clearly visible on her face.

Instead of elaborating, he waved his hand and a second later they were both seated at a large dining table. The room they were in was all black marble and wisps of flames again, only this time it was decorated with extravagant chandeliers, candles and paintings. The roof was a canvas of navy, stars and drawings of forgotten gods swirled out across the blue.

Jasmina leant back in the tall chair she was seated in, fingers tapping on the smooth, onyx surface of the table. They were both seated at the head of the table, opposite each other, the many chairs in between empty. She wanted to make a comment again, but he interrupted her as he slid a piece of paper across the table.

"The contract," he smiled.

"For what?" she asked as she placed a hand on it.

"You know the seven deadly sins, do you not?" he said, continueing before she could answer," they're my dearest residents, I view them as my adoptive children almost."

He leant forward then, hands folded in each other on the table as he looked at her.

"You see," he said," every time someone dies, their sins are counted and it's decided whether they're sent to heaven or hell. Basic stuff, right?"

His smirk widened, his eyes lighting up in a vivid scarlet.

"Now," he said," when they come to hell, they're classified in those different categories of sins. The worse the deeds, the worse the punishment, the usual stuff. But you always have those with records that just impress. I pick those as one of the seven deadly sins and they rule over the souls in their section."

He waved a hand at her then.

"Case in point," he said," you. I get a new soul that surpasses the record of the current title holders of the seven deadly sins and I appoint them to the sin that was most prominent in their life. A master con artist will become greed, a wicked king pride. I pick them carefully, looking at leadership qualities and ruthlessness. And that, doll, is how the sins are chosen."

"Sounds like a lot of recycling," Jasmina commented.

"Not exactly," he said," believe it or not, it's quite hard to surpass the worst of the worst. My current sins have been around for a few centuries, I believe."

"And you're telling me this why?" she said with raised eyebrows," don't tell me I surpassed them all."

"Nothing that grand," he chuckled," but you do qualify for the position."

"Which one?" she asked as she leant her chin on the back of her hand.

"That's the problem, doll," he said," I'm not sure which sin represents you most yet - you've quite outdone yourself on all of them."

"I always outdo myself," Jasmina smiled.

He mirrored her expression as he looked her in the eyes.

"Your seventh birthday," he began," you specifically wanted a castle made of diamonds, with a thousand of your favorite red velvet cake inside. When your nanny told you carefully that wasn't possible, you threw a tantrum and fired her."

"No one can deny me anything," she said, a fact more than an opinion.

He smiled, before nodding approvingly.

"And that's why I feel you're going to be my new favorite," he said.

"So," she said as she held up the contract between two fingers," I'm assuming these are some terms for me taking over the position of one of the seven sins?"

"Not exactly," he drawled," as I said, I haven't figured out what to do with you yet, but I am impressed by your record and quite amused by it all. So, seeing as I'm bored, I thought up a fun game."

"Who's saying I'm willing to play?" she said.

In the blink of an eye he was gone and beside her, hand sliding around her neck and tipping her chin up so she was forced to look at him, midnight hair spilling down.

"Who's saying you have a choice?" he said," in case you didn't notice, you're dead. I have the power to let you burn forever or vanish you completely, doll, so you should be glad I'm in a fun mood today."

Calculation flashed in her eyes and victory laced his smirk. Before he could say anything though, she grabbed his tie and pulled him to eye level, eyes gleaming with something undecipherable as she slowly trailed a finger over his bottom lip.

"Then tell me the deal."

"That's what I like to hear," he smiled pleasantly," you see, I'm getting a bit tired of all the nagging of my seven deadly pets and I think they don't truly appreciate me anymore. So I thought of a fun idea."

"Cut to the chase."

Before she could say anything else, he snapped his fingers and the doors to the dining room opened, black mist swirling around in the opening. Seven figures stepped through and she blinked, their features sharpening as they all took a seat at the table.

"The seven deadly sins themselves," he announced.

"Do you pick your sins based on beauty?" she asked," because if so, it's no wonder I got asked."

"No," he said," but as soon as you get picked as one, your appearance will be the height of beauty you could've reached in life and stay that way. Comes in handy when they have to persuade mortals."

Her eyes went over the seven, all of the attention focussed on her. The look in their eyes was all different though, varying from amusement to apathy.

"I can see they don't keep up with current fashion trends though here," she said," those clothes are horrible."

She raised her eyebrows as she looked at him.

"Why are they here though?" she asked," is this supposed to be intimidating?"

"I'm going to send them back to the living with you," he said," and give you the chance to get rid of every one of your own sins in thirty-one days. If you manage it, I'll let you go - until you join me in hell again after your second death that is. And if you fail..."

He chuckled as he let her go.

"I'll have fun either way," he said," but if you fail, I'll consider appointing you as a sin again."

"What do you mean I'm stuck with the seven deadly sins?" she exclamated," I'm a saint!"

"You've been about seven minutes in hell and have managed to insult eight people already, Jasmina."

"Fuck off, wannabe Satan."

Soft chuckles and gasps were audible as the sins watched her and she tilted her chin, gaze challenging.

"I-" she began to protest.

"Let's keep it brief," he interrupted her though," it's either you sign this and have the chance to live longer or you don't and your last encounter with your cheating boyfriend would have been you being hit by a car in front of half the population of your school."

"Wait, what?" she said," I was hit by a car? That was how I died?"

She shook her head decisively then as she held out a hand.

"Give me a pen," she said," there's no way that's the last memory I'm leaving to people and especially to that fucker."

He was beside her again this time, a feather in his hand as he took the palm of her hand. Before she could ask what he was doing, he had already pricked the sharp edge on her thumb, drawing blood as he handed it to her.

"Sign here," he smiled," and you'll get a chance at life again, Jasmina Nawar."

She let her eyes run over the contract, the hot-headedness burning through her veins not diminishing her calculative side. The devil looked at her expectantly and she nodded then, putting down the flourishes and swirls that sealed her fate. It all still seemed fake somehow, even when he took it out of her hand and smiled again, sinister in his beauty, as it vanished in the air.

Her lips parted as she rose to her feet, ready to say something, anything, but he cupped her cheek in his hand and leant forward, interrupting her. As his breath fanned her skin, ice cold despite the fire curling around him like snakes, some sense that this was real was constricting her throat.

She was dead and the devil was going to resurrect her for his amusement.

The last words she heard before everything became black again echoed in her head, imprinting themselves on the gray matter of her hypothalamus, as concrete and definite as her crimson signature.

And as she gave in to the darkness, his smile appeared vividly in her mind, breath-taking in his danger.

"Put on a good show, will you?"