by R. M. Walker
"What are you?"
She smiled. It was a slow and devious smile. Heavily calculated, as if every centimeter her lips ticked up was a point in her favor. "Now isn't that the million-dollar question."
Her eyes stayed trained on mine as she settled her expression into a more neutral one. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her, and in a flash, they changed. For the quickest of seconds, her eyes became a stunning aquamarine before changing back to their normal brown just as fast.
I startled in my seat, causing a low chuckle to erupt from her.
"What are you?" I asked again, awe evident in my voice. "I have to know."
"Why? Because I know what you are? What your friend over there is? What you've been doing?"
My eyebrows furrowed as I leaned forward towards her, almost as if there was some kind of gravitational pull that forced me into her personal bubble. "I don't know what you mean."
She turned slightly in her seat, finally getting comfortable. "Oh, I think you do. You said that you wanted to be friends, yes? Well, friends don't lie to each other. They also don't give each other false names. Now, how about we start with some truths, and then maybe, I'll tell you who I am, and why I'm here."
A low growl rumbled through my chest that shocked me, but she only smiled patiently, picking up her glass to take another sip. A small part of me wondered what it was she was drinking.
She drained her glass and placed it down. "While you're thinking about my offer, you can order me another drink. Which way is the bathroom?"
Struck speechless, I pointed down the hall off the right of the stage. Elegantly, she rose and walked away. I looked down at the seat she vacated to see that she'd left her purse. It would be rude of me to go digging through its contents to find out more about her, but a part of me didn't care. A larger part of me begged me to see reason.
I was still in the club. The club where I was well known. It would do me no good to be seen rifling through a woman's purse who I'd just met.
With a deep calming breath, I signaled Éloi for another round and drained my glass. This woman was going to be the death of me, I could already tell with just our short repartee. But what a helluva way to go.
Éloi came over shortly after I called for him, bringing two new drinks with him. He looked down the hall that led to the bathrooms before claiming a seat on the edge of the booth.
"So? Is she one of us?"
"She is." I swirled my drink around in its glass. "Tell me, Éloi, have you ever met a supe who could change their eye color?"
"Your eye color changes when you use your powers, if you’re not careful. You know that."
I shook my head. "No, I mean a completely different color."
"No one can do that."
"She can."
He looked at me with narrowed eyes just as I caught a glimpse of her coming back down the hall. "She's back. I'll find a way to get her to stay."
"She's really shaken you up, hasn't she?"
"I'll take that as a compliment," she said, retaking her seat and picking up her glass. "Thanks for the refill."
He nodded at her before shooting me a look I couldn't decipher. "We'll be closing early tonight. Last call's in twenty."
"What a shame," she murmured, her eyes darting back and forth between the two of us.
"Indeed it is," Éloi commented before standing from his seat and walking away.
She chuckled lowly. "He really doesn't like me."
"I wouldn't say that," I murmured.
"You don't have to." She shrugged. "Well, have you decided?"
I turned in my seat to face her head on. She didn't shy away from direct eye contact, didn't battle me for dominance. Just stared. Which meant she wasn't a shifter. So what was she?
She gave me a way to answer all of my questions, but did I really want to enter into a bargain with someone I didn't know. She could be a djinn for all I knew. They thrived on making deals. I supposed there was only one way to find out.
Extending my hand to her, I reintroduced myself. "James Turner."
She smiled as she placed her smaller hand in mine. "Illaria Strong."
"What are you?"
"Ah ah ah, not so fast. You don't expect me to just give you all of my secrets, do you?"
"I suppose that would be asking for a lot," I replied, pulling my hand back. "Let's start with an easier one. Why are you here?"
"Looking for you, I'd wager."
"Why?"
"You're very sloppy with your disposal. Leaving the humans where their loved ones can find them."
"I highly doubt they had any loved ones."
I winced as I confirmed her theories. Éloi was going to kill me.
Some part of me expected her to do the same, or at the very least threaten to. But all she did was smile.
"No, I don't suppose they had many. But a few of them did. They are the ones who found the bodies after all."
"How do you know all of this?"
She took a slow sip of her drink before answering me. "It's my job to know."
"And who do you work for?"
"The Underground."
The Underground? "Never heard of 'em."
"You wouldn't have," she said flippantly. "What's the point of a secret organization if everyone knows about it?"
"And you work for them? This secret organization? As what?"
"Whatever they need of me. Recruiter, cleaner, problem solver. I'm a woman with many talents."
"So I see."
I threw my hand over the back of the booth and regarded her intently. The recruiter and problem solver part didn't bother me so much as the cleaner part did. What exactly did that entail?
"Penny for your thoughts?"
"Are you here to kill me?" I asked bluntly.
"I might be," she answered evasively. "I haven't decided yet."
"And what would be the deciding factor?"
"Your reasons for killing those humans, and whether or not you planned on continuing to do so."
"Well, you obviously know what I am," I commented. "I can't very well go against my nature."
"No," she agreed. "But since I do know what you are, I know that you don't have to kill to stay alive."
