Mila lit the last candle in her circle and sat with her legs crossed in the middle of it. Stella was in ICU. The doctors had given Mila and Terry the 'we'll make her comfortable' talk. It was a nice way of saying she would die but it wouldn't hurt. Stella was asleep, and not likely to wake up. Terry wasn't happy when Mila left the hospital but he didn't understand. There was only one way to stop it from happening.

Clutching the summoning words given to her by Arda, Mila stared at the wrinkled paper, her heart beating erratically. She was hesitant to admit it, but she was nervous. There was no indication of what would happen when she made the deal, if she would still be herself or if something about her would change, if she would get to come to the mortal realm like Marcus and visit her sister or if something else would happen. It was because of all the uncertainties, Mila was prepared to have a detailed conversation before surrendering her soul.

Mila pressed a knife against the tip of her finger until it drew blood. She brought her hand over the fire, putting pressure near the drop of blood until it became big enough to drip down on the fire. Then she read the words out loud.

Lilith appeared as dramatically as the first time. The entire room seemed to fill with fire but Mila expected it this time and quietly waited. Lilith's silhouette could be seen through the fire and Mila rolled her eyes. "I know it's you. I'm not impressed by the theatrics. Can we get a move on?"

Lilith scowled and snapped her fingers, causing the flames to die out. She crossed her arms and drummed her long, black nails against her arm. "You used different words this time. Let me guess, you've called me here to ask for your sister's life to be spared in exchange for your soul?"

"Yes," Mila nodded, standing up. "But I have conditions."

"You don't make the conditions," Lilith laughed, pointing to herself. "I do. Even if you did, I cannot help you."

"What?" Mila frowned, her heart sinking.

"I was given specific instructions not to harm you or your family," Lilith said simply, brushing lint that wasn't there off her shoulder.

"By who?" Mila asked, setting her hands on her hips. "Marcus? I thought you were in charge."

"I am in charge," Lilith growled. "Of course it wasn't Marcus. Marcus cannot command me to do anything. It was an angel."

"An angel?"

"Yes, an angel," Lilith sighed in exasperation. "Now quit bothering me and my demons. You've become a nuisance and it's getting on my nerves."

A black cloud began forming around Lilith and Mila panicked. This was the only chance Stella had.

"And what if I don't?" Mila challenged. "What if I just keep summoning demons over and over and never let any of them accomplish anything. What are you going to do?"

The black cloud around Lilith dissipated, leaving her red eyes narrowed at Mila.

"Honestly, what will you do?" Mila shrugged. "You said it yourself. You can't touch me. An angel told you no," Mila laughed, shaking her head. "So much for being powerful and in charge. You're not in charge of anything. You have to follow orders just like everyone else."

Lilith snarled and moved forward, suddenly inches from Mila's face. The glowing eyes, bared sharp teeth and the fact Lilith was somehow now much bigger and towering over her almost had her backing down out of instinct, but she held her ground and met Lilith's gaze in a challenge.

"What?" Mila asked innocently. "Is that the worst you can do?"

"I can do far worse, human," Lilith seethed, grabbing Mila by the neck and shoving her against the wall.

"Maybe you could to someone else," Mila said, trying to stay calm despite the fact her legs were kicking helplessly in the air as Lilith had her several feet off the ground. "But not me. An angel told you no and apparently even the supposed powerful Lilith has to follow that command."

Lilith growled, her grasp tightening around Mila's neck until it blocked out her air. "No one commands me."

"Except the angel that's keeping you from collecting another soul, another person to work under you in hell."

Lilith's nostrils flared, her eyes shining red so bright it was almost blinding. Eventually, she loosened her hold and Mila fell to the ground, grasping at her neck and trying to catch her breath.

Lilith had her back to Mila by the time Mila looked up. Silence stretched until the last thing Mila expected happened. Lilith started laughing. Laughing so hard she bent over then turned to Mila, wiping away a tear. "For hell's sake, look at you," she said, gesturing to Mila. "You're already good at the manipulation part of being a demon and you haven't had any training."

"Sounds like I'd already be an asset," Mila said, getting to her feet, trying to keep the shakiness in her voice to a minimum. As cool as she tried to play that off, Lilith was terrifying. "It would be a waste of my talents for you to have me anywhere except near a close rank to Marcus."

"Now see that was terrible," Lilith said, pointing an accusatory finger. "You've already given away what you want. You never do that so early."

"Maybe in any other circumstance but you're not stupid," Mila said, crossing her arms. "You know I want my sister alive, and you know I want Marcus. It would be an insult to your intelligence for me to assume you didn't already know that when you saw I was the one who summoned you."

"Flattery," Lilith said, raising an eyebrow. "I don't hate it, but don't overdo it."

"Oh, I won't, especially because I'm pissed off at you," Mila said, narrowing her eyes. Lilith frowned, taken aback by the shift in tone. "The way you handled telling me my sister would die was heartless and cruel, even for you. But fine, I'm a human and you have no reason to soften that blow for me, but you honestly call yourself a good leader and then do that to Marcus? If you want your soldiers to follow you, maybe you should treat them a little better."

