Styx & Stoned (The Grim Reality Series Book 2) (4 page)

“I’m going to hold you to that,”
Nate said. Before my annoyance flared, he added a wink, silencing my retort.
“Go on. Get some sleep.”

“See you in the morning.” I gave a
quick wave and headed up the escalator.

The others made no move to follow
me and I suspected they were still going to search for Charon. I mentally
cheered them on, but was grateful I didn’t have to participate. A hot shower,
three ibuprofen, and a soft bed—the perfect combination to end the evening.

The elevator at the far end opened
and I stepped in, punching twenty-six. As the doors slid shut, the silver tip
of a walking stick jutted through the crack, stopping the doors from closing. A
hand slipped in and pushed the elevator open again. Instinctively, I moved back
to the corner, making way for more occupants.

A handsome man decked out in black
glided into the elevator. Though not overly muscular, his presence filled the
car. My gaze darted to him and then back to the wall. There was something
vaguely familiar about him, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Thank you for waiting,” he said. A
black goatee framed his white smile and his dark eyes tracked up and down my
body before turning to the number pad and pressing the thirty-seventh floor.
“Can’t stand waiting if I don’t have to.”

“Yeah.” I nodded. “Me too.”
Thirty-seventh?
I could have sworn the floors above the doors had been twenty-six through thirty-six.
Then again, I was tired and had probably read it wrong. From his elegant
appearance, no doubt he was a high roller and probably stayed in one of the
luxury suites the hotel saved for its rich guests. “Been lucky at the tables?”

“Very.” He turned toward me, giving
me another assessing stare. “I love Vegas. Home away from home.” With a casual
toss of his head, he flipped his hair back into place. Except for the single
strip of gray that framed his face, his hair was completely black. Same with his
goatee. A thin band of gray ran down his chin but the rest of his beard was the
color of coal. “How about you?”

“I haven’t had the chance to try my
luck yet.” My shoulders lifted with a tiny shrug. “Maybe tomorrow.” The
elevator dinged and a second later the doors slid open. As I strode out, I
said, “Good night.”

“Good night…Lisa.”

At the sound of my name, I spun
toward the elevator. He touched his walking stick to his temple and bent in a
shallow bow seconds before the doors pinched closed. How had he known my name?
Conspiracy theories raced through my mind. I’d never seen the man before. When
I turned back toward the hall, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

“Idiot.” I still wore my lanyard
and convention badge. “Of course that’s how he knew my name.”

Even as I pulled the cord over my
head, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something had been off about my contact
with him. Too tired to contemplate the twists and turns this trip insisted on
taking, I headed to my room. Hopefully, Tandy had found other digs. If she
hadn’t, I just might have to reap her ass.

“Tandy?” When she didn’t answer I
let out the breath I’d been holding. “Hallelujah.”

Though bolting the door wouldn’t
keep out the paranormal, it would stave off the drunks and housekeeping. Before
prepping for bed, I gave my mother a quick call. My daughter, Bronte, had been
acting weird for the past several months, ever since she had been in a car
accident. Maybe it was normal teenage stuff, but I wanted to keep a close eye
on her just in case.

The only person more lovingly
invasive than me was my mother. When I found out I had to come to Vegas, she
had been the only one I felt comfortable leaving the kids with, which shocked
the hell out of me. Normally, I leave them with my friend Vella, but I didn’t
need a fun-loving sitter—I needed diligence. My mother and I rarely agreed on
how to parent, but I knew she’d be a dog on a bone if she caught the scent of
anything fishy going on with the kids.

“Your father took the children to the
movie and should be home any minute.”

“Really?” My father had never taken
me to a movie—ever. “Whose idea was that?”

“His,” my mother said. “Some
science fiction flick he’s wanted to see. I can’t stand those shows, and they
all seemed really excited to see it.”

“Well, that’s nice,” I said, trying
to not let jealousy lace my words. “And how is Bronte?”

“She’s great. Almost like she’s
turned a corner with everything.”

Her announcement about my
daughter’s state of mind sounded slightly boasting, as if staying with my
parents had been the magic ingredient to turn Bronte around. I gritted my teeth
and inhaled, forcing myself not to read anything into my mother’s words.
“That’s great, Mom. It’s nice to not have to worry while I’m gone.”

“How is your trip going?”

“Good.” This was always the tricky
part. My parents didn’t know about me being a reaper. Keeping that fact from
her had sharpened my avoidance skills to a fine point. “Classes start
tomorrow,” I said. “They should be interesting.”

“Well, don’t work too hard and be
sure to relax. You deserve it.”

“Thanks. I will.” I feigned a yawn,
which morphed into a real one. “Listen, I’m exhausted, so I think I’ll hop in
the shower and then hit the hay.”

“I’ll tell the kids you called,”
she said.

