On the last day of her life, Kat woke up with hundred dollar bills clenched in her fists and two hot men curled up on both of her sides.Was she in heaven? she wondered. Since money and men were two main requirements of her ideal nirvana, she considered saying yes to her own question. However, a quick, more thorough sweep of her surroundings proved her wrong.Well, first off, the men snoring on either side of her were too provocatively dressed to pass off as angels. Unless of course the new fashion trend was black latex briefs and studded leather harnesses, which she was sure they were not.Also, there were no clouds, just pink and blue neon lights dancing on the textured ceiling, burning her crusty eyes. Instead of harps being played, a hip-hop song was being blasted on a loop, its cranked-up bass making the place hum. The vibrations reached the circular couch she was sprawled on, and it did nothing to ease her headache. If anything, the rumble made her realize where she was and what

"Your death is overdue," Mr. Michaels recited as he reached for Kat. "Hell is waiting for you, Katalina Donovan."Kat couldn't be more perplexed, but she also couldn't be more pressured. Because of this, sharp instincts she didn't know she possessed had taken over her body. Instead of screaming (which was her go-to response to dangerous situations), she grabbed her rock-hard pillow, smacked Mr. Michaels across the face with it, and lobbed it at his crotch for triple damage.

Kat's go-to principle in life is to keep fighting. Keep struggling. She always told herself that if she'd go down, she'd go down swinging.She tried to stay true to that now, with the blade of Calix's spear pointed at her throat. Oh, she was scared, but there was no way she'd just give up.Calix felt her need, her fear, but forced himself to hold his position. He didn't wa

The sunlight slanting through the windows became gray. The walls were washed in black. The only things visible were the outlines of the watercolor frames, the dim glint of the metal knobs, the faint silhouettes of Kat and Calix facing each other. It was as though a drop of ink had fallen into their world, casting a darker shadow over everything it touched until the whole scene was in black and white. It should have scared Kat, but it didn't. She was too livid, too indignant, and it made her believe that the darkness was coming from her.Meanwhile, Calix was frozen in his spot, his eyes flicking around as though searching for something. She expected him to be scared out of his wits because of what she'd done, b

Darkness enveloped the surroundings, immediate and sinister, settling over everything like a thick, hazy grayscale filter. The music had slowed to the point that the tune was nonexistent. The falling pipes were frozen midair. The hands of the clock in the distance were unmoving.It seemed that time had stopped, but Kat and Calix were unaffected. They exchanged dubious looks, her face pale and nervous, his pink and bright. The event clearly injected life into him, but it made her not want to move. Not y