Don't Fear the Reaper (25 page)

Banning, the young girl, and an older man dressed in all white walked through the doors and into the waiting room. The man in white—clearly the angel who had come for Chloe—looked almost ancient, older even than Mr. Manero. Old or not, he had a healthy glow across his cheeks and he moved with youthful grace. Banning, a stark contrast in black, walked behind them, looking worn. The angel and the girl walked straight to her parents. Banning quietly took a seat next to Daniel.

I kept thinking about how young she was. Chloe. What a pretty name. Damn it, Jordan! Now I was using the girl’s name.

The angel didn’t pay any attention to us. I guess he didn’t want to overwhelm Chloe. She’d seen us, but I took notice of Daniel’s disregard and didn’t stare. She probably thought we were like her parents and were waiting on someone. Chloe had no idea we were every bit as dead as she was.

The angel stopped a few feet from the parents and let go of her hand. “It’s okay, Chloe.”

She looked at him, bewildered. “Will I see them again soon?”

“Yes, Sweetheart. I promise.”

Chloe gave Banning a look of fear, revulsion. He’d been the one to take her away from her parents. I could relate. Crossing over wasn’t exactly a day at Disney. Chloe stood in front of her parents, who didn’t know she was close enough to touch, to reach out and take into their arms. Chloe’s mother glanced at her watch and then toward the doors, oblivious of the news to come.

Chloe’s father patted his wife’s knee in reassurance, but he seemed just as worried and as anxious as she did.

Banning leaned forward, and whispered to us, “He’s her great-grandfather. She’s seen pictures of him.”

Chloe placed a hand on each of her parents’ legs. When they didn’t acknowledge her, she frowned.

“They can’t see or hear you,” the angel told her.

“Because it’d scare them that I died?” Chloe asked.

“Something like that,” the angel replied.

I tried not to watch, not to listen.

“Can I come back?” she asked. “When they’re not so scared?”

“Yes, Sweetheart. But not right away. As soon as you can, though.”

Chloe stepped forward and hugged her mother, then her father. The angel waited patiently. Chloe was still frowning, but willing to go with her great-grandfather. “I feel better now,” she said as the angel led her from the waiting room and toward the hallway.

She stopped and turned. “Bye,” she told her parents, who were still staring anxiously at the operating room doors. Chloe and her great-grandfather’s waning shapes glistened like sun on snowcaps as they faded from view.

There’s something to be said about timing. I had to hand it to the angel for getting Chloe away from her parents so quickly. Her shape hadn’t vanished more than a minute before the doors to the operating room opened once more. A tall, solemn man wearing scrubs, a cap, and glasses walked out, shoulders slouched. His pace, steady but not brisk, said everything.

Chloe’s father saw the truth first. His expression grew long and his eyes wide.

“How is she?” Chloe’s mother asked as the doctor stopped before them. “When can we see her?”

The husband grabbed his wife’s hand, squeezing it. The wife’s gaze shifted between the doctor and her husband. Her lower lip trembled and she slowly shook her head. “No,” she cried softly, all the strength gone from her voice. “No. Not my baby.”

“How’s your sister?” Daniel asked, in an attempt to divert my attention from the grieving parents.

My heart was aching and tears had begun to overflow and run down my cheeks.

Daniel nudged me. “Where’s Jordan?”

“Huh
?
” Then I remembered my sister, alone in the ladies room, waiting this out. If she came out now, it’d be a disaster.

“I’ll go make sure she’s okay,” I said, getting to my feet. I was glad to get away from the scene, although I don’t think I’d be forgetting it any time soon.

Banning frowned. “What’s wrong with Jordan?”

“Bathroom,” Daniel clarified. “She was a bit squeamish about the kid’s send off to eternity camp.”

Banning shook his head and turned to me. “Sure. Another two or three minutes, Keely. Take her toward the other end of the waiting room. We’ll leave from there.”

As I hurried to the women’s room, I tried to shut out the sobs from behind me. Tried to shut out the doctor’s apologies. I walked through the restroom door. “Jordan?”

All four stall doors were open. No answer. I whirled around, searching the deserted bathroom. No Jordan. I turned and ran back into the waiting room. Banning and Daniel jerked their heads up.

