They sat in the car, after Caroline complained about the cold, talking.
"Wait, wait, wait," she said. "You're saying you will give me my soul back if I do something for you?"
"Yes," Michael said.
"But what happens if I don't want my soul? I mean I gave it to you for a reason 10 years ago... why the hell would I want it back?"
Michael blinked. "You don't want to feel again?"
Caroline laughed. "Of course not! I'm an assassin. I literally kill people for a living. Why would I want to jeopardize my career by feeling emotions again?"
They sat in silence while the devil considered her words. "Because you could potentially redeem yourself and avoid eternal damnation after death?"
She lifted her brow. "Assassin," she said.
Michael sighed. "Well, Dad damn it. I was really hoping you would accept my deal because you're the only one who can do it."
"Well, what do you need done?"
He looked at Caroline. "There's a man. A very specific man. And I need him, still alive, down in Hell."
"And why did you need to make a deal with me to get this done?"
"Because. You would need to find him, capture him, and tear a hole into the universe to send him to me. And there are some rules."
"Rules?"
"You do not talk about him. You do not write about him. You do not refer to him using any name. The more you know about him, the more he knows about you."
"Sounds dangerous."
"Danger is your middle name."
Caroline smiled. "I"ll do it for no charge."
Michael paused. "But, there's a catch... two, actually. The first, you would have to have your soul back. You can't complete this task without it."
Caroline frowned. "Why not? I do all my other jobs without-"
"Because," Michael cut her off. "You have to actually feel emotions in order to do this."
Caroline hesitated a moment before asking, "What's the other catch?"
Michael forced a smile, looking more like he was grimacing than anything. "You would also have to work with a rather... eccentric person."
"Eccentric?"
"Yeah."
"Who?"
"Her name is Jackie."
Caroline swallowed. "Jackie what?"
He hesitated for a moment. "Jackie Michelson," he finally mumbled.
Caroline laughed out loud. Then, when she met Michael's eyes again, she realized he was dead serious.
Her smile disappeared.
"Absolutely not."
YOU ARE READING
Soulless
Short StoryAfter her mother died at the fault of her father, Caroline was approached by the devil. Satan himself made a deal with her: she would kill her father, giving the devil her soul, and she would remain emotionally painless and have no conscience for th...
