Another soon-to-be burn victim walked down the street with a suitcase in his hand. Jannet cringe and immediately search for something else to look at; where was that fire going to be? She had seen at least eleven victims in the last hour, which was a record for her. It was a new town for her, and she was hoping she’d see older, half skeleton folks who died of age rather than crueler, more graphic deaths. So far, no such luck.

      The sun simmered up above the concrete metropolis, grasping the walkways with a sweaty hand. After a lengthy trek, Jannet saw her apartment complex through the waves of heat that rippled off the street.

       Margrene, her landlord, was sitting outside on the steps holding a cigarette in one hand and fanning herself with the other. She was going to be mugged, by the looks of the bullet hole that carved out the better part of her left cheek as well as the bruises that covered most of her upper arms and neck. Jannet could only assume that her death would come within the next five years because Margrene had told her that she was thirty three, and she couldn’t be much older than forty by the looks of her. If her death were to come when she was, say seventy, Jannet would see a seventy year old with the same signs of death. Every time Jannet saw her, she wanted to tell her to keep her head on a swivel and to not take the shortcut through the alley home after work, ever. Maybe this time, Jannet could change someone’s fate. She knew it was no use, though. Fate was a cruel, immovable thing.

       As Jannet grew closer, she saw a strange man leaning against the ledge of a windowsill. He stood completely still besides his eyes that flicked back and forth, following people who walked past him on the sidewalk. His face was thin and young, but he wore a particular grimace that made him look like an overworked, old man. What will he possibly die of if he looks so… alive?

       “Fire in T minus twenty-three hours and seven minutes…” He grunted as Jannet passed him.

       “What did you say?” Jannet’s mind jolted to the burned businessmen.

       The man sat still, his blank eyes continuing to follow people.

       “Excuse me,” Jannet stepped cautiously towards the strange man, “what did you say? What fire?”

       The man’s eyes snapped over his shoulder to his left.

       “No,” The man said to himself, “she couldn’t be talking to me.”

       “You said something about a fire... what are you talking about?” Jannet asked again, stepping a little closer.

       “Oh, she is…” The man looked up at Jannet with wide, puzzled eyes.

       “Who are you talking to?”

       “That’s interesting. She can’t see you. Must’ve programed her backward.” The man said over his shoulder once again.

       “What?” Jannet asked.

       “I apologize. I’ve been terribly rude; I am Death. This lovely women to my left is Life.”