www.$ellYerSoul2Satan.hel

“Alrighty. If you’ve just tuned in on your drive home from work tonight, I’m Kylie McKinney and we’re discussing our Daily Dilemma. A young woman is having all kinds of problems with her boss.”

“He’s basically stalking her,” said the radio station’s Traffic Update girl.

“Pretty much, yeah,” said Kylie. “It’s really creepy! This poor woman— she’s in her mid-twenties and she’s working for a guy who’s old enough to be her father. For about a year now, he’s been making the occasional inappropriate comment at work. Then, about three months ago, he got a divorce and that’s when things really got crazy.”

“I feel so sorry for this woman!” said Traffic Update girl.

“I know,” said Kylie. “So, despite the fact she’s repeatedly told her boss she’s not interested in him, he just won’t give up. And now he’s bombarding her with emails and calling her at all hours of the night. And he’s acting like he’s the injured party because she doesn’t want anything to do with him, outside of a professional relationship at work.”

“I still think I’d just look for another job,” said Traffic Update Girl.

“Well, it’s not that easy. She likes her job— except for dealing with this jerk— and she makes good money! She’s trying to pay off her student loans. And besides— like one of our callers already pointed out— if she quits, doesn’t that mean he wins?”

“I see that, too,” said Traffic Update girl.

“Let’s take some more calls,” said Kylie.

After an audible click, as a phone line was punched in, Kylie said, “Hello. Did you have a comment about the Daily Dilemma?”

“Yeah. I was wondering if you knew how long this woman has been working there.”

“She just says ‘a few years’ in her letter.”

“I’m just wondering,” said the caller, “if this creep might have done something like this before. How does she know he isn’t hitting on five different girls at once and every one of them thinks they’re the only one?”

“That’s a good point,” interjected Kylie.

“She really needs to go over this guy’s head and talk to his boss. Who knows? Maybe others have reported him in the past! She might even get lucky and her grievance will be the final straw that gets this guy fired!”

“Wouldn’t that be great!” enthused Kylie.

“And,” said the excited caller, “she definitely has a case here for sexual harassment! She could potentially sue this company for serious money! But that’s only going to work if she can show she tried to go over her boss’ head and nobody did anything about his behavior!”

“You’re right,” said Kylie. “She’s worried that this guy might retaliate and make her life a living hell at work if she reports him, but what’s the worst that could happen? If he fires her, she’s got a case for wrongful termination!”

“Exactly,” said the woman caller.

“Thanks for calling,” said Kylie.

“Thanks, Kylie,” said the caller.

After a clicking hang-up, Kylie said, “She brings up a good point. There’s no way of knowing if her boss’ inappropriate behavior is limited solely to her.”

“Right,” said Traffic Update girl. “Guys like this are generally pretty adept at abusing their power.”

“It’s sad, but generally, that’s true. She needs to report this guy, not just for her own sake, but for the sake of all the women working at this company!”

“For real,” said Traffic Update girl.

“Let’s take another call,” said Kylie. After a loud click, she said, “Hi there. Do you have a comment about the Daily Dilemma?”

“Yeah, Kylie?” A deep baritone voice is now broadcast through Lenny’s radio. “I just wanted to give you a guy’s perspective on this.”

“Great!”

“I’ve known dudes like this woman’s boss and he is not going to stop. It sounds like he’s obsessed with this woman. I’ll bet he divorced his wife because of her.”

“Well, she says that she asked him that very thing and he denied it.”

“Of course he denied it,” said the male caller. “The thing about guys like this: they’re just so blinded by their lust and infatuation, they really think they’re in love. And the more casually that she acts with him, the more hurt he’s going to become. Eventually he’s apt to turn vengeful.”

“I hear you,” said Kylie. “She’s worried about keeping her job and I can understand that, but this guy could be dangerous. She needs to not only contact Corporate about him, she really should look into getting a restraining order, don’t you think?”

“Something!” said the male caller. “This man needs a serious wake-up call.”

“Thanks for calling,” said Kylie. After a click, Kylie says, “Well, so far, everyone agrees this is a serious situation that could potentially get a whole lot worse. Do you have a comment you’d like to share? If so, give me a call at 888-55-KYLIE.”

