When she unexpectedly dies, Mackenzie Bowen lacks the paperwork she needs to pass into The Beyond. To avoid sitting in a waiting room for centuries, Mack is paired with Leon, a miserable Reaper, and hopes to either undo her death or earn her spot be...
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Death didn't descend upon us for quite some time. The lord and ruler of every Reaper to exist had to have a lot going on, and it was no surprise that he would delay in making a social call on one of his people. Still, I was surprised that he strode into the room like a heavy storm, bringing with him overbearing darkness and an air of impending doom. I was so startled by his arrival when the door slammed back against the wall that I fell out of my chair. Hardly an elegant greeting for my employer, especially not when I ended up with my legs tangled in the furniture.
"Hi," I greeted feebly once I'd extracted myself and jumped to my feet. "Leon's almost better. You're here to check on him, right?"
"I'm here to punish him," Death corrected in his frightening voice which echoed from the cluttered walls. "Mackenzie, please leave the room."
If I'd been alive, one might have called my actions suicidal. I didn't know what it was called when one was dead, but whatever the term, I stupidly placed myself between Death and Leon. I balled my hands into fists and hoped that I cut an intimidating figure. In truth, I was probably as much a threat to Death as a kitten was to a rottweiler.
"You can't. He saved my life. If it hadn't been for Leon, Alistair–"
"Alistair wouldn't have posed a risk if he hadn't taken you to Earth before you were ready." Death cricked his neck, the vertebra itching against each other with the motion. "I won't ask again. Leave the room."
A tremor of fear rippled so deeply through my body that I felt my very soul quake in his presence. If I had more to lose, I'd have run screaming from the room. Hell, anyone with an ounce of common sense would have done so in my place. Problem was, all I had left was Leon and whatever I'd become since I'd died. If Death did something to hurt either of us, then I'd have nothing, and there'd be no point to my having escaped the Hell Hound who'd chased me outside the hospital in the first place.
I chose not to linger on just how pathetic it was that the most important person in my life was someone I actively disliked. Thankfully, the author moved things along before anyone could give it too much thought.
Although I was ready to throw hands with Death and lose thoroughly, Leon didn't appreciate my white knight act. He heaved himself into a sitting position before standing uncertainly from the sofa that'd been his home while he'd recovered his strength.
"You were given an order, Mackenzie." Leon was all business. One might be forgiven for thinking that our conversation had never happened. I had to wonder if his excessive blood loss had led to his moment of humanity because there was certainly no trace of it left in his expression. "I need to give a full report, and I can't do that if you're here to interrupt."
If our roles had been reversed, I'd have appreciated someone having my back when my insanely powerful supernatural boss intended to punish me. But our roles weren't reversed, and I wasn't Leon, and he'd made it perfectly clear that my kind gesture wasn't wanted. My gaze shifted between the pair, and I gritted my teeth to keep myself from making further comments. It didn't seem right to me that Leon was about to get a lecture when I could vouch for him, but I was too angry to stand there and argue the point. If he was going to be a dick then he didn't deserve my help, anyway.
