The Drazen World: Purgatory (Kindle Worlds Novella)

a sinner.
I had no business being in Heaven, committing suicide was a guaranteed way of getting a one-way ticket to Satan's lair. I supposed I deserved it.
Would I ever see Hunter again once I pushed the down button on the elevator to Hell?
Obviously, I didn't wish for his fate to mirror mine, but the thought of spending eternity separated throughout our entire existence was like a boulder pressing forcibly against my sternum.
I could lie. Tell them I hadn't meant to kill myself. Explain that I was hot and needed to breathe.
Even as I contemplated that option, I knew it was fruitless. I was sure they already knew the answer and were just waiting on me to come to the same conclusion.
With determination in my gut and a steel rod in my spine, I rose to my feet and lifted my chin.
It was time to face my sins.
Chapter 11
My big girl panties firmly in place, I let my hair drop down over my right breast and took the first steps toward my destiny. The doorknob felt cold and unrelenting under my touch but I turned it nonetheless, walking out of my gray confines and heading to the room where my conversations with Ernest took place on a regular basis. Slowly, I made my way down the morose hallway, focused on my destination, when I heard the faint sounds of bliss. A repetitive onslaught of G-minors. The fingers on my right hand itched to drum it out against my thigh. Without thought, I gave in to the temptation, let the comfort of finally hearing music guide my tempo.
In my mind, each press of my thumb, index and pinky respectively landed on B flat, D and G. The notes danced on my thigh, counting out the triplets that guided the singer's sultry voice. That's when it finally dawned on me.
"Feeling Good" by Nina Simone drifted through my mind, spreading a large smile across my lips as my entire being realized I could hear music, again. My left hand joined in with a slower, more seductive rhythm of octaves playing along my other leg. I could practically taste the melody, smell the ivory keys of my piano. My body abuzz with a high so familiar I almost missed the sounds of an argument.
The voices, yelled in hushed tones. My feet stopped before I turned the corner, hiding myself from view as I unabashedly eavesdropped a conversation that, clearly, wasn't meant for my ears.
"You’re a bastard, you know that?" I recognized the baritone of my Hunter. The anger was palpable enough that I could feel it running down my own spine.
"You're one to talk, kid." Who was that? I tried to remember why the voice sounded so familiar when it finally hit me.
Samael.
I knew something was off with him. I gave zero fucks to the fact that I was listening to a conversation that I shouldn't have been privy to.
"Stop calling me that. It's condescending and considering your job, well....I'd shut my fucking mouth if I were you." Hunter was pissed off and I was dying to know why. No pun intended.
"Look, you needed me to do it. I'm not usually a giving guy but what can I say? You've grown on me." Samael's tone didn't sound angry in the least. He was as calm as he had been the first time I had met him.
"You had no right. She wasn't ready, it wasn't her time. Fuck, Sam, what if I can't fix this?" Hunter no longer sounded livid but had unexpected sorrow lining each of his words. Was he talking about me?
"Fate, Hunter, is just another word for my job. Thank me and we'll carry on." A fraction of a second later, I heard the distinct sound of a fist hitting unyielding matter.
"I can't fucking carry on, Sam. What. If. I. Can't. Fix. This? What the fuck do I do then, huh? Did you ever think of that before you had her walking off that fucking pier?" By this time, Hunter was spitting his words, the ire its own living entity.
I gasped. My insides twisting with the revelation that explained so much and not nearly enough, all at once.
The voices halted, the charge in the air shifting as both men realized I was there. My vision blurred with unshed tears, accompanied by a red hue. Anger and hurt danced together at the prospect that what I'd heard could possibly make sense. The warmth of Hunter's hands suddenly cradling my face, his breath caressing my skin, did wonders to calm the impending panic attack.
"Hey, Spunky. Look at me."
I only then realized my eyes had closed, turning the gray world into black, blinding me to the silent chaos around me. When Hunter repeated himself, I took in a deep breath and lifted my lids to reveal his strong, unyielding face. His worried eyes bored deep into me, reading my emotions like isolated notes on sheet music. One lone tear slid from the inside corner of my eye, running along the side of my nose to fall helplessly onto my lips and coat the seam with salty sadness.
"I heard music," I whispered, my need to ignore Samael's words luring me back to my previous, mortal MO.
"Gabrielle, that's amazing," but his eyes belied his joyful words. This was it. He knew what this meant. I had reached my conclusion, therefore sealing the deal of my accommodations for the rest of eternity.
"No, it's not." He didn't deny my murmured words. Because he knew.
"Gabby, what...how much did you hear?" His thumb rubbed a small path beneath my eyes smearing the wetness from my tear before he lowered his mouth to my forehead.
"Enough." The pit of my stomach felt as though I had been binge drinking for an entire weekend and it was finally time to give my body