Sam Smith was now broadcast over the air. Sitting in his parked car in his driveway beside his house, Lenny Langstrom clutched his steering wheel, sweating, listening to a lonely song about wanting someone To Die For.

Lenny finally shut off his engine and got out of his Pontiac.

Muttering, “It can’t be her,” he slogged up to his front door and unlocked it. Once he was inside his modest ranch house, he went straight to his liquor cabinet and poured a stout glass of Glen Levitt. Then, bottle in hand, he headed to his study, where he slumped into a chair behind his computer desk.

Thinking about how much his own situation mirrored that of the one spoken about on the radio, Lenny was in a quiet panic. He was in love with his secretary— the enchanting, incredible, brilliant Esther Gray, who he’d worked with for almost two years. He divorced his wife just three months ago and yes, if he was honest with himself (in a way he wasn’t honest with anyone else), he did it because he was obsessed with Esther.

He’d been calling her lately. And just last week, he wrote her a love letter.

It all matched.

And yet Lenny told himself he couldn’t be the only older divorced man in love with a younger woman. Not in a city this size.

He couldn’t believe Esther would do something like this!

He grabbed his mouse, disengaging the screensaver on his personal computer. He signed online and navigated his way across the World Wide Web to the site for the radio station he was listening to earlier.

Generally, he didn’t listen to pop rock. The radio in the car used to remain forever tuned to the oldies station. But lately he’d been listening to Esther’s favorite music.

Lenny clicked on Kylie McKinney’s DJ page and pulled up The Daily Dilemma Online. Reading the letter from “Fed-up,” he suddenly grabbed his scotch and guzzled it down.

“Esther did write this!”

He opened a drawer on his desk and looked down at a photograph of Esther and her best friend, Danielle.

Part of Fed-up’s letter read...

‘When I took a week off work a couple months ago, I came back and discovered things on my desk were missing. I don’t suspect he was the one who took my stapler, but I do think he was the one who stole a picture of me and my best friend.’

Tears welled up in Lenny’s eyes.

Over the course of the next couple of hours, he got progressively more drunk as he rode an emotional roller coaster that peaked with extreme anger only to plummet to the depths of darkest depression. He never realized how pathetic he was, how delusional he was. Until today’s Daily Dilemma, Lenny truly believed Esther liked him. He never dreamed she saw him as a stalker and a loser. “What is wrong with me?” he woefully asked himself.

Then, angrily, he wondered, “What’s wrong with her? Why won’t she give me a chance?”

Lenny hadn’t cried in a decade, not since his mother died, but now, as he stared at Esther’s smiling photograph and remembered how he stole it off her desk, he bawled like a baby.

He saw himself as Esther saw him, as those people on the radio saw him: a deluded, dirty old man. He couldn’t deny that he lusted for her. But this wasn’t infatuation. Thinking how those radio callers branded his feelings as ‘infatuation’ infuriated him. This wasn’t a crush. He had worked with her for two years and he had truly fallen in love with her! Lenny hung his head and cried.

When his tears finally dried up, fear was added to his acidic emotional mix. Virtually every caller to that radio show suggested Esther report his behavior to their corporate office. Despite their speculation to the contrary, he’d never done anything like this before, but the company had a strict policy when it came to sexual harassment. They might fire him just based on the accusation alone!

He poured himself more booze, even though he knew he was already looking at a nasty hangover tomorrow.

Sitting at his computer, drunk and broken-hearted, Lenny insisted, “I really do love her!” With a sob, he admitted, “I don’t want to live without her!” After still more tears, he wiped his eyes, whining, “I’d sell my soul to be with her.”

Immediately, Lenny’s computer cheerfully informed him, “You’ve Got Mail!”

Eager for any distraction (even if it was only spam), he pulled up his mailbox.

The new email was titled: Fulfill Your Dreams TONIGHT!

Curious, he opened the email and read...

Tired of not realizing your greatest desires? Fed-up with life? Heartbroken because that Special Someone doesn’t feel the way you do?

