WARNING: This chapter contains content that includes rape and sexual assault, and violence. Again, like the previous chapter, I was a bit nervous writing about the rape part, but I hope it turned out okay for all of you.

When Maya woke up hours later, it was already sunset. Even though the bed was far from cozy and comfy, she still managed to have a decent nap and it wasn't the best sleep, but it was better than sleeping on a dirty mattress back at Victor's place in Lust or even on a dirty floor back at the abandoned slaughter house.

Looking at her phone that she picked up from the side table, she looked at the time on it, and it was 6:00 pm. She fell asleep at 3:30 after her client left, so she had a good enough rest before her job began. She still had enough time to get freshened up and ready for the night shift. Getting off the bed, she went to the bathroom and took a quick shower, then she put her clothes back on and applied a fresh set of make-up on her after drying her hair and brushing the tangles out.

She looked at herself in the mirror, checking herself out to see if she was ready to go. She was back looking the way she started in the day, and now she was going out looking the same at night. Back in Lust, her outfits were picked out by Victor along with the other prostitutes, but he wasn't paying hundreds for pricey clothes for women, even though he used most of the money for himself to buy stylish clothes for himself and fancy booze and cigarettes or cigars. But since they were staying here in Wrath for a while, he didn't mention anything about bringing a change of clothes or extras, and he wasn't wasting any money to buy new ones in Wrath for his girls.

After going over her looks one last time, Maya left the bathroom and saw the orange glow of Wrath's sunset outside the window. It was time for her to go to work. She left the room and headed downstairs. After reaching the ground floor, she left the motel and towards town. She hoped that tonight, she might earn enough money to please her pimp for a while.

Walking through the streets, which seemed a bit empty except for some people strolling around, some with a lover or just with a friend or two. Nights in Wrath didn't seem as busy as the other Rings of Hell, Maya guessed. After about ten minutes of walking around the streets, Maya decided to hang around an alley between the general store and antique shop. The least she could do for now was just hang around there and wait for someone to approach her or pass by.

The quiet atmosphere, with the sound of crickets chirping from a distance, made it feel a bit lonely to be standing by herself at night in this town. It didn't help that no one was close by or talking. She suddenly felt the urge to do something she hadn't done in a long time.

Sing.

Long ago, she used to love doing that with her mother Rosemary, who worked as a lounge singer for a casino her father and step-grandfather ran. But since she was with Victor, who for some unexplained reason hated hearing his girls singing, she couldn't sing; the last time she sang was when she first began as a prostitute, and when Victor caught her singing, he told her to shut up and leave that singing to the succubi, especially the ones working for him.

But she thought of a song that almost reminded her of a boy she once knew as a teenager who she thought she loved but cheated on her with another imp. Right now seemed like the perfect time to sing it, especially since no one, not even Victor, was around to hear her.

If you, if you could return

Don't let it burn

Don't let if fade

I'm sure I'm not being rude

But it's just your attitude

Is tearing me apart

It's ruining every day

This singing finally made her feel a little better. When she was younger, her mother taught her that sometimes, singing helps let go of your emotions, and it sure helped her at this time to let go of some stress and sadness she was feeling.

I swore, I swore I would be true

And honey, so did you

So why were you holding her hand?

Is that the way we stand?

Were you lying all the time?

Was it just a game to you?

She felt a huge weight lift off both her chest and shoulders as she sang. The heartbreak she felt years ago should have been there, but she was too relieved to even care about that emotion and felt happy to be singing without Victor telling her to keep her mouth shut.

But I'm in so deep

You know I'm such a fool for you

You got me wrapped around your finger

Do you have to let it linger?

Do you have to, do you have to, do you have to let it linger?

From far away, some people heard her singing, but they all assumed it came from the bars that played music for the patrons.

After waking up from his nap at the Watering Hole, Striker decided to take a nighttime walk around town. That nap he had was the best he's had in a long time, and sleeping in that bed was way more comfortable than that crappy one at the motel; the mattress from that bed was hard as a rock and too uncomfortable to sleep on, that he'd rather sleep on the cold hard ground than that one. The one at the saloon lodging, on the other hand, felt like sleeping on a bed of freshly shorn sheep wool.

Now that he felt less tired, he thought of taking a stroll before tonight's dinner special was hot and ready and he had a bigger appetite for it. He would have taken Bombproof with him, but the horse was already sleeping in his stall. Still, he could use some time to himself, and his horse needed some time to relax.

He always admired the night skies of Wrath, the sky being a dark red with stars glowing above. Once a year at Wrath's annual Harvest Moon Festival, the Goeita Prince Stolas would summon the harvest moon from the human world, making the Wrath sky even more beautiful. During his times travelling to the other rings for his job, he had seen how different colored the skies of the other Rings were, from the dark blue skies of Envy to the dark green ones of Greed, but he grew up loving the Wrath Ring's night sky.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of a woman singing from close by. Whoever it was, she had such a lovely voice, and it seemed to match the nightly atmosphere of the town. At first he wanted to keep walking and enjoy this atmosphere while listening to this beautiful singing, but at the same time, he was curious to know who was singing that song. He followed the singing down the road towards the source, but it stopped all of a sudden.

