the scythe’s energy to loosen the branch. I swallowed hard. Sometimes I hated my job.

The branch dislodged from the nook it was stuck in. I raised my scythe, getting ready to make it fall.

“Girls. Quick! Look at the salamander.” She ran to it, crouched down, and cupped the thing in her hands.

My scythe cooled and the branch remained in the tree. A close contact medical reap it would have to be then. I blew out a long breath. I moved closer to them, staying hidden in the pine trees. Another Grim Reaper should have this assignment. I shook away past thoughts, and lowered my hood.

I saw Bee cuddle some kind of lizard in her hands. A soft light sparked off her and animated the stiff creature. It wiggled across her hand.

I tucked my hands in the long sleeves of my cloak as the cold blew through my bones. I could never warm up unless I collected a soul. The warmth would fade after the delivery, which sent me back into an artic freeze.

“You want to find it a home? It’s getting too cold for salamanders to be above ground,” Bee said.

Faith pointed to a moss-covered log. “Bee, put it here, but I don’t wanna touch it. I don’t like slimy stuff.”

Bee watched the ravens that squawked louder because of my presence. I inhaled. My lips puckered out as I sent a frigid gust of air toward them. I knew the pesky birds annoyed Bee.

“Girls, time to go.” She wrapped the jacket around herself.

I grinned at the black birds flying away to escape my wind. They sensed death and didn’t want to tempt fate.

“Hurry, it’s getting cold, and you didn’t wear your hats. Your mom is going to get mad at me if you get sick.”

The girl walked by where I hid behind a cluster of blueberry bushes. I sucked in my breath with the warm breeze that followed her. She was full of life and unbelievably breathtaking. Her eyes captivated me. They were dark onyx with flecks of gold that danced around the edges. Her heart-shaped lips were cherry red and full. I imagined kissing them to take her soul tonight.

The carefree swing of her hips sent tingles down my spine. But seeing Bee again caused me to relive every painful memory of the night I died. It was my fault. I killed Sabrina. I stumbled back further into pine trees and held my hands to my head squeezing, forcing the flashback of my death to go away.

I had to get this assignment over with. The faster I collected the girl’s soul and delivered it, the faster I could move on—as far away from New Hampshire as possible. Maybe Abe would allow me to transfer to the sunny west coast. Fall in New England was overrated, and the crowds of leaf peepers were annoying.

I would reap her tonight while she slept. She wouldn’t know what happened until it was too late. Everyone prayed they could die in their sleep. Too bad Abe hadn’t let me die in mine.