CHANGE YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES NOW!

Make your dreams come true!

Learn how YOU— Lenny Lee Langstrom — can sell your soul to the Devil and turn your fondest fantasies into treasured realities!

The enclosed link was: http://www.$ellYerSoul2Satan.hel.

If his emotions weren’t in such turmoil, he’d probably be amused. He knew this must be a joke, but the timing of it was phenomenal.

Hurry! said the final line of the email.

This one-time limited offer expires at midnight tonight!

Lenny clicked on the link and the web page popped up instantly. Taking another swig of Scotch, Lenny read...

Welcome, Mister Langstrom, to Hell’s Consignment House, the most user-friendly website in the universe!

Because of the recent modernization of an ancient system, Satan will not be directly entering into negotiations with you. Rather, Lucifer has empowered numerous demons to act on his behalf.

Selling your soul couldn't be easier!

Simply click on the link that will appear at the end of this message. You will be prompted to list whatever it is you desire to receive in exchange for your eternal spirit. Standard with all contracts is a clause guaranteeing that you will not die for another 46 years from disease, old age, or natural calamities.

Lenny was 46-years-old. The idea of doubling his age before he died definitely agreed with him.

Once you complete the contract, your requested terms will then be immediately available for viewing by all of Hell’s brokers.

Within seconds, you’ll know if your terms are acceptable. If they are not acceptable, you will be offered a counter-proposal.

Finally, you will be asked to seal the contract with your blood.

It’s just that simple!

You need not sleep alone ever again, Lenny.

He jumped as if bee-stung!

No empty bed tonight!?!

Happiness awaits! Click to create a contract: here.

Lenny guzzled more Scotch. The word here began to blink on Lenny’s screen. He straddled a line between belief and incredulity. He couldn’t decide if this entire site was some kind of elaborate prank or if there was something truly sinister going on. In the end, curiosity ruled. He clicked on the link.

What looked very similar to an email opened up. The subject line was already filled out for him. It read...

For Sale: the immortal soul of 46-year-old Leonard Lee Langstrom.

The body of the email was mostly blank, but it did have a beginning and ending already written. The beginning said...

I, Leonard Lee Langstrom, agree to sell my soul to an authorized agent of Satan in exchange for—

After a lengthy blank space, the ending read...

In exchange for being granted these stated conditions, I will forfeit all spiritual rights after my death. Without being Judged, I will be sent directly to Hell.

As a further stipulation to my damnation, I will be granted another 46 years of life, free of any threat from disease, infirmities associated with old age, and all natural calamities.

Lenny’s hands grabbed his keyboard and his fingers began typing, as if independently deciding the matter on their own. He wrote...

... in exchange for the undying love of Esther Nicole Gray.

He stopped and stared at the words on the screen, wondering if he should elaborate or not. He finally decided there was no need. All he wanted was Esther’s love.

There was no SEND button like with an email. Instead, a little rectangle at the bottom of the screen said, ACTIVATE PROPOSAL.

He clicked the button.

The error message appeared immediately as his speakers barked a startling tone. Lenny pouted as he read...

Agents of the Devil are unable to affect love. Might we suggest lust, respect, or perhaps even fear?

A gamut of other emotions are available as substitutes for love.

Lenny’s bottom lip protruded even farther. Like a spoiled child, he whined, “But I want her to love me!”

He stared at what was written on the screen. The word lust sparked his imagination. He told himself, “If I can’t get Esther to love me right away... maybe I can get her to fall in love with me over time.” He nodded, reprising his earlier theme of, If she’ll only give me a chance!

Lenny clicked away the error message and backspaced over what he wrote. In exchange for his soul, he asked for...

... the undying lust, passion, and infatuation of Esther Nicole Gray.

Writing infatuation seemed almost like revenge, considering how people on the radio were quick to label his love as infatuation. He studied what he’d written, his head spinning from the booze. Then, with a grin, he changed the word passion to obedience.

Thinking that was perfect, Lenny activated the proposal.

This time there was no error message. His computer informed him, Proposal Under Review.

Exactly six seconds later, he received the message, Proposal Accepted!

