My Devil Employer and Other Stories

By Erin Miller

How was I to know that the devil was a woman? Aw well, time to work!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Erin Miller
• Release date: Jan 4, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005966942

Erin Miller

This is Erin Miller’s second novel, and again she explores her character’s mental and physical problems as they relate to each other and to the main plot. Erin has always enjoyed creative writing, having previous short stories published and judging writing competitions. She is a qualified Teacher of English, has three children, and lives in the Sussex countryside with her husband and many rescued animals.

Book preview

My Devil Employer

and

Other Stories

Erin Miller

Copyright © 2022

All rights reserved. No portion of the book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any other information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

Contents

Part 1 - My Devil Employer

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Part 2

Animal Charm

Shit, I’m a Vampire

The Mystery of the Beast

The Frog Key

Magic User

Lila

The Tale of Rolio Pentdragon

Glossary

Part 1

My Devil Employer

Chapter One

Inever expected the devil to be a woman, like me. Heck, I never expected there was an actual devil. I wasn’t religious in life, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to start now that I was dead. Gazing upon the devil herself, I was aroused. She was smoking hot! I’m talking well-toned body, shoulder length wavy black hair, deep blue eyes, skin-tight red leather pants and a bra that only emphasized that nice hourglass figure. Her outfit reminded me of those skimpy female devil costumes you see advertised in party stores and such, but who was I to judge? Yes, she had the wings protruding from her back, the small horns on her forehead, slightly hidden by her bangs, and of course a tail. Still, it’s not every day you die and then get to have a one–on-one with the devil herself.

You must have a lot of questions, she said, ignoring my completely lascivious gaze on her body.

Ain’t I dead? I asked stupidly.

The devil woman sighed. I glanced around and saw we were the only ones standing there. Where in the hell were all the other tormented souls? More importantly, why the hell was I here to begin with?

You are in the seven layers of hell.

She approached a golden throne and sat upon it. I wanted to laugh at all the stereotypes playing out before my eyes: the rocky path above tongues of fire we were stood on, and the things appearing out of thin air, but I held myself in check. Obviously, she needed something from me or I wouldn’t be here. I couldn’t imagine what she would want from a dead person, however, so I waited for her to answer the unasked questions. Instead, she laughed.

Seriously?

I’ve been keeping tabs on you, she said. I liked what I saw and now I want to give you a chance to work for me.

I raised my eyebrow. She liked what she saw? I was a deadbeat, going nowhere in life, and when the sickness hit, it consumed me. My lover left me before the sickness took hold but in hindsight, I don’t blame her. I can be selfish sometimes but that was neither here nor there. Wait, was I here because I was gay?

You’re not in hell because you’re gay, the devil lady answered my thoughts. You have a potential in you, that sadly couldn’t be tapped into until after your death.

What exactly can a lost soul such as myself do for you? I asked incredulous.

I need an underling. Someone to do my dirty work if you will.

So, you want me to kill people? Is that it?

Not kill, no. You see, hell is overcrowded with sinners and I want to take my torture to the next level.

Go on.

I want seriously guilty people to live for all eternity for what they have done. Do you think you can handle that?

So, no playing grim reaper.

You’re hilarious. You will have a sword, but instead of dealing death, the sword will deal eternal life.

Is the pay good? I asked without thinking. Hey, I needed to have some decent compensation with this new job. Wait, can you still get paid if you’re dead?

You will have your own place, the devil laughed. You’ll be resistant to fire, have eternal life, and the benefits that go with that, if that is what you mean by payment for your services.

I thought for a moment. The cost of living was extremely high, so if the pay wasn’t wonderful I wasn’t getting anywhere.

Even in death, I could still be such a failure, huh?

You haven’t watched much of the human world, have you? I asked.

Do you want the job or not? If not, I can send you to one of the seven layers of hell and you can be tormented for all eternity.

The job sounds wonderful!

I thought so, she said and stood up.

Approaching me, she handed me a manila folder. I took it, glanced it over, and