"We work in hell, darling," Lilith reminded her. "Softness is cruel because you won't get any of it anywhere else."

"If that's true, then what's the point in doing anything you say?" Mila asked, throwing her arms up. "If there's punishment from you or someone else no matter what you do, then all your demons should do whatever they please and not care for the consequences. But go ahead, keep up the way you do things, then maybe someday you'll be in a place where softness would be appreciated, and you'll get a taste of your own medicine."

Lilith sighed in annoyance, staring Mila down and unable to decide if she was impressed or irritated by the fact the human didn't back down.

She settled on irritated. She didn't like being manipulated or talked back to. Mila was too strong-willed. She'd fill her demons with ideas of overthrows and all kinds of things Lilith didn't want to deal with. She considered the easiest way out was to simply tell Mila no and leave, but that was letting her off too easily. Mila questioned Lilith's authority and now Lilith could see her desperation. Underneath the bravado, Mila was anxious. Her sister was moments away from death and that would affect her judgment.

Lilith smiled. She knew something Mila didn't. Mila would have access to none of her memories when her soul was sold and hell was a big place. She could put Mila in the farthest, darkest corner, a rank as high as Marcus but stationed so far away she wouldn't be able to find him and Marcus wouldn't know she was there. Without her memories, without knowing why she was there, in a place Death rarely traveled to. Death was the only one that could restore Mila's memories, but it could be centuries before Death would visit the part of hell Lilith would throw Mila into.

By then, her family would be dead, and Marcus will have moved on. It would all be for nothing, and then Mila would see she had no chance standing against Lilith.

"I suppose you have a point in some regards, but you're not ready for hell," Lilith said. "It's too rough for you."

"I can handle rough," Mila insisted.

"It's unlike anything you're used to," Lilith shrugged. "And you are not worth my time. Disobeying a direct order from an angel leads to punishment."

"So you can deal punishment but can't take it?" Mila asked, raising an eyebrow. "I expected more from someone supposedly so powerful. I guess that answers the age-old question of would demons or angels win."

Lilith narrowed her eyes, glad for the extra push. Mila would suffer for her disrespect.

"You've no idea what you speak of, darling, but you will. You want to sell your soul, be a high enough rank to interact with Marcus and save your sister in the process?"

"Yes," Mila answered. "I need it to happen now. I just... Will I still be me?"

Lilith smiled. She would be herself as in her essence would remain, she just would have no memories. "Dead, with horns and wings and a taste for blood, but otherwise you."

Mila chewed on her lip. It felt dangerous to make a deal with Lilith but Stella's time was running out. "Fine. Okay."

"We seal it with blood," Lilith said, holding out her hand. In her hand, a knife formed. She cut deep into her hand without so much of a wince, just a dark smile as she handed it over to Mila. "Blood is forever."

Mila swallowed and took the blade. Part of her wondered if this was too easy, if she should question more, but with every passing second she grew more terrified she'd run out of time and Stella would be gone. She didn't have time to agonize over every last detail of what it all meant. Marcus could help her, if nothing else.

Mila lifted the blade to her hand and closed her eyes as the metal hit her skin and burned for how cold it was. But then everything turned cold. Mila opened her eyes and Lilith was standing across from her, unblinking, frozen like time had stopped entirely.

Mila frowned, lowering the knife and waving a hand in front of Lilith's face. "Hello?"

"She cannot hear you."

Mila jumped, glancing back at the source of the voice. Death stood a few feet away, her long black dress moving against the ankles of her boots as if a soft breeze was blowing, but everything was still and quiet. Unnaturally still and eerily quiet. It was like time itself froze and took everything with it except Mila and Death.

"We meet again," Death said, offering a smile that somehow felt calm enough to ease the tension in Mila's shoulders and slow her racing heart.

"For the last time."

"No, not for the last time," Death said, taking a silent step forward, not even the heel of her black boots making a sound as they connected with the floor. "It's only the beginning."

"Beginning of what?" Mila frowned. Did I somehow die? She thought. Maybe the second she drew blood, that was it. Maybe she was dead now and this was what Death coming for her soul looked like.

"You wish to save your sister, you wish to be with your love, but this is not the way to do it," Death said, continuing forward until she was within reach of Mila. "Your soul does not belong in hell, Mila. Your soul is weary from the trials its faced, it deserves more. You deserve more, despite the things you have been told."

Mila swallowed, still clutching the knife. "I don't... Understand what you're saying. This is the only way I have to save my sister."

"Maybe not the only way," Death said, a small smile forming. "It has been a long time since I took in another sister. I think it is about time I do. Do you not agree, Gabriel?"

Gabriel was rarely called by Death. While Death was limited in some of her abilities, in other ways she held great power. The moment she spoke his name, he felt it and was pulled to her. He appeared in Mila's living room, his gaze slowly scanning the room to take in the situation.

