Free Styx & Stoned (The Grim Reality Series Book 2) by Boone Brux Page A

nice.”
    Several corridors and turns later
we stopped in front of the set of golden doors. Mara raised her hand, preparing
to knock. “Ready?”
    No, but that wasn’t an option.
“Yep.”
    She rapped and the door instantly
opened. Tabris’s assistant ushered us into the room, sealing the door behind
us, and then left through another door located behind one of the pillars. In
the semi-circle of overstuffed chairs and settees sat eight people.
Immediately, I could tell they weren’t reapers. An air of authority surrounded
the group, as if they had the right to openly assess Mara and I as we edged
into the room. The urge to grab her hand like a scared child made my fingers
twitch but I repressed the impulse, not wanting to look like a wuss.
    The hair on the back of my neck
prickled, which usually meant trouble or the presence of supernatural beings. I
figured it was fairly safe to assume this was some kind of ethereal council. I
just hoped Mara and I weren’t getting voted off the island.
    I glanced at her. As usual, she was
the vision of cool, but I did notice her spine stiffened slightly when she
first saw the collected group. She must have recognized them for what they
were, which meant once again, I was the least informed. Typical.
    When we stopped in front of the
gathered group, Mara bent in a low bow, lasting a good five seconds. Not
knowing who these people were, but figuring better safe than sorry, I mirrored
the demon’s action. When she rose, so did I. Still the people didn’t speak,
which I found very rude. Maybe that’s because I have a tendency to over talk in
awkward situations. Fill the silence—that’s usually my modus operandi.
    A door to the right slammed,
jerking my attention away from the unwavering stares. “Oh, good,” Tabris said,
striding toward us. “You’re here.”
    “Sorry if we kept you waiting,” I
said, not meaning it. The less time we had to spend with this group, the
better. “We had to fight the luncheon crowd.”
    “You’re right on time.” He stopped
beside me. “Lisa and Mara, I’d like to introduce you to the GRS board of
directors.” Pointing to two women and two men sitting to the right, he said,
“These are Heaven’s members.” Then he indicated the group to the left, also two
women and two men. “And Hell’s members.”
    “Really?” My eyes widened. I
couldn’t help it. Every time I blinked, somebody hit me with new information a
low-ranking reaper shouldn’t be privy to. I shook my head. “I never knew there
were so many representatives from—” Even though Tabris had just described them
as Hell’s members, I couldn’t force the H-word out. Like an idiot, I simply
pointed to the floor.
    That drew a smile from an
elegant-looking man on Heaven’s side of the grouping. “I’m sure you’ve heard
the phrase, ‘there would be no good without evil.’”
    I nodded.
    “This is one of those
circumstances. We work together for the greater good.”
    “Wow, that is so not what I was
raised to believe,” I blurted.
    “Hollywood,” Tabris said. “The
truth is boring and wouldn’t put butts in the seats, so they embellish the
situation.”
    “You’re probably right, but…” I
contemplated the stories I’d grown up believing. “I think the real reason
people cling to the good and evil battle is because they need a clearly defined
villain, hero, and solid guidelines to live by.”
    “I couldn’t have said it better.”
Tabris indicated two empty seats at the end of the half circle and then pulled
up a chair for himself. He sat and smiled at me. “Please, sit.”
    As I took my seat, I chanced
another look at the gathered group. There wasn’t a single thing that
distinguished Heaven’s reps from Hell’s. No horns or halos. No pitchforks or
harps. Even one of Hell’s reps was dressed all in white, totally blowing my
perception of Hell’s minions out of the water.
    “So...” I shifted in my seat. “Have
we done something wrong?”
    “Not at