Death and The Devil, Seth Benjamin [well read books .TXT] 📗

                “Intrigued?” asked the Devil.

                “What about three?” She whimpered, guilt playing its way into her voice, far away. The devil smiled. The lines on Death’s hand changed again.

                She nodded. “More earned for every death.” She paused. “Some people ask for earthquakes?” She asked, incredulous.

                Neither of them answered her. She felt like she had stumbled onto something. “With some of the people that die in these things, why doesn’t anyone live to 300?”

                The Devil sighed, obviously disappointed. “She asks the important questions this one. Smarter than some 3 times her age.”

                Death droned. “No one can live forever. Each body hits a point when it can’t sustain itself naturally. Every person has a cutoff point. No years earned beyond that.”

                Death laughed, “Not everyone knows that. They bank themselves on 600 years, costing hundreds or thousands of lives and only end up living for another 15. Not every deal is a win-win, Susan.”

                “When is my breaking point? When does my body die naturally.”

                Death’s hand changed. Susan stared at it blankly and simply said. “Oh.”

                Death shook his head and tittered again. “It really is such a shame.” He let that last titter linger off his tongue. “But it doesn’t have to be that way Susan.”

                “I’ll do it.” She blurted suddenly and the Devil laughed. “Excellent! Another deal closed.” He stared down his handsome nose at Susan. “The best of luck to you in your newfound life Susan.”

                With a clap, the Devil vanished, replaced by a jet black crow, that cackled madly as it flew through the closed window and suddenly Susan was left alone with Death.

                He slid the paper across the wrinkled bedsheet as if it were marble. He produced a pen between his thumb and pointer finger. As soon as it appeared it vanished, and then reappeared between Susan’s fingers.

                There were two lines on the paper one at the top and a half line in the bottom right hand corner, beset by an x. She began to write under Death’s eager gaze. When she reached the end of the top line she stopped and looked at him, but he only nodded her on. When the last letter reached the end of the line, a new line appeared below the first one, but Susan knew it had always been there. She continued to the new line, and wrote her wishes and instructions on the lines as they appeared. When she was done, she signed her name by the x.

                No sooner than she was done, the letter retracted and found itself in Death’s hands. He peered it up and down and when he had finished, he looked back at Susan with an empty stare.

                “Every year. Do you understand?” she asked of Death, but he didn’t answer. He vanished, sucking everything he had brought away with him and out of the closed window.

                When Susan woke up again, she remembered nothing. 

Publication Date: 06-04-2014

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