Where the Devil Says Goodnight

by K. A. Merikan

  The sky created a backdrop for the dark crown of hair on Emil’s head. Whether that made him a demon or an angel didn’t matter, because Adam would worship him nevertheless.

  Emil nipped on Adam’s bottom lip and pulled, but he reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled something out. “I’ve never wanted anything this much.”

  Adam inhaled Emil’s fresh scent, his throat aching in hunger. He’d bite into Emil if he could. Consume him. Bury him inside his body so they’d be together forever.

  When Emil’s slippery fingers reached between his buttocks, Adam still had no doubts about wanting this, even though flashes of helplessness inside his own body passed through his mind, trying to encroach on the beautiful moment he lived now. What happened that night months ago no longer mattered, because tonight, he was capable of making a choice, and he trusted Emil completely with both his body and heart.

  Emil’s gaze settled on his face, sweet, warm, searching. It gleamed with the love Emil had confessed to him last night before Adam foolishly pushed him away because of fear. He wouldn’t let that dirty emotion rule him ever again.

  Everything became clear for once. Adam wouldn’t help Emil settle down someplace where he could find people who understood him. He wouldn’t give him away to another man. They wouldn’t live in separation and only meet up in secret. Emil was his. His.

  “I want to be with you forever.”

  Emil’s desperate little gasp, the way his brows furrowed, and how he wouldn’t even blink, too focused on meeting Adam’s gaze told Adam all about the depth of emotion in his lover.

  “We’ll make it work,” Emil whispered, kissing him again, and as Adam’s toes curled in response to the intimate touch between his buttocks, he imagined them riding Jinx together, Adam working at the stables, their tiny apartment somewhere in the peaceful Bielany district. A picture-perfect life they could share.

  Despite this barely being Adam’s second time under Emil, his body was eager as if it had already gotten addicted to this, and he moaned at the touch of Emil’s fingers insistently rubbing his hole.

  “We must,” Adam said, crippled by the anxiety of having to leave Emil behind. Adam wouldn’t stand for it. They would leave Dybukowo together, so that Emil would never have to spend another lonely hour in this godforsaken place. “We met for a reason. I can feel it.”

  His body felt ripe, ready for plucking, and he opened his thighs wider, grabbing Emil’s hand and pulling it closer, until one of the digits popped in. He groaned his pleasure into Emil’s lips, and there was no more room left for waiting.

  Emil’s eyes widened, his movements grew more erratic as he drove his finger in, then another, and kept up a steady rhythm that left no doubt about the fact that they were indeed fucking. But Adam wasn’t a man of the cloth right now. He was a man of the flesh.

  “It’s gonna feel so good,” Emil mumbled against Adam’s cheek, scratching him with stubble.

  “I want you to tell me as it happens. What does my body do to you?” Adam whispered, grinding his hips against Emil’s hand as the friction at the entrance to his hole turned into red hot flames. He wanted more. Wanted Emil’s cock inside him, no matter how much he’d feared it just last night. It was as if an invisible chain in his mind had been shattered, leaving space for all the freedom they wanted.

  Emil's pupils went wider, and Adam could sense something opened up in him as well before his lover even said a word. “You make me lose humanity. With you I’m just a beast who wants to drive deep inside its mate.” His nostrils flared, and he pulled out his fingers, climbing on top of Adam and folding him in two. His cock was already dripping pre-cum when it slipped over Adam’s eager opening. “I want to mark you. I want you flushed, moaning, and begging for cock. It sounds so illicit coming from you.”

  The air Adam breathed in was like the sweet fumes of hell. He grabbed Emil’s head and forced it down until their lips met while he rubbed his ass against the hard cock. Everything about this moment was primal, as if they were the only beings left in this vast wilderness that existed to serve them. And when Emil grabbed his cock at the base, ready to enter, Adam realized there was no place more fitting for this than this fertile forest swarming with life.

  A single push was enough for Emil’s cockhead to breach the tight channel, and even though it caused mild discomfort, Adam welcomed the sting with open arms. He wanted it to feel intense, and if the whole spectrum of the experience came with a bit of pain, then so be it. He returned the favor by biting Emil’s lips.