“Thanks for taking care of them. I
really appreciate it. I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

After hanging up, I headed for the
shower. Hopefully, there wasn’t a limit on how much hot water I could use. The
sprays pummeled my body, easing the tension of the day and turning my muscles
to noodles. Oh yeah, I was going to sleep good tonight.

***

The alarm erupted at seven o’clock
the next morning. I jerked awake, rolled over, and fumbled for the off button.
Once I’d silenced the timer’s annoying shriek I clicked on my lamp, flopped to
my back again, and nearly jumped out of my skin.

Tandy floated a foot above the bed,
her translucent image curled in a fetal position.
Damn it.
I’d really
hoped she’d shack up with Big C—or anybody else but me. Nothing woke a person
up fast like finding a ghost hovering over their bed. Her body drifted toward
me and I pressed into the mattress. I filled my lungs with as much air as I
could and then blew. Like a balloon, she glided in the opposite direction and
off the other side of the bed.

“Oops.”

Completely awake now, I tossed back
the covers, grabbed my clothes for the day, and locked myself in the bathroom.
My hair stuck out in all directions from falling asleep with it wet. Luckily,
my style was short and spiky. With a little help from some styling gel and
hairspray, I tamed the platinum mess to an acceptable level.

The rest of my routine, including
getting dressed, took another ten minutes. Low maintenance—I’d never change.
When I stepped out of the bathroom, I stopped. Tandy hovered near the ceiling vent
and I was momentarily torn. Did I pull her out of the path of the blasting air
conditioner and tuck her in, or let her float around the room? After a second,
I grabbed my purse and badge. She’d be fine.

On my way downstairs, Nate texted
me the name of the restaurant where he was having breakfast. He’d claimed a
table in the corner and was already set up with coffee.

“Morning.” I slid onto the bench
and tossed my purse beside me.

He glanced up and smiled. “Morning.
Sleep well?”

“Like the dead, and apparently with
the dead.” I waved at the waitress, indicating I wanted coffee. “How about
you?”

“Not bad. We decided to check a few
of the smaller casinos on Fremont Street.”

“Any sign of Charon?” I pushed my
silverware aside to make room for my caffeine fix.

“No, but we really didn’t think
there would be.” Nate rubbed his hand over his chin. “He’s fat with gold right
now and I suspect he’s at one of the top hotels.” He paused, allowing the
waitress to set me up with coffee and refill his cup. After she left, he
continued. “We’ll start checking those after the conference classes.”

“Classes?” The creamer pitcher
halted halfway to my cup. “We’re actually going?”

“Sure.” He picked up a folder and
handed it to me. “Here’s your conference information. There are tons of
classes. Go to the ones that interest you. The only thing that’s mandatory is
the business luncheon today.”

GRS was printed in bold black
letters across the folder, but no other defining description had been added.
Probably in case a non-GRS person got a hold of it. I pulled out the schedule.
“Dealing With the Difficult Client. Your Porter, Friend or Foe?” I looked at
Nate. “Seriously?”

“You’d be surprised how good some
of these workshops are.” He reached across the table and pointed to the nine
o’clock class. “This one is great for newbies.”

“Is Following the Rules Really That
Important?” A sniff of indignation snorted from me. “Did Constantine make you
point that one out?”

Sure, at times I was a bit of a
rule-breaker, but only when I knew—well, was fairly certain—my actions wouldn’t
upset the balance of nature. And most of the time I had been right. Mostly.
With a porter like Hal sometimes it was necessary to bend the letter of the law
a bit.

“Actually, no.” He folded his arms
and rested them on the table. “Constantine didn’t think you’d go to any of the
classes once you found out about our mission with Charon.”

“He knows me so well.” I
straightened, envisioning the biggest Bloody Mary they made, and some morning
gambling. Instantly, my mood brightened. “So, I don’t have to go?”

“I didn’t say that.” Nate scowled
at me. It was an expression I knew all too well. “Even though we can’t force
you…” He hesitated, pinning me with a fatherly stare of disapproval. “You
definitely could use the extra training.”

I rolled my eyes. It wasn’t a
mature reaction, but I didn’t care. It felt right. “Why do you always make it
your mission to suck every drop of fun out of my day?”

“Probably because we have very
different meanings of the word fun.” He leaned back, allowing the waitress to
set down a plate of dry toast and a bowl of fruit.

“That’s for sure. For instance you
actually know how to use Pi, while I’m good at eating pie.” I finished pouring
cream in my coffee and then stirred it in. “You find volcanology fascinating, whereas
I always wanted to be a Vulcan.” I squinted at him. “Similar, but different.
Mine are fun. Yours are a snooze fest.”

“Would you like to order
something?” The waitress held her pad at the ready.

