by Nikki Prince
When she’d first started appearing to him he’d asked her what she was, and she’d told him she was a succubus who gained pleasure through sexual excess along with the evil deeds that men do. She’d chosen the form he thought the most on.
“Jaceeeeeee,” the being hissed and undulated in his lap. “Back so very soon? You know with each incantation you become mine even more, and soon there will be no more Jace Rothbart.”
“I know, and I’m a willing sacrifice, Na’amah. I want those who have harmed me to pay.”
“So eager to give yourself up…I like that. I have no qualms taking you over. I am the fallen; I am the queen of succubae.”
Jace couldn’t give a damn about all that. All he wanted was his revenge, but he couldn’t deny that just having the demon talk to him was enough to give him a hard on. Evil was a thrill to him. He craved it and had since he was a very young boy. It felt so good to not hide his true self anymore. That night when he’d lost it with Odette and Jamison was one of the best feelings ever. He wanted that feeling again. He’d do anything to have it.
“Then do it. No more talk. I want to see Odette.”
No sooner were the words out of his mouth than Jace felt the demon begin to wrap around his body and his mind. She used her sexual wiles on him, running her hands over his body, stroking his skin at first and causing pleasure. Then she dug her nails into his skin. Her nails became claws and marked his body as hers and hers alone. She only added to the marks that she’d already placed on his body.
Na’amah ripped his boxers down and impaled herself on his body. She writhed on top of him as he cried out in pain and pleasure. She placed her mouth over his and drew in a deep breath, stealing his. Each deep draw pulled him farther and farther away from the human plane.
“Yes….Yesssss. Give me more of yourself, every little piece of your soul.”
Some semblance of himself remained, enough so that he was cognizant of everything that was going on around him even though he left that plane of existence to travel swiftly along the threads of reality towards his target. Odette. She’d pay, and he’d make sure that Dante would as well. No one could take what was his and continue to live. Absolutely no one, especially not the likes of Dante Roberson, who was way beneath him in all ways.
Chapter Nine
This had to be a dream, she thought, but no, her eyes were wide open and she was sitting on her bed in the middle of the afternoon going over her bills, yet she had the sensation at first of being watched. She looked towards her closet, which was closed, and then towards the bathroom. That door too was closed. A faint sound came from behind her, and she jumped off the bed, scattering papers everywhere. Odette backed up towards the door, only thinking of escaping, and just as she was about to start running she stopped and turned around to look at her bed.
Empty. God, what was she thinking? It was in the middle of the day. There wasn’t anything in the room with her. She was being silly. The only thing she could pin it on was that she was still wound up from her time at the club two days ago with Dante. She’d thought she’d have to avoid him, but he had been gone from the club since their encounter. Maybe he was finally going to let her rest. Why did that bother her so much? She missed him. She missed seeing his smile and that intense gaze that had a way of making her melt and her panties grow wet. Why did she have to want what she couldn’t have? Closing her eyes, she gave herself a mental shake. It just wasn’t written in the stars.
She bent down to pick up the papers from various places on the floor and chuckled softly. She must be going mad. She hadn’t been sleeping well. She missed her son. It had been hard to let him go for so long, but it had also been a godsend. It was usually just her and Jamie, and she never let anyone get close. Petra had gotten under her skin and had become such a good friend that when Petra had asked for him to be able to go with her, Odette couldn’t resist.
She was tired of struggling and running, but what else was she supposed to do when it felt like no matter what she did Jace was closing in and breathing down her neck? She finished picking up the papers and set them on her dresser. She’d finish them later. She was tired of looking at them anyway. Perhaps a nap would be best or even reading one of the books that she’d recently bought. Anything to take her mind off thinking about Dante and then remembering she couldn’t have him. Wait, all she had right now were a bunch of romance books. That would fuel her lust and make her need Dante more than ever.
What she really wanted was a nap, but she’d been having so many nightmares she wondered if it was worth trying for. Maybe they’d only happen if it was night. Yeah right, she’d had more than one in the daytime lately. She’d read. She grabbed the book on her nightstand and settled on her back in the bed. She’d beat this. She had to for her sanity’s sake. She had to.
Odette had only been reading for a few minutes before she had the oddest feeling of being watched again. She laid the open book down on her stomach with the pages open and looked around. She tried to rise and found that she couldn’t. Suddenly there was a heavy weight on her chest, and she was struggling to rise. Gasping for breath, she turned her head into her pillow, afraid to see who or what was above her.
“I told you that wherever you went I’d find you.”
Jace! Oh my fucking god, it’s Jace! How the fuck is he in my room? She couldn’t look, as she was terrified of what she might see. This couldn’t be fucking happening. She was dreaming. She squeezed her eyes tighter and held her breath, counting to ten. The pressure lifted, and she sighed in relief and opened her eyes, turning her head slowly.
She tried to scream, but the sound wouldn’t come forth, and all she could find herself doing was clutching the covers and trying to get up. Jace was there, and in fact he was hovering above her with an evil grin on his face. He looked harder, tatted, and just plain not right. Hell, he’s hovering above me!
