Have you read Red Reaper Part One - Vanity?
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Greed
Noun
- Intense and selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power, or food.
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“What?!” she shouted, jerking out of Flynn’s touch. “Dead? I’m not dead, this is just one of my weird ass dreams. I can’t be dead.” She looked down at her hands, flipping them over, inspecting them for… she wasn’t sure what.
Flynn watched her carefully. “We’re in Hell Kyle.”
Hell? Wait, didn’t that bitch in the cavern say something about hell?
“We’re in Hell,” Flynn said again after a short pause. “In Europe, Eastern District, to be more specific. That’s the Black Sea,” he said, gesturing to the glittering sea above them. She glanced up at it.
“But I’m not… evil,” she said, flicking her eyes back to Flynn. “Say I really am dead, why am I in Hell?”
“You’re guilty of four or more Deadly Sins,” he said with a small shrug. “This is the 2020 to 2030 Grim Section. You’ve become a Grim because you were guilty of five Deadly Sins, like the rest of us here.” He gestured to the other people walking, relaxing, and playing games in the park around them. They looked like… completely ordinary people.
“Come,” he said and started walking through the park again. Too stunned to argue, she fell into step beside him. When she didn’t say anything, he continued. “Every Sunday there’s an Induction Dinner for the new Grims. At the dinner you’ll get your assignment.”
“Assignment?” she asked.
“Yeah, it’s kinda like a job.”
“A job?” She’d died and gone to Hell and now she had to, what, work for the rest of… whatever? She stared at him.
He laughed. “Don’t worry, the goodie two shoes up top have jobs too.” She had no idea what he was talking about, but he carried on before she could ask. “Now, since you died early this morning, and Hell’s processing system is ancient, we have less than a couple hours until the dinner.” He paused, side eyeing her. “I can help you find a more… appropriate outfit for the dinner,” he said, a mischievous grin curling the corners of his mouth.
“Piss off,” she grumbled, crossing her arms.
He chuckled. They continued in silence. She watched the people around her. They all seemed happy, healthy and… young? If this was Hell, then where were all the people who died of old age? Actually, did it really matter right now? What about home? Her sister? Piglet? Would she ever see them again? “It’s a lot to take in,” she muttered.
“I know,” Flynn nodded seriously. “Look, why not come back to my place? You can take it all in with some wine and cheese.”
Hmmm, she was a sucker for wine and cheese, and it’s not like she had anywhere else to go anyway. But she was still suspicious of Flynn. She side eyed him.
“Andrea and Claire will be there getting ready with their new Grims too,” he said coaxingly.
So, they were hosting a sort of pre-drinks thing? Well… “Fine,” she mumbled.
With another stunning smile Flynn turned down a side path, leading them through a shady patch of trees to the edge of the park. They emerged at the bottom of an elevator shaft. Her head tilted back as she tried to spot where the top of the steel structure met the underside of the sea. Flynn hit the button and the lift box shot down to them. Once they were in, he punched 487 into the keypad and the doors closed with a ding. The lift shot upwards. Kyle crumbled under the force, collapsing into a heap at Flynn’s feet.
He roared with laughter. “Probably should have mentioned that,” he said as the lift came to a smooth stop and the doors opened with another ding.
Yep, he was a huge dick. He put his hand out to help her up, but she ignored him. Face burning, she pushed herself up and marched out of the lift. This guy was getting on her last nerve.
He caught her arm gently. “Hey, Kyle, I’m just trying to break the ice.”
She turned slowly, glaring at him.
He dropped her arm and ran his hand through his hair. “Look, you died today. Died Kyle. You probably haven’t even fully processed it yet.” He looked into her eyes. His were such a pale blue she felt like she was being x-rayed. “My mission is to make you laugh before the end of the day.”
Well, he may be a huge dick, but maybe he was trying to help. She gave him a small smile.
“It’s a start,” he grinned, putting an arm around her shoulders.
He guided her down the zigzagging corridor carved into the cliff face. Doors and windows of all shapes and styles dotted the cliff wall along one side. The other side was open to the centre, the park a blurred patch of green below her, the sea floating above.
They arrived at a rectangular white door with a neat welcome mat out front. Frosted glass stretched either side of the door. “Home,” Flynn smiled. Kyle’s chest tightened at the word. Flynn removed his arm from around her and, digging in his pants pocket, pulled out a very full key ring and opened the door.