"Those people didn't deserve to live."
"Maybe not. But who are you to decide their fate?"
"Who are you to decide mine?"
"The protector of the innocent.”
I scoffed. "Those people were hardly innocent."
"Perhaps not, but they didn't deserve to be cut down by an enemy they had no hope of defeating."
"You so nobly defend the humans," I sneered. "Would you say the same for a human wanting to squash a bug?"
"If the bug served for a greater purpose."
"And what purpose do humans serve for us?"
For the first time she went quiet, contemplative. She had a strange look in her eye that I annoyingly wanted to wipe away. Just when I thought I had her stumped she responded. "To remind us what it is to be mortal. Finite. To remind us to be better. That's their purpose."
6
Illaria
Leave it to me to get philosophical with a murderer. Although, in hindsight, I suppose we can all be accused of murder, no matter the reason. Even a justifiable killing can be considered murder to someone who doesn’t paint in the same shades of grey. I rather like painting in shades of blue, but that’s a whole other topic.
Regardless, there was something about the Incubus in front of me that made me want to convince him to stop, if I could, instead of killing him outright. Maybe his victims hadn’t been good people, but neither of us could claim sainthood either. We were supernaturals. Abominations by nature, if you believed the religious bigots. There were many religious sects in the world who believed that supernaturals or people with any kind of advanced mental capacity should be nailed to the cross and burned for their sin of being born. For being more powerful then they.
Should I go out and slaughter them all just because I could? Or
would I just be proving them right? Would an overzealous demonstration of power turn those pro or ignorant of supes against us? Wouldn’t it only be creating more enemies?
While I didn’t particularly like all humans, I respected what they represented. The part of myself that I’d thought I would lose once I found out about my supernatural heritage. If anything, they just made me appreciate my human ancestry even more.
I knew that I couldn’t convince this James guy to come dance in my shades of blue with a pretty little speech, but maybe I could make him rethink the way he went about things. Make him question if his choice was the only choice. I really didn’t want to have to kill him. I hated senseless killings of supernaturals. But I would if I had to. I’d kill him, his friend, and every other supernatural in this club to wipe the slate clean and insert an Underground team to monitor the humans.
So what if they lie, cheat, and steal? When doing it to each other, they’re on even ground. When a supernatural steps into the game, it’s no longer fair. And if it stays unfair for too long, it will eventually become an Underground problem. Which means it will become my problem.
While protecting the innocent is nice, keeping supes out of the human spotlight is even better. I’m sure one day that’ll change, but until then, any threat to the secrecy of supe kind has to be dealt with swiftly and with little mercy.
“Cat got your tongue?” I asked into the silence. The band had started to play softer notes as the patrons slowly exited the club. There was no need for me to pick up my things and leave. We both knew I wasn’t going anywhere until this matter was settled.
“You really do care for them?” he asked in a surprised whisper, his bayou accent curling around the words seductively. Even when he wasn’t actively trying to seduce me, his powers still came out to play.
Such is the way of dealing with soul stealers.
“I care about keeping them alive, and keeping us safe.”
“Us?” He raised a dark brow as he lifted his drink to his lips.
“Yes, us.” I rolled my eyes, taking my own drink. “Supernaturals. How do you think the human police are going to react if people keep popping up dead in their homes? It won’t take them long to find out this club is the only common denominator.”
“Excluding their dishonorable choices in lifestyles of course.”
“Of course.” He really made it difficult for me to not just kill him. “Bottom line, tonight can go one of two ways. Either you agree to stop, and mean it. Or you don’t and you die.”
His head tipped slightly to the side. “And how would you know if I kept my word? I could just clean up my disposal methods.”
“You could,” I agreed. “But do you really want me back here in a not so pleasant manner because you thought you could get away with it?” His silence urged me to continue. “Look, James, you seem like a decent guy with only slightly questionable morals, so I’m going to level with you. I came here tonight with the intent to kill whoever it was that was behind the murders.”
I gave him a moment to realize how serious I was before continuing. “I have no qualms, whatsoever, with continuing on with my task. Not even your little empathetic friend could stop me, no matter how sharp his knives are.”
His eyes widened as I turned to look over my shoulder. All of the patrons were gone, as were the band and the staff. The bartender with the grey eyes, Éloi, stood behind the bar sharpening a small knife like he would a razor. The feel of the scene we’d found ourselves in was so medieval, I had to stop myself from smiling.
I turned back to James and lifted a brow.
“Knives don’t intimidate me, and I’m far from stupid,” I said to Éloi, not even giving him the respect of speaking to his face. I knew if he could, the bastard would toss that knife straight through my heart for threatening him and his little friend. I didn’t care. I had a job to do. “Now, why don’t you put the knife down, grab a bottle, and come have a drink with us.”
I waited a few moments for him to realize he wasn’t going to get out of this without joining us.
A few seconds later, he took the seat opposite me with a scowl fixed firmly on his face. If he had a problem with people giving him commands, he probably should have entered a different profession.
"As I was telling James, I came here with the intent to kill whoever was behind the murders. However, after meeting you both, I'm hoping we can come to some kind of understanding."
