The Collector: Even a Collector of Souls Has to Watch His Back When Murder Beats Him to His Work.

By Amanda Meuwissen

When the Devil's Collector of souls begins to encounter murder victims near his targets, he must seek help from human contacts and other Collectors to solve the crimes before the killer starts to hunt him.

• Language: English
• Publisher: eBookIt.com
• Release date: Apr 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9780988629226

Book preview

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this book are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.

THE COLLECTOR

Copyright © 2011 by Amanda Meuwissen

All rights reserved.

Cover art by Mario Hernandez

A BigWorldNetwork.com Book

Published by BigWorldNetwork.com, LLC

202 North Rock Road | 1303

Wichita | KS | 67206

www.bigworldnetwork.com

ISBN-10: 0988629224

ISBN-13: 978-0-9886292-2-6

First U.S. Edition: March 2012

Printed in the United States of America

A note from the author

A note from the author...

The Collector actually started out as a comic book idea between my husband and I. We are huge fans of the supernatural, fantasy, and sci-fi, and wanted to tell a story where the main character was a more ambiguously good/evil protagonist, and where there was no active love story.

There is a love story in the past of the main character, Adam, that comes up during the series, a tragic love, but there is no present love interest, despite there being the female character, Wade, a close relationship with another Collector, Jeb, and an undercurrent of sexuality that is always inherent with the Devil character, Malak. A love story seems to be the easy go-to in a lot of stories these days, and often detracts from the main plot. I love, love stories, so it was a real challenge to take that element out, but I think to the story’s benefit.

While I find Adam fascinating as a character, the first person to ever sell their soul to the Devil and then become a Collector of souls when other people’s Devil-deal contracts are up, Malak does a sort of backseat/center stage trick in this story, because while the story is about Adam and from Adam’s perspective, Malak is in control of everything.

The form of Malak that is seen in The Collector is not the only form Malak has. Adam describes him as also having an every man look, that is completely average in every way, as well as having presented himself to people over the years as an angel, just a normal demon, and even as the king of the fae. That particular distinction is important for another series of mine, as Malak is a character I like to come back to. He really embodies my idea of the Devil as a seductive being.

Adam’s story does continue. He is eternal, the first and best Collector, and he sees no way out of his contract that wouldn’t go against his own firm beliefs. There could be more stories to tell, maybe in a future series, I’m not sure. The series as it is tells the story my husband and I originally planned out, but there are so many other little nuances of Collector life that could be added in. We only met a few other Collectors in this series, and only a few demons, but there are and will be more, so maybe I will visit Adam again someday.

This story was not something I already had written out, but wrote episode by episode throughout the season, often getting the next episode to my talented audio person, Blaise Douros, far later than I am sure he preferred in order to get the episode recorded in time. I am eternally grateful to his patience and dedication to the series, especially with such talent. Every time I listen to The Collector, I get chills at the sheer perfection of how he portrays these characters, and feel some validation for how I originally wrote the text if it can sound that good in audio.

For those who may be reading or listening to The Collector for the first time, I hope you enjoy this delve into a darker world, and the twists and turns into even Hell itself that lie ahead.

Episode 1

Episode 1

I never get used to them running. Many of them do. Many have tried running in the course of centuries I’ve done this job. But I never get used to it, because the outcome is always the same, and it bothers me—annoys me—that so few of them realize that.

Tonight the man’s footsteps echo sharply in the closed space of the alley I have followed him down. The alley is nicer than most, well-paved and clean, so his expensive shoes clack loudly. The night is dark and overcast, with barely even a breeze. He can only see shadows when he glances back at me, trying to keep ahead, to keep running, but he is out of shape and we have been at this for awhile now, too long for him to continue on much longer.

My steps are steadier. I can see him easily in the dark, a middle-aged man like many others—thinning hair, suit and overcoat from a long day at an office job that pays well enough to keep him interested, even though the work itself means little.

I have taken many like him, and will again, but it is harder when they run. Time drags out and I feel, maybe not sympathy, not really, but an echo of it, of the man I was once too, having made a similar deal.

I watch this man—Carl Everson, 47, married, no children, made a contract just to get that next promotion early—burst forth from the mouth of the alley to be bathed in streetlights. He looks around for signs of someone, anyone else, but the area is empty. There is a fountain, and walkways, and a clear path to a bridge over the river with the city looming beyond like a beacon of civilization, but no people, not this late. He knows I‘m coming, close at his heels, and without help—not that help could be given anyway—he knows he doesn’t have the stamina to run any further.

I have almost caught up to him when he turns and stumbles back against the fountain. He is drenched in sweat, shaking, ready to switch gears from denial, which led him to run in the first place, straight to bargaining.

Not all of them