"Get in your fucking room." Valentino shoved Verina into the bedroom. It was as she had left it, but it didn't feel like home. It never had, really.

She went and sat on the bed, saying nothing, keeping her head down.

"Oh, she's back." Vox muttered. His voice was dripping with rage, and ae stepped into the room and stared at her. "What the fuck did you do?! You told me you were making progress!"

"...he, um... rejected my advances, and..."

Vox shook his head and sighed. "Why? Why did he reject you? That's the one thing you're good for and you can't even do that anymore?! Stand up and look at me, you lousy bitch."

She stood up and looked at him. He towered over her, and her stomach dropped.

"You wanna know something, Verina? I never wanted you here. I never have. You're not on any of our levels. The only reason you're here is because Valentino wants a piece of your ass and you're the only one smart enough to not sign his stupid contract. You mean absolutely nothing to me, and now all you've done is prove how fucking useless you are."

"Why keep me around, then?! Why not just- just kick me out, tell me to fuck off? Why let me be one of the Vees?"

He laughed. "Do you know how pathetic you sound? Did you seriously think anyone viewed you as our equal? Come on. Your whole technique to get anything done is sex. It's all you know how to do, strip off and let your body do the work, and it's absolutely pathetic. Seems like even that's failing you now, though."

Her eyes glossed over with tears. "So what, you don't think I'm worthy of the respect I have? The fear?"

"Oh, sweetheart, are you delusional? Nobody fears you. They definitely don't respect you. You're not one of the Vees, and you never have been. You're just a girl who's lucky she's pretty."

She sniffled. "You're calling me pathetic, yet you're the one who sent me to kill Alastor. Just because you're too much of a pussy to go face him yourself."

Vox paused, seemingly glitching for a moment. "What did you say?"

"You can't even go fight Alastor yourself. You sent me because you know exactly what would happen if you went."

He backhanded her across the face then. She went silent. "Don't fucking disrespect me, little girl. I'll abandon you on the streets and then what will you do? You can't go back to that stupid hotel, they won't take you. You'll be back where you started, begging people to fuck you just so you have a bed for the night. You're lucky I'm even talking to you right now, do you understand me?"

His words stung her chest and a tear fell down her face, head still reeling from the slap. Her anger was bubbling inside her, but she knew arguing would just worsen the situation. She nodded, looking down. Vox grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him.

"I said, do you understand me?!" his voice raised suddenly.

Verina flinched and nodded. "Yes, sir." She whispered.

Vox let go, chuckling softly. "Good girl. Don't worry, I'm sure whatever you deserve will come to you. Have at her, Val."

As Vox walked off and left Verina with Valentino, her stomach sank. This was her punishment. Alone in a room with Val.

***

"Angel, come on. You need to focus on training. The extermination is coming really soon, and it's gonna have to be a group effort. Even if the cannibals have joined us."

Angel, who had been distracted, heard Vaggie address him and nodded. The revelation of her past had been allowed to be a bygone, now they used what Vaggie knew to their advantage.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just a little distracted by... you know. Everything."

"I warned you all. But nobody wanted to listen." Oxie sighed.

"...I can't stop thinking about how Val hit her. I mean... who knows what he's doing to her right now? What all of them are?"

Alastor cocked his head. "Are you really concerned about the well-being of that traitorous little wench?"

"You guys don't understand. I know what she did was wrong, but I get the feeling somethings off about this whole thing."

"Whatever she's going through right now is not an issue we can focus on. Anyway, she's a horrible person." Oxie responded.

"We're in Hell. Like... literal Hell where the horrible people go. Don't take this the wrong way but I don't know what else you expected." Cynthia said.

Charlie sighed. "That's a dim outlook."

"Oh, to be honest, I'm kinda waiting on one of you to do something awful." She responded.

Oxie shook her head. "So you're going around not trusting anyone? Not even your friends?"

"...well, again... we are in Hell. I'm just saying, it wouldn't surprise me."

"You forgetting you landed yourself in Hell too, Cyn? You don't have a clean record even though you clearly think you're on some kind of superior plane of morality." Oxie replied.

"Hey, don't speak to her like that!" Sir Pentious butted in.

"Right, let's take a break. We're all upset, and... and we can't go into battle like this." Charlie said. Vaggie gently squeezed her hand. "Let's just... let's just come back to it tomorrow."

"Sounds like a good idea, babe." Vaggie smiled.

Everyone agreed and walked off in separate directions. Angel followed Oxie.

"Oxie?"

"Yeah?"

"...I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. You were right, and... it's a good thing nothing bad happened. But can I just say something?"

Oxie shrugged. "Yeah, alright."

"...I really have a bad feeling. I know what Val is capable of when he's angry, and I doubt Vox is any better. I know, I know she's a horrible person for working against us, but...she told me some things that make me think that she's... vulnerable."

"Vulnerable? What do you mean?"

"I mean... it's not my place to share what she told me, but... well, it'd be safe to assume she's vulnerable to being manipulated. And I have a feeling that's why she's involved with the Vees at all. I just... I can't imagine what they're doing to her right now."

Oxie listened and sighed. "I know it's hard, Angel. But it's not our problem."

He sighed softly and nodded. "I guess you're right."

She smiled and nodded, hugging him quickly. "Let's go get a drink and take your mind off it. Husk is ogling you." She whispered.

"I won't complain about that." He whispered back.

***

After Verina punched Valentino in the face, shit went down.

She didn't see how she had much choice. She had been cornered in her bedroom, the past flashing in her mind, and desperate to protect herself, she swung a punch.

Val had staggered back in shock, and stared at her for a moment. Both were slightly stunned and unsure what to do, until he had swung back and fisticuffs broke out.

Pretty soon after, Verina was locked in her room, cold, abandoned, and unloved. She thought of her room in the hotel. The sound of laughter from just down the hall. It was the closest to belonging she had ever come.

God, she just wanted to belong somewhere.

Being loved was her number one dream, yet in that moment she wished she could exist in a space and feel as if she wasn't taking up space she didn't own. She wanted, for one fucking moment, to feel as if she was more than a body.

A lump in her throat formed, and she broke down into tears.

Verina hadn't cried like this in years: sure, there'd been tears at the hotel, but this felt like a blinding pain in her chest. Deep, pained sobs made their way out as she buried her face in her knees, body jerking. Goddamn it, why didn't anyone love her?

She was 2 years old when she acted in her first movie. By the time she was 4 she had already been violated. She grew up thinking that was normal. Just like a visit to the dentist.

She shook as the memories taunted her. She would have wished to return home if home existed - instead, she was left wondering how it would feel if she had just been born into a normal family.

Instead, all she got was an abusive set of coworkers and a never ending feeling of anxiety and yearning.

She could hear Vox and Val now, talking angrily. She sniffled, wiped her eyes, and opened her window.

She was on the bottom floor. She could run away pathetically easily. Where would she go? She wasn't sure; but she couldn't stay here.

Taking a deep breath, she slipped out and ran.

That's when the skies opened and exterminator angels started rushing down.