"And if we don't?" Éloi asked haughtily.
"Then I'll do what I came here to do." The firm expression on my face left no room for miscommunication. If we didn't settle this like adults, we'd settle it like the murderers we all were. But only I would be walking out alive. The two against one odds didn't phase me as much as having to kill two supes who seemed to only want to do good for their community. I could commend them for that, but there were better ways to go about it.
They shared an indecipherable look for a moment before James turned to me with a strange gleam in his bright brown eyes.
"I think I have a solution," he said. I took a sip of my drink as I nodded for him to continue. "Éloi and I, we're both sexual beings at heart. So why don't we settle this sexually?"
"You want to have sex with me?" I asked without inflection, keeping my face expressionless while all I really wanted to do was laugh in his face.
He was an Incubus. Of course, his answer to his little murder problem would involve sex. I barely held back an eye roll as he smiled.
"It wouldn't just be me." He looked to Éloi as if waiting for an outburst of some sort. When all he got was a raised brow with narrowed eyes, he turned back to me. "You're obviously immune to my powers, so to even the score a bit, you'll have to have both of us."
"Afraid you can't accomplish whatever it is you seek to on your own?"
He shook his head. "Not in the slightest. But I won't leave him out."
"How admirable." This time I did roll my eyes. "So, what exactly will me having sex with the both of you accomplish?"
"We'll think of it as a race," he said with a smile. "If we can get you to orgasm first, then we'll continue on here, business as usual. Without any further interference from you or your organization."
I raised a sharp brow, interested at his proposal. It wouldn't be as easy as he thought. "And if I get you there first?"
For the first time since he sat down, Éloi spoke up. "Then you have my word that the killings will stop. We'll find another way to bring them to justice."
A part of me wanted to say that killing them without a trial wasn't exactly justice, but without knowing the exact reason why they chose their kills, I held my tongue.
"So," James spoke up. "What do you say?"
I shifted my gaze between the two of them before settling my stare on Éloi. He would be my first victim. "We doing this out here, or do you have somewhere a bit more appropriate?"
Out of the corner of my eye, James jerked in his seat. He didn't think I'd agree. He had another thing coming if he thought a little meaningless sex was going to turn me away.
I turned to James. "Problem?"
"Not at all." He drained his glass and motioned for Éloi to leave the booth.
Following his lead, I slowly sipped the rest of my drink, turned my legs out of the booth, and stood. "After you."
James looked at me for a moment, as if he couldn't decide what to make of me before shaking his head and walking down the hall that lead to the bathrooms. I briefly wondered what was in the hallway on the other side as I followed him, Éloi bringing up the rear. He led us to the back of the hall where I noticed an unmarked door earlier on my bathroom trip. He opened the door and stepped inside, leaving me no choice but to follow.
Behind me, Éloi turned on the light, revealing a plain room with barely any furnishings save for a large bed and a chaise facing it off to the side. The snick of the door locking barely concerned me as I turned to face Éloi, completely ignoring James. Let him stew in his overconfidence.
I t
ook light, delicate steps towards him, placing my hands on his firm chest as I placed a light kiss on his lips. From the widening of his eyes, I'd say he wasn't expecting that. I gave him a wink as I started to unbutton his shirt, diving in for another kiss. I could’ve easily changed his emotional state if I wanted to, but the satisfaction of having his body turn against him without my influence would be far better.
With all the buttons on his shirt undone, I moved my lips across his cheek. He started to chase me. I held back a smile as I let him catch my lips, letting my fingers graze the hard planes of his chest. His breath caught as I moved down, lightly stroking the short hairs around his belly button. I nipped his bottom lip as I went down further, hooking my fingers into the waistband of his pants.
He dove in with a fierceness, finally wrapping his hands around my waist to pull me in closer. A hard bulge pressed into my thigh as a presence settled in behind me. James.
Ignoring him, I released the fastenings of Éloi's pants and let them drop to the floor. I palmed his length through his underwear, eliciting a moan from him. A second pair of hands settled on my hips and drifted down as a hard length pressed into my ass. I tore my mouth away from Éloi to warn him.
"I wouldn't go much further if I were you."
Éloi moved his lips to my neck as James responded, "And why is that?"
"Lift the skirt slowly and you'll see." I tilted my head to the side to give Éloi better access as I pushed down his boxers and took his shaft in hand.
He moaned into my neck as I stroked him from root to tip, all while James slowly inched up the skirt of my dress. He whistled softly as the daggers strapped to my thighs were revealed.
"You really meant to kill us," he remarked.
"I don't lie," I said around a moan as Éloi found a particularly sensitive spot.
Éloi hummed low in his throat as he nipped the spot again, causing me to speed up my strokes. It took a lot more than a sensitive spot on my neck to get me to cum, but he'd succeeded in turning me on. That, I didn't expect.
His lips left my neck as his breathing increased. "Your hands are magical woman," he groaned.
I smiled and tightened my grip, lowering my other hand to cup his balls. "I know."