Still, he wanted to find the source of that voice. Since Maybelle mentioned it was open mic night at the Watering Hole, maybe he could pay her family back by getting this mysterious singer's voice a job there. Judging by the distance, he knew that voice wasn't too far away.

Maya was so caught up in her singing, she didn't notice a few men coming over to her.

"Thought we'd find you here." one of them said, trying to get her attention.

Maya snapped out of her singing and saw the imps behind her. Two of them were Buckwheat and Nails, the same men she encountered earlier for her services, and the third one she didn't know. He wasn't big and burly like the other two, but he still had some muscle in his arms, and he had two vertical scars over his eye, and he wore a grey tank top covered by a navy blue jean jacket, black torn jeans and brown boots.

"We saw you wandering around town, and thought maybe we'd try again?" Nails said with a grin, leaning against the wall.

Buckwheat added, "And this time, you'd better make it up to me for biting my dick earlier."

Maya just glared at them. Of all the men who would approach her tonight, she had to encounter these two and their little friend.

"I already gave you my services today, and I'm not getting into anymore shit because of you guys after making me please you in someone's business! Go find some other slut to fuck!" She tried to walk away from them, but the scarred imp, whose name was Otto, blocked her way by standing in front of her and leaning against the wall while the other two imps stood at opposites sides of her.

"C'mon, baby, what's the hurry?" he sneered. "It ain't like you got someplace to be tonight, or got anything to do other than just stand here all by yourself. Besides, I've been working my ass off in the fields all day long and my girlfriend also dumped me at the same time, and I need a little relief. Buckwheat and Nails told me that you're just the imp I'm looking for to help me relieve some stress."

"Go fuck yourself!" Maya glared, raising her hand to slap him. Before she could strike him, Nails grabbed her wrist. Maya tried to pull her hand back, but his grip on her was so tight, and he threw her to Buckwheat, who grabbed her from behind and wrapped his arms around her chest and neck to keep her from struggling to get out. He even put his hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming for help.

Nails and Otto came over to them and Nails said with a lustful grin, "Fuckin' ourselves won't be neccessary, bitch! We're gonna fuck you, free of charge, and I want that money's worth that we paid ya earlier!"

Maya realized what was about to happen, and she tried her hardest to get out of the imps' grasps, but these imps were pretty strong compared to her that it was hard for her.

"Dibs on her tits!" Otto said, closing his hands and opening them again to ready himself, and he grabbed the front of her dress and tore the top off, exposing her bare chest. Before he could lay his hands on her, Nails grabbed his shoulders and pulled him aside.

"Back off, Otto! I get the first fuck! You can get your dick sucked by her in the meantime, then you can have a turn." he said to him. He undid his belt and was ready to do what she knew he was going to do.

Despite her struggles, she wanted to give up and just get it over with. After all, no one was ever going to help her, anyway, so what choice did she have?

Just as she felt her panties getting grabbed from under her dress, someone else had arrived on the scene.

When Striker arrived at where the singing was coming from, he found himself across the street from the general store and antique shop. Both stores were closed for the evening, so there was nobody around. He knew the only places that were open were the Watering Hole and a few other bars until midnight.

At first he thought he was just hearing things when he heard that singing, and he was just about to turn away and leave until he heard a shouting in the alleys between the two stores. He squinted his eyes to get a better look, and he saw four figures in the shadows. He knew three of them were male judging by their shapes.

He could hear the sounds of a woman's muffled cries along with some lustful chuckles and comments on what they'll do. Judging by what was going on, Striker didn't like the sound of it. Taking out one of his pistols and his blade for extra measure, he approached the men in the alley. What he saw disgusted him.

Three men, two of them he recognized as the burly imps from earlier and a third one he didn't recognize, were about to rape a woman, and he saw the top of her dress torn off by the imp with the scar over his eye as the goateed imp held the female one and covered her mouth to keep her from screaming, and the tatooed imp was unbuckling his pants while the scarred one was about to put his filthy hands on the female's breasts. Striker recognized the female imp as the one he saw with them earlier and at the motel who tried to seduce him.

As much as Striker enjoyed killing his victims and watching them suffer, he couldn't stand the sight of this. After all, even a cold-blooded killer like himself had standards, especially when it came to women, whether they were his victims or something else. Not wanting to see the woman suffer like this, he came out of his hiding spot, his hands balled into fists.

"You dumb fucks have no respect for women, do you?"

Hearing his voice, the three imps looked over to see Striker standing at the end of the alley, his hands balled in fists and his eyes glowing with fury.

Otto sneered at him, thinking he was just passing by and wanting what he and his buddies were about to have. "Hey, screw off, pal! We saw her first! Wait your turn."

Buckwheat and Nails, the former still holding onto their prey, immediately recognized Striker, but this time, they felt only anger instead of fear.