  “Yes,” he whispered, arching his back off the blanket, only to drop when the thick length pushed on, opening him. There wasn’t much force to its glide, but the farther in it went, the shallower Adam’s breath became, until he clung to Emil, neck twisted back as he gasped, experiencing pleasure incomparable to what he’d felt the first time.

  In the present, he’d made a choice and took responsibility for all it implied. If the sex satisfied the demon inside him, then so be it, but this moment was for him and Emil. They were together the way they were supposed to be, and Adam wouldn’t dream of fighting it anymore.

  Emil grabbed Adam’s thigh, holding him in place despite both of them knowing Adam wouldn’t be going anywhere before he got his fill. Their lips met again in a hurried, greedy kiss that fueled Emil’s excitement, making him move with more vigor.

  Adam looked up at him, relishing the long locks cascading down Emil’s arm to caress Adam’s face as they moved in a slow yet firm rhythm. He was overwhelmed by the sense of fullness, but each thrust eased something inside him, making him less tense, less afraid of the unknown. There were issues he needed to deal with if he wanted to be with Emil, truly be with him, but those could wait, because all that mattered now was the confirmation of their love.

  Adam held on to Emil’s neck and closed his eyes, focused on the new sensation of Emil slamming into him time and time again. He had no regrets, and no shame left, floating on the surface of desire and proud that of all the men, Emil chose him.

  Emil’s skin wasn’t cool anymore. They were both fired up, and Adam’s whole being wished to wrap around Emil like a boa constrictor and never let him go.

  In this position, his cock ended up trapped whenever Emil leaned in to kiss Adam, and each time it happened brought him closer to orgasm, until their tongues knotted together and Adam could no longer ride the wave. It carried him to the shore, washed over him, and left him a glorious mess.

  There was something different about his climax this time. His worries were gone, wiped away by the force of nature that was Emil, and as he came and his hole squeezed around the rock-hard cock inside him, for a moment he forgot why he’d resisted this in the first place.

  No sizzling sounds or the smell of burning skin followed, so he relaxed, holding on tightly as Emil thrust his cock in a few final times. Their bodies throbbed in unison, and when Emil gasped, resting his weight on Adam, the only regretful thing in Adam’s mind was that they’d have to part soon. A new day was beginning, and they couldn’t stay in this state of perfect harmony forever.

  He refused to look away from Emil, holding his gaze as the strong body above his shivered, warm and sweaty despite the cold. “That’s it. I can feel your cum inside me, and it’s so good,” Adam whispered, not even ashamed of how much he was baring his thoughts. They were safe with Emil.

  “I marked you. Now you’re mine,” Emil rasped, collapsing on top of Adam and scooping him up with his arms.

  “Yours,” Adam whispered, unwilling to think of the consequences.

  The trees above sung, welcoming them into their kingdom.

  Chapter 20 - Adam

  Adam awoke to bright sunshine coming in through the small window of his room. The heat surrounding him all over was a reminder of the closeness he and Emil had shared on a bed of leaves and wool, as the sky dome lit up with colors. They had been so exhausted afterwards they likely wouldn’t have made it back to the parsonage if it wasn’t for Jinx, but the beast carr
ied them home, where they stumbled into the single bed that was too narrow for two men. Unless said two men enjoyed hugging each other.

  As day slowly pulled him out of slumber, Adam realized Emil no longer held him close, and he missed the tight fit of their bodies just like he missed Emil’s cock inside him, even thought they’d only had sex a couple of hours back.

  He opened his eyes.

  Emil made the prettiest picture by the window. Wearing just the pajama pants from earlier, he faced the sun, which played with his tangled hair as the little knife he was using to cut up an apple reflected the rays straight into Adam’s face. The sweet scent of the fruit reached Adam, and he stretched with a contented sigh, watching the small bowl fill with bite-sized chunks.

  Emil glanced at Adam, and his lips split into a wide smile. “Good morning.”

