The strong smell of sulfur hit her nose. She thought she opened her eyes, but it was still pitch black. Shayla was still bound to the minecart by her wrists. She tried to wriggle them loose with no luck.
“Hello?” her voice echoed into the vast emptiness before her, “Hellooo.”
The response was a large clang. Wind whipped through her hair as the mine cart zoomed in some indiscernible direction. Shayla screamed. It felt like she was falling in every direction at once and every inch of her bare skin felt the rush of the sudden movement. Then, she stopped. Her body jolted as much as it could in the restraints. Laughter arose from the air. A deep and sinister chuckle. Shayla became very aware of her nudity and did her best to cover her most private bits.
“So young,” she felt a breathy whisper in her ear, “So beautiful.”
“Who are you?” Shayla struggled with her shackles again.
“No!” the whisper said, “Who are you?”
“My name is Shayla Williams,” her eyes searched for the source of the voice but found only darkness.
“Mm, my sweet, sweet Shayla,” the voice wrapped around her, “You are so fortunate.”
“What do you want from me?”
There was a huge gust of wind. It swirled around her, then there was the sound of snapping fingers. Several sconces illuminated a small stone room with a dirt floor. Shayla had to blink to adjust to the change. The speaker was standing in front of her. He was a handsome man who looked to be about Shayla’s age, maybe a little older. He wore a red and black three-piece suit with slicked-back black hair and deep crimson eyes.
“Shayla,” he smirked, “What I want from you is nothing compared to what I can give you.”
Her eyes widened and followed him as he glided around the room, “Who are you?”
“I go by many names,” he sighed, “The traditional ones bore me to death, except I am quite fond of Lucifer. It just rolls off the tongue, don’t you think?”
The man stuck out a forked tongue. Shayla winced. Lucifer laughed again. The same evil chuckle as before. There was something so dark, yet so pure about the way he laughed. He was finding genuine pleasure in her discomfort, and it was unsettling.
“Am I dead?” Shayla said with a hint of optimism.
“So many questions,” he groaned, “No. You’re not dead. I’m trying to give you a second chance at life.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, there must be something you want,” he gave her a side eye, “Something you want so bad you’d kill for it.”
Shayla stared at him. Tears formed in her eyes. That’s impossible. But if he is who he claims to be…. Lucifer smirked. He could feel her desire. It radiated off her like an aura. He breathed it in. As usual, he was going to win.
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“Wait,” she seemed to come out of her trance, “what do I have to do?”
“Well I’m not gonna do it out of the goodness of my heart,” he said, “All I want from you is an itty bitty favor. Nothing really.”
“Cut to the chase,” she said, “What is it?”
“All you have to do,” he said, “is send someone to me.”
“What do you mean?” Shayla asked, “Like join that weird cult that kidnapped me?”
“Oh,” he looked disappointed, “No. Those guys are crazy. No. I mean kill someone.”
“Kill someone?” she said, “Seriously?”
“Yeah,” he shrugged, “Like I said, no biggie.”
“What do you mean? That’s like the worst thing a person can do.”
“Darling,” he said, “There are far worse sins than killing someone. Believe me.”
Shayla shook her head, “I’m not going to kill anybody.”
Lucifer evaporated and reappeared behind her.
She tensed up as he got very close to her ear, pulled her hair back, and whispered, “Not even to get Grace back?”
“How do you know about Grace?” she whipped her head around, but he had already apparated to the front of the minecart.
“Oh honey,” he smiled, “I know everything.”
Shayla glared at him. Hot tears streamed down her face. Her thoughts were disheveled and scattered. Conflicting and painful. The years of suffering Grace’s loss would all be meaningless. The idea made Shayla want to puke. But she was running out of reasons to go on. She remembered how many times she thought “if only Grace were here”. She would never have to hear herself say those words again. She would be happy again.
“Who do I have to kill?”
Lucifer clapped his hands together, “Oh, delightful. You’re making the right choice, darling. You won’t re-
“I didn’t say I would do it,” she said, “I need to know who before I decide.”
“I see,” he said, “I’ve been chasing this soul for quite some time. I almost got him a few times. I was so close. He was on his way to off himself when he ran into you.”
“Who are you talking about?” Shayla asked, “I never stopped anyone from killing themselves.”
“Oh, but you did,” Lucifer said, “He may not have told you, but you saved his life.”
Then it dawned on her, “Joe?”
“Bingo!”
“I can’t kill Joe,” she said, “He’s all I got left.”
“But he won’t be,” Lucifer sneered, “Come on. You barely know the guy. And if you think about it, you kinda stole him from me. So, in reality you’re just righting a wrong.”
It all made sense. Twisted and demented sense.
“How do I,” she paused, “do it?”
“Use this,” he protruded a small vial from his suit jacket.
“What is it?”
“Just some of my homebrewed poison,” he said, “Kills fast. Tasteless. Odorless. And the best part is, traceless.”
“So, I won’t get caught?” Shayla asked.
“No, siree,” he shook his head.
“And how do I explain it to her?”
“Any trace or memory of her death will be taken care of by yours truly.”
“So,” she thought for a moment, “It’ll be like it never happened.”
“You’ll get exactly what you want.”
Shayla swallowed hard and nodded, “I’ll do it.”
“Deal.”
He reached his hand out and gave her a sly look. A look that made her love him and hate him all at once. A smile she couldn’t trust and a glint in his eye that made her stomach turn, but what choice did she have? She shook his hand. His skin was warmer than she expected. Smooth skin and a firm grip matched his physical persona, but she remembered who he was. Even if she didn’t, it was too late to turn back now.