He grins at me, and it makes me realize that Havoc just got a little crazier. Everyone he sleeps with he throws away, so why is he doing this?
“Havoc, go into the other room,” I say as I decide that if I can’t unhinge his hands, I can squeeze through them. I start sliding down Havoc’s lap as his hold tightens and I’m left hanging from his grip. His arms are around my chest, my shirt pulled up enough to show everyone my stomach. “Havoc, I swear to heaven and hell. Let me go.”
He pulls his hands free, and I hadn’t realized how much I’ve been pulling against them because I fall to the ground with a thud. Havoc laughs as he gets up and just leaves.
Why I ever wanted to be with that man, I will never know.
“Don’t ever dabble with demons,” I say as I get up. “The power of summoning another being stronger than you can imagine, with emotions and desires such as his, is… purely stupid. A wise man, even if strong enough, summons a lower demon. They are less intelligent and less deadly. Only a fool makes a contract with one like Havoc. And I’m a fool.”
“I don’t see you as a fool. You clearly can control him,” Sam says.
“See, it’s a relationship of give and take. Complete control, and Havoc would hate me so much he’d look for loopholes, figure out ways to screw me over. Kill me if he could. But because I treat him like a human and give him enough room to do as he wants, he listens to me.”
“I understand.”
Right here is a normal man, a handsome man who is nice and kind. A relationship with him would have to be better than me longing for something I’ll never have.
Even so… if there’s even a chance… “Anyway. Sam, thank you for the offer of supper but with everything going on right now, I’m going to have to decline. I would like to try and keep my mind focused,” I say.
“I understand.”
“But thanks for the offer,” I say with a smile.
“Well, I need to get going.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow. Lieutenant Johnson wants us to help him with something.”
“Alright, see you then.”
He leaves but before he’s even completely out of the door, Havoc is beside me.
“What?” I ask.
“Just making sure the asshole left.”
“Go find some woman to bother.”
“You’ll have to do,” he says as he tips my chin up like he’s going to kiss me again. When I don’t lean into him, he cocks his head and gives me this sexy grin that makes me want to climb into his arms and let him do dirty things to me.
“What exactly are you doing? Marking your property? Playing with something new? I thought you never had sex with the same person twice?” I ask.
“I don’t,” he says as he kisses me. This time I lean into him. I slide my fingers into his hair as the kiss deepens. Just as soon as I tell my brain to stop this nonsense, I let myself get swept back up into his touch. I could kick myself for letting this happen again and again.
I pull back and glance up from his lips to find his eyes watching me. I press myself into him and can feel his cock against mine.
“If you don’t sleep with the same person twice, then we are keeping this the same way?”
“Of course. I will never sleep with you twice.”
***
When I wake up, I notice Havoc is staring at me. I roll over to look at him as he grabs me and shakes me.
“What exactly are you doing?” I ask.
“I feel sick inside,” he moans.
“Demons can’t get sick.”
“My body is rejecting this.”
Mine should be too. “Me?”
“Yes.”
“Then get out of my bed,” I say, even though I don’t want him to go. I have this stupid war raging inside me as I try to convince myself that it’s just sex. I can keep sex and emotions separate. “You’re in my bed. And let me remind you that it was your idea to have sex again.”
His hand slides down and cups my ass, ears clearly not working or listening.
“Nope, not going to happen,” I say as I push his hand back.
“I have already committed a grave sin by having sex with you twice. I might as well get my fill,” he says as he pulls me toward him. Even though I want to give in and get my fill as well, I know it’ll make it harder to convince myself this is just fun sex.
“Nope, I’ve had enough of you for one day and I just woke up. I have things to do,” I say as I get out of the bed.
Havoc looks over at me and growls. “You’re rejecting my offer? I have women groveling at my feet for a second fuck from me, and you reject a third?” he asks.
“I have things to do, Havoc.”
