Mila dragged the knife across her finger, letting the blood fall onto the white candles. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, opening them so she could read the summoning words once more. If that stupid demon wouldn't kill her, she'd just summon another one. She didn't have time to waste trying to track him down or convince him to do something she thought would be pretty simple.

After saying the words three times, her light flickered just like it had hours before. She may have been drunk, and still was, when she became frantic enough to summon a demon, but she remembered the summoning vividly. After spending months working nonstop and still never making enough money, she was desperate enough to go back to the superstitions she grew up on and go online to look up summoning spells for demons. Several failed attempts later, she got frustrated and broke just about every goddamn thing she could find in her apartment. After collapsing on the ground, hopeless, frustrated, and on the verge of tears, she almost gave up until she glanced up at the one part of her apartment she wouldn't touch because it meant too much.

Her closet. Her closet that had a cardboard box packed away in the back.

That cardboard box held possessions of her mother's. Possessions Mila kept at the back of the closet because it hurt too much to see them but she couldn't let them go. Desperation got her willing to go through her mother's things and find the old, leather book her mother kept locked up in an intricately carved, wooden box. Mila hesitated when she saw a lock on it that had no key and she couldn't get open, but with alcohol affecting her judgment and desperation on her mind, she smashed open that beautiful box holding the book, then spent the next several hours crying that she broke anything of her mother's. It was necessary, but not painless.

Inside that box, she found a book with all kinds of things that made her mother sound insane. Her mother passed away from dementia years before and everyone assumed her babbling about demons wasn't real. Mila agreed those babbles seemed unlikely but after finishing a bottle of whiskey and opening another, after soaking her feet that were bleeding from all her hours of hard work on her feet, after looking into Stella's eyes and telling her she still didn't have the money, she was desperate enough to wonder if all those years of her mother being superstitious had some merit. As far as Mila knew, the dementia that took her mother only started affecting her later in life, but her mother had always spoke of demons and always insisted they attend church because of it.

The book her mother had locked up was more a journal, where her mother documented every time something odd happened that she truly believed could've only come from otherworldly beings- demons and angels. Mila ate up those superstitions as a child but fell away from them as an adult. Apparently a combination of fear, missing her mother, and drinking, all left her going back to those superstitions and looking through several failed spells online until smashing open that box was her only option. Once she got past the pain of breaking her mother's box, she read through her mother's journal, finding a ritual that would summon a demon.

That ritual was the one that worked. If Mila wasn't in such a hurry, she might've read the rest of that journal with fresh eyes and an open mind, a lot more willing to hear what her mother had to say about the matter. Unfortunately, time was not something she had the luxury of and so after her first summoning that included a demon unwilling to kill, she was back at it again, hoping she'd get a more accommodating demon the second time around.

Mila finished saying the words, saw the lights flicker and waited for someone to appear, but something different happened. The entire room seemed to fill with fire and she screamed as it surrounded her. The silhouette of a tall person with long hair and attractive curves stepped through the fire, her features not visible until the flames suddenly died out and all that was left was a woman with black hair, black eyes, tight clothes, black curved horns, and an intensity that left Mila staring at her with wide eyes.

"Shit, are all demons hot?" Mila asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Not all, sweetness," the demon said, the corner of her mouth curving up into a smirk as she walked towards Mila. "The ones that come to the mortal realm, yes, but trust me, in the deep pits of hell," she said, crouching down and bringing a claw under Mila's chin, "they're so ugly, you'd be tormented by nightmares even after you die."

"Bummer," she said, scrunching up her face. She did consider that her actions would mean she would spend the rest of eternity in hell and while that was not something she wanted, she was willing to give it up to do what she needed. "Okay, well, I just need you to kill me real quick."

"I beg your pardon?" The demon asked, raising an eyebrow and straightening up, crossing her arms. "Do you know who I am?"

"Uh..." Mila glanced down at the journal where the spell was written, seeing nothing that indicated who the demon might be, just that it could be summoned to kill. "A hot demon?"

The demon regarded her with amusement for a moment before crouching down again, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Lillith is the name, sweetness, does that help?"

