Death Role

The Palm Reader’s Shop

April’s palm reading shop attracted many strange people. She herself was not abnormal or off center, at least not in her opinion, but it wasn’t uncommon for her to be uncomfortable around the clients. Many of the visitors came to find out not what their destiny was, but to bargain to change it. One man, after receiving an unfavorable reading from her, had dragged a paperclip down his palm in an attempt to lengthen his life line. A Japanese woman had paid an exorbitant amount for cosmetic surgery on her palms to change her fate. April had seen it all.

She accepted that many folks only turned to religion and alternative spiritual practices when they felt desperate. When a meteor might strike the earth or the stock market was low, her till was always full at the end of the day. And whether they believed in what she told them or not, when she counted that money, she had little reason to care.

Tuesday, normally a slow day, had seen an influx of business. The sudden increase meant only one thing: something was causing panic. Her early clients warned of a disease and told her to go home or, at least, lock up the shop, but she ignored them. She wouldn’t turn away potential business because of an illness. In fact, she propped the door open and turned up the instrumental music to be more welcoming.

In between readings, and after seeing so much suffering on the palms of others, she wondered about her own fate. She looked at her lace-gloved hands, covered since she learned how to read palms, and decided it was time. Two fingers pinched the middle finger of a glove and gently pulled upward. She had what could only be called a glove tan and the pale flesh of her palm had just begun to unveil when a tall man came through the open door. He was so tall his head hit the tiny bell that hung above, causing it to jingle. April released the lace and looked to the entrance. The man stopped for a moment, confused by the noise of the bell, but then he continued into the shop’s retail area.

She watched him wander around the small corner amid the books and energy accessories. She preferred to let people linger there without pressure. It was their confidence-building area, the spot in which many decided to either leave or stay for a reading. This man was stranger than the usual walk-in. He looked sickly, which wasn’t uncommon, but he was bloody as well. April thought about helping him, but if he was injured he might be angry. Instead she sat quietly at her fortune teller’s table, waiting for him to make his decision.

Maybe he’ll leave on his own, she thought. She couldn’t remember the last time anyone had purchased anything. When he sees the dust, he’ll go. But he didn’t. His arm brushed against the crystals and geodes display, sending several of the most impressive specimens tumbling to the floor. April flinched, expecting them to shatter, but they remained whole.

“Excuse me, sir!” she called across the store as she stood up from the table. His head cocked to the side, an ear seeking the noise. He careened into a tower of books on spiritual guidance and palmistry, sending it toppling down between them. A paperback entitled Life After Death landed at the top of the pile.

The man clawed at her. April threw her hands up in defense and grabbed hold of his wrists. She could almost make out the telling lines of his palms, but the flesh of his arms began to move under her grip, like a banana peel on its slimy, overripe fruit. She let go and a dirty fingernail caught on the delicate lace that covered her left hand. She heard a ripping sound and found enough strength to pull away and seek shelter in a tiny storage closet.

The man followed and bumped around on the other side of the door. April began to cry. Not one of her clients had attacked her before and the way his skin moved was so…unnatural.

She clicked on the bare bulb that hung from the ceiling. With the rip in her glove and a dangerous man after her, it was now unavoidable. She had to know what was in store for her.

Was she about to die?

She moved the ripped lace to either side, exposing her life line and what she saw horrified her.

“No!” she screamed, “How is this possible?”

It was short, almost non-existent. If she had known this earlier, perhaps something might have been done to change it. Surgery or self-lengthening techniques.

April considered her options. Every inch of her wanted to keep living. Her shop was successful enough to feed and house her, she was considering adopting a puppy, her own mother wasn’t dead yet, that she knew. But looking at her life line again she remembered what she told all of her clients: You cannot escape fate. Your destiny has been decided. And she knew that attempting to change her path might disrupt the balance of the cosmos.

“I won’t disrupt the cosmos,” she said determinedly as she opened the closet door.