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“Do you mind if I ask about your past?”
“Can I return the favor?”
Paimon cocks his head. “Yes, sure. I’m an open book.”
“Then, you can.”
“Can I ask about your escorting, or is that too intrusive?”
It’s all intrusive. Even asking his name is asking him to forfeit a piece of his soul. Intense? Perhaps, but he’s learned what happens when you take trust too far.
“If it ever gets intrusive, I’ll let you know.” He’s relieved that Paimon is so enthusiastic about sex that his curiosity lingers on sex work. That’s a more approachable topic for Lauren?iu than, say, his years in the hospital.
“What was your life like when you escorted?”
Lauren?iu thinks about it. A broad question. A lot more was happening than that job. He was still struggling to deal with his powers, realizing what he could do. Scale the sides of buildings. He could enter most residences uninvited, unless they were warded against vampires, like some churches.
“It was fine. It was a job. That’s all. Mostly wealthy men. No more degrading than the time I worked at a supermarket. Probably less.”
The men who were open about what they wanted didn’t bother him so much. The worst were the ones who he knew were hiding who they were, you can always tell. And you know that if you ever revealed what happened, they would get violent. People become cruel when faced with their shame.
That was the worst part, but it didn’t happen often. As he went, he learned how to read people, but still, they can surprise you. After all, he never expected Anthony, sweet, positive Anthony, to betray him.
“Wealthy men. Were there ever any women?”
Lauren?iu shrugs. “A few. It was rarer that they asked for my services, compared to men, but it did happen.”
“How did that feel?”
“I don’t mind being with women. It’s happened less, but it has happened. I like it, but outside of professional work, I don’t search for others.”
“Women? Or...”
“Anyone. Right now I’m focused on one thing.”
“Killing Anthony. And what then?”
Rain shudders and beats against the motel.
“The court in Hell isn’t so bad, even in Pandæmonium. I’ll just continue what I was doing there.”
“Is there anything else you want? Would want, if you imagine a world where you’ve gotten revenge?”
“I’m not sure. I’m used to taking everything a day at a time. I don’t split my focus.”
“Personally, I love thinking about six things at once.”
“I know you do.”
“Is there a reason you don’t want to think about the future after all this? Because it might be too much?”
“I’m not sure,” Lauren?iu replies. “It’s a lot to face when you have eternity.”
A hum. “Yes,” Paimon says, unusually quiet. “I find that Hell is often what it is, not because we’re facing our sins all the time, but because most of us don’t want to. If we did, we probably wouldn’t have ended up there. But I can’t say I regret it, either. We should be able to live as we want and be flawed, selfish, cruel, without fearing an eternal damnation from a loving God.”
God. Well, Paimon got to ask his questions... “What was your job?”
With a softness that makes Lauren?iu’s twinging heart skip, Paimon tells him, “I was the angel of art.”
