Page 33 of The Devil's Dilemma

I fought it for as long as possible, but finally, I had to succumb to sleep. Images of Joel slumped in the chair invaded my dreams.

Dante featured, of course. Why wouldn’t he? It was his fault I was here. He’d kidnapped me, held me captive with no rhyme or reason, and I had no idea when I’d be released.

The opening of the door woke me, and Dante walked in, his clothes more casual than before.

Black cargo trousers, a tight-fitting black T-shirt, and black Doc Martens. Not a hair out of place, but why was he wearing his horns?

A memory surfaced, an image of them longer and black, red tips like blood dripping down them. Had I imagined that?

I sat up, self-conscious of my dishevelled state. I wanted a shower, but this place held nothing more than a sink and a toilet.

“Sleep well?”

I snorted. Stupid fucking question.

“What do you want, Dante?”

He clenched his fists and closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. He exhaled, a smile spreading across his face.

“You. I’ve come for you.”

He stepped forward.

Nope, not happening. I scrambled back on the bed until I hit the wall. “Leave me the fuck alone.”

“I’m not going to kill you, for fuck’s sake. I thought you might want a shower.” He wrinkled his nose, and I had to admit the aroma in here was a little ripe. “I might be the devil, but I’m not an ogre.”

“You keep saying you’re the devil, and you’ve got the whole horn thing going on.” I waved my hands towards his horns.

“You humans. I’m sure you were put on this earth to amuse me. The big guy certainly had a sense of humour.”

What on earth was he talking about? Was he delusional?

They were implants, surely. And the orange eyes? He had to wear contact lenses.

I’d go along with it if it pleased him and got me closer to being released.

“Do I have to stay in here?”

Couldn’t he just let me go?

“Unfortunately, I’m not done with you yet. There’s so much to learn about you. Have you never been curious about this ‘talent’ you have? I am, and I’ve not known you long. Barely twenty-four hours. Did you know that there were four live bullets in the gun I gave you yesterday?”

“You bastard. I could have killed him!” I shouted.

His eyes flashed a darker orange. What the fuck? Contacts wouldn’t do that.

“But you didn’t, and don’t you find that fascinating? You had two chances not to kill him, and you won. You didn’t kill him. How could you have so much luck? I’m intrigued in so many ways.”

Luck was something I’d got used to, and I didn’t really give it much thought. I’d lived with it all my life, for every one of my twenty-nine years. It wasn’t new to me, just an everyday occurrence.

“I’m not sure I can tell you anything. I’m just lucky.”

He shook his head, his lips thin. “No, you are much more than that. So much more. But come, let me take you to get freshened up. I have a few things I want to test you with, and I can’t have you walking around smelling like that.”

The fucking nerve of the guy. But the closer I got to the exit, the more chance I had of escaping.

I grabbed my jacket and followed him out of the room. The smell of stale piss that had permeated the other room was gone, and we headed upstairs.

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