Just a Little Death (Children of the Apocalypse Book 1) (16 page)

“We were both looking to escape reality for a little while. Me from my duties. You from your horribly mundane human life. We wanted a thrill for the night and we had it. Neither of us thought that Sammy would come from a one-night stand.” He glanced at me. “No offense, Sammy. I’m glad you’re around.”

I shrugged. “No offense taken. I’ve always known I was the product of a one-night stand. Granted, the details were never shared. Mom just told me she was supposed to be barren.”

“The higher powers had something else planned.” Death leaned against the counter. “This smells amazing. Do we have any tea I could make?”

“Tea?” My mother asked, her eyes widened just a touch. “Death drinks tea?”

I couldn’t help but smile. “He also really likes pizza. Life is about the little things.”

“Sammy gets it.” He pushed away with a smile. “What can I help with?”

My mother shook her head and moved as the employee struggled into the kitchen with a large tin. The bottom of it bulged with the weight of the turkey and his knuckles were white from carrying it.

He set it on the countertop and reached into his back pocket. Pulling out a folded up paper, he smiled at my mother. “It’s a pleasure as always. We’ll see you next year.” He spun on his heels and walked out of the house without another word.

I pulled open the white bags. Round white containers filled the bag and I pulled them out. The warmth of the foam brought the promise of fresh food. I set them in a line on the counter, mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans.

Dad uncovered the turkey and grinned. “I’m surprised that they were able to find this big of a bird, the famine has gotten worse.”

“It cost a pretty penny.” My mother walked past him and went to the drawer. “They tripled their prices since the avian flu wiped out most of the farms’ stock.”

My mind went back to the farm that Kaleb and I had visited. The reminder of the black bug ridden crops made bile rise in my throat and I couldn’t stop the images of rotten corpses coming to my mind. My stomach churned and I ran to the bathroom.

I slammed the door behind me and fell to my knees. I hunched over the cold porcelain and the vomit fell from my mouth.

Once the heaving finished I put my forehead against the seat and took a deep breath. I needed to move past this; I needed to figure out how to deal with the memories that my mind kept latching onto.

A soft knock drew my attention and I lifted my head. “I’ll be out in a moment.”

“It’s Death.” My dad’s voice was soft. “Need to talk?”

I closed my eyes and switched so I was leaning against the tub. “Come in. The door’s unlocked.”

He opened the door and walked in. The bathroom walls seemed to close in with him leaning against the now closed door. I closed my eyes. “I’m okay.”

“Ruthie says you’ve been having problems dealing with some things. I hadn’t noticed it because you’ve been so focused on training.”

I opened my eyes but the room spun. “Can we go talk about this outside?”

“Of course.” He stepped away from the door and opened it. I stood up and followed him out. I didn’t bother looking at my mom or Ruthie as we walked past them and then outside.

The cold air burned my lungs, but it cleared away the fog in my brain and the taste of bile in my throat.

“Ruthie says you’ve been suffering from nightmares and that you’re not eating as much.”

I nodded. “Every time I think about what Kaleb and I found at the farm, my mind latches onto the images of the family we found. I know I should be able to move past it, but it’s the most disturbing thing I’ve ever seen.”

“More than decapitating a demon?” He asked. “The blade of your scythe slicing through their skin?”

I looked at a family sitting down to eat dinner through a window of the house across the street. Parents, two children and most likely grandparents all sat at a table around a perfect turkey. Smiles crossed their faces as they started dishing up food.

“More. Demons aren’t human, they don’t have families or children and they are trying to take my life. The family at the farm, they were innocent in all this, but still victims of Lucile’s plans.” I shook my head. “I’ve never seen how the plague changes the body or how a corpse changes after death.”

He put a hand on my shoulder. “Death changes everything and everyone. When you start reaping souls, you’ll understand that.”

“How do you know where the souls go?” I turned to face him. “I don’t even know how I’m going to have to decide.”

He smiled. “When you touch a soul you see their life, you absorb their memories, their feelings. You know what their intentions were in life and from there you decide what realm they belong to. Once you decide they just…disappear from you.”

It sounded like a draining job. “Do you like what you do?”

“I didn’t choose to be a Horseman, it’s a responsibility I inherited, just like you will. The first few years, I hated it. The souls, the memories, I wanted to just disappear, but then I realized that the world cannot survive without Death. I learned to enjoy my life and what was handed to me.”

I nodded. “So what you’re saying is I will eventually get used to what I am.”

“Yes. Everyone has their calling in life. Yours is to become Death, but you have to answer that call. That is your choice.” He met my gaze. “Let’s go enjoy dinner, I’ll make sure to bring some tea to help you with the nightmares next time I visit. Or when you come to me.”