“Oh my god, Jace! What’s happened to you, and why are you here?” The words came out in a rush when she was finally able to speak.
“That should be obvious, my dear. I’m here to take care of some loose ends.”
“Loose ends?” she croaked out. She knew exactly what he meant, but she wanted to hear it from his lips.
Before she knew it, he was back to adding pressure to her chest, pressing down so much that it was hard to breathe. She began struggling in earnest but to no avail. She could not remove him from her body. His strength was astounding.
“What did I tell you would happen if you continued to see Dante?”
“I’m not see…seeing him…” she stuttered. She needed to think quickly. There had to be some way to get out of this. She had to be able to see her baby again, to hold him and to tell him she loved him.
“Oh? Then why is he visiting little ol’ me in prison as if he owns your ass?”
“I don’t know! I didn’t ask him to. Please, Jace, stop this, I’ll do anything.”
“Now you say please and that you will do anything I want? After all these years? Whether you did or not, his showing up states that he’s still sniffing around my wife and my child.”
“I’m not your wife anymore.”
That was the wrong thing to say. Anger flared in Jace’s eyes. His hands went around her neck, and she was being choked. She clawed at the hands as they took her breath and her life away. Just as she was starting to see stars, she heard the sound of the door crashing open. The hands about her throat left, and she gasped for air as two shadowy figures came into view and then all went black.
****
“For feck’s sake, Phelan, Dante will be pissed we almost didn’t make it.”
Phelan looked over at his brother as they stood outside the door at the small hospital they’d taken Dante’s girl to. Before Phelan could speak to his scowling brother, Doctor Fairee exited the hospital room. His face held a sad expression, and he stopped just in front of them.
“How’s she doing? We didn’t get her here too late, did we?”
Doctor Fairee shook his
head. “No, you guys got her in the nick of time, and you basically saved her life. The marks on her throat will fade, though I’m afraid that the trauma she went through was more than just physical.”
“We got there as soon as we could. We weren’t in town when we got the call from Dante.”
Doctor Fairee nodded his hand and held up his hand. “None of this is your fault, and Dante will understand. Thank you for getting to her when you did. Now I’ll need you guys to stay posted inside of her room. The staff here understands the protocol and wouldn’t expect you two to keep your post on the outside of the room. Dante is on his way from the airport; once he gets here, I’ll talk to him and let him know what’s up. We will figure out what to do then.”
“Of course, Doc. Come on, Conall, let’s get our arses in that room.”
Phelan understood what the Doc meant about the staff understanding the protocol. They’d brought her to the hospital that catered to those of supernatural bent with the occasional human. He had to assume that Odette herself was a bit clueless as far as that went, though that was sure to change now. Whatever worked.
There was a commotion behind the door, and then it was thrust open. In the opening stood Odette. Her eyes looked wide as she looked this way and that, having apparently taken off her hospital gown and gotten back into her clothes.
“I need to get out of here. I can’t stay here. He’ll find me here.”
Doctor Fairee moved over to Odette. “Who, dear girl? You’re safe with us.”
“No, no…no not safe! Jace, I don’t know how he did it, but he was some kind of a demon! He was in my room! How can he be in my room and be in prison at the same time?”
Phelan and Conall looked at one another then back at Doctor Fairee. The older man held his hands up and said in a soothing voice, “We won’t let anyone harm you again. Dante is on his way. Please, let Phelan and Conall watch over you. They can take care of anything…even demons.”
Odette looked at the Doctor as if he were crazy and then burst into tears. “My baby is out there with Petra. What if he finds my baby? What the hell do you mean they can take care of demons? Only God can take care of demons!”
Fairee moved closer to Odette and gripped her arms. “Shhh…Odette, I promise you on my very life we will get this taken care of. Give me Petra’s number and I’ll call her. I’ll also have her put your son on the phone.”
She looked as if she was going to argue as her mouth opened and closed, but she allowed the good Doctor to escort her back into the room. Phelan took that as his cue to follow and ever connected to his twin he knew that Conall would be doing the same. They both settled in opposite sides of the room as Fairee got Odette to lie back down after giving her one of the pills in a small pill bottle at her bedside.
The poor woman looked scared and exhausted. Who could blame her? When they’d burst into her room at the sounds of her screaming and the manic laughter, they’d seen what she’d been up against.
“Rest, my dear. I understand it’s not easy, but know that we’ve got this…even demons.”
Phelan chuckled to himself at the look that Odette shot Fairee and heard a twin chuckle from across the room. Conall. He watched as Odette’s eyes seemed to become heavy and she drifted into sleep.
“Now…let me get out of here to make my calls. See you in a few, you two.”
With those words Doctor Fairee exited the room and the door closed with a soft snick. Not wanting to disturb their sleeping charge, Phelan pulled back into himself and connected with Conall.
“We’re in for a long night, Phe.”
“You’re probably right, but Dante would do the same for us.”
“That he would, Conall.”
