Dead Harvest

  "Sam Thornton, as I live and breathe," he said. "Well, live, anyway. I didn't expect I'd be seeing you again."

  "Merihem," I replied.

  "You know, Sam, there was a time you called me Johnnie."

  "There was a time I didn't know any better."

  Merihem gave the girl beside me a nod, and she disappeared into the darkness. "That was some stunt you pulled, walking in here like that. I could've killed you. Woulda been a shame, really – that body suits you."

  "I'm surprised you recognize me."

  Merihem laughed. "I didn't, at first. Your meat-suit fooled her eyes just fine, but my own eyes are another matter."

  "And you," I said, taking him in. "You haven't changed a bit."

  "I'd like to think I've mellowed," he said, a grin playing on his face. "But that's not exactly what you meant, is it? My kind are too dignified to trawl among the monkeys; the body you see is a projection, nothing more. I gather you didn't drop by to catch up on old times – why don't you tell me just what the hell you're doing here?"

  "It's about a girl."

  "Isn't it always?"

  "I suppose it is," I said, "but this one I was sent to collect."

  "Ah, a little on-the-job romance! So what – you figured you could stash her in a black market body and buy you two some time? Maybe jet off to Cabo for a week or two before you do the deed? You've got stones, my friend, I'll give you that – but believe me, it's more trouble than it's worth. Your handlers will see through you just as surely as I did, and they won't find the situation half as amusing, I assure you. My suggestion is you finish the job and move on. Afterward, bring her body by if you like – I'll pop one of my girls in there, and you can have yourself a go."

  "Much as I appreciate the offer, I think I'm gonna have to pass. See, I tried to collect this girl, only it didn't take. Her soul – it knocked me back. So I panicked and I snatched her."

  Merihem guffawed. "This the chick that offed her family? Man, I've been reading about you – you walked her ass right out of the goddamn hospital! You know, that sketch doesn't do you justice."

  "Thanks. But here's the thing – I'm pretty sure she didn't do it."

  He shook his head. "Not possible. If they sent you, she did it – end of story."

  "Yeah, only I've got reason to believe someone else was driving."

  He squinted at me. "OK, the Sam I knew, he wasn't stupid, which means you probably know how nuts that sounds. I mean, any demon coulda taken this chick out for a spin, but she'd be lit up like a Christmas tree for anyone who knew to look. No way she gets marked for collection. No, a con of that magnitude would take some serious clout – not to mention one hell of a death wish."

  "Death wish? Death wish how?"

  "You think either side wants a war?" Merihem spat, and any hint of Staten Island disappeared from his voice, an affectation easily discarded. "When last it happened, one-third our number fell – and all because a son of fire refused to kneel before a son of clay. You couldn't begin to understand the world of shit that would rain down upon us all if one of our kind was caught damning an innocent soul to rot in hell for all eternity. You're not the only one who's duty-bound, Collector. We all have our roles to play. We do them, and do them well, because the alternative is unthinkable."

  "For you, perhaps. Maybe not for everyone."

  "OK. Say you're right – which you're not – and your girl's been set up. That means whoever's responsible acted against the explicit wishes of the Maker and the Adversary both – and is powerful enough to have done so undetected. If that's the case, what the hell do you expect that you are going to do to stop them?"

  "I don't know. But I have to try."

  "You're pissing in the wind, Sam. If you came here for my counsel, I say keep your head down and do your fucking job."

  "I didn't come here for your counsel – I came here for your help."

  "Did you now?" He smiled. "I'm surprised at you, Sam – I would've thought you'd learned better than to seek favors from my kind. The price is often steeper than you think."

  "The way I figure it, you owe me one."

  He laughed then, a big, roaring laugh that rebounded like a chorus off the concrete walls of the basement. "I owe you one! Ha! That's why I've always liked you – there aren't many who'd dare march in here and speak to me that way."

  "Yeah, well, it's not like I've got anything left to lose."

  "We all have something to lose, Sam. Most of us just can't see it till it's gone."

  Merihem fetched from his pocket a small leather case, from which he selected a cigar. He clipped the end with a brass-plated guillotine and struck a light with a matching lighter, rolling the tip back and forth within the flame for a moment before placing the cigar in his mouth and taking a long, slow drag.