I nodded and followed him back into the house. My mother and Ruthie looked up, pausing in mid motion to watch us walk in.

“Feeling better?” My mother sat down the bowl she had emptied the mashed potatoes in.

“I'm sorry.” I went to help transfer items from the counter to the table, but mom put a hand on my arm.

“Go sit down and relax. Ruthie and I have this.”

I sat down and dad sat next to me. “We should do this more often.” He folded his hands on the table. “I forgot how much I liked the human realm.”

“Well, there’s a gateway around here if you want to join us.” I said suddenly. “We might as well check it out while we’re here.”

The sound of a glass crashing sounded through the kitchen. “Sammy, I told you not to mention that to him!”

“Oops.” I shrugged and laughed. “Guess I forgot.”

“How do you know there’s a gateway around here?” His gaze shot to my mother when she walked out of the kitchen.

“We were visited by a gatekeeper, with a warning.” My mother snatched the broom from a small closet. “It came with a warning about the Sins and the girls think it means that we are being warned off of the gateway because they have one of the horsemen there.”

Death stroked his chin and hmmmed for a moment. “The girls are probably right. They are also right that they should check it out while they are visiting. If anything comes of it, then we can call the others to come and we can go in.”

“And exactly what are you planning on sacrificing to get into hell?” My mother’s voice did the high rise in pitch again.

Death shrugged. “A goat.”

“Do you think that’ll be enough to appease her?” My mother shook her head. “We’re going to need something bigger.”

I raised a brow. “We? There’s no way I’m letting you go in there with us.”

“Excuse me,” she jabbed a finger in my direction, “I’m your mother, you should be the one that should be staying behind.” She snapped at me. “I don’t think any of us should be going, but I’m not going to let my daughter just waltz right into hell.”

Ruthie set the bowl of gravy down. “Really, I don’t think it’s a waltz, I think it’s more of a sprint to get through the gate before the demon changes its mind.”

“Not helping, Ruthie.” I sat down and pulled a plate towards me. “So we all go and see what’s in there. How long would we have before Lucile realizes we’re in there?”

“Ten minutes, tops, before she figures out which gateway we used. She’ll know the moment we enter and then she’ll have to search us out.” Death said. “Now, we’ll worry about plans after we eat. Your mother made me promise that this would be a normal dinner and not something we turned into a discussion of our responsibilities.”

I leaned forward and used the big silver fork to move a few slices of turkey onto my plate. “In that case, please pass the mashed potatoes.” 

The Sacrifice

“I cannot believe I let you talk me into this.” My mother stood with her arms crossed. We’d hiked up the small mountain to find our way to a rotting arch of an old temple. The building was long gone, a pile of stones and ruble leaving behind only the arches that were meant to ward against demons. Apparently the irony wasn’t lost when the gateway to hell was made.

“I didn’t realize there was a gateway this close to the city.” Ruthie shook her head and pulled two goats with her. I didn’t question how her or my dad managed to get two goats on Thanksgiving in the middle of a famine. I just accepted they had their ways and it wasn’t something I wanted to know.

Death shrugged. “They don’t all belong to something called the Devil’s something. They are normally formed from where the negativity, temptation to sin, and the amount of sin is the thickest. In this case, the people who ran this temple turned and slaughtered each other. The hag watches over this gateway, I assume that’s who brought you the warning?”

My mother touched the splintering post and closed her eyes. “It was. She said Sammy wouldn’t be able to escape the fate waiting for her.”

“And you assume that means death.” My father chuckled. “Let me tell you something, I can see the deaths, and it’s not Sammy’s time and it won’t be for a long time. She’s smart, resourceful, and she’s an amazing fighter. She's blossoming into a great Child of the Apocalypse.”

I hadn’t thought he’d noticed how much I’d grown. “Now if only the thought of dead bodies didn’t make me want to vomit.” I joked and Ruthie was the only one who laughed. “Okay, let’s get this over with.”

“Hag, it’s me.” Dad called out. “I brought you your favorite.”

The ground shook and a crack spread from under my feet and split open. Darkness surrounded me as the rushing of air passed over me. I landed in a crouch with my scythe in my hand. Dad landed next to me in the same stance. He gripped his weapon with both hands and his gaze searched around us. Ruthie glided down through the opening on her wings with my mother at her side.

“Where are the goats?” I looked up. With a sickening splat two corpses of goats fell in front of me. Their slit throats allowed their heads to look at us in an awkward angle. The dead eyes rolled to the back of their heads and the tongues flopped out of the mouths.

I swallowed and tried to resist the urge to throw up. “Well, isn’t that lovely.”