Lenny’s heart skipped a beat.

After a moment, the contract became partially opaque. A message appeared on top of it.

When this contract is finalized, you will be giving up your immortal soul. You cannot be tricked into doing this. You must enter into this contract willingly.

Do you understand?

Click Y to indicate yes.

Looking at what he wrote in the contract, he tried to imagine how radically Esther would change. He found that almost as impossible as visualizing being consigned to hellfire! One thing he could easily envision... life going on exactly as today. He could imagine loneliness, envy, terrible humiliation, and impotent rage.

His decision made, Lenny hit the Y key.

Fire burned away the words on the screen, replacing them with blood red text, reading...

Place your finger on the spot indicated on the screen so that your blood may be taken in lieu of your signature.

For the first time tonight, Lenny was afraid. On the computer screen a red circle appeared: the spot to place his finger. Beside the circle was the icon of a stick-pin— a long black needle with a tiny human skull for a head.

Sweating, gasping, suddenly feeling like he was about to spontaneously combust, Lenny jumped up from his desk, tearing at his clothes, taking off his suit jacket and shirt. He grabbed Kleenex to wipe sweat off his head.

The thought that chased away his fright was, I’ll need to take a shower before Esther comes over.

Unhappy that he no longer felt drunk (and surprised he didn’t have a raging headache), Lenny stubbornly poured himself some more Glen Levitt and knocked it back. When he looked back at his computer, the screen had changed. It now showed the final instructions.

Your finger will be pricked. Your blood will be taken. By willfully giving up your blood, you will be signifying your acceptance of the contract. At that moment, this transaction will be FINAL and may never be revoked.

The red circle where he was supposed to place his finger began to blink.

The decision is yours, Mister Langstrom .

For all of six seconds, he hesitated. Then Lenny tentatively extended his index finger. Picturing Esther in his mind, he thought, Come to me. He touched the computer screen in the indicated circle.

The screen was as cold as ice, painfully cold. His fingertip was first frozen and then stabbed. The icon of the pin flew to his touch, pricking him, causing sharp pain. “Ow!” He withdrew his finger and looked at it, seeing the droplet of red there. He looked at the computer screen and saw the scarlet stain of his life liquid.

Blood flowed.

Without warning, the computer screen, the lights in his house, the synapses in his mind— everything flashed crimson. Lenny saw the red circle become a purple pentagram. His blood on the screen was absorbed by the screen, sinking into the monitor.

Demonic laughter chased Lenny’s consciousness away. His index finger tingling as if shocked, Lenny put his head on top of his keyboard and passed out.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

He awoke to the sound of bells.

His mind was fuzzy; he thought he was dreaming; and he settled back to sleep.

When the doorbell rang again, Lenny sat up.

For a moment, he was completely disoriented. He didn’t understand why he was asleep at his computer. Then a flash of fire blazed across his mind’s eye, and he remembered.

He jumped out of his seat, immediately excited. Was it Esther ringing his bell? Who else could it be?

His heart too big for his chest, his palms slick with sweat, he shouted, “Coming,” and hurried to the entry hall. Flicking on his porch light, Lenny opened the front door.

The sight of Esther took his breath away. Despite the fact it was a muggy evening, she was dressed in a long tan overcoat. She wore bright red lipstick. When they made eye contact, her lids fluttered. She looked down, smiling nervously.

Opening the storm door, Lenny told her to, “Come in.”

Esther hesitated, looking up at him, frowning slightly. Then she flew at him, wrapping her arms around his head, kissing him passionately as she pushed him back inside. Thrilled to his core, Lenny held her tight and returned her kisses. They were both soon breathless with desire.

Finally, panting, Esther pushed him back. Without saying a word, she began unbuttoning her coat. Lenny was already totally aroused, even before he saw her naked cleavage. Stepping out of her sandals, Esther shed her only garment, letting it drop to the floor. He was astonished that he was finally seeing her nude body. “Let me look at you,” he rasped.

Perfectly obedient, Esther complied.

Tears broke free of his eyes. He wept silently at the sight of her— the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen! Within moments, however, his lust conquered his awe.