Music was blasting as she walked in the door. She entered a huge gleaming white living room lit by the windows stretching either side of the door to the far walls. To one side was a dining table where a tall blonde girl was curling another girl’s hair. To the other side was a lounge with plush white couches where a nervous-looking guy with a painful red mark around his neck and a tiny skeleton sat as far away from each other as possible. She stared at the tiny skeleton for a moment, decided it wasn’t the weirdest thing she’d seen today, and moved on. Behind was a kitchen, the smell of baked brie wafting from the oven. Kyle’s mouth watered.
The place was completely covered in trinkets. Side tables and shelves dotted the room with flowers, candles, figurines and pot plants shoved on every available space. The walls were covered in paintings and sculptures too. The kitchen island was covered with the largest antipasto platter she’d ever seen. Everyone had their own wine bottle next to their glass, all of them almost empty, and a huge wine rack in the kitchen was fully stocked. Kyle raised her eyebrows. Everything looked so… expensive.
“We’re all guilty of Greed in this house. But really, who can resist the selfish desire for wealth and food,” Flynn winked, as he chucked his keys and wallet on a cluttered side table.
“Welcome!” came a shrill voice from the dining table. The tall girl was smiling at Kyle as she held a curl in the curler. “I’ll tidy your hair up next. Flynn, where’d you get her outfit? It’s stunning!”
“She came in it. I was thinking we might have something Kyle could borrow that was more elegant for the dinner?” Flynn asked, closing the door behind him.
“I got my hands on a long red dress and a pair of red heels the other day that’d suit her. I’ll grab them,” said the skeleton, seeming glad to find an excuse to get away from the nervous-looking guy and leaving the room before Kyle could agree.
Flynn chuckled as he made his way to the kitchen. Kyle went over to the girls at the dining table. As she approached them, she caught her reflection over the shoulder of the girl sitting down. She gasped, bringing her hand to her face. Her long black hair and bright green eyes where still the same, but a long angry red scar in the shape of a jagged crack stretched across her forehead.
“Oh, don’t worry about it, the scar fades in about a week. See,” the tall girl said, dropping a golden curl and pulling down her turtleneck. A faint white scar ran across her throat.
Kyle’s eyes widened. Had her throat been slit? God that would have been a horrible way to die. Was it rude to ask what happened? Probably, but she couldn’t resist the selfish desire to know. “What happened?” Kyle blurted.
The girl let go of her collar and gave Kyle a sad smile. “It’s a long story.” She went back to curling. “I’m Claire by the way, and this is Gail. The skeleton is Andrea and I think that guy’s name is Pete. Gail died earlier this week, Pete’s been here about an hour, so we’ll have three of you going to the Induction Dinner,” she said.
Kyle looked down at Gail. She was young, but her eyes looked too wise. Gail smiled at her. She smiled back.
“So, you probably want to know what the assignments are?” Flynn asked as he handed Kyle a glass of wine filled to the brim. “There are hundreds of different assignments, some of them are similar to jobs Above.”
“Above?” Kyle asked, taking a large sip of her wine. It left a familiar warmth in its wake as it slid down her throat.
“Yeah, on the surface, where the Living are.” Flynn took a sip of his wine. “Claire, Andrea, and I are on the Welcoming Committee. Our other two flatmates, Vicki and Darren, are a Trader and a Carver. You could be assigned to anything; construction, landscaping, rubbish collection, you name it.”
She screwed up her face at the thought of having to deal with everyone’s rubbish every day for the rest of… whatever. “What if I don’t like the job?”
“Then tough shit.” Andrea wandered over to join them, draping a dress on one of the chairs. “Trust me, I’ve tried to get a reassignment every week since my Induction Dinner. I still can’t believe I’m on the Welcoming Committee, I hate people,” the tiny skeleton grumbled.
“But you love us don’t you Andrea,” Flynn said, rubbing the top of her skull as if he was ruffling her hair.
“Ged-off me you idiot,” Andrea grumbled, ducking out from under his hand. Kyle could swear she heard a smile in Andrea’s voice.
“Wait, how come you don’t have hair? Flynn’s skeleton does.” Kyle said.
Andrea and Claire burst out laughing. “It’s a wig,” Andrea cackled. “Every Grim’s skeleton looks pretty similar, but the vainest usually add accessories. Flynn loooooves his hair.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Flynn said, but he did look a bit sheepish as he ran his fingers through his black and white hair.
Kyle let out a huffed laugh.
Flynn smirked at her as he lowered his hand from his hair.
“Your turn Kyle,” Claire said as she finished Gail’s hair.