"You again?" Nails glared. "You better get lost, pal! This is our business, and it's been unfinished since this mornin', and I haven't gotten enough pleasure from this bitch."

Striker sneered, "The way I see it, you vermin don't deserve any pleasure. Women ain't just playthings, you know."

"So now you're her knight in shinin' armor?" Buckwheat scoffed.

"No. But I am gonna teach y'all some manners if you don't let her go." Striker put his gun back into his jacket before stepping towards them. "So why don't we settle this like how real men do here in Wrath? Hand to hand fightin', no weapons."

The three imps looked at one another. If he was telling the truth, then there's no reason not to fight back against the one who intimidated them with a weapon if he was only going to use his fists. After all, even though he looked tough judging by the way he tossed one of them earlier, they still outnumbered him 3-to-1.

"Suit yourself, pal." Buckwheat sneered, letting go of the female imp and making her land on her knees. The three males began to make their move on their opponent.

Maya covered her naked chest with her arms and long hair to hide her shame as the three made their way to her savior. She knew this was her only chance of escaping, but she still worried about what would happen to this imp.

She watched as Buckwheat, the goateed one who held her, came towards the imp after cracking his knuckles. He tried throwing a punch at the imp, but he was quick on his feet and dodged him. Then with a swift punch to the stomach, the imp made him double over in enough pain to distract him so he could punch him in the face, knocking him off his feet. Buckwheat recovered quickly and tried to punch him again, but he blocked some of his blows and even grabbed one of his fists before bending it back. The imp howled in pain as the lighter colored imp collided with his head, almost knocking him out.

Otto ran over to him and tried to tackle him, but he just moved out of the way and made him crash into the trash cans. He grabbed one of the lids and tried attacking him with it, but he kept missing the imp. Then after missing him when his hit landed on the edge of a barrel, the imp then punched his arm, and a loud crack was heard from the bone cracking. The imp screamed in agony as he fell over.

Otto looked up at the imp and said with tears of pain, "You son of a bitch! You broke my arm!"

The imp grabbed him by the hair and sneered, "There's about 215 bones in an imp's body, not includin' tail bones. That was just one! Be grateful it wasn't your neck!" He then tossed Otto towards Buckwheat.

He didn't notice that Nails was right behind him, and he took out his switchblade. With the imp's back turned on him, this gave him a chance to strike him and give him a little payback.

The imp let out a painful roar when he felt a sting in his back, and Nails grabbed him by the bandana around his neck as he dug his switchblade deeper into the imp, black blood escaping his wound. He said to the imp with a nasty grin, "You forgot the first rule about fightin', cowboy; never turn your back on your enemy."

Maya, who was watching everything, gasped in horror as her eyes widened at what was happening. Her savior had been stabbed, and she didn't know what would happen to him next if he got stabbed in the heart or even got his throat slit. She had to do something to help him. Looking around for something to attack his enemy and save him, she saw a metal pipe near the garbage cans.

She grabbed it and ran over to the two imps, and she hit the burly imp hard on the back to get his attention. This distracted him long enough to let go of the imp and he turned around to stop her from hitting him again. She managed to slug him in the face with the pipe, but before she could hit him one more time, he grabbed her by the wrist and threw her towards the wall.

Maya felt a searing pain in her back when she made contact with broken glass from a window that had been replaced in the store earlier and was leaning against the wall. She screamed in pain as she gripped her shoulder, unable to reach the wound on her back as black blood began staining her dress and the ground. She could only lay down on the ground as Nails came over to her.

"Should've ran when you had the chance, baby." he said, kneeling down to her level and grabbing her by the hair. "Now, where were we?"

He pushed her against the wall, and she could hear the unbuckling of his belt and the sound of his zipper coming down. Maya knew what was coming, but she knew it was no use trying to fight back. Someone got hurt because of her, and now, this is what she deserves for trying to protect someone who tried to save her.

Maya closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable to happen and accept her fate. But just before he could get started raping her, Nails felt something wrap around his neck and he started choking. Looking behind him, he found the lighter skinned imp wrapping his arms tightly around his neck.

"Son of a bitch! How are you still standing?!" he said in disbelief between his chokes.

The lighter imp chuckled, "I don't give up easy, especially not without a good fight. Plus I said we should settle this without weapons. But I guess you didn't listen." He squeezed his arms tighter around his neck until he was close to passing out. He let go of Maya, making her fall to the ground.

She was close to passing out from the pain in her back, and she only watched the burly imp get punched in the face multiple times before her hero kicked him towards his buddies. She began to lose consciousness as he approached her, wincing in pain from his wounds and wiping the blood off his hands, and she felt herself getting lifted off the ground and being carried as everything went black.

Helluva Boss belongs to Vivienne Medrano aka Vivziepop, and Maya belongs to me. Kind reviews are all I ask.

Song used in this chapter: Linger by The Cranberries (Lena Hall cover, to match the voice actor choice I have for Maya)