“Jordan’s gone!” I shouted. “She must’ve ducked out through the walls!” My heart pounded as I frantically scanned the room for her. “Jordan!” I yelled, although I already knew she wasn’t there to answer me.

Banning looked around as though he too, expected to find her sitting somewhere else. “Where did she go?”

Daniel closed his eyes tightly and clenched his fists. I swore he mumbled another apology under his breath.

He knew where she’d gone, and so did I.

“She’s gone to find Pete,” I said, glancing at the doctor who was gently coaxing Chloe’s parents from their chairs. I wondered whether he was taking them to see Chloe’s body, or if he was just taking them someplace more private for them to grieve in peace. I felt sorry for them, I really did. But right now I needed to find Jordan—fast.

“We need to leave
now,”
I said, trying to sound calm. The look Banning gave me pretty much confirmed I wasn’t succeeding. “The demons!” I reminded them. I didn’t want to think about Jordan alone with who knew how many demons,
and
Pete. My stomach clenched with fear. Somehow, I knew that Pete and the demons were expecting company. But not Jordan. Pete would be surprised, but
delighted
to see her again. I didn’t want to think what he might do to her the second time around.

“Jordan has a ten-minute head start,” I said. Banning and Daniel were already on their feet.

“Stay calm, Keely,” Banning urged.

I noticed he didn’t mention
why
we had to stay calm. Aside from the trap waiting for my sister, we all knew I had a thing about getting revenge. If I didn’t keep some form of composure, I’d be booking a couple of rooms in hell for Friday checkin. Right now, I didn’t care. I thought the world of Banning, but my sister came first.

We ran out of the waiting room, down the hallway. I barely noticed the frigid chill I got running through a nurse pushing a lab cart. I didn’t bother to turn to see if she shivered from the sudden draft. In our mad dash through the lobby, we startled two earthbounds. Both men stared, wide-eyed, their mouths agape as we ran past them. Since I was ahead of Banning and Daniel, the men probably thought I had a demon
and
a reaper chasing after me.

“Neither of you saw her leave?” Banning asked. “What happened?”

“Chloe’s death shook her up a bit,” I said as we hurried through the sliding glass doors and into the daylight. “But, I don’t think that was it.”

We stopped at the curb. Banning surveyed the parking lot for a ride. “What did she say? Did either of you do anything to upset her?”

I thought for a moment. I started to answer that neither of us had said a word. But, we had. Jordan began acting weird once Daniel started grilling me on Pete. I gave Daniel a shove. “You knew!” I spat. “You
knew
she’d go to Pete’s house, didn’t you?”

Banning glanced at the two of us. “Enough, Keely. Daniel? What did you say?”

Daniel kicked at the curb, his eyes on me. “I tried to tell you.”

“You told me
nothing
!” I shouted.

“Come on! Did you think I could come right out and say it?” Daniel said in an exasperated tone. “I gave you plenty of hints. Besides, tell me this, who suggested that you check on her?”

True, he had been trying to tell me something, but I'd had no idea it had to do with Jordan. I’d thought it was all about that stupid test. “That’s not the point, Daniel!”

“
Enough,
” Banning warned, “Both of you.” He took hold of our arms and moved us forward as though we were a couple of five-year-olds. Until now, I hadn’t realized that Daniel and I had stopped in the middle of the patient pick-up zone to argue.

“But he’s the reason she took off!” I tried to explain. “Daniel planted the idea in Jordan’s head that I’d fail. He asked what I’d do to Pete if I knew I was going to hell anyway.”

“And?” Banning asked Daniel.

“You know, you could’ve said something there,” Daniel replied.

He was right. I should have spoken up. If I hadn’t been so freaked about the stupid test and upset over little Chloe, I might have figured out what Daniel was doing. Jordan had understood. But I missed it entirely. Damn! I was such an idiot!

“Come on. Let’s concentrate on getting to Jordan before she does something she’ll regret, shall we?” Banning said.

Banning and Daniel scouted people and cars, looking for a probable ride. They could move faster than me, and in ways I could only imagine. “Can’t you two just tell me how to get to Pete’s? I’ll catch up while you guys go ahead and stop her,” I said.

They both shook their heads.

“From here on, we can’t leave you alone,” Daniel said.