The hag peered behind them, her demon tail swiping back and forth and her skin a cracking black. “Oh you brought me two goats, but there are four of you.”

“You’ll still let us in.” Death said and his scythe disappeared. “Not to mention you basically invited us here with your warning.”

She turned to me and her tongue darted out like a snake's. “The warning was for Little Death. Lucile wants her head on a pike, but you’re right. I wanted you here for a reason.”

I didn’t let go of my weapon. I found comfort in the steel of the rod and the shine of the blade. I didn’t want to make her think I was going to drop my guard., I knew what happened when I did that around demons.

“Is there a seal of the Apocalypse around here?” My mother asked. “Or did you want to lead Lucile to us?”

“The Devil has no interest in you, fallen, or in the angel called Ruthie. She wants to speak to Death and Little Death. Have a cup of tea with them.”

Like that was going to happen. I tried not to roll my eyes. “If she wanted to be nice she shouldn’t have tried to fail me out of her class.”

“Aw, Little Death is still concerned with human things. Isn’t that cute?” Hag let out a laugh that sounded like more of a cough. “Lucile wants to make a deal with you.”

“Like hell.” My mother snapped. “It’s not happening and we’re leaving.”

Hag slithered over to my mother and put a hand on her cheek. “You want your daughter to live? Then I suggest you listen to Lucile and what she has to offer.”

“The Devil does nothing but tempt.” Ruthie called on her staff. “Now if you’ll excuse us, we came here on a mission.”

“There’s no seal on my level of hell. You won’t find Pestilence, War, or Famine here. The Devil has hidden them well and there is only one way to find them.” Hag spun, nearly hitting Death with her tail. “You want to find the Horsemen? You’re going to have to venture further into Hell than you want. She learned from the last time she tried to seal them away.”

“Why are you helping us?” I asked.

Hag looked over her shoulder at me. “Maybe I just like to be entertained, because I know what obstacles block your way.”

I locked my jaw at the vague answer. Death summoned his scythe. “Then we will start our journey.”

“Death, no, we need to return back to the human realm. Think of what is at risk here.” My mother put her hand on my shoulder. “Are you willing to drag her through hell?”

I shrugged her hand off. “I can handle this. Don’t worry.” I stepped up to Death’s side. “Let’s go find us a horseman.”

“It’s not just you he’s putting at risk. He’s putting himself at risk. If Lucile gets her hands on him and seals him away, then that will be four horsemen. Think about this.” She put her hand on his shoulder and spun him around. “Do you want to risk causing the end of the world?”

“Have you not noticed? The end of the world is coming. The death toll has grown and people are starting to starve to death because they can’t afford the food they need to survive. Soon the world will be at war with itself because countries will be trying to feed their people while defending what good lands they have.” He snarled. “The only way to stop this is to risk what we have and to free the others. You cannot speak to this Fallen, because you abandoned your post.”

She snarled at him. “You’re talking about risking our daughter’s life.”

“And I told you I was able to handle this. It’s not likely that I’m going to die here.” There was the number one hovering over the situation so a death would happen, but it wasn’t me. That much I knew. My guess was a demon would cross our path.

“Then let’s get this over with so we can go home.” She moved past me and Death, leading the way over the splitting stone ground.

When Hag had been there the world around us had remained dark and shadowed, but now that she was gone, the stone walls and floor could be seen. Cracks moved over the walls, weaving through the gray mortar and stones. The place lacked the fire I always thought of when someone mentioned Hell.

“So where do we start?” My feet tapped against the stone as I followed my mother. “It’s not like there are going to be signs that guide us to the seal.”

“You think like Lucile. If you were to hide the horsemen of the Apocalypse where would it be?” She looked over her shoulder at me. “If we’re looking for Pestilence where do you think she would seal him?”

I shrugged. “Kaleb said hell was made out of your worst fears. So what was it he feared?”

“I don’t know.” She stopped in the middle of the path.

The ground shook under me and I closed my eyes as the world seemed to spin.

“Pest didn’t fear much, but he always worried about losing Pete. His son was his pride and joy. He went as far as asking Pete’s mother to raise him in the human world so that he could have more humanity than the others.”

I nodded, but Ruthie had mentioned most of us grew up in the human world. “He’d mentioned that, but he didn’t mention what it was his father feared or what it might be.”

“A parent always fears losing their child.” My mother’s voice sounded further off.

I opened my eyes and the world stopped spinning, but the ground still held a faint vibration. “Just like a child worries about losing a parent. But I don’t understand how that will help us find them.”

“Your mother is the only one that understands that fear so deeply. If anything she’ll be able to find him.” Death said and I looked around.

“Where did she go?”

