Deadly Kisses

Twenty-Five





Reina insisted we go to the archives to see how to undo my contract with Ivar and save my soul because the more he used me, the more the dark would claim me. I had already felt it like a dead corpse that licked at my heart. If Ivar could find loopholes, there had to be one to break the contract.

The archives were nestled in the heart of Grim City. With no doors, the only way in was to materialize. We landed on a round stone. Inside, shelves lined as far as the eye could see and Grim Reapers moved in silence through the long aisles.

We walked down limestone steps into the maze.

Reina seemed to know where she was going. Black, leather-bound books sat inside shelves that went up to the ceiling. It smelled like Bee’s underground paper stash.

She pointed to the back of the archives and then checked her phone. “I have to be quick. I only have an hour before my next assignment comes through.”

“Yeah, sure.” Each book on the shelf had names going down the spines in gold print. “What’s up with these books?”

“The whole point of the archives is to track every Grim Reaper and the souls they reap. It is a meticulous history of your afterlife.”

“I can find Bee’s relative, Kessler Flynt?”

“Sure.” Reina stopped at a table. There was a sign labeled ‘contracts.’ Next to it was a line of metal filing boxes. One side said ‘Heaven,’ the other ‘Hell.’

“Is this what I think it is?” I wanted to puke up my cream soda.

“Yup, if you signed a contract with another Grim Reaper, it goes to the appropriate place. The archives are the business department of the Reaper world.”

“Why are there so many Reapers lined up outside that door?” I eyed the line of black that trailed into an aisle.

“Those are Death Dealers. They mediate between us. So if you want a vacation day, transfer, or new apartment, you go to them and make a deal. They draw up the paperwork and submit it for you.”

“They don’t look too happy.”

“They’re not because Ivar owns most of them and they do his dirty work in Hell with the demons.” She pulled down a thin book from the reference shelf. “This is the book I told you about, but it has missing pages.” She flipped open to a page and handed it to me.

Reina worried me. She was nice and helpful, but uneasiness swirled in her. There was a dark streak that mirrored mine. The Ancients tainted our good natures.

I scanned through the pages of the book to see if Reina missed anything. “I’m pretty sure you’re right, and Bee can use my scythe.”

“I know I’m right. Lie to her and make her touch it.” Reina snorted.

“That’s not a good idea. I’ll have to convince her. Even if it’s true, how would I know how to get her soul back into her body?” I asked.

“In the academy we learn that souls are their own life force. Using our scythes, we can take them within us to protect them, and they understand that. So, in theory, if you both hold your scythe at the same time, they should go back to their correct bodies.”

“Theory?”

“You don’t have any better ideas and seeing you never bothered to learn anything, I wouldn’t downplay my theory. I’m probably right with this too.” Reina held her head high.

“I believe you,” I closed the book and placed it back on the shelf. “Where’s Ivar’s book? I want to see how many Reaperling’s he has.”

“You mean books. Many, many, many books.”

Reina waved her hand at me and I followed. We moved to another section. I looked at his name as it spanned the whole length of the shelf. Ivar had done many reapings and had hundreds of Reaperlings. “How am I going to find out what I need? This is ridiculous.”

She shrugged. “It’s like he’s building an army.”

I followed the names with my eyes. “Is he?”

“Your contract.” She shook it in front of me, changing the subject.

I had never seen her so serious as when she scanned through it, making small grunts. Her eyebrows scrunched together and small noises came from her throat. I couldn’t take her silence. I paced in short steps before I snapped. “What? Tell me something.”

“Well, it’s pretty in depth and complicated. You should have had a Death Dealer to act on your behalf, because if I’m reading this right you gave up everything for the girl and her family. This contract can only be broken if you or Ivar dies, and we can’t die. What were you thinking?”

“At least Bee’s family will be safe.”

“It’s the worst deal you could’ve made.” Reina was angry. “He owns you.”

“It was worth it.” I was doomed inevitably.

“Come on, let’s get out of here. Leif is coming. I can feel it through our bond.” Reina’s eyes shifted around the room.

A part of me didn’t want to unravel our souls. A part of me wanted to keep Bee’s soul inside of me where it belonged, safe and protected. It felt right, but I wouldn’t tell Bee because that would mean she would have to choose—between life and death.