Reaping What Loved Sowed (Part 1)

Horns honked, people shouted, and the hustle and bustle of the street below could be heard many stories up. Even from the top of the largest skyscraper in the city, perhaps that was due to my abnormally strong sense of hearing.

I peered down and watched the humans below, as I dangled my feet over the edge. They looked like a colony of ants from up here.

With a sigh I turned to my checklist of clients for the day, happy to see it was a lot shorter than expected.

The first name was Isaac Dickson and with a snap of my fingers, his file appeared in my hand. Which allowed me to read about his life thus far and decide on an appropriate end for it.

I found myself laughing at the irony of his last name. Especially because he acted like one, in his role as manager at the joke shop of 14th Ave.

Mr. Dickson was known for reprimanding his employees not only with an audience but louder than strictly necessary and with some choice language.

With a smile, I decided today was a great day to have some fun with my work. As I closed Mr. Dickson’s file, I hummed to myself as I thought of all the possibilities of how I could bring his miserable life to an end. Finally deciding on the one that would amuse me most, closed his file and it disappeared.

Then with a snap of my fingers, I found myself in the nearly abandoned joke shop. A single customer and their child wandered the isles while Mr. Dickson laid into one of his poor employees for honouring a sale coupon.

I gave the child a tap on the shoulder and he did my bidding. 

I watched as he grabbed one of those joke packets of gum and waddled over to Mr. Dickson, who was still reprimanding that poor employee.

Even as the child approached, he continued to berate the employee. Enjoying the presence of a witness to his cruelty, as he chose a few unfortunate choice words at that moment.

The child poked him, “Hey mister, want some gum?” He asked in a tiny voice.

“Not now kid.” Mr. Dickson grunted, practically swatting the child away. 

He continued to insult the employee, not wanting to share the spotlight with the child.

The child continued to prod him and demanded attention until Mr. Dickson gave in.

He pulled the gum from the slot, which made a joke spider pop out and snapped Mr. Dickson’s finger.

A lame joke by any standard but did the job I required of it.

Mr. Dickson expected this and held a look of displeasure which soon changed to shock. He fell into a coughing fit as he grabbed his arm in pain.

The employee and child watched as he keeled over behind the counter.

I walked over for a better view as I watched the heart attack I planned to take full effect and end his life.

Mr. Dickson died on the floor of his joke shop before anyone realized they should call for help.

I chuckled to myself, enjoying the irony that one of his worst jokes should play a part in his undoing. Satisfied, I walked out of the shop and found a park bench to sit at before I checked his name off the list. Then with a smile, I looked to the next name, eager to plot my next victim's fate.

Carson Sanderson a car salesman from the north end of the city, his file had a few extra notes on how he had a habit of selling “lemons” to unsuspecting customers.

I smiled as I immediately knew the perfect ending to this man’s life and with a snap of my fingers I found myself in his dealership. I watched him attempt to sell what could only be described as scrap metal with an amateurish paint job to hide some of the less obvious flaws.

I walked over and gave the customer a tap like I had the child in the joke shop.

As prompted, he requested that they do a test drive together before he agreed to buy it.

Sweat broke over Mr. Sanderson’s brow “We don’t usually allow for unaccompanied test drives.” He explained in a slightly nervous tone.

“Well, I was hoping you’d accompany me to show me some of the extra features you were talking about.” The customer replied with a listless smile.

“Well, I… uh-“ Mr. Sanderson stammered.

“I never buy anything unless I’ve driven it first. If you won’t test it with me then maybe I should go across the way to see if-“

“No, no. That won’t be necessary, let me just get the paperwork in order and we can accommodate that.” He interrupted in a rush. Then ran off to get the paperwork, and keys and pulled the car around to the front of the building.

“When you’re ready Mr. Felix, we may disembark.” Mr. Sanderson stated in a faux cheery voice as more sweat began to trickle down the side of his face.

The three of us set out in the clunker and I had a back-row seat to Mr. Sanderson’s demise. It was by my power that the car was even able to leave the dealership parking lot, which set Mr. Sanderson into a false sense of security. Before we blew a tire and lost control, then drove head-on into oncoming traffic.

I ensured the driver would remain safe but Mr. Sanderson most certainly was not, just as I had planned.

After the car accident, I snapped my fingers and found myself on top of my favourite skyscraper once more. Ready for the last of my clients, I checked off Mr. Sanderson’s name and looked to the bottom of the list.

I let out an audible sigh as I saw my beloved Cher David was the last name on my list and I now understood why it had been so short today.

With a solemn snap of my fingers, I found myself in a well-kept yard, filled with children running and playing. A group of adults chatted near the house and watching the commotion, seated at the edge of the excitement was my girl.

It saddened me to see how aged she’d become over the years. I only now realized how long it had been since I last visited and I regretted the time that had elapsed.

Seeing my Cher now, I couldn’t help but think of the first time I laid eyes on her.

Part Two: