I leave Langdon's office feeling highly suspicious. I just figured out his whole plan. There is no way that he is planning on letting me go so easily. He also seemed to want an answer to the "worst thing I've ever done" question, and there's no way in hell I'm admitting that.

I'm too tired to shower, so I just go to pick out a nightgown. As I finish changing, there is a knock at the door. 

"I'm changing!" I yell. There is another knock. I roll my eyes and open the door slightly to see who's out there. "Are you deaf?  I said that I'm- what the hell?" A man dressed in a black rubber suit is standing there.

I suddenly remember how Evie told all the outpost inhabitants that the man who had sex with Gallant was in a black rubber suit.  "Oh shit, you're the guy that Gallant fucked," I scoff. "Hate to break it to you, but I'm not in need of those services." I go to shut the door, but he puts his foot in it. 

I scoff.  This bitch really has the audacity to keep persisting at it even though I am clearly not interested. "Listen, whoever-you-are, you need to leave," I insist, trying to slam the door. He still refuses to move.

"Okay, I know Langdon sent you, so why don't you tell him-" He suddenly shoves me backward and I lose my grip on the door as I stumble back. He enters my room and pushes me back before I can catch myself.

 "You bitch, get the fuck off of me!" I shout, kicking him back. While he's off-balance, I grab a vase and smash it into his head. 

 He stumbles backward, and I pull his mask off before he can stop me, wanting to see who the hell has the guts to be messing with me. Nothing could've prepared me for what was under it. The last thing I remember before fainting is the face of pure evil staring into my eyes.

......

I wake up to see Langdon standing over me and a broken vase on the floor next to me. I quickly remember what happened and scramble to my feet. "What the hell was that!" I yell through gritted teeth as I push Langdon back.

He stares at me, a satisfied look on his face. "It is very rare for somebody to be able to see the face of the demon I conjure," he states.

"That fucking... thing made me feel more evil than I would if I were staring Satan in the face!"

He simply chuckles and walks to the door. "I assume that I have now shown you what I am capable of if you continue to avoid my interview questions?"

I narrow my eyes. "You asshole." If this bitch wants to fight, then it's game on. "Fine. Let's do it now then," I say confidently. 

He raises a brow. "Now? You literally just woke up from fainting."

"And? What, you don't think I can keep up?"

With a shrug, he says, "If you insist."

We exit my room and walk down the hallway together. "How long was I out, by the way?" I ask.

"I woke you up 15 minutes after you fainted. You would've been out for the rest of the night if I hadn't woken you." 

"Do you know that from experience?" I ask skeptically. If he has knocked people unconscious with a demon before, that'll definitely be going on my list of grievances against him.

He shakes his head. "No. I just know."

"How? Actually, while we're on the topic, how does one conjure a demon?"

"Don't go asking questions that you don't want the answers to, Ms. Callistra."

Before I can argue, he opens the door to his office. As soon as we enter, I notice a laptop sitting on his desk.

"Where the hell did you get the laptop from?" I ask, staring at it skeptically. I haven't seen one since the day of the bombs.

"Ms. Venable lied about a few things, including the fact that laptops were unusable," he replies simply as he takes a seat in his desk chair.

"What else did she lie about?" I ask, sitting down across from him.

He shuts the laptop and smirks. "I believe I'm the one asking questions right now."

I roll my eyes and lean back in the chair. "Ask away."

"What's the worst thing you've ever done?" he asks.

I sigh. "Come on, why do you have to dive right in with that question? Ask another one."

He raises a brow, but he continues with another question.  "Did you have anything to do with David's disappearance?"

He fucking knows. 

With a scoff, I lean back and cross my arms. We stare at each other as I remain silent. 

"What, invoking the fifth amendment?" he mocks.

"How about my right to a lawyer while we're at it?"

He chuckles as he rises from his seat. He circles around the desk, then leans against the desk in front of me. "Ms. Callistra."

I look up at him, my expression emotionless. "Langdon."

"Don't make me ask again."

"How the hell did you find out?"

"I told you to not make me ask again."

With a smirk, I slowly rise from my seat. I uncross my arms, then step forward toward Langdon. I take another step and lean forward so that our faces are inches apart. I lower my voice, my smirk present on my face as I state, "I killed that bitch."

His face mirrors my amusement as he replies, "Ms. Callistra, murder is a serious crime."

I chuckle as I back my face away in the slightest. "Something tells me that my killing him doesn't bother you. If anything, you actually like it."

Although he doesn't reply, the amused look on his face essentially answers my question. "How did you kill him? And why?"

