Night twirls about us as we continue along the streets under the starlight, putting distance between us and the diner. Though, I don't make a single effort to say a word as we move. I've got a million questions but I also know that if I raise them to Vahid, he'll probably not give me a straight answer—-so, I keep quiet.

       Vahid continues to take the lead and we make sure to keep away from people going for nighttime runs. “It's not much farther,” he finally murmurs to me, making me perk up.

          Despite my earlier sentiment to keep silent, I reply. “What is? Where are you taking me?”

           “I told you… Some place,” Vahid says as he continues to carve a path through the sidewalk.

           I roll my eyes with a hint of a quiet snort. “Oh, well, gee, thank you so much for that incredibly vague answer. I just bet everyone loves when you ‘bestow your wisdom upon them’.”

          “I say only the things I can,” Vahid tells me. “When you're out and about in public like this, you censor yourself.” He wets his lips. “Some things are not exactly meant for mortal ears.”

           “Of course,” I let out a faint, slightly strangled whistle. “Demon secrets and whatnot.” I suck in a breath as I continue to trail behind him. “...I never did get to ask. You are a demon, right? I'm not just assuming.”

         Vahid just sighs in response.

         “I'll take that as a yes,” I click my tongue against the roof of my mouth, sounding more like a ‘tsk’ that tapers off into a small sigh of my own.

           Vahid continues on at a brisk pace before coming to a stop on the sidewalk outside of a motel. He looks over his shoulder at me, beckoning me along. “Come on.”

           I hesitate before following him, silent at first but soon letting my question slip free after he closes the door behind us. “You said we needed to head to Hell for something.” I pause for just a brief moment. “...shouldn't we be heading that way as soon as possible? Or does the Devil not care if we run late?”

         Vahid turns to face me, his gaze locking on mine. “It'll be best if we wait until the full moon. …That way Lucifer will have time to get everything in order.”

          I sigh, pacing and tracing my index finger along the grooves on a window sill. “Great. More cryptic shit. Do you have anything you can tell me or is it all confidential in the underworld?”

           Vahid just gives me a grunt, a stark contrast to the behavior he let loose in the diner just earlier.

            I flop back on the bed with a groan. “Fine. Keep your demon secrets. I didn't give a fuck about them anyway.”

          Vahid looks towards my form, his nose wrinkling at it. “Trust me, if I could say that everything, I would… Especially if it would get you to shut up.”

           “Rude,” I mutter before I raise an eyebrow at the look on Vahid's face. “What?”

          Vahid swallows, slowly before saying, “The smell. Your scent.”

         “What about it?” I then cut in.

         “Virgin smell… It's strong,” Vahid replies, wryly. “Off-putting.”

           Red, hot flush creeps into my cheeks before I retort, “Yeah, well… You're not exactly a rose bath yourself, Vahid. Sulfur’s unpleasant to most people.”

          Vahid faintly snorts. “You've handled it just fine so far.”

          “So far,” I put extra emphasis in my words. After a moment of silence, I let my words trail out. “So… You plan to tell me what the hell is going on with me?”

           Vahid takes a seat on the edge of the bed. “You really wanna know?”

          I snort with annoyance. “Of course I do! You think I'll be fine not knowing what the hell happened to me? I saw my own corpse, bleeding out on the pavement. That sort of thing fucks with you.” I swallow, bitterly. “I deserve some sort of explanation.”

            Vahid’s silent for a little bit before sighing. “Alright. Don't say I didn't warn you.” There's another pause from him before he speaks. “Sometimes Death will take an interest in people. She or one of the reapers will put a mark on someone—-”

         “She?” I ask.

         “Yeah, she. Death’s careful about who she picks.” Vahid takes a breath. “When someone with one of those marks meets their end, they'll… change.”

         “Into what?” I begin to question, sitting up. “I'm not exactly a ghost. People could see me well and clear. And those eyes, they're like… a vampire?”

          “Not a vampire,” Vahid says, quickly.

          “Zombie then?”

          Vahid shakes his head. “We wouldn't be having this conversation that we are right now if you were a zombie, Niko.”

          “What am I then?” I continue to push. I had to get the answer out of him some way—-he owed me that much.

          “What you had is what we call a wraith mark,” Vahid explains as if it's simple.

          I raise my eyebrow once more. “A wraith?”

         “Mhm. A wraith,” Vahid confirms with a nod before his gaze flickers to the window and out to the moon outside. “Any more questions, chatterbox?”

           I go to open my mouth, but not a single word comes out. There's still so much more I need to know about the situation, but I seemingly can't bring myself to ask them. “How'd you become a demon? Were you just forged from hellfire or something?” The words come out far too taunting. I mentally wince.

        Vahid rolls his eyes. “Yeah, sure. Satan, himself, shat brimstone and I hatched from it.” He goes silent before saying, “I was human once—-now I'm not. That's all that you need to know. My human life isn't me anymore. …Never will be again.”

         “Seriously? Surely you have family on earth, yeah?” I start to say. “They matter, right?”

          “Yeah. In a small town in Azerbaijan,” Vahid says. “But I've slept since then. My loyalties changed. And that's that. …I had a new life down there. …Met new people. Friends, foes…” His voice drops to a low tone that's barely there. He murmurs something.

        Vahid seems to think that I can't hear him, but I can read lips pretty well.

          Aslan.

         “Who's Aslan?” I then ask, leaning in.

        “None of your business,” Vahid then snaps. He groans. “You probably should turn in for the night. This is your first week like this. …it’s always the most brutal.” He stands. “You need your rest.” He makes his way to the chair near the window. “Go.”

        I give Vahid one last look, knowing that he'll most likely not let me protest it. I sigh to myself, laying back on the bed and trying to force sleep onto myself.