"Lillith?" Mila asked, her eyes going wide. "Like, the Lilith?"

Mila heard a lot of stories of Lilith. Some were contradictory and some were consistent, but after summoning a demon with her mother's own journal, she quickly decided that anything she learned about Lilith from her mother must be the true story.

"Ah, you've heard of me," Lilith nodded.

"I mean... I think everyone that knows anything about demons has," Mila said honestly. "That means you're like lowkey in charge, right?"

"Lowkey?" Lilith repeated with a disapproving frown. She didn't appreciate that term. "Try highkey, my love. Highkey I'm in charge."

"I mean no offense," Mila said, holding her hands up in surrender. "I just was always told that... You know... Satan was in charge."

"Please, I do most the work," Lilith said, rolling her eyes. "Now how the hell did you find the words to summon me?"

"Well, I didn't summon you specifically," Mila shrugged. "I was just trying to summon another demon since the first one didn't do what I asked."

"The first one?" Lilith repeated, frowning. "You summoned a demon and they did not perform their task?"

"No," Mila grumbled, grabbing her whiskey and taking another swig. "He argued with me then left. I'm not trying to like, complain to his manage or anything," she said, gesturing to Lilith. "I just really need to be killed."

"He can't leave, not really. Not until he's fulfilled his task," Lilith said, snatching the bottle from Mila and sighing. "For the love of all that's unholy, can anyone just do their fucking job?" She muttered, taking a drink from the bottle then handing it back to Mila. "Marcus, come."

Marcus was suddenly standing in the apartment, making Mila jump slightly. He sent her a glare before crossing his arms and giving Lilith an even nastier one. "What?" He snapped.

"I'd appreciate a better tone," Lilith said, narrowing her eyes at Marcus.

"I'd appreciate my friend not staying lost in The Praeteritus forever," Marcus countered.

"The what-a-whatus?" Mila frowned.

"Oh, with the grudges," Lilith said, rolling her eyes.

"How come you enter with fire?" Mila asked, gesturing to Lilith. She was aware how insane the situation was and that asking demons about this sort of thing was odd, but the alcohol was still very much in her system and she couldn't care how weird it was. "But he just appears with nothing?" She said, gesturing to Marcus before looking up at Lilith. "Is it because you're in charge you get a cooler entrance?"

"No, some of us just put more art into our work," Lilith explained.

"Art?" Marcus scoffed. "Sure. Call it what you want. She just wants everyone to think she's as badass as she thinks she is."

"Marcus, do you wish to have your ranks stripped?" Lilith snapped. "If so, by all means, continue. I will have you on your knees, scrubbing blood off the floors while being whipped until you can barely move, in the lowest pits of hell in a matter of seconds."

Marcus's mouth snapped shut and he settled on a firm glare at Lilith. Mila raised an eyebrow, able to feel the tension despite her inebriation and just not caring. "I mean... Sure seems like she's a badass if you have to do what she says."

Marcus let out a low growl and glared at Mila but Lilith simply laughed and clapped her hands together. "What a delightful human," she mused. "I can't imagine why you haven't done what she's asked."

"I can't," Marcus snapped.

"I'm not playing games with you," Lilith said, waving her hand dismissively. "The human says you did not perform the task she asked of you. She paid in blood, what the hell do you think you're doing refusing her?"

"Did she tell you what she wants me to do?" Marcus asked, gesturing to Mila.

"Yes, she wants to die, so?" Lilith shrugged.

"Look at her hand," Marcus said coolly.

"Oh fucking hell, don't tell me," Lilith sighed, crouching down and grabbing Mila's hand roughly, turning it over and examining her palm.

"Okay, what?" Mila sighed. "You too? What are you even looking at?" She asked, leaning over and staring down at her hand, wondering what they could see that she couldn't. "Someone explain this to me."

"Fucking fucker fuck," Lilith spat, releasing Mila's hand and pacing back and forth. "When was the last time you violated the rules?"

"Rules?" Mila repeated, looking between them.

"Two months ago," Marcus answered.

"Shit, that's not enough time," Lilith muttered.

"You see my problem?" Marcus said, gesturing to Mila. "What do you want me to do?"