Upon seeing Lilith, he frowned. "What's going on?"

"Mila was about to offer her soul to Lilith in exchange for a miracle," Death answered. "And Lilith was about to accept."

Gabriel sighed. It was one of the few times he almost wished he was allowed to curse, because he would've cursed Lilith seven times over.

"I will place a protection over her," Gabriel offered, lifting his hand towards Mila.

"Actually," Death said, setting her hand on Gabriel's, lowering it. His frowned deepened, his brows furrowing. "I have a better consideration for you. I would like to take on another sister."

"Okay, what does this mean exactly?" Mila asked, looking between them. She was struck by Gabriel's beauty but confused by Death's words.

Gabriel regarded Death for a moment, his gaze shifting briefly to Mila before returning to Death, gesturing for her to continue. "Plead your case."

"Mila died when she was a child, then was brought back," Death explained. "I am owed a soul. My numbers have been off ever since, and I would like to satisfy that debt by making Mila a sibling. Her soul has the gentleness, purity, and empathy required for a sibling. She will be my responsibility, and for her sacrifice of becoming an anchor between the mortal and immortal realms, she will be awarded the miracle of her sister's life."

Gabriel almost smiled. Death found a workaround and her case checked out. Mila did indeed die and was brought back, her soul then stuck in a limbo of confusion. It would relieve the confusion and satisfy all debts, so Gabriel turned to Mila, gesturing for her to speak. "The sacrifice requires a willing volunteer, Mila. All I need is your consent for me to approve."

"I would kind of like to know what I'm consenting to," Mila said, still looking back and forth between the two beings in confusion.

"I have many abilities, Mila, but a person dies every three seconds," Death explained. "I am as everywhere as I can be, but even Death requires aid. Because of the high demand, I have siblings. Many siblings. Souls willing to help me bridge the gap between the mortal and immortal realms. Souls that take on a sort of part of me, it is how I can be everywhere at once. You are stationed at a place and a soul dies, my connection to you allows me to be in that place even if I am in another, because of my connections elsewhere in the world. I can only be everywhere, because a piece of me stays with each of my siblings and my siblings live everywhere around the universe. By becoming a sister, you will accept a connection with me and my siblings, you will be a messenger between the realms, an assistance to Death and a part of me. Your abilities will grant you access to both realms, the ability to move freely between them and make yourself known to who you wish to be known to. I and my siblings will you train you in these ways."

"Meaning... I can visit Marcus and Stella," Mila said, more to make sure she was understanding than anything else. Death nodded. "And I'll still be me?"

"More yourself than you would have been under Lilith," Death said. "She neglected to inform you, you lose all your memories when you become a demon. As a sister of Death, your memories stay because they give you a piece of your humanity, and humanity is something all the siblings need in order to have empathy for the weight of our duties. You do not know it, but it is something you have already trained for by speaking to the dead when no one else could."

Mila stared at Death blankly, trying to understand the words. "What do you mean, I've already trained?"

"Your brush with death opened your soul to see more than humans normally can," Gabriel explained. "You've been able to see souls after they passed and communicate with them when no one else could. They would've looked like regular people to your eyes, but no one else could see them."

"You were a comfort to many souls before they passed on," Death continued. "Some still remember you, remember that you made them laugh when they felt scared, that you spoke to them when they felt alone."

Death's words sunk in slowly. If Mila could see people that weren't there... That was why Terry said she spoke to people who weren't there. They were there, he just couldn't see them and it didn't help her 'not crazy' argument. While she still hurt from Terry's actions, she could more understand his concern. He found her walking around the hospital talking to people she thought were people but he couldn't see them.

"I regret to inform you your window is closing," Death said. "I feel Estella's life about to end and I can only freeze time for so long. I do not wish to rush you but even I cannot stop it. A decision is required."

"With you, I'll have all my memories, I'll be able to see Marcus and visit Stella, and all I have to do is just... Have a job where I help people who have died and are waiting to be moved to the other side?" Mila asked.

"Yes," Death answered. "It is not an easy job, Mila. It is burden to work with the dead. It is difficult to remain positive when surrounded by death. I have faith in your ability, because you already have been surrounded by death. You have the compassion others might not. You have a real understanding of it in a way others cannot. You have experienced death personally, you can empathize with their fear in confusion in a way others would never be able to. I have faith in you at this position. You have already spent a great deal of your life crossing my path," Death said, her lips twitching up in a small smile. "I think we have always meant to cross paths."

Death's words were comforting to Mila. Her whole life, she felt out of place, out of sorts, never belonging anywhere and never finding camaraderie with anyone. With Death, she felt seen and understood. She almost felt more comfortable with Death than with living beings. If Stella was safe and healthy, if she could visit Marcus whenever she wanted and all it required was a job much more fulfilling than the one she had...

"I accept," Mila said, turning to Gabriel. "As long as I can see Marcus and Stella, as long as she recovers and lives a long and happy life, I accept."

"Very well," Gabriel nodded, offering her a welcoming smile. "It is done."