Reaper

Chapter One

My soft footsteps were covered by the whistling wind as I crept down the yawning hotel floors, coming to the floor of my stop. Room A5. Shouting was bursting threw the closed door, muffled by the hard oak door. I knew how this death was going to play out. They were going to fight, yelling back and forth, she would get angry and throw a plate. Driving him to the edge of insanity. He would swear, grasp his gun, then bang.

Her life would end. After which he would start sobbing, running into the bathroom, bang.

His life would end also, my cue to walk in, retreive their souls, and return them to the beginning, their past life being forgotten and their souls recycled.

A murder and a suicide all in one. I stopped just outside their door, the yelling now louder then before, leaning against the doorframe I lite up a cigarette, taking a long deep puff. A young girls highheels clicked against the tiled floor, I looked up to see her glaring down at me,

"Those things will kill you." She mumbled, returning her eyes to her red heels. I flicked the ashes walking her walk away,

"Not if you're already dead." I mumbled to myself, staring at the burning bud. She turned down the hall and disappeared. I then heard the man shout and curse at his wife, I closed my eyes imagining the scene.

She threw the plate, it shattered above his head, he cursed calling her names and janked the gun out of his waistband, fear covered her face as his rationality was clouded with anger.

"Die." He whispered, the first shot went off. I re opened my eyes, waiting for the last shot, flicking my now burned out cigarette bud. I heard the husband fall to his knees, sobs were rolling off his body, her blood soaking into her murderers jeans, her husband jeans. He shuffled to his feet and stumbled around, Bang. The second shot rang out. I fumbled around for a moment waiting and giving it a little time before I walked into the gruesome room. I've been the reaper for years and still death bothers me some. I turned and began reaching for the doorknob the lock clicking under my touch. Bang. A third shot rang out, making me freeze. A heavy body fell to the ground, the stench of death leaked from the room, hate filling the stale air.

There was three shots, something was wrong, and I was about to find out what. I get a file of the deaths and it tells me what the expect, how its going to happen, and when something doesn't go right, something wrong. I opened the door the first thing meeting me was the woman, her body layed sprawled in a pool of her own blood, the crimson red staining the oak wood and speckling the walls, thrown objects and broken dishes decorated the room, her eyes forever filled with the terror of her last moments, I reached down, touching them softly, shutting the her eyelids, and as my hand pulled back so did her soul, exiting her body. she stared at me, the fear covering her face as she realized what happened she opened her mouth to say something, altho no sound followed.

Mute. Their always mute. I took her ghostly hand, giving her the best smile I could dig up.

"Everything is going to be okay." I promised her. So far everything was going cording to plan, at least thats what I thought before I turned around. What met my eyes next was something I could never forget, I've only seen a few of these in my life, but all were planned.

A young boy, no older than five layed there, his broken body covered in blood, his innocence and happiness still shined in his dead eyes. The father in his rage and sadness had killed his son, that is where the extra shot had come from. I held the childs body, tears pricked my eyes. the mother ran to him, her lifeless arms trying to hold his still body, I pulled his soul, the blood staining my arms. she held his small ghost and he smiled and giggled at his mother, a sight so sweet, yet so sad at the same time. I placed the body where I had found it, time for the father, but as I arose a shadow flickered under the light of the bathroom. Low moans exited the ajar door, fear pooled in my stomach. First a third shot and an unplanned death and now the father is still alive.

He stumbled threw the bathroom a gun wound exited the side of his head, brain goo dripped down his cheek, his eyes dead, and the sick smell of death rolled off him,I reached forward gingerly, bringing his prickly skin. A bubbly gurgly yell exited his throat blood gushing down his chin as his body fell limp and lifeless, even his anger followed him after death it radiated off him like a furnace, his soul started mutley yelling at the sobbing woman, shaking his fists. The dead child just continued to stare at him.

"Time to return home." I said opening a doorway to the beginning. Something was wrong, and I had to find out what. And soon.