Howl at the Moon Read Free

he went on stage. Her breasts nearly spilled out the crest with perfect form. Green eyes sparked at Aaron with enough attitude that even he stood up and took notice.
    Not that he was going to let her know that, of course.
    “What the hell?” He finally repeated.
    “Not Hell, Heaven, not that you even deserve it,” she sniffed, pirouetting over the counter to stand right in front of him.
    Okay. Now the chick was floating and Aaron felt he had just fallen into the rabbit hole. Only, he wasn’t Alice and wasn’t into following the rabbit. He was a second away from running but his feet wouldn’t cooperate.
    “You’re a bitch, and not in the good way,” she said, interrupting his thoughts.
    “Who do you — ”
    “Don’t start, Aaron Lancaster, better known as Coco LaMann, owner and brains behind Fairy Drag Mother. Yes. I know the last name that you just hate so much. I know everything about you. I have looked into your heart a hundred times over thousands of decisions. You can go two ways and you always choose the way that comes out with more negativity in your life. You should be so much further in the world than you are. But you can’t be. Not as you are now. Builder and ruiner of dreams, wants, and desires. You’ve been a very naughty man.”
    “How do you know who I am?” Aaron returned.
    “I just said I’ve been watching,” she responded, tapping her cheekbone and her eyes seeming to see through him. “You could be so much fun, but you’re not. I see what you could be. Death sees otherwise.”
    “Death? Okay, lady, I don’t know who the hell you are, but you better get your ass out my store before I beat the living daylights out of you!”
    “Score one for Aaron, I guess? You feel better? Can I continue?”
    “Heifer — ”
    “You’re going to die tonight.”
    That shut Aaron up. Seeing what he’d already seen, how could he not believe her? Unless, he thought, she’s ape-shit batty.
    In which case, he would be, as well…Not a good look. He chose to believe. “Die?”
    “Yes, driving home on the highway you will doze, running off the overpass, and crashing through the guardrail. You’ll die on impact. This life is over. But I am giving you a new chance to get it right.”
    “Die?” Aaron sputtered again.
    “Okay, Aaron, catch up,” she sighed, lifting herself up on to the counter. She twirled her fingers, the registered dinged, and EXPIRED showed up on the screen.
    “You, dead, tonight. Going to the fiery place, do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars. Catch my drift? But if you agree to my proposal, you’ll live. Got it?”
    “Hell? I’m going to Hell?”
    “Do you want to live, Aaron? Do you want to get a second chance at life? I can give it to you.”
    He didn’t want to die. He wanted to live. But, in his experience, he’d learned that no one did anything for free. If she was offering him a chance to live, then she wanted something. He just had to find out what.
    “What’s the catch?”
    “You do a few favors for me. The balance goes more toward the good side, and poof, you get a new lease on life.”
    “Favors? What favors?”
    “Do you agree?”
    “What am I doing?
    “It’s either me or death, honey. Take a leap of faith. Do you agree?”
    “Well, when you put it that way, who wouldn’t? You, baby, are it!”
    So now here he was, in his shop, with little Ms. Chipper raving on and on about how much he was going to help the balance of life. Like he gave a flying shit about helping anyone. He just cared about getting all of it over with and moving on. He wanted another chance to do life. He didn’t have much choice in the situation, considering it was either die or do as the angel said.
    Damn Lea. She was going to be an ugly thorn in his side. He didn’t want to listen to a damn thing she had to tell him. He wanted to go back to his life, wake up in his bed as if this all were a bad dream. Every time he pinched himself, however, he knew this was far a