Dark Hauntings: A Paranormal Times Novel

by C C Solomon

  I sighed and dropped my shoulders.

  Nadia waved a hand in front of me. “No, no. Give it some time before you answer. I don’t see why you think you’re better off with the fae. Do you think you’ll be any more accepted by them?”

  Okay, she had a point there, although I hadn’t actually killed Misandre. I hadn’t even been present when she’d been attacked. But I was still friends with the people who had killed her. I really needed to pick my allies better, but Misandre’s killer was a good friend to Felix, and I couldn’t exactly turn my back on him. Beyond my own confusing feelings about the man, he’d also fought by our side when demon supporters of Alister had attacked Nadia’s home. I hadn’t even asked for his help. He’d just come to our aid like he’d owed us something.

  I released my reddish brown hair from the ponytail and ran a hand through the strands in annoyance. I was not much of a demon—which I was fine with–- if I cared about things like loyalty. There was nothing binding me to Felix. I could easily distance myself from him and his friends so I’d have a better leg to stand on when I came for Misandre’s throne.

  Yet, the thought didn’t feel good in the pit of my stomach. Guess that was the Unseelie side of me.

  “I have a payment to collect,” Nadia began, heading to the door. “Come with me and check out my work. Maybe this is something that could interest you now that we know you’re part demon. You could work the crossroads like me.”

  I’d never seen Nadia at work. I think, in part, it was because I didn’t want to see my bestie as the demon she really was. I’d made mental exclusions in my head about who were okay demons and who weren’t. Having been around enough demons, I’d encountered a handful that really weren’t evil. They were simply a product of their nature. Not all of us chose who we’d become. Nadia’s fierce loyalty to me and support as a friend definitely made me question the nature of demons. Well, some.

  When Nadia said she would collect a payment, I hadn’t quite been sure what she’d meant. But I had been certain it wasn’t going to be the two of us walking into an orgy in a South Beach mansion.

  To clarify, we teleported inside the mansion that belonged to Zach Coles, the popular movie star. The fact that he was still popular even in a post-apocalyptic world was a credit to his talents. In the past couple of years, movies were being made again, and humanity started to see symbols of what we used to know ten years ago.

  Zach was not only a star of action and romance movies, but was also a sex symbol. His face and body were all over the internet.

  In that moment, though, I saw all of that body, including his pale behind while he pumped in and out of some random woman on his California king bed. On either side of him, naked women purred for his attention. In other parts of his gigantic bedroom, couples or trios were getting it on in all manners of sexual positions. If I had pearls, I would have clutched them.

  Sexy pop music flowed through the scene from some hidden speaker. The room, bigger than an average one-bedroom apartment, was filled with the sounds of moaning and grunts, and the smell of sex was thick in the air. I wanted to crack a window. Instead, I waved my hand in front of my face, but that did absolutely nothing.

  I leaned into Nadia as we stood in the middle of the room, looking very out of place. “Did we have to pick right now to show up?”

  Nadia pulled a bit of lint off of her fire engine red fitted suit, looking nonchalant. She actually looked like a badass in her suit, which popped against her deep bronzed skin, and six-inch patent leather black heels. Her eyes were done up in a smokey style and her deep brown hair was slicked back in a high, braided ponytail. I felt like her bodyguard in my dark jeans, combat boots, and black leather jacket. I wasn’t used to seeing Nadia look so polished, but she had definitely stepped up her style game since becoming a Queen of the underworld.

  Nadia side-eyed me with a smirk. “Now’s as good a time as any.”

  I looked across the room at a woman receiving oral sex from a man between her legs and looked back to Nadia with a raised brow. I was sure that woman would disagree.

  Nadia clapped her hands and the music stopped. Actually, everything stopped.

  Zach paused his thrusts to look around at his frozen companions. “What the hell is going on?” he yelled, removing himself from the woman in front of him. He turned to face us, and his blue eyes widened in horror. He ran a nervous hand through his strawberry blond hair, which was damp with sweat. “Nadia, what are you doing here?” he asked with a nervous twinge to his voice.

