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Zim couldn’t believe he failed her yet again. Why wouldn’t Meena trust him, and why wasn’t his friendship enough for her? With a heavy heart, he sighed and looked at Noreen helplessly.
She reached out to comfort him. “It’s not your fault,” she said softly. “Meena needs time, and I think you should trust her. I have never seen such remorse in anyone’s eyes as in hers. I’m sure your friend will find a way back to you.”
Zim had never longed to kiss someone as much as he wanted to kiss Noreen. She was a ray of sunshine, and looking at her comforting smile was enough to give him hope. “You’re right. If she can’t rely on me and trust me, then I should trust her.”
“Now what?” Sameer grumbled.
The potion was gone, and threat with it. Unless Meena killed seven more criminals, she couldn’t harm the Underworld. Zim no longer cared what the Grim Reaper did. He had fulfilled his part of the deal. As soon as he received the promised souls, their bargain would be complete.
“Well,” Noreen said, “nothing we can do now. Meena is gone. We can waste time looking for her or do better things with it.” She shrugged as if she no longer cared what happened to Meena.
Zim wondered what she saw in his friend to change her mind about seeking justice. Whatever it was, he wasn’t going to question it. It would be better for all involved if the Underworld forgot Meena’s existence. He watched silently as Sameer stared at Noreen for a long moment before coming to a decision.
“Okay, I’ll take care of the things in the Underworld. You can take your time to return,” with that final statement, he was gone.
“So,” Zim said, once he was alone with Noreen.
“So, didn’t you say something about a big library?” She smiled, making Zim burst into laughter.
∞
“Noreen isn’t with you,” the boss lady said.
It wasn’t a question. And Sameer didn’t feel like acknowledging it. “We need to pay the demon to complete the deal,” he said in a monotone. He knew what was coming, but he wasn’t going to feel guilty about it.
The decision to investigate the human murders and go after the witch was the right thing to do. And it helped him locate Rayan, which was an added plus. Whatever his supervisor had to say about the situation, he knew it was worth the risks.
“Okay,” she said simply. “I’ll let you take care of that.”
Sameer waited, but she returned to reading the file opened on the desk in front of her. Her lack of reaction shocked him. And he couldn’t help but say, “That’s it?”
“What else would there be?” She looked at him with raised eyebrows. “Unless you’re hiding something else from me?” The warning in her tone was unmistakable.
“No, I’m not hiding anything. I’m sure you know by now that we found Rayan.”
“Yes, I’m well aware. The shopkeeper was kind enough to inform me.”
Sameer could never understand his boss. She was a strange woman. Even though she could read his mind, she never did it other than the first time he arrived in the Underworld. Sometimes, she seemed to know everything. And at others, she appeared oblivious to her surroundings. She wouldn’t break the rules herself, but she often let her subordinates get away with breaking them.
Unaware that he was staring at her, he was startled when she barked, “What is wrong now?”
“I was wondering the same thing,” he said, almost as if talking to himself.
The boss lady sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Look, I know you don’t understand this, but there’s a limit to how much I can interfere with the things unfolding even in the Underworld, let alone other worlds. Anyway, you did what you thought was right. And I’m just glad it didn’t blow up in our faces. Now, I’ll give you a task you will enjoy very much.” Her lips curled up in a devious smile, and a shiver ran down Sameer’s spine.
He didn’t have to wait long in anticipation as she continued, “Nina has become a problem. As much as she wanted to live like a human, now she dares interfere with the supernatural world using her knowledge and contacts. I can no longer turn a blind eye to it.”
“What do you want me to do?” Sameer asked curiously. As far as he knew, Grim Reapers couldn’t harm humans, at least not physically.
“I want you to remove her memories of a life before she was human. Plant false memories of a normal human life.” She paused dramatically before saying, “You can go wild with the planted memories. Make her suffer if it helps exact revenge.” She cackled like a lunatic then, and Sameer wondered what was wrong with the woman.
Shaking his head, he left without a reply. No way would he make Nina suffer for what she did to him. He wasn’t a vindictive person. But first, he must find a Grim Reaper who could remove human memories and plant false ones in their place. Even after all this time, the job never got easier.
∞
“Wow,” Noreen said, running her hand over the spines of the books lining the shelf. “You weren’t joking about your impressive library.” It was the most extensive personal library she had ever come across, and she couldn’t have enough of it. She wondered how many centuries she would need to read all the books there.
“You’re welcome to come here any time you wish and read as much as you want.” He followed behind her as they walked down the aisle.
“I might just do that.” She looked over her shoulder and gave him the brightest smile. The more she got to know the demon, the more she liked him. She realized the myths featuring demons couldn’t be all true because Zim wasn’t some bloodthirsty monster but a gentle and kind soul. And he was well-read.
“Anyway,” her tone became serious, “Now that Sameer is not here, I want to ask you about Meena.”
“What about her?” he said.
She didn’t look at him and kept her gaze on the books. Taking one out, she randomly flipped its pages, but her mind was far away. “Why does she believe her father was a Grim Reaper?” she asked, finally looking at him.
“Because that’s who he was,” Zim said, looking confused.
“No, but how did she know?” Noreen pressed.
“I told her. When she arrived here as a teenager, I read her powers, and it was clear that she was half-witch and half-Grim Reaper. Later, as she wanted to learn more about her heritage, she traveled between worlds. And as far as I know, that’s what she confirmed from her investigation. Why?”
“Hmm,” she was thoughtful for a while. “You might have been wrong. And whatever she thinks, her father wasn’t a Grim Reaper.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I think,” she whispered, “I know her father.”
