Tommy Rindell finished mopping up the floor in the dining room of Meyer’s Place after closing. He was grateful that Levi had hired him at the restaurant, but it wasn’t Tommy’s favorite job he’d ever had. Still, the money was okay, especially when Levi pulled him from the kitchen when one of the waitresses called in sick.
Not that that happened often.
Rolling the mop bucket back into the cleaning closet, Tommy did a once-over in the kitchen to make sure everything was cleaned and ready for the breakfast rush in the morning.
“Go on and get out of here,” Levi said from behind him. He was counting bills at the bar, but glanced up and smiled at Tommy. “You’ve had a long enough day as it is.”
Tommy flashed a smile. “You sure?”
“Positive. Have a good night. See you tomorrow.” Levi turned his attention back to the cash.
Tommy grabbed his coat from the rack and set out toward the trolley line.
It was late, but he was usually able to catch the final ride out. Sometimes, if Levi needed extra help after closing, Tommy had to walk all the way home. Even with a quick pace, it still took him about an hour.
Luckily, today was not one of those days.
As Tommy got on the trolley and paid the fare, he counted the rest of the cash in his wallet. There wasn’t much, and payday didn’t come until the end of the week. Even if Levi let him out on time the rest of the week, there was no way Tommy would be able to afford to take the trolley every night. Not if he wanted to eat too.
Ever since his father had passed away from the influenza epidemic the year before, the weight of the household finances fell on Tommy’s shoulders. And he didn’t have much. A modest house on the outskirts of town. His mother had run out on them right before his father became ill, so now it was just Tommy left to take care of everything.
And there wasn’t any inheritance to speak of. His father could barely rub two pennies together himself. It was one of the reasons Tommy needed to quit school and start working. They needed the money. But after his father went and died on him, Tommy was back to a single-income household. Even though he was a family of one, it still cost a certain amount to maintain his modest lifestyle. An amount that Tommy could barely keep a handle on.
The trolley dropped him off at the corner of W 26th and Raspberry Streets. His house was only a short walk from there.
After the trolley pulled away, the darkness of the night truly set in. The city had yet to install streetlights in his developing neighborhood, leaving the few dim houselights the only illumination to guide him. Even the moon was hidden behind the clouds.
At the crossroads of W 27th and Raspberry, Tommy stared in the direction of the intersection. There was a shadow there, but he couldn’t make out quite what it was. He began to turn to head to his house, but terrifying thoughts filled his mind.
What if it’s an animal that wants to jump me?
What if it’s a murderer who wants to kill me?
What if it’s someone in trouble who could use my help?
“He-Hello?” he called out nervously. “Is somebody there?”
The shadow moved again, only this time Tommy’s eyes were blinded as a torch lit up in flames in her hand.
She wore a dark robe and had a set of skeleton keys hanging from the arm opposite the torch. And she was beautiful, with dark hair framing her porcelain face and eyes that seemed to see right through to his soul.
“Who are you?” he asked. “And why are you standing in the middle of the road? You’re going to get hit.”
“Do you need help?” she asked.
Tommy’s brow furrowed. “Me? I was just walking home. Are you stuck? What’s going on?”
She smirked. “No, I’m not stuck.”
“Then why are you in the middle of the street?”
“It’s the in-between,” she explained. “I assure you, it’s not as dangerous as it seems.”
Tommy studied her, not sure what to make of her. He considered ignoring her and walking off to his house. But that was rude. He may have been poor, but he was always polite. And what if she wished him harm? Did he really want to lead her right to his meager home? But she was just a woman. Surely, she wasn’t capable of hurting anyone.
“Come here.” The skeleton keys on her wrist jangled as she raised her arm out toward him, her hand extended in his direction.
Tommy considered her command. He could just go home and pretend that none of this had happened. She would be gone in the morning. He could forget about it then.
But a bigger part of him wanted to go to her. Wanted to talk to her. Maybe more. He craved true human connection. And maybe a stranger in the street was just the person to help him with that.
Hesitantly, he stepped out into the intersection toward the woman. His eyes darted left, then right, looking out for any vehicles that might come racing by in the darkness. None came. The night was eerily still. Like they were frozen in time.
When he was in front of her, she reached up and stroked his cheek. She tutted her tongue three times. “Aw, I know you’ve been having a hard time lately. So lonely. Struggling to keep your head above water. No one to lean on.”
“How do you—do I know you?”
“I knew your father.”
His eyes grew wide. “You did? How? From where?” A young, attractive woman would’ve certainly come up at some point if his father had crossed paths with her.
“He was down on his luck not that long ago, either,” she went on. “A dark place. I helped him out.”
“Helped him out how? He never mentioned you.”
She smiled. “As he promised he would. Your father and I made a deal. He was desperate and agreed to my terms.”
“What terms?”
“I helped him have an easier life in return for payment after he died.”
“You mean, like—”
“His soul,” she cut in.
“You took his soul?”
She smirked. “It was the term he agreed to. Haven’t you ever wondered how he always managed to have food on the table, even when he was between jobs? Or how he would always get a job offer, right after he quit one?”
“That was you?” Tommy couldn’t believe it. Was this a dream? He was tired enough to believe that it might be. Maybe he would wake up in the morning with no recollection that any of this happened. Maybe he was imagining it, desperate to have some sort of respite to his tiring life.
“I’m capable of anything, for the right price,” she went on. “Your father was desperate and I helped him. Now, the question is: are you desperate enough to agree to the same terms?”