"The day before the bombs, he attempted to drug me at a company event. As soon as he arrived at the Outpost, I began plotting his death. I slowly collected sedatives from Mead, Venable, and the Fist's stashes of medical supplies. A few weeks later, I drugged his drink at dinner, figured it would be symbolic. He went back to his room because he felt tired, and by the time I snuck in the drug was already in effect and he couldn't move. I'll spare you the details, but trust me; the motherfucker suffered. I burned the body afterward, and I forged a note saying that he decided to take his chances outside. I even burned all his personal belongings and one of the hazmat suits to make it seem like he really left."

"You never told anybody what he attempted to do to you?" he questions.

"Nobody at the Outpost. I knew they would suspect that I killed him if they knew that I had any motive. How did you know I was connected?"

"Ms. Mead saw you engage in a fight with him when he first arrived. She had a few suspicions but no proof to act on them."

I shrug. "He deserved it."

Langdon nods in agreement.

As we hold eye contact, a sly expression creeps onto my face. "You love it, don't you?"

"What?"

"The thought of me killing David. Of me committing an act so cruel and brutal and enjoying it. You love that I'm sitting here right now telling you that I don't regret a thing I did to the fucker."

He smirks as his eyes scan me. He subtly bites his lip before immediately releasing it and letting out a breath. 

I realize after a few moments that he's not planning on replying, and I sigh. "You really need to verbalize your thoughts more - I can't read them."

"Trust me, even if you were a witch, you wouldn't be able to read mine."

"Is that what you are?"

He shakes his head. "No, and don't even bother asking what I am because I won't tell you."

With a shrug, I say, "Figured. Can you at least tell me some of your other powers?"

"Well, there are all the basics, like telekinesis, mind-controlling, balancing the scales between life and death-"

"Can you control my mind?" I interrupt.

He rolls his eyes and glares at me. After a few seconds, he furrows his brow. "I suppose not." He quickly regains his composure. "You are very unpredictable," he observes, completely changing the conversation. He leans forward as he whispers, "I'm not a fan of unpredictability." He continues leaning forward so that our faces are inches apart. This is a test, just like the hand in my face earlier. "What is your biggest fear?"

I shake my head, not in the mood to answer that question. "Get out of my face," I mutter, pushing him away. "I need a break."

"This interview is not finished."

I quickly regain my composure.  "I'm putting it on pause. I've had quite a long day," I declare as I walk to the door.

He disappears from where he is and reappears between me and the door. "I didn't mention transmutation in the original list of my powers," he says as he hovers over me. I'm tall, but he is still a few inches taller than me.

"Get out of my face," I say firmly.

"Your biggest fear is weakness, isn't it? You are doing everything in your power to avoid appearing weak," he continues as he caresses my cheek.

At lightning speed, I slap his hand away from me. No, this isn't a test anymore. I've made it clear that I don't like physical contact, so he's just trying to fuck with me. "Stop fucking with my head."

Shock flashes over his face, but he quickly covers it with his smug smile. "I hit something, didn't I?" he asks as he brushes the hair out of my face.

I roughly grab his hand and pull it away from my face. "If you don't let me go, that won't be the only thing getting hit."

He laughs dryly as he moves out of my way. "I look forward to our next interview."

......

I lean my head back against the edge of the bathtub, finally having managed to calm down. Langdon is really getting on my nerves; I'm about one straw away from attacking him with a dinner knife.  

Great, now I'm getting myself worked up again.  I sigh and push every thought out of my head as I allow my body to relax.  That is, until I feel something slide across my leg in the bathtub. 

 "What the fuck?" I gasp as I jump out of the bathtub. I quickly grab a towel to cover myself as I watch the water. Slowly, a snake rises out of it. "Holy shit," I mutter.  I quickly run for the door, putting as much distance between me and the snake as possible.

I grab the knob and turn it but the door won't open. I begin kicking and slamming it but it won't budge. Shit, Langdon must be messing with me again. That asshole is just asking for me to kick his ass.

 I scream for help, hoping that somebody besides Langdon can hear me; it's bad enough that I'm giving him the satisfaction of hearing my panic. I turn around as the snake makes its way toward me.  I realize that I'm going to have to move, so I back into the walk-in shower before closing the glass door once I'm inside.

The snake slams against the glass and I sigh out of relief, realizing it can't get to me. I lean against the wall, but then I hear an indescribable sound, almost like a high-pitched vibration. I look down and see the glass flickering, and then the snake slithers right through it. 

 "Holy shit!" I scream, banging on the shower door. It won't open, and I realize that I am stuck in this tiny, enclosed space with a snake.  "You've got to be fucking kidding me."

In a desperate effort, I use all my strength to launch myself through the glass, and it shatters all around me. I fly forward, unable to catch myself, and I hit my head off the bathtub. As I lose consciousness, the last thing I feel is stinging in my leg.