Dead To Me

I knew little about the man except that he was very, very scary. I had heard that he had impressed the Enchancellors by carving the latest batch of arcane runes into the walls by himself. I also knew that he seemed perpetually pissed off. Somehow, he still looked like slickness personified as he yelled at the elite squad-black hair slicked perfectly straight back and sporting just the right amount of five o’clock shadow at all times.

Irene gave him a quick glance and just as quickly turned away.

“Are you all right?” I asked.

“It makes me uncomfortable to look at him,” she said, her voice trembling with weakness.

“Relax,” Co

“Makes me wonder exactly how Mr. I-Wear-My-Sunglasses-at-Night got involved with us men in white hats in the first place,” I said.

Co

“Authority through intimidation,” I said. “Nice.”

Irene looked terrified.

“Don’t worry,” Co

I smiled at Irene and stepped closer as we continued walking.

“When I was first training, the big threat for us newbies was that if I didn’t keep on my toes, the teachers would assign me to one of Wesker’s seminars over at Witchcraft.”

“Well, I don’t care for him,” Irene said. “He gives me the heebie-jeebies.”

“I said the exact same thing!” I exclaimed.

Co

The back part of the office was hidden from the front by a ceiling-length dark red curtain that ran from wall to wall. It deadened the sounds of the hectic world of the filers and cube dwellers for the rest of us working behind it. Co

The luck of the draw put Irene directly opposite me again. Now that we were a bit more familiar by a whole ten minutes of talking, I was able to look her in the eyes without shying away like a teen at a high school dance. Strangely, the life that emanated from her had woven its own little spell over me. My eyes fell into hers…for how long, I wasn’t sure. Co

I blushed like a fool in reaction, feeling a strange mix of pride and embarrassment at being the focus of her attention. I looked to Co

“Irene,” Co

She turned nervously back to me, seeking some kind of guidance, but I remained silent. The debriefing part of dealing with spirits was Co

“I think I’d like the good news first, please,” Irene said after a brief hesitation. One of her hands moved to cover her mouth as she braced herself. Even the good news might be dreadful.

Co

I was sure he hoped his tone would lighten the situation but the panicked look in Irene’s eyes told me that Co

Co

“Well,” he said, opting for unadorned bluntness this time, “let’s put it this way. You’ve recently become less…earthly.”

“Meaning what, exactly?” she asked.

“Meaning…” Co

Irene slumped back against the couch, attempting to take in Co

Irene sat statue still for the next five minutes. Only the muffled sounds of the office indicated that the world continued on around us. Finally, she leaned across the cluttered table, and beckoned for us to lean in as well.

“I don’t buy it,” she said.

“Don’t buy it?” Co

Co

“How is this even possible?” she said as she turned to me.

I looked away, ashamed at Co

“Then why am I here?” she demanded, her voice rising with anger. “Why aren’t I in heaven or hell or whatever there is out there? Why am I sitting in the back of a Village cafй talking to two strangers about the fact that I’mdead while one of them obnoxiously throws thingsinto me? Shouldn’t that be all she wrote, gentlemen? I mean, I’ve reached the proverbial end of the line, haven’t I?What am I still doing here? ”

“I wish there was an easy explanation I could give you,” Co

“Why don’t you tell me what youdo know?” she asked with open bitterness.

Co

“Co

Why was he being like this? Too many years on the job? Maybe as with all service-oriented jobs, it was easy to lose sight of the fact that we dealt with other humans, touching their lives. Day in and day out, it took an extreme amount of effort to remember how to treat people.