Page 70 of Haunting Goats

“Goddammit, I know that. But where?”

I’m eager to find out. I need to know where she is and if she’s safe.

Mischievously, it says, “I don’t possibly have a way of knowing that. I do enjoy a little hide-and-seek every now and again, though.”

I want to throw things. I don’t know why the reaper finds this so amusing; I sure don’t.

“How do we get her back?”

The words come out rushed. I don’t have time for games. Lyric is in Hell, and I’m not there to protect her. I can only imagine what’s going on down there and the more I envision it, the antsier I get.

The reaper just stands there. It makes me nervous knowing that I can’t see into its cloak. Is it even looking at me or paying attention? Does it even care about this mess? Why aren’t we scrambling to find her?

“Answer me. NOW!” I yell, panicked.

Cackling bellows throughout the room, and I turn to see Cash keeled over laughing. I lunge forward and slam him into the wall.

“Wanna share with the class what’s so fucking funny?” I demand as my grip tightens on his puny biceps.

He stares daggers at me as he reaches up and tugs on the crooks of my elbows. I steady my arms and smash my forehead into Cash’s causing him to release me as he grabs at his head.

“Motherfucker!” he hollers, slowly smirking at me. “This is what happens when you try to determine someone else’s demise and punishment—it does an Uno Reverse and boomerangs itself right back atcha. Gotta love a heaping dose of karma.”

Cash laughs, seeming so pleased with himself. I’m feeling extra violent today and catch myself reaching into my pocket. Before I’m able to comprehend what I’m doing, my pocket knife is plunging into Cash’s eye socket. He screeches and falls to the floor. It eventually heals itself, and he wobbly pushes himself up into a standing position.

I look back at the reaper.

“I don’t have time for this,” I say shakily.

“Lyric needs me. Bring her back.”

I feel so defeated. Everyone abandons me. They always do. I knew this would happen with Lyr, I just didn’t think it would happen this soon. I feel tears starting to well in the corners of my eyes and a lump forms in my throat. Stuffing the intense and unwanted feeling down, I wait impatiently for the reaper to answer me.

“There are many a portal.” He replies. “The best I can do is essentially hack into each individual one and see where it leads me. This could take years.”

Years?

I can’t wait years, and neither can Lyric. We need to get Cash and Kristine on their way and focus on bringing my girl home.

Never mind that she’s my home.

Being stuck in the In-Between is like being alive on Earth. All the feelings are still there; there’s still pain and sorrow and grief and anger and hope and joy—it doesn’t stop; it intensifies and sometimes the feeling is almost as bad as dying.

“No.” I say angrily.

“That’s unacceptable. You’re the goddamn Grim Reaper!” I huff, flailing my arms before running both hands through my hair, stressed and pulling at the strands.

“I may be the Grim Reaper,” it says, “but I’m not made of magic. Not all stories have a happy ending.”

I don’t like what he’s implying, and the anxiety in me amplifies. I feel like I’m going crazy. Lyric is gone and I’m all alone. I can feel myself starting to crumble, bit, by agonizing, bit.

It dawns on me that Cash and Kristine are still here. They’ve been awfully quiet. I look at Kristine and she continues to sit on the floor, propped up against the wall with her knees pulled to her chest. She stares down at the floor. When I look back at Cash, he appears normal again and stands against the wall between the bed and the air conditioner, his arms crossed over his chest.

“What the fuck are you looking at?” he growls, irritated.

I ignore him and peer back at the reaper. It bounces its scythe off the floor, and a new portal opens in front of us. Hope wraps me in a warm embrace as it clings to me with every new portal that appears. No one is leaving this room until I find my Strawberry Girl.

CHAPTER 46