Chapter 4

“You must be, nothing else makes sense,” said the demon, filling Archer’s silence. “Not many people can go through with a deal once the demon’s in front of them. You have balls.”

Archer snorted. The demon rubbed his face, stared out the window. As though it just occurred to him where the terrible smells and sounds were originating, he moved forward and shut the window. What was left wasn’t exactly silence, but it wasn’t as loud. When the demon turned back to Archer, he was frowning.

“You’re very calm for hearing all that,” he said. “Most first-time visitors to Hell take it hard.”

“So this is Hell,” said Archer. This room had to be the space the demon lived in. There were a few shelves of books and things and a couple other doors. “You could stand to have someplace for guests to sit.”

“You’re my first.”

“And I’m taking it hard,” said Archer. He gave up trying to sit and stood again. His ass hurt. “Is this stone somehow harder than other stone?”