My Karmic Destiny (Gods Are Hiring #3)

1. New Reaper on the Block

1

NEW REAPER ON THE BLOCK

TESSA

“ W ake up, newbie,” a voice orders. “Death waits for no one.” The woman cackles with her joke.

Gods be damned.

I crack my eyes open to find Glamour Death Barbie looming over us, cocking her hip and smacking her bubblegum. Okay, her real name is Megan, but with her glittery pink outfit, I think my nickname suits the agent of Death better.

Dante groans next to me and rolls over to dismiss the annoying woman acting as our personal alarm clock. Unfortunately, he takes the covers with him, and I’m left exposed in all my birthday suit glory.

Thanks, brat.

Megan’s eyes dip down to take in my nudity.

I’d normally cover up, but whatever. Pulling the covers off Dante to hide nakedness and then reveal my man’s fine assets isn’t an option.

Her eyes flicker in his direction. The corners of her mouth pull down briefly in disappointment.

Nope. I’m not sharing his hotness with anyone by snatching the covers back. It’s not that I’m the possessive type. It’s that I’ve just been through hell, and I deserve something that’s mine… for however long I get to enjoy him and this new lease on life.

One thing I’ve learned as a supernatural agent for the gods is that nothing is guaranteed. Life is fragile as fuck. I should know, I’m a death agent now. Technically. Apparently, it’s my first day on the job. No notice. Wonderful.

“Enjoying the view?” I smirk, and Megan finally averts her eyes. I hop out of bed, throw on a robe, and grab my shower caddie. “I’ll be ready in a few minutes,” I say over my shoulder and head down the hallway to the community bathroom.

I still can’t believe my former boss, Instant Karma, made all her agents share a massive bathroom like we are in dorms or barracks. Would it have killed her to put in private ensuites for everyone?

Instant Karma really was a bitch.

Maybe I can petition the new owner of this mansion, Original Karma, to renovate the place.

I haven’t seen her since we vanquished Instant Karma over a week ago. We’ve all been enjoying some time off, but my new boss, Death—yes, The Death—wants to begin my training.

Thankfully, all the agents here have been relaxing at the Karma estate and no one is up and about this early, so I have the entire bathroom to myself. I make quick work of the five-person shower stall. Yeah, even showers are communal. What is this junior high gym?

I suppose it makes sense. Instant Karma wanted to keep us off-kilter and continue the hazing process for her agents as long as possible.

I’m not ashamed of my body, especially since Dante’s love of my curves has given me a new appreciation for them.

Ah, Dante … I already miss snuggling with him. I really wish I had a few more days to chill out and heal from everything that’s happened since I’ve become an agent of the gods.

Hell, my life has never been easy. My parents were abusive, and when I ran away as a teen, my mom died trying to find me. Then I lived on the streets, and I had to deal with a string of asshole bosses and boyfriends.

What doesn’t kill me, makes me snarkier… Is that how the saying goes?

I’m a just a bunch of coping mechanisms and inappropriate humor on legs.

After drying off, I wrap the towel around my body. I’m bent over the sink and brushing my teeth when I hear the door open behind me.

“Thank you, precious . That’s a beautiful sight to wake up and see.”

Kurtis . My former Instant Karma team member swaggers up to the vanity and leans his tall, athletic frame against the marble countertop, crosses his muscular arms, and smiles at me.

Ugh, I hope the nickname precious isn’t making a comeback.

Kurtis is a flirt, and mostly harmless. His steel gray eyes travel over my exposed skin and then he seems to catch himself. He clears his throat and nods toward the door and the hallway beyond. “I see you’re being summoned for work already.”

I rinse out my mouth and pat my face dry. Kurtis is keenly watching me. We’ve had our flirty moments, and we’ve also had some pretty screwed up interactions. Like when I, kind of, sort of, killed him. Just a little bit. It isn’t like he stayed dead for long.

Kurtis is more complicated and broken than his playboy jock persona would suggest. I sense he was wounded in his past before becoming an agent, and Instant Karma only made that worse by feeding off his soul.

She fed off all our souls. That was her gimmick. Damage us when she showed up at a potential death moment, so we would take her deal to be her indentured servants.

I want to reach out and give Kurtis some comfort, but it isn’t my place. He might take it as an advance, and that’s a no-go. Dante and I are official now. I’m not going to cheat on my guy in the literal house of Karma. I’m not that fucking stupid.

“I haven’t seen much of you since…” he trails off.

“Since our world exploded?” I nod and pack up my things. “I guess Dante and I have been?—”

Kurtis cuts me off. “In your fuck-bunny phase.”

My brow pulls together, unsure if this is some sort of attack or Kurtis just being the dude-bro he can be.

“So you two are a thing now, huh?” he asks with a note of irritation.

“Yeah. You got a problem with that?” I’ve always picked up bisexual vibes from him, and I’m not sure if he’s upset about me or Dante being taken.

“Nah.” He waves me off. “I’m happy you two found some happiness after all the crap you both had in your life.”

Oh, that was sweeter than I thought his response was going to be. Perhaps I should start dropping my defensive attitude. Not everything has to be a fight.

“I’m sure you’ll find someone, too.” Even as I say it, the words feel empty.

“I thought I’d already found someone,” he says cryptically and then walks out of the bathroom without using the facilities.

I shrug it off. I can’t deal with Kurtis’s love life or lack thereof. Not my circus, not my monkeys.