  She lifted her shoulders with a smile. “Just came to collect my payment.”

  He moved to the edge of the bed. “Has it been ten years already?”

  “Oh, I think you know it has. Now, we had a deal. I kept you comfortable in this scary new world since you’re a human with no magic, and in ten years, you either give me a soul or I take yours.”

  Zach crossed his legs, thankfully covering his junk, and swung his hands out to the side, trying to regain his composure. “Well, as you can see, there are plenty of souls for you to grab here.”

  That dick. He was going to try to sell out his friends to cover a crappy deal he’d made. While I usually didn’t concern myself with the treachery of humans, especially since I’d stopped being one of them, that didn’t mean I didn’t judge. Most humans with no magic had proven to either be impressively resilient in these times or disappointingly disloyal. They could be as bad as demons. And yes, I realized I was half-demon.

  Nadia chuckled and stuffed her hands in her pockets. “Now, Zach, you know that the soul you give me has to be a willing one. Who here is the willing soul?” She made a grand show of looking around the room, twirling.

  She was loving this, I could tell. Seeing her like this was entertaining.

  I could hear Zach gulp as he scratched his head. “I still need to confirm some things. Just give me a little more time.”

  “And you know I don’t give extensions.” She clasped her hands together. “Look, no one lives forever, even us humans-turned-paranormal will eventually die. Even if our life span is considerably longer.”

  Nadia took a step forward.

  Zach froze.

  “You had a good time, didn’t you? You didn’t age. You stayed in great health, lived comfortably while those around you either died from paranormal sicknesses or some other unfortunate circumstances. You never went hungry or cold. You had ten years to find me a willing soul.”

  I leaned into her again. “Excuse me, but what idiot is going to give up their soul to help someone else out willingly?”

  Nadia tilted back to me. “Well, there’s more to it. I would make another deal with that person and Zach would get ten more years. Then he and the new soul both come to me. No extensions that time. So, you see, only a few get that option.” She tsked at Zach. “You should feel honored I gave you such a deal, and yet you still failed to secure me an additional soul. What a waste.” Her usually brown eyes flashed bright gold.

  Zach fell to his knees, unconcerned about his nudity. He clasped his hands in front of his chest. “Please, Nadia. I’ll do anything. Just give me a little more time. I almost have a soul for you. Time got away from me. I didn’t even realize it was so close.”

  That was part of the trickery of a crossroads demon. Humans would make a deal and then forget about it until it was too late. They’d worked so hard to draw the right demonic symbols and to bring the perfect offering to conjure the demon, had signed the contract in their own blood, and then found themselves all wrapped up in whatever wish they’d demanded in exchange for their soul.

  It sounded like an awful deal for anyone with full awareness of the afterlife. Even if a person lived all those years righteously, their soul wasn’t getting into heaven or whatever utopia they believed in. Instead, they were going to the underworld, or Hell, as it was known in many religions. That was for all eternity. Ten years didn’t seem worth it for whatever torture they’d be subjected to forever. Yet, desperate people made desperate
deals. Honestly, I didn’t think most people believed there was a Hell and thought the whole matter was a joke.

  What an awful way to learn the truth.

  Nadia made a sympathetic mewling noise and walked over to Zach, crouching down in front of him. “I’m sorry, honey. I can’t help you. A deal’s a deal.”

  Zach started to cry. Like really cry. Tears and snot, the whole works. It was sad. “What’s going to happen to me?”

  Nadia took a handkerchief out of her pocket and dabbed at his face. Aww, how nice of her. Playing all motherly before she snatched his soul from his chest like the scary demon she was. “Nothing good for you, I’m afraid. Well, let me take that back. Different souls carry different weight. Different prices. I can either keep your soul and have you work for me, maybe even one day you can become a lower-level demon and work your way up in the ranks. It’s not so bad then.”

  He gave her a hopeful look and his sobbing died down. “Really?”

