The Guard were an elite group of souls. Soldiers that protected humans and participated in top-secret missions, earning collective respect from everyone in the After.
“Um,” Dylan mumbled, pulling me back to the present.
I let Dylan position the True Soul against Joseph’s head. My fingers moved as if I held the essence. Each Collector had their own methods of coaxing the soul from the body but I wouldn’t let any of my trainees into the field until my technique was perfected. It made the job quicker if the True Soul made contact with the body right before it died.
Joseph stilled at the unseen intrusion. That was the point in every Collection where everything was out of our hands. The True Soul takes over.
Joseph coughed and clutched his chest.
Calm spread through me as we watched Joseph struggle with his left arm. The man shook it a few times before squeezing the skin over his heart. He coughed a sputtering breath and moaned, leaning back in his chair.
“It’s going to be okay,” Dylan whispered, low enough that I wasn’t sure if he wanted me to hear it.
Joseph continued to gurgle and cough, leaning forward in his chair.
Dylan’s hands wavered as his target moved but I reached over and pressed my hands against the back of his.
“If you screw this up I’ll make sure you don’t touch another one for a year. Understand?”
A squeak burst from his lips, but he nodded in agreement.
Dylan repositioned his hand and I moved mine away.
Joseph reached for the telephone but, before his fingers could brush against it, he stilled.
The True Soul finished its work, the essence lit up like a star in the night sky as Joseph’s soul released from the body. The True Soul secured its connection to the back of Joseph’s neck and melded into the soul.
A younger and fitter version of Joseph stood in a not-quite solid form before us, staring at his hunched-over body. “Who are you?”
How a soul looked when Collected differed with each case. Usually when younger humans died their soul would reflect an imprint of their body, like in Dylan’s case. In older humans, like Joseph, the soul molded itself to whatever time in the human’s life that represented the happiest or most influential moments.
I grabbed Dylan’s hand and he did the same to Joseph. The younger Joseph looked frightened as he stole one last glance at his body before the world shimmered around us into a bright white light.
Chapter Two
A bit of pride welled within me as we safely arrived at Gate Seven, our final stop. The border between the Realms appeared as a bridge, which always remained the same even though the landscape changed. It appeared differently based on what the soul thought their after-life would look like, which meant we got to experience it with them. The True Soul extracted the image from the soul and projected it, easing the transition from the Living Realm to the After. Most souls imagined endless clouds, but many had other ideas.
Plush green grass filled the landscape as far as the eye could see. A setting sun appeared to rest atop a ridge of mountains in the distance. Joseph’s bridge connected two sides of a trickling stream. His soul heaved, as if it still needed oxygen, a leftover of breathing for fifty-six years.
On the other side of the bridge stood one of the Gatekeepers, Gwendolyn. Her radiant crimson hair ruffled in the wind. Her bright golden eyes sparkled against Joseph’s manifestation of the sun. She’d wait there until Joseph’s soul was ready to let go of its humanity and move on to the After.
I looked into the distance; more Gatekeepers stood on the other side of the border, waiting to welcome their souls. Even though Gate Seven was one place, each soul experienced it as if they were the only soul in existence.
I touched Dylan’s shoulder. “Time to go.”
Joseph knelt in the grass, staring into the distance. Maybe he’d visited this place at some point in his life. It was breathtaking. I took one last mental picture and transported away.
The Soul Collections office, where we were stationed, was nestled on the 68th floor of a skyscraper in downtown New York City. Even though the building was in the Living Realm, the office was in the After. Felix relocated us there about fifty years ago, stating that keeping us close to humans would help connect to our targets better. Somehow.
The wide expanse of the office looked out at the setting sun over the horizon. I never understood why humans were obsessed with the setting and rising of the sun. It was just something that was. Soul Collectors of every human age and size bustled around the office in between Collections.
“Hi, Dylan!” A young girl waved at him, skipping across the floor.
He grinned, waving back.
“Come on,” I said, pushing him toward the massive clear desk in the middle of the main floor. Seven Collections Officers sat behind it. They assigned and closed cases for every Collector.
Dylan barely reached the top of the counter. “Hi, Stacia,” he called.
“Name of soul,” she said, looking down at her hands.
The Collections Officers were a tough bunch but I appreciated the work ethic. Get in then out as quickly and efficiently as possible.
“Um,” he stammered.
“Joseph Bonds,” I answered, patting him on the head.
Dylan wasn’t used to the Caelestium, the original creatures of the After Realm. Stacia, like Gwendolyn, had the looks that many humans over the years had tried to replicate. Flawless skin, long silky hair, and natural charisma. But their biggest distinction were their golden eyes that sparkled as if beams of sunlight were constantly beating down on them.
“Was the transition successful?” she asked.
“We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t,” I said.
Stacia’s eyes flicked to mine. Dylan’s jaw hit the countertop.
I winked at her.
She laughed, a high and sweet sound.
She moved her hands across the smooth surface of the desk, confirming the transition. “I’ll be sending your next assignment soon. She’s not due for a little while.”
“Thanks.” I turned to Dylan and pushed his jaw closed with my finger. “You’re done for today.”
“What are you going to tell Felix?” Dylan’s eyes widened.
“You did fine. I’ll be sure to inform him.”
Dylan beamed and ran down the corridor toward the Trainee office.
“Souls running away from you… how unusual,” a voice said, sending chills through me.
Aaron. I’d recognize his high-pitched, sniffling voice anywhere. If souls had dreams, he would haunt my nightmares.
He’d been the biggest failure of a trainee. He didn’t listen, or follow directions; he’d nearly damaged a soul so badly that it might not have survived to Gate Seven were it not for my quick reflexes. He’d been through three trainers before being sent to me.
“Aren’t you going to say hello?”
“I thought you were up to be Recycled?” I asked, hoping he’d leave.
When all else had failed, I told Felix that he couldn’t be of any use to us. Recycling would strip him of his memories and he’d be able to return to the Living Realm as a new human. Although I would have felt bad for the life he’d been assigned to.
I turned around, the