  “Is that your version of a breakfast in bed?” Adam asked and rolled over to his back, like a cat eager for belly rubs. Would Emil take the hint? They’d taken the room keys from the kitchen cupboard when they arrived and locked themselves in, so they might as well take advantage of the privacy.

  Emil laughed, flexing his tattooed arms a little bit. “No, it’s an offering. You don’t have one in your room. Better safe than sorry.”

  Adam’s lips fell, and he sucked in air as he stared at the bowl, at once both terrified by its presence and excessively salivating. “No… why would you do that after what happened last night?” he asked, his limbs stiff as wooden branches.

  Emil frowned. “It’s exactly why I’m doing it. This entity told you your god has no place in this valley. He might be some kind of spirit who used to be worshipped here, and whether he is Chort or something else, he must operate on rules preserved in folklore. Until we work out how to get rid of him, you need to find… common ground with him. Appease him.”

  “I don’t think attracting him is such a good idea. You think he hates me because I’m a priest of a different God?” Adam whispered, sitting up on the bed and letting his bare feet touch the floor. Its cool surface was too soothing for words and helped Adam steady his agitated heart.

  Emil put the bowl in a shadowy corner on the floor and sat next to Adam. “Why do you think he hates you?”

  The question was so unsettling Adam had to force himself not to shift farther away. He could sense something cool at the back of his neck, as if it were the demon’s breath. “Why would you suggest he doesn’t?”

  “You told me yourself that he forced you to do things you already wanted. He didn’t make you go on a murderous rampage.” Emil kissed Adam’s temple, as if he knew his words might be aggravating, but his lips felt cold and Adam flinched away.

  “That’s not how I see it. I wasn’t ready. What happened later was in spite of him, not because of him,” he said, rising from the bed, unable to keep still with emotions creating a tangle inside his chest.

  Emil grabbed Adam’s hand and brushed his lips against the cut on his palm. “I just don’t want you hurt again. You know the saying. When you step among crows, you have to caw.”

  “I don’t want to be in his company or caw,” Adam said, reluctantly pulling away his palm. This whole thing was too much to process.

  Emil got up too and gave him a hug. “We’ll work it out. In the meantime, let’s just keep him happy.”

  Adam rubbed his nose as he watched Emil pull on a T-shirt. “Are you telling me, a priest, to become a devil worshipper?”

  “Not ‘worshipper’. Let’s say… friend—no, reluctant ally? I’ll go see if breakfast is ready.”

  Adam wasn’t hungry, but he could barely hear his thoughts while Emil was at his side, so he nodded and offered him a faint smile.

  He got another brief kiss before Emil unlocked the door and left Adam with a profound sense of confusion. Hadn’t Emil seen what happened last night? Wasn’t he concerned that the demon made Adam walk around naked, wound himself and smear his blood over a weird rock in the woods? Why was he so content all of a sudden? Especially after his house burned down just yesterday.

  Adam was getting a nasty itch he couldn’t explain. Something in this room wasn’t as it should be, and he looked around, unable to identify anything out of place. Well, except for the bowl of fruit, but while strange, it wasn’t the source of his discomfort.

  His mouth dried with the need to go outside and have a drink of something cold, but he kept on watching the walls, which appeared distorted, their lines the tiniest bit crooked, as if they were alive and might slam into him at any second.

  He was not going crazy. He was not.

  The floor called out to him, the patterns of the raw wood inviting his touch, so he slid to his knees and faced the bed, slowly tuning to what the space was trying to tell him. A strange scent pulled at his nose and his gaze followed a line of sunlight pointing into the shadow under the very spot where he’d slept since arriving in Dybukowo. He moved his hand along that elusive arrow all the way under the bed where his fingers met something that shouldn’t have been there.

  He didn’t want to look at it, but as he picked up the small wooden figurine with a lock of hair pulled through the chest, his thumb found its face, and then the horns on the tiny head.

  “No.”

  Just when Adam allowed himself to believe he’d found peace, his world collapsed onto itself once more. Emil had told him he’d burned the figurine. Adam could swear he’d seen it alight and smelled the burning hair, yet here it was, staring at him with the red smudges it had for eyes.