Lenny took Esther by the hand and led her to his bedroom.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

The next day was Friday and both Lenny and Esther called off work.

They stayed in bed together most of the weekend, having marathon sex. By Monday, they were both so sore they could barely move and so they again called in sick. Finally, under great pressure from his boss, Lenny returned to the office, but he didn't think it was wise for Esther to continue working under him. She quit, effective immediately.

While Lenny was at the office (and regenerating his fluids), Esther moved out of her apartment, into Lenny’s house.

The next few weeks were the most erotic of Lenny’s life.

One night after they’d made love, as Esther slumbered quietly beside him, Lenny stared into the dark and thought about the deal he had made. On the one hand, he couldn’t be happier and had no regrets. On the other hand, he knew he was truly damned and thoughts about what his afterlife would entail terrified him.

He couldn’t imagine there was any comfort in Hell, but if there was, his would be memories of these glorious days with Esther.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

He proposed to her on their three-month anniversary of the bargain.

It troubled Lenny that Esther hesitated before answering. He commanded her to, “Say ‘yes,’ honey. You know you want to.”

Breaking eye contact with him, she obediently responded, “Yes.”

Esther was raised Catholic and, as a gesture of love, Lenny agreed to a Catholic wedding. But when he then went with her to meet her family priest, he discovered an uncomfortable truth about the damned: holy places made them ill. Less than five minutes after entering the church, Lenny was vomiting up his lunch. The nausea lasted as long as he was on sanctified ground and dissipated after he’d left.

They were married at a Justice of the Peace. Esther didn’t seem particularly upset at not having a church wedding.

Lenny had never been happier in his life.

He was utterly clueless that his bride considered their wedding day the worst day of her life.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

In the months after they were married, Esther spent a lot of time with her friends— too much time, in Lenny’s opinion.

He ordered her to spend more time at home and she did.

Then without his knowledge, Esther maxed out their new joint credit card. When Lenny saw the credit card bill, he chastised her and demanded she stop. She did.

The sex was fantastic. Her lust for him was insatiable. They never had problems in bed.

One evening, three months after they were married, they were having dinner at a fancy restaurant and Lenny didn’t like the way Esther looked at their buff waiter. On the drive home, he told her, “Don’t you ever fool around on me, Esther! Don’t even think about it!”

Meekly, she said, “I won’t.”

Lenny had no doubt that she would obey.

Then one night when he came home form work, he discovered Esther was drunk and hysterical. The moment she saw him, she threw a bottle of vodka at him, shrieking, “I HATE you!”

Barely avoiding being struck by Smirnoff, Lenny ordered her to, “Stop it!”

Esther slumped to the floor.

His heart broke for her. He didn’t want her to hate him! She should love him by now! Choking up, he told her, “You don’t hate me, darlin’. You’re just having a bad day. You love me. You need to be happy.” He commanded it, “Be happy!”

She fought back her tears and produced a wan smile.

“That’s better,” said Lenny.

Always knowing exactly what this lusty woman needed, he stripped her naked, before shedding his own clothes and taking her to the bedroom.

After that, Lenny experienced no more problems with his wife. She seemed not just content but truly happy.

He was thrilled to be married to her.

Oblivious to Esther’s secret pain, Lenny lived his dream, certain he’d have another forty-five years of this bliss.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

Esther Gray Langstrom sat home alone with a bottle of vodka, contemplating her miserable life. Lenny was gone for the week, off to Atlanta for a company meeting. She sincerely wished he would never come back. If his plane were to crash, she’d celebrate. She passionately loathed her husband.

Over the course of the last year, Esther’s identity had been shattered. She was a stranger to herself.

She had been raised as a Christian, but she’d lost her faith in Jesus. Tonight, she was so filled with black despair, she was contemplating suicide. She no longer believed it was a mortal sin because she no longer believed in God. And she couldn’t go on living this way.

She remembered the day this nightmare began, almost a year ago. She’d written to the DJ at the local radio station about her situation and Kylie McKinney aired her story as the Daily Dilemma. After listening to the advice of the good citizens of her city, Esther decided she would go over Lenny’s head, to the corporate office, in an attempt to get him fired.