I shot him a puzzled glance. From here on? What did that mean? And what exactly did he think I could do? I’d be the last one to get to where we were going. I couldn’t exactly arrange a surprise attack.

“Banning, please, go ahead of us and talk her out of doing anything stupid.” I shot a glare at Daniel. “Just tell me where you’re going, so the trickster here doesn’t have me make a wrong turn someplace.”

Frustrated, Daniel took a deep breath. “Ease up, will you? I didn’t
know
she’d take off, okay? Do I
look
like I carry a crystal ball?
You’re
her sister.” Daniel tapped a finger to the side of his head. “I thought identical twins were supposed to be in tune with each other. You wanted justice, Sunshine. I was just trying to give it to you.”

His explanation didn’t change anything. He had jeopardized my sister, and I had trusted him. Daniel scrubbed a hand across his face. I think he was sorry, but it didn’t change the outcome. My sister was in serious trouble.

“Besides,” he said, “If she takes the demon’s offer to kill Pete, then you and Banning are off the hook. No one would blame the murder victim, right?”

I turned away from Daniel. Banning continued to look for just the right ride.
Damn!
I should have known what Jordan had in mind, and I hated that Daniel had to point it out.

“I can’t believe Lucifer would take a trade-off like that. He’d only get Pete.” I scanned the area for anyone who might be heading toward a car. “The other way around, he’d get Banning
and
me, and still get Pete.”

“I’m guessing Lucifer didn’t consider the possibility of Jordan taking the deal instead,” Banning said.

The more I thought about Jordan, the more frightened I became. “They’ll hurt her.”

Daniel reached out to touch me, but decided better of it. “We’ll be there before they do anything. Before
she
does anything. Seriously. We’ll get there. I promise.”

Banning pointed out a man getting into an older, black Lexus sedan in need of a wash. We jogged over to the car. “Daniel’s idea might work,” Banning said. “Her chances might be better than yours.”

We slid into the car just as the man threw the Lexus into reverse. Then he pulled forward equally fast, whipping through the parking lot, and onto the main road, heading north.

I leaned forward in my seat. Time was wasting away and here we were, traveling by stupid car. “Banning? Please? Can you just go get my sister? Stop her?”

Banning pivoted slightly to face me. “I doubt Jordan is going to go storming in and demand to speak to the head demon. And the demons won’t do anything right away. They’ll wait and see what Jordan’s going to do first.”

“How can you be sure?” I asked, ignoring the caged feeling I had just sitting in the car. We were going too slowly. Of course, if we’d been doing eighty I still would’ve thought we were going too slowly.

“Because I’ve seen this before,” Banning said. “Demons like to watch the fuse burn on the bomb for a while. They don’t care about Pete. Jordan’s attempt to save herself and you is much more entertaining for them. They’ll play it for everything it’s worth.”

I didn’t feel good about this, but what else could I do? I sighed. The sooner we got to Jordan, the better. Banning’s thoughts about what
might
happen did little to comfort me. Because, when it came to Pete, even I couldn’t predict what Jordan would do next.

The Lexus inched along in the bottleneck of cars, aggravating the driver
and
me.

Atlanta traffic. Just my luck. One minute, the roads were wide open, and the next minute you were in gridlock for hours. We’d been on the road less than five minutes and this was already beyond excruciating. If Jordan had missed hitting the traffic, she could be long gone.

Frustrated with my dependence on Daniel and Banning to get me to Pete’s, I pounded on the armrest. “I can’t believe my own sister tricked me. All those questions at the hospital!”

“That’s it!” Daniel said. “How can I be so freaking stupid? This whole deal isn’t all about you or your sister. Damn, I can’t believe this.”

“You’re hurting my brain, Daniel,” I said. “What
are
you talking about?”

“I was the one set up. He played me!”

“Who?” Banning and I asked simultaneously.

“Lucifer,” Daniel said. “Damn it! He knew I’d tell Keely and Jordan about the deal!”

Biting my lip, I watched the slow moving traffic. Why were we still sitting here? Walking would almost be faster than this.

Daniel pummeled the armrest. “I’m sorry. The boss man schemed this whole thing. He knew I’d say something, knew you’d go help your sister. He probably figures it’s his best chance to win. Now, he’ll get four souls. You and your sister, Banning, and Pete.”