His eyes narrow. He’s growing irritated, and I can tell he’s trying to draw me in with some weird aura that has all the women coming back, but it doesn’t even touch me.
I walk up to him and for a moment I can tell he thinks he’s won until I grab his chin. “Do not forget who I am, Havoc. When I say I’m busy, that means I am busy.”
He growls at me, and the lights in the room dim before growing dark. “Then I will find someone else to fuck.”
This is why I shouldn’t deal with him. This is why I need to pull back now. “That is your option,” I snap as I walk from the room. I don’t want to walk away, I want to go back to him, talk him into staying with me, but I can’t. I need to walk away while I still can.
He grumbles something as I head into the bathroom, but he’s clearly not done because he follows me inside. I grab my toothbrush as he watches me with his arms crossed like that will persuade me to jump into his arms and onto his dick. I brush my teeth as I stare back at him before spitting the toothpaste out and heading through the door. I get changed and walk downstairs with Havoc still following.
My phone rings as I walk down into the café. “Hello?”
“Miles, this is Lieutenant Johnson, we need to speak with Rehna, but we’re having trouble getting in touch with her. We’re not sure if something happened, and that is why we can’t reach her,” he says.
Rehna is the boss of this district and has been for about forty years now. She mostly stays to herself unless her people need something. She prefers to work from the sidelines, allowing people like Johnson and Sam to handle the minor issues. A lot of people appreciate her for that since there are tales of districts with bosses who suppress their people. “Alright. I can help.”
“I’ll pick you up at ten?”
“That’s fine,” I say as I head over to the counter and grab a cup and pour myself some coffee. My café is already in full swing at eight in the morning. Today is Baron and Yoko’s day to run the place since I took care of it the previous day, so I’m free to help Johnson.
I grab my list of orders from behind the counter and head back to my workroom.
When ten comes around, I walk toward the front door, and Havoc falls in line behind me. He’s still annoyed with me and wants to make sure I know he’s annoyed by glaring at the back of my head, even as we get into the vehicle waiting for us with Johnson and Sam inside. Instead of sitting near me, he yanks the front door open and barks for Lieutenant Johnson to get in the back. He hesitates, but a smidgen of him is scared of Havoc, so he complies while acting like he totally doesn’t care.
“Head to Wicker Woods,” I say, and Sam complies as Havoc turns his annoyance off me and onto Sam.
Now he’s thinking the reason I refused to sleep with him is because of some feelings I have for Sam. Which doesn’t even make sense. Then again, Havoc rarely makes sense. Sam is terrified, but I don’t care enough to help him and continue playing on my phone.
“W-Where do we park?” Sam asks.
I glance up. “Just pull over somewhere.”
He quickly does, probably with the hopes of getting out of the vehicle quickly. I get out of the car and walk toward the woods as the rest fall in line behind me to get as far away from Havoc as they can.
Havoc sighs as loud as he possibly can, in case I�
�ve forgotten about his pouting.
“You’re such a child,” I say as I grab Havoc by the arm and pull him up beside me. “Knock it off.”
He growls but walks beside me.
“Havoc,” I say sternly. “You know if we enter the woods with any ill intentions, she will not see us. Why are you annoyed with me?” He looks over at the others, so I grab his arm and pull him back. “Excuse us for one moment.” I drag him back toward the car so no one can hear us talk, and face him.
“Is it him? He the reason why you don’t like me?” he asks as he nods at Sam.
“If I liked him, I would have gone out to dinner with him,” I say. “You only want sex from me, so what does it matter, Havoc?”
“Because I don’t like sharing.”
“Havoc, for three hundred years I’ve been yours, and you’ve been mine. Why do you think that has changed? You have been the only one there for me since the beginning. Look at it through my eyes,” I say as I set my hand over his eyes and toss him back into my memories of when I was twelve.
I walk into the room my master has led me into and stop suddenly. I can feel the power rippling all around me and it makes me feel ill, but Master Geoff is smiling. He’s enjoying it.
