Don't Go Into | the Devil's Den (Book One)

Seven | The Agreement Is Death

She floated away, purple energy seeping from her hand. Ten large wooden doors materialized as she moved from side-to-side. The doors shared every trait: same size, black color, demonic language and images etched into the borders, golden upside-down crosses for knobs.

Detective Grant did the best he could at analyzing each one. The combined stress, exhaustion, and low-visibility moonlight made it difficult to concentrate. He also knew he was undoubtedly running out of time. From his estimated time-lapse since Sunset, he probably only had an hour left.

"So, Jeffrey, you want your daughter back huh?" she asked, hovering toward the men. "Like we promised, because I'm a fun demon, you get to choose which door your beloved is behind. Again, no trickery from me either. She is behind one of these doors. And our special guest here will make the second attempt if you fail the first. Deal?"

Jeff's expression lit up. A moment that broke the Detective's heart. The odds were stacked against them, 4 to 1. Worse, "Mrs. Finn" sent him on this journey only to betray him. He was overwhelmed by a heavy sense of helplessness, knowing that the poor girl's fate was now truly out of his hands, left to chance in this demented game.

"Deal," Detective Grant began, "Jeff! She can't harm you! This is your wor--"

"Silence!"

His head plummeted into the dirt involuntarily and landed with a smack. For a moment he couldn't breathe, but he worked the muscles in his neck and positioned his head in a way for air to seep in.

"Jeffrey, take your pick."

Jeff skimmed each door, unsure of what to look for. He wanted to be free with his daughter, but doubt clouded his effort. And why wouldn't it? How could he possibly pick the correct door in a situation like this?

"Oh, and you only have twenty seconds per attempt, so hurry, Dear," she warned gracefully. She hovered the keys above each man.

Doubt froze the teary-eyed Jeff like ice. He couldn't choose. As the demon counted down from three, his soft tears exploded into a hysterical panic. He wailed in such a heart-wrenching manner that Detective Grant felt his own eyes well up with tears He felt Jeff's pain within his own heart. It was a deep guilty pain that froze him at his core.

"Time's up, sorry, Dear," she laughed, then pulled Detective Grant's face out of the dirt. "What a waste! Am I right? He couldn't even choose!"

A large boulder of pressure fell atop Detective Grant's shoulders. His mind went into overdrive. With his eyes filled with tears, his attention darted from one door to the next. This is why Jeff couldn't choose.

Twenty seconds isn't enough! Why! Why even go through this! "How-"

"Shut up! Ugh! Choose!" She frustratingly shouted. "Ten seconds!"

He flashed back to sticky situations from his past. He wouldn't have landed here if it weren't for a reason. But maybe that was it. He knew his purpose. He knew his capabilities. The Detective's thinking changed in an instant.

I know where she is.

With seconds to spare, his eyes rapidly darted from the floating demon to the doors. He scanned every knob, every detail, every crack, every imperfection and still could not detect a single difference. That is, until his attention homed in on the tenth door. That door was the only door that had purple aura radiating from behind it, just like the demon lady's. It had to be the one, he was so sure.

"Time's-"

"The last one!" Detective Grant yelled. "The tenth door!"

The other doors crumpled into themselves, leaving only the last door standing. The golden key above him flew into the keyhole and turned, unlatching the lock.

Cortisol skyrocketing, the Detective couldn't bare look. A butterfly swarm fluttered vengefully in his belly. If wrong, he'd just doomed Jeff and himself.

The door creaked open, followed by the thin leg of the little girl complete with red hair, blue jeans and a hoodie. Laney.

Detective Grant exhaled every ounce of pressure and anxiety in one breath. Everything led up to this moment. Everything.

Jeff's sorrowful presence morphed into euphoria at the sight of his daughter. Without a care, he jumped to his feet—without using his paralyzed arms—and ran to her. Surprisingly, the demon hadn't even stopped him. Laney squeezed her father with all her might as he knelt in front of her, clueless of what'd taking place.

"I must say, Detective, you are a very bright individual indeed," she admitted. "I so desperately want to tear you down. I want to destroy you. You know what!"

The demon lady separated the father and daughter against their will. "That's exactly what I want. New deal, I'll release Jeff and Laney if  you give me dominion over you, Jarod Grant."

He was unprepared for such a cruel dilemma. Her vile words paralyzed him for a moment until he realized how perfect that'd be. He'd save a father and daughter from imprisonment and finish the mission. What more could he ask for?

The journey, so far, flashed before him like a flip-animation book. He knew he was linked to Jeffrey in some way. He developed his own version of the incident that led him to this moment. He experienced the same emotions. Felt the same heartache. But at the same time, he knew the journey wasn't all bad. Hope still reigned. For some reason, he knew everything would be alright.

"If that's what it takes," he decided.

Jeff's eyes shot wide, and Grant could tell the man was overwhelmed with shock and gratefulness. Surely, he wanted his daughter to be unchained, but not like this.

"It's okay," he said to Jeff with a smile. "You and your daughter have been imprisoned long enough. It's time for you two to be free."

Jeff nodded with a smile. "Thank you so much."

"How marvelous!" the demon exclaimed. "I get to destroy the Detective. You'll pay for what you did to Belial! But first I need your hands, we need to make the Agreement!"

"The Agreement?"

"Yes, this grants the demon access to the host," she said. "A demon can't enter a host without the host confirming the demon's presence in some form. A person can't be depressed without internally admitting that they're depressed. When they admit, Depression can enter." She winced as if she'd just been zapped by a taser.

Bingo. My suspicions are confirmed... Deception.

The moment passed as fast as it began. The demon, only a couple feet away, reached for Detective Grant as she released his arms. Their hands touched, but that was after he threw the crucifix to Jeff. "Catch!"