  She nodded. “Or I can sell your soul to the highest bidder and then who knows? You could go to someone who just wants to torture and shred your soul over and over again. Or your days could be filled with endless pain at the pleasure of your owner.”

  Zach paled and fresh tears met his eyes. I didn’t blame him. For being a half-demon, I was far from fine with the horror show that could come with the territory. After all, I had lived most of my life as a human. The dark terrors of the demon world still gave me the shivers.

  “Or you could be entered in endless fighting games in a nonstop gladiator style battle that will maim you over and over again. Really there are many possibilities. Too many to name. I’d tell you to pray, but if that was your thing, you wouldn’t have made this deal in the first place.” She patted his cheek and stood up.

  Damn, she was cold.

  She snapped her fingers and we looked at her expectantly.

  Nothing happened.

  She cleared her throat and clapped her hands.

  Still nothing.

  She rolled her eyes and swore. “Death and Destruction!” she yelled for her demon dogs.

  And…nothing.

  She stomped her foot. “Damn it, they are useless.” She glanced over at me. “Can you try?”

  I scratched my neck and twisted my lips, unsure. Usually all Alister had to do was give a shout for the hellhounds. I thought they’d gotten used to Nadia by now but perhaps I was wrong if they ignored her call. They’d always come when I called but perhaps that was only because I was with Alister. However, I’d give it a shot. “Sure. Death and Destruction!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.

  A second later, loud terrifying barks of her hellhounds heralded their arrival, and soon their forms materialized in front of us. The hellhounds had black fur, were twice the size of Dobermans, had red eyes, and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

  “About time you two showed up. Didn’t you hear me?” Nadia asked with a scowl.

  The dogs ignored her and came up to me, butting their heads against my thighs, licking my fingers.

  I chuckled and scratched their heads.

  Nadia cleared her throat again. “You guys are here for a reason. You have work to do.” She glanced over at Zach who had already peed himself upon seeing the terrifying dogs. Lucky for us he’d placed a pillow over himself prior. No need to piss Nadia off further by, well, pissing on her boots. “I do apologize for the delay. I know it just makes it worse.”

  I tried to look through his eyes at the dogs but they just looked like the lovable dogs I’d known since they were puppies. They were really mine as much as they were Alister’s.

  Nadia clapped her hands again. “Okay, boys, get to work.”

  The hounds looked up at me.

  I frowned and looked back at poor Zach. I wasn’t sure if he was really a bad guy. I did feel a little bad for him. However, I didn’t expect my interference to make a difference. Even if I refused to give the dogs my approval, Nadia could still take him on her own. I was just delaying the inevitable. I gave a curt nod.

  In unison, the dogs turned to Zach and growled a deep, low sound that raised the hairs on the back of my neck. Then, before I could blink, they leaped in the air and pounced on him. They tore into his body with teeth and claws as Zach’s screams filled the air.

  Thankfully, we were standing far enough away that we missed getting hit by the spray of blood and more. The whole thing was disgustingly gory. Having been the fiancé of a demon King and the soldier of an Unseelie fae who both had a taste for torture, I’d grown a strong stomach in the past five years, so I was unbothered by the violence.

  When the hounds slowed down and relaxed, all that was left of poor Zach were various body parts and entrails. The hounds feasted on his bones and intestines, seemingly content.

  A glowing flash of white light zipped in the air as Nadia opened her hand, palm up. The zap of light fell into her palm and she wrapped her fingers around it, reopening them over a tiny glass jar in her other hand. Placing a lid over the jar, she looked up at me with a smile. “That was quick and painless. I really think this will go for a pretty penny.” She shook the jar in the air. “Don’t feel bad, Franny. Even before the world changed, this guy was a complete shit. He had sex with underage girls, and I’m talking really young ones. He was a complete pervert. An evil soul like his will bid high.”

  I scowled, shaking my boot free of some bloody flesh that had landed on top of it. Her explanation did make me feel slightly better. I wasn’t really a horrible, uncaring person. “I can’t believe you even did a deal with him. You gave him more time to harm little girls.”