In the middle of a summoning circle is a demon kneeling before us. He raises his head as he notices Geoff’s presence and grins. His fangs are instantly noticeable, and I want to step back and flee, but I also want to reach for him. Grab him. Touch him. I’m mesmerized by the power the demon holds. He rises to his feet and towers over me. But I’m not scared of him or at least not as scared as I should be. Instead, I am awed by his power, and I feel a hunger to hold onto that power.
“Kneel,” Geoff growls, but the demon is unfazed.
He’s naked, covered in welts, wounds, and blood, but he has no intention of listening.
“Kneel,” Geoff orders, but the demon doesn’t even flinch. “Milliant, watch and learn. You can control any demon, no matter how powerful.”
The demon is bound, but Geoff grabs a whip and begins beating him. It’s wound in magic so with each strike, it pulls away patches of skin. But the demon never flinches and I marvel at his strength. How can he not show any pain or fear of this horrid man? But what I notice even more is that with each hit, Geoff grows angrier that he is getting no reaction from the demon that is bound to the circle. My entire essence reaches out for him, wanting to grab onto something for the first time in my life. His eyes touch mine, and for some reason I smile. The demon’s eyebrow rises as it tries to read my reaction.
Geoff continues to beat the monster until he’s bleeding, but still the demon won’t kneel. For some reason, I feel my feet move on their own as I walk up to the demon and set a hand against his chest as my eyes stay captured by his. He’s watching me carefully and with my skin against his, I can feel the power the demon possesses, and I want it all for myself. I want to wrap my spirit around it and claim it.
Geoff hits me with the whip, and I fall away from the demon with a startled cry. I look over at Geoff a moment before he begins beating me. “You dare allow yourself to be captured by the demon?” he growls.
But he doesn’t understand. I wasn’t captured by the demon. I’m drawn to it. I want to control it, set it free, so it can do my bidding and tear Geoff apart, piece by piece. The demon starts laughing. He understands my sick desires as Geoff beats me to submission.
I look up at Havoc. “None of that has changed,” I say. “None of the feelings I felt that day have changed. I have never desired anyone as much as you and I never will. You are mine now, whether you like it or not. Are you happy?”
“Can we go back and watch him beat you again?”
I snort. He’s such a sarcastic ass. “If we can watch him beat you first.”
He just laughs.
“Why do I even care about you?” I ask.
“I honestly don’t know,” he realizes as he acts like he’s thinking very hard. “Ah, that’s right. Because I’m unbelievably handsome.”
I quickly hold a hand over my mouth. “Don’t make me vomit.”
“I can’t wait until you cease to exist, and I can feast on your soul.”
“I’m going to make sure I die somewhere you can’t reach me,” I say.
“You’re not allowed to see other men.”
“Don’t be difficult.” And don’t make me believe there might be something more there.
He glares at me as I turn to the woods and start walking into it. I hear the flap of wings and look up as two gryphons descend before me. They’re beautiful creatures with lion-like bodies and bird-like heads raised far above me. Havoc instantly draws his sword, but I calm him with a hand on his chest. There’s a woman on one of their backs, who is watching us carefully. Her skin has an unhuman shimmer to it, and her hair is so light it looks transparent. I know that she is a celestial being, but that is the extent of what I know about her. She started tagging along with Rehna before I knew her, and the rumor is that she could keep Rehna from ever aging. Rehna’s body is human, so she should have continued to age, yet she never has. I also saw Rehna heal remarkably fast the last time she was attacked in my presence. Rehna herself has no healing abilities, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this being has been caring for her.
“I wish to speak with Rehna,” I say.
She gracefully slides down off the gryphon and walks over to Sam. Even though she’s completely naked, her long hair hides her bare form.
“Is your hair taped over your tatas or something?” Havoc asks curiously.
She slowly looks over at Havoc and I realize I should probably get a shock collar for him or something like that.
And of course he’s not done. “I mean… I was watching real close as you slid off that bird thing and not even a glimpse of a nipple. It was impressive.”