Flynn wandered off to get ready while Claire styled her hair in long black waves. When Claire finished, Kyle changed into the red dress and heels from Andrea and grabbed a handbag Claire lent her. Finishing a whole bottle of wine to herself, she was starting to feel pretty good despite… everything.
The six of them left the apartment, heading back to the lift. Even in her tipsy state, Kyle remembered to grab the lift’s handrail just before it shot down. The nervous guy didn’t, hitting his head hard on the ceiling before collapsing in a heap as the lift stopped. The others snickered as they exited. Kyle offered him a hand, but he ignored her, pushing himself up and hurrying out with a scowl. Shrugging she followed him into the shady glade.
“We’re heading that way,” Flynn said, nodding his head to the left after the other four. They set off together, staying slightly behind the others. “You look amazing,” he grinned. She noticed his smile hitched slightly higher to the right. Heat bloomed over her skin, and she smiled to herself. She did look pretty damn good.
Eventually, she became aware of bass pulsing through the air. As they came around a headland, the path in front of them was bathed in red light as far as she could see.
“I thought you said it was a dinner?” she said, side eyeing Flynn.
“I did.” He grinned at her. “But I never said it was like dinners up there,” he said, glancing at the ceiling.
Before she could reply, he pulled open the door, grabbed her hand, and dragged her in. A gigantic double-height room had been carved out of the red and white cliffs. Between the layers of stone were thin strips of glowing red lava which lit the place. Stone bars, timber spiral staircases, and mezzanine floors stretched as far as she could see. The music seemed to come from all around them.
It was the biggest luxury speakeasy bar she’d ever seen. People lounged around in stunning outfits; long dresses, flowing robes, sharp suits. They crowded around bars getting drinks, sat around tables with chefs cooking in the centre, and relaxed on cushy couches laughing. Cigarette smoke hung in a haze over the room.
“How big is this place?” she asked as her eyes roved over the hundreds of people filling the room.
“We get about 20,000 new Grims every week. About half of their Welcomers show up. Let’s get something to eat!” He grabbed her hand and dragged her into the crowd.
She quickly lost her sense of direction as they weaved through the chattering people.
“Ah, Flynn!” Someone in the crowd called.
“Greg!” Flynn called back.
They skirted around the edge of a crowded table to two empty seats right by the chef. Flynn pulled out the bar stool for her. She took her seat, using the polished wooden bar to help her up. A glass of whiskey with a skull-shaped ice cube appeared on its shiny surface. Beyond the bench was a hotplate stationed by a round man with short brown hair and a moustache.
“Greg, this is Kyle,” Flynn said, sliding onto the seat next to her.
Greg nodded to her. She nodded back.
“Greg is the best chef in Hell,” Flynn said, leaning over to her with a conspirator’s smile. “He was a Michelin Star chef Above and got assigned to being a chef in Hell. What’s the chances!”
She tried to suppress her laugh, but it bubbled out. She clamped her lips shut but it was too late.
Flynn gave her a mischievous grin and leaned toward her. “I told you I’d make you laugh by the end of the night,” Flynn whispered.
Her breath caught as she breathed in his vanilla and wine scent. Her stomach exploded with butterflies. Flustered, she turned away in mock indignation, but failed to suppress her smile.
“Two of the table specials,” Greg said, setting down two risottos.
Grateful for the distraction, she dug in. It was the most delicious thing she’d ever tasted. Creamy with the perfect mushroom flavour. God, she could eat endless amounts of this.
They finished their meal and were on to their third glass of whiskey, which, on top of the bottle of wine, were making her feel amazing, when suddenly hundreds of phones dinged.
“You have phones down here?” she asked, as Flynn stuck his hand in his jacket pocket, pulling out a smart phone and handing it to her.
There was a new message.
“Yep. Sorry, I should have given this to you sooner. This is yours, the message is your assignment,” he said, gesturing to the phone.
She looked around. Most people were already reading their messages. She opened hers.
Reaper - Jett Taylor
“Shit,” Flynn hissed.
“What?” Kyle asked, her stomach tightening. “What’s a Reaper?”
Flynn touched her arm. Her skin tingled. “A Reaper goes Above and brings the Dead to Hell, but that’s not that I’m worried about. It’s-“
“Robinson.” The low growl behind her tingled down her spine.
“Taylor,” Flynn said through clenched teeth, looking over her shoulder.
She spun around to find a tall hooded figure towering over her. She couldn’t make out his face in the shadows, but she felt his eyes shift to hers.
“Rivers, you’re coming with me.”
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Read Red Reaper Part Three - Lust out now!