  “I made sure he didn’t hurt anyone. I keep my eyes on those I do deals with.” She huffed. “I might be a demon, but I’m not a monster. There are levels to the underworld. I still have some decency.”

  She was right. As demons went, Nadia was the least evil I’d encountered. It was actually through her, and to a degree, Alister, that I had learned that demons were more than purely evil flunkies. Granted many were. However, some were insanely intelligent, yet irredeemably bad. Others were unfortunate souls who had a conscience, so they only went after evil beings.

  “Well, that’s good to know. I guess I still care a little.”

  She chuckled. “You care more than a little. Especially since getting reacquainted with your angel babe.”

  I glowered at her. “Please don’t call him that. We’re just friends.”

  She snorted. “You know that’s a lie. You would jump him as soon as he gave the okay.”

  I hated that she was right, but I didn’t want to discuss that here. “Anyway, can we unfreeze these people and get out of here?” I had no idea how they were going to explain the shredded Zach to the local authorities and I didn’t want to stick around to find out either.

  She shrugged and snapped her fingers. The hounds and I teleported into her house in Las Vegas. She lived in a five-bedroom mini-mansion, full of floor to ceiling windows, decorated in a modernist style, and so clean I could eat off the floor. The magical line to the underworld lay just beyond her backyard where she had a pool and fire pit. I stayed as a guest with her and it was quite comfortable.

  Nadia sat on her couch and kicked her shoes off before placing the soul on her glass coffee table.

  Death and Destruction lay in front of her fireplace, still gnawing on Zach’s bones.

  “I’m giving you the dogs,” she said. “They don’t listen to me anyway, and they love you. I need my own hell hounds.”

  I sat down beside her and threw my head back on the couch. “I can’t take them. I’m on a journey of self-discovery.”

  She pfftd. “Okay, Eat, Pray, Love, what are you talking about?”

  I furrowed my brows and shook my head. Like she didn’t know. “Okay, my memory only goes back like five years. I have no idea who I had been when the world went all supernatural. And now I find out I’m half-demon. Which parent was a demon? Who the hell even are my parents?”

  I needed to get myself
in order. She had to know that. This world was crazy enough as it was. Ten years ago, the Event had happened. At least that’s what the media called it. One minute, folks were at home eating dinner and, the next, they were fending off giant trolls, man-eating plants, vampires, and a crap-ton of other paranormal things. And if that wasn’t enough, then came some supernatural illness that goes and kills half the world, mostly humans who weren’t changed into the paranormal, making them the minority now.

  So, in my imagination, I had been some poor teen or twenty-something out clubbing. I wasn’t sure of my age. My kind ages slowly, so who knew how old I could be. I might be forty for all I knew. So, there I was, probably dancing on a bar counter or something. Then—bam–I’d sprouted wings and flown away. Well, honestly, I didn’t know if that really was the case. I’d become a faerie, but I didn’t have wings. I’d seen several who had them, but I’d gotten shafted. Probably because I was half-demon.

  I sighed. “I won’t be around to care for dogs. Plus, I’m unemployed so I can’t even afford to feed them. My old boss is dead, so I have no job working as a fighter in Misandre’s court. And Alister’s dead, so I don’t have him to fall back on to do any hits. I’m officially on my own.”

  Nadia reached over and smacked me on the forehead. “You can work for me, sis. Being a crossroads demon is pretty easy.”

  I raised my upper lip in disagreement. “I really want to get my memories back and the angels said they would help me fix their screw up. I don’t think they’re going to keep that promise if I start working as a crossroads demon.” Although the angels hadn’t had any success in returning my memories since the world had changed, they’d promised they’d keep trying. I wasn’t exactly the number one fan of the angels. Some weren’t any better than the demons. Plus, as much as I loved Nadia, I knew that doing anything demonic would harm my chances of becoming a faerie Queen. I’d keep my friendship but I couldn’t engage in the deceptive work of being a demon.

  “So where are you going to go?” Nadia asked, cutting into my thoughts.