Then, something inexplicable happened.

It was like she was hypnotized, or mind controlled, or bewitched. She’d never been attracted to Lenny before. He was dumpy, balding, and extremely hairy. Esther liked athletic men, younger men, smooth men (particularly Italian men). She’d always found excessive body hair to be a turn-off.

But suddenly, out of the blue, she changed.

Her nonsensical, uncompromising arousal made her outrageously bold. She went to him that same night and they had sex for hours. And even as she was screaming with desire, somewhere deep down in her soul, she was simultaneously shrieking with horror.

As unfathomable as it was that she was physically attracted to him, even more unbelievable was the way she always obeyed him. She’d tried over and over to defy his wishes and she just couldn’t. Her body always complied, even when her heart wouldn’t. When he told her to 'Be happy', she didn’t feel happiness, but she faked it.

She couldn’t even find satisfaction by cheating on him because he’d ordered her to remain faithful and she had to dutifully obey.

Esther wanted to die. Either that or she wanted him to die. Sitting at her desk in her study, staring unfocused at the solitaire game on her computer screen, she moaned, “I’d do anything if he’d just die!”

She was startled when her computer said, “You’ve Got Mail!”

When she ignored the summons, her computer insisted again, “You’ve Got Mail!”

“Alright, already,” she muttered. When she went to her mailbox online and clicked on her email, she saw the title of the newest message was: Fulfill Your Dreams TONIGHT!

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

Five minutes later, having read the instructions on how to sell her soul at Hell’s Consignment House, Esther wrote that her greatest desire was for, Lenny Langstrom to suffer a slow, painful, debilitating death.

When she sent her request, she received back immediate word that Satan's representatives were unable to comply. She was informed...

Lenny Langstrom may not be killed by disease, old age, or any type of natural injury.

Esther frowned. She started to type, why not?, but then her eyes fell on the last prewritten paragraph in her petition.

As a further stipulation to my damnation, I will be granted another 75 years of life (three times my current age of 25), free of any threat from disease, infirmities associated with old age, and all natural calamities.

The epiphany took her breath away. The great mystery was solved! She knew how Lenny brainwashed her! “He sold his soul,” she exclaimed. “Goddamn him!” A split second after saying it, she realized the irony and brayed hysterical laughter.

When she stopping chortling, she was chilled to think, That’s how he changed me! Her head spun with the implications. Her hatred for Lenny ballooned to new extremes.

She considered her revenge. He had brainwashed her. She should brainwash him! He corrupted her so she would be attracted to him. What if she were to fix it so he’d be attracted to men? Or even dogs?

Esther shuddered, disgusted for the dogs.

Eventually, she shut down the website. When her computer called out over and over that she still had mail, she ignored it.

For the first time in a year, Esther prayed for forgiveness for her sins. She no longer had any doubt that God heard her prayers.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

When Lenny returned home from his business trip, Ester took him straight to bed.

After they’d had sex (she never thought of it as ‘making love,’ no matter who instigated it), she told Lenny about the cat she had adopted while he was away. “Please let me keep it, honey,” she begged.

Lenny sighed. “I’m not crazy about cats, darlin’.”

“I know. But he’s so adorable! And I promise he won’t be any trouble! You’ll never even know he’s around!”

“Okay,” Lenny said with a sigh. “I guess.”

She thanked him by grabbing him in his favorite place.

Esther smiled, because she had a plan.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

It took her two more weeks to build up the courage to do it.

It wasn't possible for Lenny to die by any natural means... but there was nothing in Satan’s e-contract that suggested Esther’s husband couldn’t be murdered. She planned to kill him and blame it on a rambunctious cat.

When Lenny came home from work on the fateful night, Esther told him, “Why don’t you take a long hot bath before supper, honey. I’ll even come in and scrub your back.”

Nervous as hell, she held her breath until Lenny said, “Sounds good.”

She paced in the kitchen, unable to sit still as she listened to water pouring into the tub. When the water finally stopped and she heard the splashing sounds of Lenny getting in, Ester went to get the cat. Knowing how she intended to sacrifice it, she never even named the animal (and Lenny never asked).