  A sense of absolute dread set root in Adam’s flesh when he spotted a long strand of dark hair on the uncovered sheet. It was as if the universe was pushing the answer at him. The one answer he wanted to ignore no matter how much it made sense.

  Emil seemed awfully happy for someone who’d lost everything less than twenty-four hours ago, but it was his relaxed attitude about the fact that Adam sleepwalked all the way to the Devil’s Rock and made a blood sacrifice that should have set off alarms. And it would have, if Adam wasn’t so devoted to him. So hopelessly, stupidly bewitched by a man who was manipulating him with promises of love.

  If Emil really cared for Adam’s feelings and sanity, he would have done everything in his power to help him leave first thing in the morning, take him away from the clutches of a power neither of them understood. Instead, he entangled Adam in a false sense of security and clouded his judgment until staying seemed like a viable choice.

  A terrifying thought shot through Adam like lightning, charring love and trust. Could Emil have put the figurine under the bed? Could the loving face obscure a side of him that wanted to keep Adam tied to this place, forever a slave to the devilish forces that overpowered Adam’s will with such ease? Could he have caused the possession in the first place?

  Adam had always despised the way some villagers gossiped about Emil being a Satanist just because he wasn’t like other people his age, but what if there was a grain of truth to it that went beyond Emil’s band T-shirts and long hair? Emil could be Adam’s greatest blind spot since Adam was so desperate to believe him. If he ignored his own hunch and it then turned out to be true, he’d be the greatest fool in history. Even if not the first to suffer because of ill-placed love.

  When Emil came back in, Adam was still on the floor, but he squeezed the figurine in his hand to hide it. He didn’t want to believe what his mind suggested, but if, possibly-maybe, Emil dabbled in black magic, Adam couldn’t let him know his suspicions yet.

  Emil smiled at him and put two mugs of tea on the side table, irresistible with the dark hair cascading down his chest. Adam didn’t want to believe the smiles and loving touch, or the endless patience he’d offered had been only a front, but the fact that he so desperately didn’t want something to be true didn’t mean it wasn’t.

  “Mrs. Luty’s in a weird mood,” Emil said.

  “Weird?” Adam uttered.

  “Yeah. I kind of expected her to be angry over us oversleeping, but she was all charm. Maybe that grandson of hers jus
t got engaged or something? Are you okay? You’re pale. You should eat, let’s go.”

  “Am I?” Adam asked and dragged himself up, glad that the walls and floor were back to normal.

  He wondered whether he shouldn’t take a shower first but decided against it when his stomach rumbled, and the scent of the cut apple teased his mouth into salivating. He put on a T-shirt and nodded, leading the way to the dining room.

  “Father Adam!” Mrs. Janina had the widest smile for him, and she hurried past him, pulling out the chair as if he were incapable of doing it himself. “How kind of you to take Emil in for the time being. The moment you arrived in Dybukowo I could feel we had a good one on our hands.”

  Had she used the wrong berries in her jam and was now tripping? “Oh. Well… I just did what was right. Everyone needs a helping hand once in a while,” Adam said and sat, discreetly watching Emil wink at him from behind the housekeeper’s back.

  “Do you want anything hot? Scrambled eggs? Pancakes?” she asked, as if the feast laid out on the table weren’t extravagant enough. She even popped open a fresh jar of her homemade mustard. “And you, Emil? You must be feeling terrible after what happened last night. For as long as I live, there will always be a meal and a bed for you here.”

  Emil sat next to Adam, and despite Mrs. Janina’s presence, the whole scene felt weirdly domestic. As if having meals together each morning might become a new routine. “Thank you, it means a lot, Mrs. Luty.”

  She smiled, resting her hands on her hips. When both of them insisted they would settle on what had already been prepared, Mrs. Janina remembered she had a cake—Adam’s favorite plum sponge at that—in the oven, and walked off, leaving them in stunned silence.

  “What is going on?” Adam asked, glancing at Emil, who already helped himself to some cold cuts of meat, as if this wasn’t the strangest morning in living memory.

  Emil rolled his eyes. “Maybe she woke up to what a pity party I am. You won’t see me complaining.”