“Yes, please.” I held my hands out
and made a gesture with my fingers that was supposed to indicate rolling a
tortilla, but probably in no way looked like that. “Do you have anything like a
breakfast burrito?”

“We’ve got the Southwestern Burrito
Deluxe.”

I clapped. “Perfect. I’ll have
that.”

“It’s really good.” Her eyes
brightened. “Sausage, bacon, or ham?” She scrunched up her face. “Though why
anybody would put ham in a breakfast burrito is beyond me.”

“That is a crime against breakfast
wraps everywhere,” I said. “Sausage, no green peppers, extra onions and cheese,
and can I get extra salsa and sour cream on the side?”

“You got it.” After scooping up the
menu, she spun and strode to the kitchen window, immediately attaching my order
to the rotator.

“I thought you’d still be full from
last night’s dinner.” Nate asked.

“Hello, have we met?” His ability
to indirectly insult me with a simple statement was a true skill. Impertinent,
but not outright offensive. “This body is a super reaping machine. It requires
constant fuel in the form of white carbs, alcohol, and cheese.”

“One day you’re going to drop from
a heart attack.”

“When I do you can reap me and get
a new partner.” I gave him a tight smile. “One who gets as excited about daily
fiber as you do.”

That drew a smile from him. “Mara
can really put away the food too.”

“I love that about her.” I sipped
my coffee and then set the cup back down. “I wish I could eat anything I wanted
and look like her.”

“She doesn’t always look like
that.” Nate bit into his toast and slowly chewed. “Her beauty comes at a high
price.”

“You mean being a demon?”

He nodded. “I don’t know a lot
about Mara, but I heard she was offered a job at GRS because she saved Cam’s
life. But like I said, I don’t know any details.”

“I would sacrifice myself for that
man, too.” I tried my best not to sigh, but a tiny whisper of one slipped out.
“Lucky demon.”

Nate swallowed hard, staring at me
for a couple of seconds, and then took another determined bite of toast.
Jealous?
If he was, it was because he wanted Mara as a partner, not because I found Cam
heavenly.

A few minutes later the waitress
arrived and set a platter in front of me. It had to be the world’s biggest
breakfast burrito, reaching end to end on the oval plate. I smiled at her, true
happiness filling me. “Thank you so much.”

“Enjoy.”

“You can’t eat all that,” Nate
said.

“Is that a challenge?”

He harrumphed. “No, because if I
say yes, you
will
and then crash in a food coma.”

“But I’d be so happy.” I shrugged
and dug into my meal.

We ate in relative silence, both of
us sifting through the offered classes and planning our day. Maybe I’d go, or
maybe I’d end up at the penny slots off in some corner. Who was I kidding? As
much as I wanted to bail, I wouldn’t. Somehow Constantine would know and
harangue me about it.

After eating, we headed to the Expo
and Convention center. Even though I’d decided to make an appearance at the
class on following the rules, I didn’t want Nate to know I’d caved. He’d give
me a smug smile that made me want to slap the cute off him.

“I’m going to hit the bathroom
first.” I inched toward the escalator. “So…I guess I’ll see you at lunch?”

“All right,” Nate said, while
scanning his conference sheet. Then he looked up. “Text me. Maybe we can hook
up with Mara and Cam at the luncheon.”

“Sounds good.” At least if the
luncheon speaker was boring I could sit and stare at Cam. “Later.”

With that, I pivoted and took a
dizzying amount of escalators to the fifth floor of the convention area. The
place was massive and surprisingly the GRS Expo took up a lot of the event
space. Reapers had flown in for the convention from all over the world. Whether
to attend classes and network, or as backup help if things started to go sour
with this Charon situation, I didn’t know.

This was my first convention of any
kind. Until now I hadn’t given my job much thought beyond earning enough to
support my three kids, and not getting killed or severely injured in the
process. Maybe I needed to expand my outlook on being a reaper. It wasn’t as if
I’d be quitting anytime soon—or ever.

For some reason they’d hidden the
Is
Following the Rules Really That Important
class on the upper floor in the
last section of the conference rooms. It didn’t appear any other workshops were
being held up there, so I had to wonder if they’d chosen the location for the
benefit of the new reapers, or because we were a rowdy group of rule-breakers
and needed to be kept separate.

There were still fifteen minutes
until the class started, so I ducked into the bathroom at the far end of the
corridor to get rid of the four cups of coffee I’d managed to drink at
breakfast. After doing my business, I exited the stall and moved to the sink to
wash my hands. When I glanced in the mirror a reflection of a woman flickered
in and out near the last stall.

At first, I didn’t say anything,
waiting to see if the ghost would show. I’m still fuzzy on how the whole
ectoplasmic dimension worked, so most of the time I just went with the flow and
didn’t try to overanalyze the situation.