"I do not know what you mean by 'reality show' but I can assure you I would never associate myself with such a crass sounding thing. This is deadly real."
My bravado is fading, because he doesn't look like the kind of man who plays pranks, and my mom doesn't look like she's faking a coma, and this hospital is entirely too real. I point to the paper in his hand. "That says my mom made a deal with a devil, that she traded her soul, and now the only way I can free her is to give you... me."
The man nods. "My brothers and I... we are in a bit of a predicament, and you are our only hope." He smiles as if he knows what that word means to me.
"And who are you and your brothers?" I look around for the cameras, for some evidence I'm being pranked. Maybe this guy escaped from the psych ward. That would explain a lot.
"Have you not figured it out yet?" His eyes change colors, becoming brighter. "We are the Princes of Hell. And you will be a Princess to one of us, and ultimately, Queen."
"Of hell," I say.
He nods. "Of hell. Though we have our own names for our world. Hell is a very mundane and human term that does not mean what you think it means."
"You're a demon."
He bows regally. "At your service."
"And this contract I would have to sign. It would be for eternity?"
"Yes."
"And I would have to choose one of you to marry?"
"Yes."
I look down at the scroll still in my hand. "And give that prince an heir."
"Correct."
"What happens after I die? In, say, seventy years?"
He chuckles. "Do you not understand? You will never die. By agreeing to this, you agree to take the Blood Oath. You will become one of us."
"One of you? You mean a demon. I would have to become a demon."
"In a manner of speaking, yes."
My stomach quivers with raw nerves at his answers. "And my child? This heir I'm promising... what if I can't get pregnant? Does that negate the contract?"
He steps forward and raises his hand to my cheek, brushing aside a strand of hair. "There will be ample opportunity to work on that. Worry not."
My hands are shaking. My throat is dry. The world no longer makes any sense. This is no longer funny. I place my hands on his chest... and push. "Get. Out."
It's like pushing a boulder. He only moves because he chooses to. I'm under no illusions about that.
"It's an interesting kind of irony that you of all people do not believe in demons." He looks darkly amused, his lips curling into a mocking smile.
When he moves again, it is with such speed I don't even register his movement until he is pressed up against me, my back now slammed against the wall. "But if you want to save your mother, I suggest you surrender your disbelief and embrace the truth. There are monsters in the world, Arianna. They are real." His eyes glow again, this time bright silver, and he smiles. "I am real."
I swallow, but my throat is too dry. I can't breathe.
His eyes bore into me, then drop to the throbbing vein on my neck. His eye teeth elongate until he has... fangs. His hand wraps around my neck and he lowers his mouth to my throat, his teeth brushing against my skin.
I'm shaking so hard, my breathing coming in rapid gulps. I close my eyes, waiting for... something. Death. Him to eat me. This no longer feels like a prank, but my mind can't wrap itself around the reality.
"Your mother will suffer for all eternity if you do not accept this deal," he whispers against my neck. "And I suggest you do not take too long to decide. I smell death on her. Even with those machines, she will not survive the week."
A sob builds in my throat, and I open my eyes, ready to scream, to gouge his eyes out, to do something to protect myself. But the pressure on my throat disappears and when my vision clears, I am alone in the hospital room with my mother. The stranger is gone.
But the scroll is sitting on the table by the hospital bed. Next to it is a manila folder with a note in his scrawl. When you are ready to see reason, read this file. It will answer questions of your past. It will show you this is no trick.
I sink to the floor, shaking, fighting tears, trying to clear my mind so I can think straight. This can't be real. These kinds of things don't exist.
Demons.
Vampires.
They don't exist.
I wipe my eyes and stand, then take a deep breath. Time to get some answers. I run out of the room and down the hall, to the admittance desk. "There was a man in my mother's room. Tall, tailored suit, dark hair, light eyes. Why was he allowed back here?"
The nurse looks at me in confusion. "No one has been back there but you and the hospital staff."
"Are you sure?" I ask, looking around frantically. "I just saw him."