When I return, Megan is in the hallway outside my room, her arms folded under her perky chest and looking pouty.

“Dante kick you out?” I ask, but I know the answer.

She huffs. “We should leave in five minutes.” She looks me up and down and finds me wanting in my robe and towel wrapped hair. “Can you put yourself together by then?”

“Death isn’t the sort of jerk that expects me to be all dolled up for the job, is he?”

Megan rolls her eyes. “No, but I wouldn’t show up looking like crap. He expects respect. He is the god of death. Don’t fuck with him.”

“Didn’t plan on it.”

I slip into my room and find Dante sliding on a pair of gray sweatpants. Silky black hair falls forward over his brow and ice-blue eyes, making him look roguish as he looks up at me through his thick lashes. His bronze, muscular chest is on display, and I lick my lips, wondering if I could sneak in a quickie.

“Don’t give me that look, babe,” Dante purrs and struts over, pulling me into his warm embrace.

Being in his arms, I’m pretty sure I’ve died and gone to heaven. I inhale his tantalizing sandalwood and clove scent and sigh, wishing I could take a bite of him.

“As much as I want to bend you over and sink into you, you shouldn’t piss off your new boss on your first day.” He offers me a kiss that leaves my head foggy with desire.

“Come on, newb,” Megan calls through the door.

“If this is how my days are starting, I might ask if I can work for Original Gangster Karma instead,” I whisper to Dante.

He chuckles and places his thumb over my lips. “Don’t do that until I find out what the hell that entails. I’m a bit nervous about what she expects from me.”

I’d tell him it will be okay, but I can’t. I might have known Carmen, aka OG Karma, as a kooky mentor when I was a teenage runaway, but I don’t know what she expects as a boss god.

I’m presentable enough within my five-minute window and meet Megan in the hallway. My dark, thick, and damp hair is pulled into a low ponytail. I have my phone and wallet tucked into a crossbody purse, and I’m dressed casually in a silky top and dark jeans.

Megan is in a quasi-cheerleader outfit, so I don’t think business attire is required.

She nods her approval. So she isn’t a total bitch—just a bit bitchy.

I can work with that. I could see us becoming friends even if we look like polar opposites. Something behind her pale blue eyes reveals she’s been through hard times when she was still part of the world, too.

Now we’re both stuck in the margins. Agents of the gods. Alive, but our lives are not our own.

Though when I think about it… is anyone’s life truly their own?

Oh well, I brush that thought aside. My philosophical musings are scheduled for later this year.

Megan places her small, perfectly manicured hand on my shoulder. “Hang on,” she warns.

I’m about to ask if she means that figuratively or literally when I’m yanked through space and perhaps time and land in a dimly lit, spacious meeting hall. It appears to be underground, and the walls suggest we’re in a modified cavern.

I fold over and hold on to my knees to gain my equilibrium. Traveling like that isn’t easy on the senses. The unnerving chill from the travel quickly dissipates, and I breathe easier.

I suppose Death is a more powerful entity with all the perks and upgrades. Instant Karma certainly didn’t give us this sort of travel ability.

“Where are we?” I gasp.

“You’re in my domain—the Underworld.” From behind me, Death’s deep, gravelly voice rumbles through me like thunder.

Will he be completely covered in the dark reaper’s robe again? Or will I see another side of him now that I’m his underling?

I snap upright and spin to lay eyes on him.

Robe it is, then. His imposing, cloaked presence looms over me, pushing way over seven feet tall.

Feeling awkward and not wanting to piss him off on my first day, I give him a little bow to show my respect. I doubt a full curtsy would be appropriate.

“Thank you, Megan. I’ll take care of Tessa from here,” Death dismisses the glam girl, and she pops away.

I hear myself gulp. I’ve met Death in person a few times, but I’m still not used to it. And yes, I’m technically a psychopomp and can ferry human souls to the afterlife, but I’ve only done that on accident a few times.

I feel insignificant and childlike in the presence of this being that probably is as old as time. He could reap my soul without even blinking.

It would be just my luck that he might do that, too. I finally find a great guy and my place in the world, and it all could be ripped away from me.

“Don’t be nervous, little one,” Death says and turns to walk toward a corridor. “Come. We have a lot of information to cover today.”

We walk in silence for a few minutes, then he startles me with his low, booming voice. “You remember why you are here?”

“Uh? In general, working for the gods or working for you?”

“Why I allowed you into my ranks…” He leads me to the answer he’s seeking.

“Because my ancestor was the first man to die, King Yama. He became the guardian, judge, and a ruler of the dead. A god. The death king of karmic justice.”

“Very good. Remember that as you read about your duties. You have a unique role to play in the world, balancing death and karma. You have abilities outside of what my powers will bless you with. Be mindful of your gifts. Do not abuse them.”

“I won’t.” I feel the determination of being better moving forward. “I’ve learned my lessons. I’m not the same street urchin that hustled people. Or a lackey for Instant Karma’s machinations and thirst for power.”

I think about how Instant had wanted to steal my life and my abilities to become the death goddess of karmic justice.

“You witnessed what happens to gods who abuse their station and tamper with my realm. I will destroy them.”

“Yes, sir, I understand.” I quickly acknowledge. The icy dread of death seeps into my bones, and I shiver. “I don’t plan on abusing my job here or my gifts.”

“Good girl,” Death praises, and I swear I hear a smirk behind his words.