Ruthie summoned her staff. “She got lost to the fear. She’s still here, but the way this realm works, her fear of losing you has separated us. Talk to her. Tell her that you’re still here, because chances are she’s seeing you dead somewhere.”

“I fear losing you, but I understand that everyone must die when their time comes. It’s different for everyone, but because I am Death, I’m more comfortable with the idea that you will meet the higher power at some point.”

I nodded and closed my eyes. I tried to reach out to any sense of my mother I could find. Just like when I took myself to Death’s realm, I willed myself to appear in front of my mother.

The world spun around me and I opened my eyes to find her in a closed room. The black walls gave the illusion that it slanted in and continued to get smaller. I knew it was my own fear projecting. I took a deep breath and forced myself to remember I was in control of my fear.

I found my mother hunched over a body. Red blood pooled around them and her sob wracked her body. The sound of true grief made my heart ache. “Mom?”

“They took you from me. My child, my only blessing, and they took you from me. All because you wouldn’t leave.” Her sobs broke up the words.

“No, they didn’t. Mom, I’m right here. I’m still alive. Don’t let them drag you into this hell.” I knelt by her and the warm blood soaked through my pants. “They can’t take me from you because I can fight them. I’m not a child any more. I’m your baby, but I grew up. I’m stepping up to my responsibilities because you raised me to always follow them. To do what is right.”

“I warned you they would take your life if you followed this path.” She shoved me away and I fell back on my hands. “Get away from me, demon. You are not my child.”

I searched my memories for something, anything that would convince her I wasn’t a trick of Lucile’s. “Remember when I was seven and the house was broken into? You were so scared because you thought they were going to hurt me?”

She sobbed and then scrubbed at her tears on her cheeks. “I found you hiding because you knew what to do. I was so proud, you had managed to call the cops and hide before I was even notified.” Her hand shook as she dropped them down to her lap.

I smiled. “I was in the top of the closet, because I didn’t think they’d look up. I climbed up there like a little monkey and the officer gave you such grief for leaving me alone.”

“He didn’t understand that you were such a good child.” She sighed and smiled and it relieved some of the grief in her eyes. “You are such a good girl.” She turned and hugged me. “You’d pull me out of hell even though I didn’t want you here.”

I wrapped my arms around her and relaxed. “I would go to hell and back for you. There’s no way I want you trapped in here.” I closed my eyes and held her. “You won’t lose me because of Lucile, you won’t lose me in this apocalypse.”

She pulled away and the room melted away, revealing the stone path with Death and Ruthie waiting for us. Ruthie smiled and bowed her head and I knew she thought I did a good job.

“Was there a seal in the room?”

I shook my head. “No, just black walls, my dead body and us.” I wrapped an arm around my mother. “But that’s okay, that might not be his hell.”

“Are you trying to find Pest?” A high-pitched voice drew our attention behind us.

I spun around and summoned my scythe, so did my father. A tall woman slunk out of the shadows. Draped over her red skin was a sheer black dress, leaving nothing to our imaginations. My first thought was Lust, but that didn’t feel right. This wasn’t a Sin, but one look at her sent shivers down my spine. I ran a hand over my arm, trying to take the chill away.

“Camille.” Death stepped backwards towards me. “I didn’t think Lucile would send you.”

She smiled and swayed towards us. “She thought it’d be nice for you to see me. She knows how much history we have together.”

I glanced at Ruthie who shrugged. Death blocked me from Camille’s view.

“You’re trying to hide her, that’s cute.” She laughed and the sound shot through my eardrums and pierced my head.

I made a note to make sure to start traveling with earplugs. Death shot forward and the sound of clashing metal echoed off the walls. Ruthie summoned another staff and threw it to my mother.

I tightened my grip on my scythe and watched as my dad fought against Camille’s swords.

A wicked grin crossed her face as she fought Death off with ease. Twirling and moving to music only she could hear. Her feet skimmed across the floor with every attack.

She spun around and knocked Death away with two swords against the handle of his scythe. I shot forward, bringing my scythe across her stomach, but she blocked me and laughed as I skidded back on my feet. I switched my footing and moved back towards her. I jumped, bringing my scythe down at an angle. She jumped back and my blade missed her.

I landed in a crouch and Death came behind her, she spun and kicked him in the side, sending him to the ground. Pivoting on her toes, she turned back to me and smiled. “Shall I summon some of my pretties to keep you busy?”

Black, round shadows appeared on the ground, but Camille raised her hands and the shadows turned into black, mangy looking dogs. Each one stood nearly to my chest and the red glowing eyes were the only spot of color in their black fur. They opened their mouths and snarled, letting drool drip to the ground.