“We got this, brother…Dante would not have called us otherwise. He was right that something strange was about.”
“Did you get a good look at it?”
“Yeah…it was male but had some feminine characteristics. So I’m thinking perhaps a dream walker. One who can take over the body of another.”
“That would explain it being her ex-husband but with powers that are inhuman. Hard to get rid of and very nasty bastards when crossed.”
“Yes, we’ll have to be watchful, bro.”
He nodded. “That we will.”
Settling back against the wall closest to the door, Phelan relaxed and focused all thought on the task at hand. The Kelly brothers would make sure she was safe. It was in their DNA; as Irish werewolves, they couldn’t do anything less. They’d protect her with their very lives.
Chapter Ten
Odette sat up with a sharp intake of breath and looked around. She was still in the hospital. The two redheaded behemoths were real and were standing in opposite sections of the room. Okay, they weren’t really behemoths. At least, she didn’t think they were. Speaking of which, the one that seemed to be in charge moved over to her with concern all over his face.
“Are you okay? Is there anything we can get you?”
“How long have I been asleep?” She didn’t bother to answer his questions because she wanted answers to hers first. “Where’s Dante?”
“He’s here. He just stepped out to make some calls. Conall will get him while I stay with you.”
She watched as the other man left his post and left the room.
“Why didn’t anyone get me up when he got here?”
“He insisted we let you wake up naturally, ma’am.”
“Please don’t call me ma’am. You look to be close to my age. I’m Odette Dubois, but you can call me Odette.”
“Will do. I’m Phelan Kelly, and that was Conall Kelly.” The smile he gave her made her feel at ease. It was nice to be able to distinguish them; Conall had a soul patch under his full lips while Phelan had a neatly trimmed goatee. Without those differences, Odette didn’t think she’d have been able to tell them apart.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Phelan. I’m sorry it’s under such terrible conditions.”
“No worries.”
The door opened, and Odette was greeted with the sight of Dante. She couldn’t stop the small whimper that escaped her, and then she was enveloped into his arms, which made her forget everything else but his touch as he sat on the hospital bed. She buried her face into the side of his neck, holding on to him tightly, holding back the sobs that were on the verge of breaking free.
“Thanks, Phe.” Dante turned his head towards the other male.
“No problem. Conall and I will be stationed outside if you need us.”
Odette could hear the urgency behind those words, though his tone didn’t betray it. She heard the soft snick of the door closing, and she let loose. The tears fell, and her body was wracked with painful sobs.
Dante rocked her back and forth in his arms, stroking his hand along her back. Nothing in his touch was sexual, and she was thankful for that. She didn’t think she could take that at the moment. What she needed was his strength.
“There, there, baby, let it all out. I’m here; everything is going to be okay.”
“You know you’re the third person to say that, and I actually believe you.” It was the truth. Dante was here, and now he’d protect her. She should have let him long ago, but today wasn’t about what she should have done. It would be a time of what would be done.
“That’s a good thing, because it’s the truth.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were going to go see Jace?”
She pulled back so that she could look into his eyes. He didn’t look away from her, and in fact he cupped her chin and stroked gently as he talked.
“You’d have told me not to go. I needed to see him.”
“Why, Dante? It only made him angry. He…he’s…” She shook her head and twisted it away to stare at the far wall. “You’re going to think I’m crazy.”
“No, baby, I won’t think you’re crazy…tell me.”
“He’s some kind of demon…he was hovering above my bed. How is that possible?”
“Get settle
d back on the bed and I’ll tell you what we know so far.”
Odette did as she was told and wiped the tears from her face.
“It seems that Jace has learned a thing or two while in prison.”
“Dante, just tell me.”
“He’s learned how to contact a dream walker. That is to say a demon that can place itself into a person’s dreams along with possessing that person mentally and physically using their sexual appetites.”
“You mean he’s possessed by a sex demon that is allowing him to contact me in my dreams and now in person?”
“In plain and simple terms, yes.”
“Then there’s no hope. He’s going to murder me and our son.” It was such a defeating thing to think about that she had no hope. For a moment she allowed herself to fall into despair until Dante cupped her cheek and stroked gently.
“O, I promise you that we will get through this. You have to trust me because without trust we have nothing.”
“A demon…”
“Yes, and along with demons in this world there are other supernatural beings that can help us through this. Now, do you trust me?”
“Yes, Dante, I do. I can’t explain the relief I felt when I first saw you tonight.”
“Then you will have to trust me enough to know that this is going to work out. I’m taking you to the club tonight, and we’ll figure out what’s going to happen from there.”
“The club? But what about Jamie? I need to get Jamie back.” She could feel anxiety rising within her at the thought that her child would have to deal with what she’d had to. How could he survive it if she barely had? She rose, trying to get out of the bed to leave once more.
“Odette, stop, right now. Close your eyes and count to ten. I need you to concentrate on what I have to say right now.” His tone of voice gave her pause, and she waited for him to speak. She drew in a deep breath and counted to ten, then opened her eyes to look at him.