Valeria found out that she actually has a system she can access and power up in accordance to the souls and tasks she completed. The system was not filed in a proper place and took her a while to discover it but once she found it, she could easily access it.
She realised that she can now change her appearance. She focused on changing her appearance while standing outside the hotel room of the third soul she was supposed to be reaping. She had wanted to change into a young pretty blonde. Then she took out her compact to check her appearance.
A stranger's face stared back at her. Not as she imagined it to be but it's good enough. She is now a strawberry blonde with almond shaped green eyes and fair creamy skin. Her hair fell in cascades of curls down her back. She is gorgeous!
She couldn't believe her eyes.
Well, that's good. So at least no one will recognise her when she goes around reaping souls. Now, to try to access her 'unhindered access to souls' power. This must mean she can enter the room if she puts her mind to it.
She went to the door and try it again. It is locked. She calmed her breathing and focused. She think of the lock turning so that she can open it and enter the room. She put all her mental energy into it and then it happened. She heard a click. She open the door.
She literally clapped and gave a tiny shout of 'yessss' before entering the room. She gave Ari a triumphant look and he merely raised an eyebrow, as if it was no big deal at all.
It is now 4.59pm. Almost time. She went inside. Lying on the bed is a young woman. Lex Lindi. She is only 28 years old. Very pretty with long pink hair. The woman is barely breathing. Valeria stood there and waited for her soul to leave.
It is a reaper rule, she is not supposed to intervene and try to save any person who is dying. Their deaths are inevitable. At exactly 5pm, Lex Lindi's soul sat up and left her body. She looked at Valeria in surprise.
"How did you get in here?" she asked. She turned to look at her body, lying on the bed. "Am I dead? Are you here to take me to the after life?" she asked Valeria.
"Yes, Lex Lindi, it is now your time to move on to the after life, I am here to help you in your journey," Valeria said. Why does the line sound so lame? She wondered if she can modify it and say it another way.
Lex Lindi walked towards Valeria and then she made a turn and ran towards the door. Caught unawares, Valeria stared at the disappearing soul in shock. Can souls run away?
Ari poked his head in. "Erm, you better catch that soul before you lose it," he told her.
Damn the fish sticks. Why didn't she know that souls can run away??? She ran out of the room and looked around. Where would a soul go if it runs away? She looked at Ari for guidance. He merely shrugged.
"Chase after her before she disappears, if she disappears, you will be in deeper trouble," he said.
Fat lot of help that is. She ran down the hallway to the elevators. No sign of the runaway soul. The soul can be anywhere. If she was a soul, where would she hide? She accessed the information in her memories. In one of Ari's cases, when the soul ran off, he had merely waited next to the body until the soul returned, a mere few minutes later.
Maybe Lex Lindi will return to her body?
She turned to head towards the room again when one of the elevators door slide open and she heard a familiar voice.
No. It can't be.
She turned around and stared right into the bright green eyes of her husband, Mark Brinstrone. He has his arms around a woman, a different one from the young blonde woman this morning. This was a redhead and she recognised this woman. This is his secretary, Sophie Jones!
At the sight of him, she quickly turned away in shock, crouched over and tried to cover her face by reflex.
"Ugh…isn't it too early for people to get drunk…I hope she doesn't throw up here," she heard Sophie said.
"Maybe she's not well," Mark replied. He came over to Valeria and tapped on her shoulder.
"Are you alright miss? Do you need help?" he asked kindly.
Valeria has an urge to turn over and use her soul reaping scarf on him and then on his secretary. Instead, she stand up tall and turned around to look at her cheating husband. Her heart is pounding with an irrational fear that he would somehow recognise her despite her reaper-powered disguise. Her eyes met his. He looked genuinely concerned. He has not looked at her with concern for years. YEARS!
"I…I…ah…felt dizzy for a moment," she stammered, glad that her voice is also different.
Mark smiled at her and she noticed how he was looking at her with a hint of lust. Not her, Valeria, but this disguise she is wearing - a younger woman with a voluptuous body, large ample breasts and creamy fair skin. Realising that her husband is attracted to this body, she held her head up and thrust her ample chest out.
"Which room are you in? We can help you back to your room," he offered while Sophie, next to him, gripped his arm and pouted.
"But Mark, she looks fine, lets not meddle," she whined.
He slid her a warning look and she clamped her lips closed. Then he turned back to Valeria and puts on his charming smile, one that Valeria is so familiar with, one that made Valeria fall in love with him so many years ago. A smile that she now knows is fake and meant to draw in unsuspecting females.
"That's so sweet of you but I am heading out, thank you," she replied sweetly, flashing what she hoped is an equally sexy smile. She sashayed over to Mark with Sophie scowling at her next to him.
She ignored Sophie and placed a light hand on Mark's other arm. She is glad that this new body is still the same height as her old height so she is only a few inches shorter than Mark. She looked at him demurely. She went very near him, her face inches from his.
"You are SO kind, it is rare to meet such a kind man," she whispered in his ears and blew ever so lightly in his ears. This caught his attention for sure. He looked at her with desire in his eyes.
"Here, if you ever need any assistance," he handed her his business card, smooth as ever.
"Sure, handsome," she said huskily.
She tucked the card down her low-cut blouse, between her breasts slowly, making sure he watch with riveted attention, then she sashayed away, swinging her hips for special effect. She is sure he must be staring at her nice round pert butt as she walks away from them towards the elevator.
"Mark!" Sophie was exclaiming next to him.
"Well, Sophie, I just remembered I have something to do, let's go," he turned back towards the elevator and stood next to Valeria with Sophie protesting softly in her whiny voice.
"But Mark…your schedule was clear…I checked…" she was saying but Mark has pushed her clinging hands off him and was glaring at her.
"Sophie, you should know when to stop this kind of behaviour," he said quietly in his cold, firm tone. Valeria knows this tone well. He has always spoken to her in this tone in the past 10 years. She doesn't even pity Sophie. Serves her right. That conniving bitch had obviously seduced Mark, or allow Mark to seduce her, while pretending to be all nice and friendly to Valeria.
He turned to Valeria and just like that, he switched on his charming mode, and smiled at her.
"Do you need a ride anywhere? I can drop you off," he offered, emphasising the word ride, obviously a double entendre.
Damn the fish sticks of fishy hell. She immediately regretted her spur-of-the-moment flirting with her husband. She is in the middle of chasing after a runaway soul.
She doesn't need a ride to anywhere, much less to ride on him. Ugh. Now that she knows he sleeps around with countless women outside, she will never go back to him even if he begged. Who knows what sort of diseases he has from all those women he slept with.
She still has a runaway soul to catch. Fried fish sticks in hell! She cursed inwardly.
When the elevator doors opened she saw Lex Lindi's soul inside staring at her and then at Mark.
"Mark?" Lex Lindi said. She looked at Sophie, who is pouting next to Mark, and then at Mark looking lasciviously at Valeria.
"You are his lover too??? And you are here to take my soul??? NEVER!" she exclaimed. Suddenly her soul, which was previously glowing white, transformed into a red angry apparition.
The angry soul rushed at Valeria with a loud shriek.