Olivia Chase, a successful woman who sold her soul to the Devil in exchange for a baby, is offered a second deal of a lifetime after her daughter dies: she must harvest Lucifer a series of souls he claims belong in Hell in trade for her daughter's m...
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I turned my phone on silent and refused to grab the mirror. The car was quiet; without a phone going off or a pendant to watch, it was downright peaceful. I didn't mean to fall asleep, but my head snapped up when a portal opened on the seat next to me. I scowled, ready to scream at Lucifer when he tried to come through, but no one came.
The portal had opened by a solitary lawn chair. If I scooted over on my seat, I'd be right next to it. It was bizarre. Slow rolling waves of the ocean ran up the beach in the background, and sweet music filtered through. A pleasant breeze blew, bringing with it the scent of the salt spray and warm sand.
Somewhere out of my line of sight, a child giggled. It took all of three milliseconds for me to recognize Deirdre's laugh. I scrambled toward the portal, only to meet a barrier of some sort. Everything I experienced could get out, but I couldn't get in.
"Deirdre! Deirdre!" I called through the portal, hoping it was just my body that couldn't go through.
"Mom?" she asked.
"Deirdre! Beside the chair!"
"Mom!" she shouted and ran into view. She, too, attempted to come through the portal but couldn't. She sat on the chair, and I scooted as close as I could. The lump in my throat was so large, I thought I'd choke.
"Mom! Where are you?"
"I'm in the back of the car, Sweetie." I couldn't stop the tears. I dug tissue out of my purse. "Where are you?"
"I guess I'm in Heaven. I mean, I died, right?"
"Yeah. You did. Are you okay?" I asked.
She nodded. "Yeah. I miss you, though. It's nice here, but..."
"But?" I encouraged.
"Well," she looked around, then leaned into the barrier and whispered, "It's boring here!"
I laughed. "Well, I'm working on a solution. If I can finish up what I'm doing, I can bring you to me, and it won't be boring anymore. Would you like that?"
"Really? We could be together?"
"Yeah. I'm working on it."
Her face clouded, and I thought my heart would break. "I miss you, mom. The beach house isn't the same without you."
"Yeah? You're at the cottage?"
"Uh-huh. Everything is the same, and there are even some kids to play with, but it's not home."
"Ok, sweetie, just give me a little while longer, and I can make it so we can be together again."
She looked around. "Oh no. Here He comes."
"Who?" I asked, concerned.
"Him. You know," she leaned in and whispered. "God. He comes to visit me. Keeps asking me about you and the Devil. I don't know what He's talking about."