"Wait a second, what is going on?" Mila asked, standing and glancing between them. "We got two fucking killer demons here, one of you better do it."

"We can't, sweetness," Lilith sighed. "We're both in trouble for killing innocents, we can't afford to kill another."

"Well, who the hell says I'm innocent??" Mila asked, throwing her arms up. "I summoned demons, for crying out loud! Two of them!"

"You humans have such simple minds that you think innocence can only mean one thing," Lilith said, rolling her eyes. "Sorry sweetness, you'll either have to do it yourself or wait until he's able to."

"She'll be waiting forever then because I'm not fucking doing it," Marcus snapped.

"What's wrong, Marcus, scared of another angel scolding or more scared of another lashing?" Lilith asked her lips quirked up in amusement.

"Go fuck yourself, Lilith," he growled.

"I'll do no such thing, I have plenty of willing companions," Lilith said, turning to face Mila and shrugging. "Sorry my darling, here," she said, holding out her hands. A black fog covered her hand and twisted around, making such painful screeching sounds that were a mix between nails against a chalkboard and metal scraping metal. It was enough Mila covered her ears and winced, watching as the fog twisted over and over until it dissipated, leaving a long, black knife its place. "Take this, do it yourself, then you won't have to wait."

"Isn't encouraging an innocent to kill themselves also something you can get in trouble for?" Marcus said, moving to snatch the knife away but his hand went right through it.

"This knife is hers now, don't bother trying to take it. And the only ones that can say I encouraged anything are you and her," she said, nodding to Mila. "She won't, will you, my love?" She asked, giving Mila a sweet smile before fixing Marcus with a glare. "And you definitely won't, will you?" Marcus didn't answer, just crossed his arms. "Didn't think so," Lilith said, her smile growing.

Lilith handed the knife to Mila who looked at it skeptically. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Kill yourself, sweetness," Lilith shrugged. "If the world's so unbearable that you need a way out, go ahead and take it. No need to depend on us for it."

"I can't," Mila said in exasperation. "I can't do it. I need someone else to!"

"Oh, I bet you can, just have a bit more to drink and you'll get there," Lilith shrugged. "Otherwise, you'll have to wait a long time. Unless you somehow manage to convince him it's worth it," she said, throwing her thumb back towards Marcus. "However, it's out of my hands. Now if you'll excuse me, I have much better things to do and I'm not bound to this realm like he is. Good luck, darling, perhaps I'll see you in hell."

The apartment filled with fire again, a heat coming off it so intense Mila gasped. All at once, it disappeared, taking Lilith with it and leaving Mila alone with Marcus. Mila stared down at the black blade and Marcus growled, attempting to take it but once again, his hand went right through it. He groaned in frustration and glared at the knife, as if that would make it disappear.

"Well, no one said you have to use this," Mila shrugged, tossing the knife to the side. "Just do something. Anything. At this point, I don't even care if it's a long drawn-out thing, just get the job done."

"It's not happening," Marcus said, narrowing his eyes.

"Marcus," Mila sighed. "It is Marcus, right?" She asked. He nodded, but in a way that made Mila roll her eyes because somehow, he made that nod portray how suspicious he was of her. "Come on, you know you want to, don't you have bloodlust or something?" She asked, holding up her cut finger.

"I'm not a fucking vampire, Mila," he snapped.

"Are vampires real?" She asked, her eyes going wide. "If I died and came back as a vampire, would that count?" She murmured to herself, tapping her chin and considering it only briefly before shaking her head and focusing on the task at hand. "Fine, you don't get bloodlust, what gets you in the killing mood then? What will convince you to do this?"

"Nothing," Marcus said flatly. "I won't do it, give me a different name."

"I have no other name to give you, asshole," Mila snapped. "Mila is the name, Mila as in me," she said, gesturing to herself. "Just get it over with!"

Marcus's jaw clenched and he took a step towards her, his eyes glowing even more intensely red as he glared down at her. "No."

Mila would've argued if she could, but then he was gone and all she could do was groan in frustration and pick up that knife Lilith gave her, driving it into the already damaged couch.