Pure & Sinful (Pure Souls) - By Killian McRae Page 0,14

was just the way it was.

Riona shoved aside three cups of apricot yogurt and tossed the pizza box into the fridge. The beer buzz from Paolo’s was dulling. After the day she’d had, blowing up her ex-boyfriend and all, the in-the-moment feeling sobriety held contained no appeal. Two choices lay before her, and she didn’t think she had the energy to make it all the way to bed.

Ice clinked in the glass and made a ting that sounded like a mocking chuckle. Whisky silenced that sound, and she hoped in a few swigs, it would wipe out the voices in her head as well.

Shimmying out of her jacket and unbuttoning her blouse, her backside hit the Italian leather of her couch as her arm dashed out for the remote. Local News gave her an odd delight. For a woman who had always had a limited group of friends, it could make her feel part of the community, even if by proxy.

More of the same tonight. A few armed robberies, a short-lived hostage situation, a car crash on The 80 that left one dead, two injured. She once mourned these deaths as they were read off by the anchor, but now, she knew better. Connecting with a higher purpose by being a Pure Soul gave her a little more insight into the nature of Nature. When the soul detached from the body, it didn’t disappear. It simply moved on. Still, empathy for those left behind in the lurch filled her. They wouldn’t understand until their time came to make the journey through the pearly gates.

Assuming they all ended up in Heaven. Despite the general consensus, Hell didn’t just let any riffraff in. The universe had a much broader live-and-let-live philosophy than she was led to believe by twelve years in parochial school. Dee relieved her concerns early on when he informed her she’d be fighting on behalf of the Creator’s SWAT team. Morality, he said, was a highly personal measure, outside of a few universal sins like murder and rape. Unless one made a vow to consign his definitions to a higher entity, like Marc had with the church, and as long as a person was just and truthful, managing morality was more like Montessori school than a military academy.

Riona closed her eyes and said a little prayer for the person whose life The 80 had claimed, hoping he had never betrayed his own righteousness and that his soul was now in Paradise.

Sighing as her eyes became heavy and her head swam the drunken waters, Riona hit the power button. Nothing happened. Batteries must be dying out again, she concluded. Starting to sit up so she could retrieve a fresh pair from the kitchen cabinet, a wicked grin spread over her face. What was she thinking? Remote control? She didn’t need no stinkin’ remote control.

Slender fingers danced through the air as her thoughts focused, and with a flash, the boob tube flicked off.

Wow, she was going to save so much money on Duracells now.

Three more minutes’ passing saw Riona Dade sprawled out on her couch, snoring lightly. Dreams had always come quick and vividly, and her magic manifesting only sharpened the visions. Tonight and on most nights lately, her dream was the ultimate THX-3D experience.

Glamoured Jerry grinned at her from across the room. His tux fit every dimension perfectly. There wasn’t anything magically-enhanced about those pecs; that demon had a gold star membership at Hell’s Gym and he used it. Riona burned in anticipation. Oh, what she could do with him, both in and out of that tux. But why was he so decked out?

Looking down, she discovered that it wasn’t just him. Red sequins glittered as bounces of light from an overhead disco ball hit the fabric of a red dress designed to induce lust, making her look aflame. Add Jerry’s wanton gaze tracking her as he made his way across the ballroom, and she might actually conflagrate on the spot.

Jerry pressed his lips to the back of her hand, the gesture heating and spreading up her arm, through her neck, down into the pit of her stomach. As his azure eyes met hers, his intention revealed itself plain as day. And, damn, she was game. Looking as fine as he did, he would get no argument from her. Her eyes were already searching for an escape route through the crowd. Disappointment caught her off guard as, instead of the door, Jerry led her towards the dance floor to join