She cocks her head slowly like she doesn’t understand Havoc, and I sigh. But honestly, none of us understand him either.
“I apologize on his behalf,” I say as she turns her head away and returns to Sam.
Havoc leans in close to me so his mouth is next to my ear. “You think you can summon the wind just to give me a sneak peek?” Havoc whispers.
“She is a divine creature, and you are treating her like she’s a sex toy!”
“She’s naked.”
“Shut up,” I hiss.
I look over and see that everyone is watching us, so I just smile and wave her on, hoping she’ll continue or put some clothes on or something.
She runs her fingers over Sam’s face but doesn’t stop walking. Her hand slides off and the tips of her fingers touch Johnson’s face as she moves to Havoc. She hesitates with him but keeps walking until she touches me.
The moment she touches me, she stops and turns her attention to me. Her free hand reaches up until she has one hand on each cheek and is looking right up into my eyes.
“Let me into your mind,” she says softly. My ears don’t recognize her language but somehow, my mind is able to comprehend her words. Which must be some kind of ability on her part because I haven’t invested too much time in a magical translator.
“Tell Rehna it’s Miles,” I say.
“Rehna knows who it appears to be. But appearances can be deceiving. Let me into your mind,” she says.
Fuck.
“You might not like what you see,” I warn her.
“I have seen a lot. Let me in your mind.”
I hate opening up my mind, even though I know I could kill her without moving a muscle. She knows it too, and that’s why the gryphons are nervously pawing. I drop just a fraction of the barrier on my mind, and her eyebrows twitch. She leans forward and softly presses her lips to mine. I drop into her mind the moment she goes into my own, so I know what she’s looking at. I need to make sure it’s not something specific, but it’s not. She’s flipping through the memories that make up my mind like she’s flipping through a book. The only time there’s hesitation is when she reaches one of my darkest memories. I can fe
el her flinch when she touches a memory with Geoff. Then when I sold my soul to Havoc. Another when I murdered twenty people in thirty seconds. Then when I killed Geoff. She winds through my memories until she reaches the moment we are now at, and I realize my entire lifetime has just been reduced to thirty seconds.
She pulls her lips away and looks up at me. “His death brought me happiness,” she says.
“Ah, me as well,” I say as she drops her hands.
“Follow,” she says as she steps away on bare feet and slides back up onto the gryphon’s back.
“Why did you get a kiss and none of us did?” Havoc asks.
“Even I’m kind of jealous about that one,” Johnson jokes.
I give Havoc a wink. “I’m special.”
Havoc huffs.
The gryphon begins to walk, and we fall in behind it. The ground has turned from thick brush to a stone path as we are led straight to a shrine. A small animal-featured boy opens the door, and we step inside the completely furnished shrine.
Rehna is there to greet us. She’s a woman who looks like she could be anywhere from twenty to forty. She’s very average-looking, yet everyone is drawn to her. In some way, it feels like her power is what makes her attractive to others. She is a paladin, but most of her power comes from her exceptional abilities with a lance. It doesn’t matter how long the lance is, when she is wielding it, she moves with the grace of a dancer. She also knows some small spells such as a barrier, but nothing extensive.
“I apologize for all of the inconveniences,” she says as she hugs me. “One of my own had been possessed and tried to kill me.”
“Same here,” I say, and she looks at me in surprise. Her green eyes are wide as she watches me. Her hair is pulled back tight into a bun, telling me she had probably been sparring before we interrupted her.
“Who even knows your whereabouts?” she asks. “Most people don’t even realize who you really are.”
“That’s what we’re going to figure out. This is Danny Johnson. He’s with the special units part of the police department as well as Sam Diaz. They are trying to find answers to the fifteen deaths, all nonhumans or users, that occurred on September 10 at the same time. They found a letter on each body dealing with the Velmah de Rizen,” I say. “Do you know the name?”
Happy Endings Page 7