Page 171 of Evil Hearts

Vena

I t looked like I was in an office, and a man with red skin was holding me. Black horns curled from his head and yellow, inhuman eyes looked at me with pity and disdain. Panic and fear welled up inside me. Was I in hell? Was hell an office ?

“Calm down, human,” he growled. His voice was deep with dulcet tones.

“Am I in hell?” I whispered.

“No. But humans like to call it hell.”

I swallowed as I looked around. Those were definitely cubicle walls behind him. “Where am I?”

“You were sacrificed for…” He turned away and picked up a tablet. An enormous sigh escaped him as he read the words on the screen. “Money and success. Fucking humans. Were you even willing?”

“Why would I do that? It was a job interview. Good money and benefits. This isn’t fair,” I wailed.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“Vena.”

He smiled—his teeth were fangs—and another flicker of panic filled me. “My best friend is named Veux. I seem to have an affinity for V names. Her dad said they almost named her Venus. Thought it would be funny on a demon.”

I looked around and noticed a smaller female demon peeking over a cubicle wall. More fear filled me. “Uh. Yeah.”

“I’m Drazon. Let’s go. I don’t want to deal with this shit and neither does Veux.”

He stood up with me in his arms. “Fellas, I’m off Earth-side.”

I craned my head over the cubicles surrounding us and saw another demon laughing. Red fog surrounded us and everything became distorted as we seemed to move again. A moment later, bright sunlight hit my face, and I winced. I hid my face against his chest as I realized we were outside.

“What is this place?” he whispered as he waved towards the agency.

I looked up and realized he had shifted to a human man. I blinked once and his eyes glowed yellow once more. A moment later, they returned to a warm brown with blue striations from the purple. It was the same man I met…in the other world. His world. He had changed to a human form. He was just as tall as he was in demon form, with tan skin and a muscular body. His human form was a darker shade than mine, but it wasn’t as interesting as his red demon skin. Drazon’s hair didn’t change with the shift. His normal black hair fell over his eyes for a moment before he shook his head.

“My friend said it was an advertising agency sort of place, but I have a feeling they didn’t all work there. Why didn’t we appear in the basement?”

He chuckled before a flash of anger crossed his face. “Because I don’t get summoned. And I don’t deal with sacrifices. Let’s take care of them,” he growled as he put me on my feet. His muscles tensed with the movement. Drazon stepped past me and touched the doors. They refused to open at first, and he waved his hands across the locking mechanism. A glimmer appeared around the lock, and he opened the doors to the agency with ease.

Mr. Smith was sitting at the desk and stood up. “Sir, we’re closed for the day.”

“I heard you were having interviews for a…”

“Assistant,” I whispered. I stayed behind him; I didn’t want the man to see me again.

“Assistant. Yes. I’m interested.”

“Sir, that position was filled earlier today.”

“Oh. Well, that’s too sad,” Drazon said as he waved his hand. The man lit up into flames and in moments, he was reduced to ash. “Where are the others?”

“I don’t know if much time has passed. They led me down that hall to the elevator and down to a conference room in the basement. I think they do their occult shit in there.”

Drazon’s hand gripped mine, and he led me back into the elevator. As he pressed the B button, his skin shimmered, and he was his demon self again. “How do you do that?” I asked.

“Magic.”

“And you’re a demon?”

“Yeah.”

“Does this happen a lot?”

The door opened, and he walked down the hall. “Not to me. I don’t work D and B anymore. Hate this shit.” He opened the conference room door and everyone was gathering their things to leave. There was no evidence that I had been here other than my purse in someone’s hand. They stopped and stared.

He snarled. “What I hate the worst is human sacrifices.”

“It’s the devil!”

“Not the devil.” Drazon waved his hand, and that person erupted in flames. The woman had the book in her hand, screaming words in another language. The book turned to flames, and she dropped it. Another person started praying. Drazon’s yellow eyes rolled. “You won’t get rid of me that way.”

Fire filled the room as Drazon incinerated every person who tried to sacrifice me for money and success. My heart raced as I stepped back into the hall. I slid down the wall while tears fell down my face as everything hit me at once. Moments later, Drazon stepped out of the room. My eyes drifted behind him, and I noticed the fires had been extinguished. He kneeled in front of me and touched my cheek.

“You probably need to eat. Let’s go. It will help the shock and trauma a bit.”

“Go where?” I whispered.

“My favorite restaurant.”