Read Online Don't Fear the Reaper by Michelle Muto - Free Book Online
Authors: Michelle Muto
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needed—the means to punish my sister’s killer.
Maybe this was why I was still here, still in purgatory. Maybe I’d been given a chance to avenge Jordan’s death. Maybe if I kept moving, reality wouldn’t catch up to me.
I looked back for Banning one more time. Banning had been pretty kind to me. He’d said he wouldn’t let Daniel take me to hell. But, I had to see Jordan and I wanted to find out where Pete had been living since Jordan’s death. He deserved anything I could do to him.
I hurried through the waiting room. I held my breath, closed my eyes, and walked through the double doors into the hallway. I blinked and exhaled discreetly. Daniel was leaning against the wall like he had all the time in the world to wait for me. In a way, I suppose he did.
He ushered me through the lobby and onto the front porch. One of the visitors walked out behind us. He reached into his pants pocket, retrieved his keys and stepped into the parking lot. The kid talking on the phone sat in one of the rockers, smoking a cigarette despite the sign on the porch railing stating that oxygen tanks may be present and smoking was prohibited.
Daniel jogged off the porch toward a red pickup. We hoisted ourselves over the tailgate and into the cargo area as the pickup backed out of the parking space.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“County morgue. Your sister might come to visit your body,” he said. “This truck driver is going to make a stop about a half-mile from there. We’ll walk the rest of the way, check things out, ask around. After that, we’ll go find Pete, okay?”
I couldn’t trust Daniel, but he was proving useful. “Thanks.”
“Don’t go thanking me yet,” he said.
The driver gunned it as he pulled into traffic and I had to twist my hair in a ponytail and hold it tight to prevent it from whipping me in the face. “Banning is going to be pissed, isn’t he?”
Daniel shrugged. “Yeah. He’s really serious about watching after you.”
True, I was out of my element here. But Banning was a reaper—if he knew when people were about to die, surely he could find me if I got into trouble with Daniel. He’d said he wouldn’t let Daniel take me to hell. I just didn’t understand the hold up. “What’s with the waiting period, anyway?”
Daniel stared at me like I had just grown another head. “Waiting period?”
“You know, before you can take me to hell. Unless, that’s where we’re going now.”
He gave me a slight, almost charming smile. “Going to hell in a pickup. We’re on the highway to hell.”
I simply stared at him.
“No,” he relented at last. “With the way you died, the suicide and all, there’s a bit of a controversy about what to do with you. So, you’re stuck with Banning and me until the situation is resolved. But, we’re not going to hell—yet. A waiting period? Some souls hang around for awhile and some go to their destinations a few minutes after they die.” He paused as though remembering his own death.
I wondered if the memory of his death was as painful for him as mine was for me. I’d been responsible for my death. But Daniel? With his personality, someone probably took him out on purpose.
“Most people like to get to where they’re supposed to be when they die,” he said. “Well, after they visit and say goodbye and all that jazz. Most are like that. Others take longer. After a while, things settle down a bit for them. Usually, they leave once the party’s over. As we’ve said—they don’t call it purgatory for nothing. It’s no fun here. Earthbounds can’t usually communicate with mortals. There’s no way to stop a loved one’s grief or act as some sort of guardian angel. Worse, there’s nothing to keep you out of harm’s way.”
I frowned. The driver made an unexpected turn and I fell against Daniel’s legs. He withdrew them quickly and retied his shoestrings. I righted myself. “You mean purgatory can be dangerous? What do you mean? How do
Maybe this was why I was still here, still in purgatory. Maybe I’d been given a chance to avenge Jordan’s death. Maybe if I kept moving, reality wouldn’t catch up to me.
I looked back for Banning one more time. Banning had been pretty kind to me. He’d said he wouldn’t let Daniel take me to hell. But, I had to see Jordan and I wanted to find out where Pete had been living since Jordan’s death. He deserved anything I could do to him.
I hurried through the waiting room. I held my breath, closed my eyes, and walked through the double doors into the hallway. I blinked and exhaled discreetly. Daniel was leaning against the wall like he had all the time in the world to wait for me. In a way, I suppose he did.
He ushered me through the lobby and onto the front porch. One of the visitors walked out behind us. He reached into his pants pocket, retrieved his keys and stepped into the parking lot. The kid talking on the phone sat in one of the rockers, smoking a cigarette despite the sign on the porch railing stating that oxygen tanks may be present and smoking was prohibited.
Daniel jogged off the porch toward a red pickup. We hoisted ourselves over the tailgate and into the cargo area as the pickup backed out of the parking space.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“County morgue. Your sister might come to visit your body,” he said. “This truck driver is going to make a stop about a half-mile from there. We’ll walk the rest of the way, check things out, ask around. After that, we’ll go find Pete, okay?”
I couldn’t trust Daniel, but he was proving useful. “Thanks.”
“Don’t go thanking me yet,” he said.
The driver gunned it as he pulled into traffic and I had to twist my hair in a ponytail and hold it tight to prevent it from whipping me in the face. “Banning is going to be pissed, isn’t he?”
Daniel shrugged. “Yeah. He’s really serious about watching after you.”
True, I was out of my element here. But Banning was a reaper—if he knew when people were about to die, surely he could find me if I got into trouble with Daniel. He’d said he wouldn’t let Daniel take me to hell. I just didn’t understand the hold up. “What’s with the waiting period, anyway?”
Daniel stared at me like I had just grown another head. “Waiting period?”
“You know, before you can take me to hell. Unless, that’s where we’re going now.”
He gave me a slight, almost charming smile. “Going to hell in a pickup. We’re on the highway to hell.”
I simply stared at him.
“No,” he relented at last. “With the way you died, the suicide and all, there’s a bit of a controversy about what to do with you. So, you’re stuck with Banning and me until the situation is resolved. But, we’re not going to hell—yet. A waiting period? Some souls hang around for awhile and some go to their destinations a few minutes after they die.” He paused as though remembering his own death.
I wondered if the memory of his death was as painful for him as mine was for me. I’d been responsible for my death. But Daniel? With his personality, someone probably took him out on purpose.
“Most people like to get to where they’re supposed to be when they die,” he said. “Well, after they visit and say goodbye and all that jazz. Most are like that. Others take longer. After a while, things settle down a bit for them. Usually, they leave once the party’s over. As we’ve said—they don’t call it purgatory for nothing. It’s no fun here. Earthbounds can’t usually communicate with mortals. There’s no way to stop a loved one’s grief or act as some sort of guardian angel. Worse, there’s nothing to keep you out of harm’s way.”
I frowned. The driver made an unexpected turn and I fell against Daniel’s legs. He withdrew them quickly and retied his shoestrings. I righted myself. “You mean purgatory can be dangerous? What do you mean? How do
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