The Grim Reaper’s Mate

Arriving in Divenia

Angel (formerly Christine)

I was now wide awake as I watched the highway giving passage to Ol' Blue. David was right. It should ride like being in a bucket in a wheel barrow based on how it looks. It should rattle and clank down the road so that everyone for miles knows where Ol' Blue is. Instead, it rode smoother than the limo. I felt like it was gliding down the highway like a swan on water.

"I wasn't expecting Ol' Blue to ride so well," I said, trying to make conversation.

"My grandfather babied this truck. He kept the engine in top condition. He taught me everything about Ol' Blue, and I've been keeping up the tank since my grandfather's death. It's a hobby, you could say, but it's also a labor of love. It makes me feel like I haven't lost touch with who I used to be," David said. I heard a little melancholy as he reflected on who he used to be, and I wondered to myself what he meant by that. Before the mob, maybe? Before he killed his first target? I wanted to ask, but I kind of also didn't want to know.

I was surprised when David called my attention to the road ahead.

"I present to you, fair Angel, the rolling hills of the beautiful city of Divenia," David announced. On the horizon, I saw structures appearing on the sides of the mountains. To my left, the ocean was sparkling in the sun as we pulled up on it. How did it just appear like that? I stared at it, trying to figure it out when David chuckled. "It's an inlet. that part, anyway. It's beautiful, isn't it? That area is a popular fishing spot for the lower ring of Divenia where the poorest residents live."

"That makes sense. So Divenia is divided?" I asked.

"Yes, sadly. I live in the lower part of the middle ring. You'll see when we pull into the city. It's divided by steep hills that separate the lower parts from the upper parts. The houses on the sides of the mountains looming ahead are where the extremely wealthy citizens live. It's safe there as my boss lives up in that ring and is paid well by the aristocracy to keep his men on the streets for the sole purpose of eliminating any riff-raff that may wander there," David explained. I shivered.

"And by eliminating, you mean..."

"Yes. That's exactly what I mean. It works, though. The men rarely have anything to do as nefarious people don't dare venture as far up as the upper ring. Most of the boss's men live with their families and cover-up jobs in the middle ring, so that's a safe place to live as well. It's only the lower ring that has any crime, and even that is at a minimum since there isn't anything worth stealing at the bottom of the hills," David paused, and I focused my attention ahead. The highway just dead-ended into Divenia. There was a large wall around the city, and there was a single road leading in and out. I just realized no vehicles passed us on the other side of the road.

"Does no one leave Divenia?" I asked, suddenly feeling worried. Was I riding into a trap?

"People leave Divenia all the time. Just not at this time of the day," David chuckled. I looked at the clock on Ol' Blue. It was still only early morning. I feel like I've been awake for hours, but it's only been thirty minutes since I left the limo.

"That makes sense," I replied, relaxing a little bit. David entered Divenia, and I saw people in tattered clothes milling about as soon as we entered the city. A man with fishing gear was kissing a woman holding a squirming toddler. A woman across the street was looking around warily as she practically sprinted down the road holding a brown paper bag to her chest with a piece of bread sticking out the top. A couple of children were climbing a small tree that sat in front of a run-down looking grocery store. This is the poorest district. This is the kind of place I come from. These people are my people. Hard workers. Innovative. Loving. Gracious. Giving. These types of people were the ones who snuck me a small piece of candy or gave me a scrap of pretty material to make a new dress for my dolly. These are good people who understand hardship and suffering but also understand the beauty of the human spirit and find value in giving what little they have to give. I looked at the grubby children and smiled and waved at them. They looked surprised and then delighted and waved back, laughing and running along the sidewalk, trying to keep up with Ol' Blue and calling for me to wave to them.

Suddenly Ol' Blue lurched, and I gasped, taking my eyes off the children and staring at the road ahead.

"It's okay. It's the first hill leading into a new district. We're about to move into the lower middle ring. That's where I live," David chuckled.

"You do? So you don't live too far from the lower ring?" I asked hopefully. David threw me a suspicious glance.

"It's not safe for you to live in the lower district," he said slowly.

"Maybe. But I'd like to get to know the people there," I said, looking in the side mirror at the children still waving at Ol' Blue.

"The kids recognize Ol' Blue. I'm sure they're curious about you," David smiled at me and then turned his attention back on the hill. Only stairs and some flowers lined the steep road, and then I saw the side of another building as the road leveled out again. Now it was just a slight hill, and cheery homes with bright paint, some peeling a little bit, lined our drive. I spotted a beauty salon, a clothing store, and a grocery store on one side of the road, nestled in among the houses.

"Why do the kids recognize Ol' Blue?" I asked, as I gazed at the other side of the road. David was slowing down. There was a barber shop, a pawn shop, and a building with slightly faded bright colors on a sign that read 'Candy and Soda Shoppe'. David slowed down Ol' Blue. There was a narrow driveway between the pawn shop and the candy shop. David turned onto it. Everything was closed. Did he own the pawn shop?