Page 49 of Finders Reapers

“I hear that.” He laughed. “Retail therapy?” Todd pointed down to my bags.

“Something like that,” I mumbled as he typed away on his computer.

“Oh.” Todd perked up, surprised. “What did you say your name was?”

Shit shit shit. Was I still Valentina Rossi? Could I even give that name?

As a war surged through my mind, a weight landed on my shoulders as someone placed their arm around me.

I looked up, only to be greeted with a wide, white smile and mischievous eyes. Jamal.

“Hey, Todd.” Jamal greeted the lobby guy with a wink, his British accent coating the words and making him seem like somethingOther. “Are you getting a key card for Vallie?” He asked, shooting me a grin.

“Vallie?” Todd repeated, typing away at his computer. “Vallie Rooney?”

“That’s me,” I said, forcing fake cheer into my voice.

“Can I have a copy of your ID?” Todd glanced at Jamal.

Jamal’s smile didn’t waver. “Todd.” He warned, and his smirk looked positively murderous.

“Oh.” Todd glanced between us as realization dawned on his face.“Oh.”

Jamal’s grip on my shoulders tightened as we waited for the key card. The conversation smothered in one swoop.

Jamal didn’t let go of my shoulders until we reached the elevator, and the key card was clenched in my tight fist.

The doors to the elevator swished shut, and Jamal loosened a breath and jammed his thumb against the button pad.

I bit my bottom lip. “Should I be worried about that guy?”

“Who, Todd?” Jamal raised both brows, affecting confusion.

I knitted my hands together. “I overheard him and Rome outside my room last night. They were talking out the new Reaper—aka, me—and I got the impression that Romedid notwant Todd to know who I was.”

Jamal sighed. “Todd complicates things.”

I tucked a lock of red hair behind my ear, keeping my eyes fixed on Jamal even though the call of the mirror behind him made me want to stop and study my new face. “How? Because he’s a demon?”

“I’ve got to talk to Rome about having private conversations in public places,” Jamal muttered, rubbing his hand over his short curly hair. “Todd is a Purger.”

“What’s a Purger?” Last night, I had heard the word but had no idea what it meant.

“Do you know about the Circles of Hell?” Jamal asked.

“Do you mean sins?”

“Kind of.” He winced as he searched his mind for an explanation. He glanced at my bags, and something solidified in his mind. “Think of Hell like a target in archery. If you were looking down from the sky, each stripe of that target would be a sin. The outer-most ring is Lust, next is Gluttony, then Greed, Envy, Sloth, Wrath, and then Pride sits at the center.”

“Okay,” I said slowly. “What does that have to do with Purgers? I’m guessing they’re a type of demon? ”

“Think of each Circle as a country, with its own King or Queen. Within that, you have the population, demons that have an affinity for that kind of Sin, and souls that belong to that circle.” Jamal pressed his tongue to his canine tooth and glanced up at the button pad, sighing with relief when we reached our floor. He held his hand out so that I could walk through first. “Purgers belong to Gluttony. Sixth Circle. Very rarely seen in the Human Realities. They just don’t have enough power to make it through a portal.”

“Then how did Todd get here?” I wondered.

“Purgers work for the King of Gluttony. They patrol the woods between the borders, but their most important job is to collect food for the King.” Jamal explained. “As you can see, Reapers and Purgers clash. Our purposes just don’t align.”

“Reapers collect souls,” I deduced slowly. “Purgers collect food.”

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