Esther took a moment to calm herself, taking deep breaths. She knew she would need to act swiftly, without hesitation. If Lenny was to die, she had to be strong.

She picked up the patsy and walked down the hall to the bathroom.

Lenny was sitting in the tub, waist-deep in soapy water. When he saw her carrying the black cat, he asked, “What’s up?”

“I’ve got something to show you,” said Ester, placing the cat on the closed toilet.

“What?”

Esther darted out of the bathroom, closing the door behind her. “Be right back.”

“Honey!” shouted Lenny. “What are you doing?”

Sweat dotting her upper lip, her heart quavering in her chest, Esther rushed into her study and picked up Lenny’s boombox, which was already loaded with one of Lenny’s AC/DC CDs. Highway to Hell. Obviously.

“Esther!” yelled Lenny. “Come get this cat!”

It was an order and her body knew it. Luckily, she was already carrying the boombox. Esther dashed back to the bathroom, where she heard the cat scratching at the door. Entering, she blocked the feline’s escape with her foot and quickly closed the door behind her.

Lenny was annoyed. “What are you doing?” he whined.

“I’ll take care of the cat in a second, sweetheart.” She moved to the electrical outlet that was located next to the sink. Quickly plugging in the murder weapon, she told Lenny, “I brought you some music to listen to.”

For a mere moment, Lenny looked at her with suspicion. Esther acted as quickly was she was able, terrified he would order her to ‘stop.’

She shouted at him, “Sell your soul in order to have me, did you?”

His final word was, “I—”

In the next second, her husband shrieked as Esther dropped the plugged-in boombox into the tub.

Deadly electric current coursed through the bath. Lenny thrashed and flopped, splashing water all over the floor. The lights dimmed. Steam rose. The din coming from his screeching throat sounded utterly inhuman.

Feeling both horror and unbounded triumph, Esther turned to grab up the cat. She planned to tell the police that Lenny was taking a bath, listening to his boombox as he always did, when the cat ran into the bathroom and knocked the CD player into his bath.

She intended to broil the cat with her husband.

But the black cat squirmed, twisting in her hands to claw her. Surprised, Esther took a single step backward, into a puddle. She slipped and fell into her own death trap.

The house was old and there were no circuit breakers. Fuses eventually blew, stopping the flow of electricity, but not before the Langstrom family (including their new pet) had passed away.

⚡______🔥 666 🔥______⚡

The pain that Lenny felt at death lasted much longer than he would have ever dreamed possible. His soul was fried out of his body, like juices from a slow-roasting steak. Still experiencing strange electric shocks, he screamed a soundless scream.

He was devastated that Esther had killed him.

He felt emanations of pure Wickedness rising up from the darkness below him. He knew that Satan had fulfilled his end of the bargain. Lenny didn’t die from disease, old age, or anything natural.

Until he was slain, Lenny was clueless that the deal he had made left open the possibility of his murder.

His spirit swirled around and around his scorched body, like a tormented dervish. He watched Esther as she fought with the cat. He saw her slip and fall into the voltaic bath.

The moment she struck the crazy waters, a brilliant shaft of light shined down from above. Seeing the illumination of Heaven hurt Lenny, causing his damned soul to ache.

He watched as his beloved’s spirit rose into the light. He knew she would soon stand before God, where she could explain herself as she was Judged... an opportunity that he had forfeited when he entered into the Devil’s contract.

⚡⚡⚡

Earth bled away. Another human soul plummeted into the Abyss.

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In Hell, Leonard Lee Langstrom couldn’t remember any of the good times with Esther Gray, but he eternally relived the excruciating experience of her electrified vengeance.

If you enjoyed this demonic love story ☝, check out this other one 👇, which has a far more comedic tone. 🔥 It's about a demon unfortunate enough to fall in love with a mortal.

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Please LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, tip, pledge, or phone a friend, as you see fit! I'd love to see your comments about this hellish tale. ⚡😁👍

Thank you kindly for your support!

_____________Bolt ⚡