Reaping Willow by Boone Brux

Author:Boone Brux
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Demons and ghosts, Grim Reaper, Humorous paranormal, Greek Mythology, Alaska Stories
Publisher: Boone Brux
Published: 2020-09-30T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER ELEVEN

When I woke in the morning, my first thought was what the hell had I been thinking? Of course, Chaos was that bad. Well, actually, that was my second thought. My first thought was EARTHQUAKE!

The ground rocked and rolled underneath me, but it was no longer the solid packed earth I’d fallen asleep on. Instead, the terrain had changed to rolling sand dunes for as far as the eye could see. As the silty mound heaved under me, I clawed for a fingerhold but all I got were handfuls of sand. Trying to get to my feet was like trying stand in the middle of a bouncy house with ten toddlers jumping up and down. Just when I thought I had it, the sand would shift and throw me in the opposite direction.

“We need to get to that outcropping of rock.” Nyx swayed toward me, pointing in the distance.

I spun to see a small mountain sticking out of the sand. Taking her word for it, I scooped up my backpack and started toward the rocks. The ground continued to undulate. With each step I took, my foot sank into the hot sand. Oh, and that was another thing, it was hot again. Like hot—hot. Way hotter than the day before. That added another element of fun to the thrill of being in Tartarus.

We topped a giant sand dune and stopped. There was one more hill before we reached the outcropping. Though it didn’t look that far away, it felt like a million miles. I never understood the snowshoeing craze. Tromping through deep powdery snow, for what purpose? Unless I was in some kind of survival mode, hiking out of the bush or off of the mountain, I didn’t see the appeal. It just seemed like a lot of hard work for no pay off. Trudging through the sand felt an awful lot like that, but I hoped there was a payoff at the end—like safety.

As I started down the dune, the sand heaved and lifted me several feet in the air. I pitched forward and did a somersault when I hit the ground. The only problem was that I kept going. Head over feet I tumbled. It quickly became clear that I wasn’t going to stop until I got to the bottom, so I tucked my head and went with it. The sight of me careening down the sand had to be both impressive and entertaining. I’m pretty sure at some point I hit terminal velocity.

On a good note, by the time I stopped, I was halfway up the other side of the last sand dune. On a bad note, I was certain I’d broken a couple of ribs and compressed my spine. I lay sprawled like a dying starfish on the beach, unable to move.

It took a few minutes for Nyx to reach me. Minutes I happily laid unmoving. “Lisa.” She dropped next to me. “Are you all right?”

“Is that a rhetorical question?” I ground out.

“Yeah, it is.” With no warning and a lot of force, she scooped me off the sand and deposited me on to my feet.

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