by Nora Ash
There had to be an answer on the pages.
Feeling her heartbeat pick up speed she refocused on the paper, finally reading the jarring words underneath the circle.
Breeder.
Strong enough build to carry offspring to term, and capable of enduring a mating with the larger of our kind. Perfect specimen.
She didn’t read any further, because when her eyes darted over the word ‘breeder’ for the second time, trying to find some meaning in it that didn’t make her tremble with foreboding, someone politely cleared their throat.
The brunette jumped and ripped her eyes up off the paper, only to have them land on Dr. Hershey’s tall form looming by the door.
He cocked his head while observing her, giving her the brief imagery of a cat watching a mouse, as that wry smile spread on his handsome face. This time he made no attempt at hiding the devious quirk to it.
“Why, Selma... whatever are you doing in my office this late? Is there something you wish to discuss?”
She swallowed thickly, ignoring the teasing note to his question. He knew, without a shadow of a doubt, what she’d seen.
“What did you do to me?” she whispered, trying her best to stop her hands from shaking against the papers. “What is that mark?”
He narrowed those amber eyes slightly at her before twisting the doorknob so it locked with a menacing ‘click’. “That was not for your eyes, sweetheart. But since you have seen it, I suppose I should show you what it means.”
Taking his time, because there was nowhere for her to run, he walked towards her, his shadow growing larger with every step.
* * *
Tricked
“What did you do?” Selma backed up and away from the desk, though the paper with the frightening text remained in her shaking hand, curling somewhat as her fingers clenched at its edges.
Through her fear for the unhurriedly approaching man she felt a spike of anger rise, heating her chest and arms. “What did you do?” He had tricked her, had gained her trust with deceit and used her broken mind against her. For what gain exactly she didn’t know, but the page she was holding made it painfully clear that it wasn’t for anything pleasant.
“I took away your illusions. Isn’t that what you wanted?” His head tilted as he assessed her moves, obviously calculating how much closer he could come before she’d dart around the desk. “Does anything else really matter?”
The silky tone only made her beating heart thrum harder against her ribs. Deceitfully kind, just like the man himself. She kept backing, maintaining distance to his large, looming form. “You’re dangerous!”
It was too late, of course. She should never have let her guard down around one of them, should have known that his caring words and manners were only to lure her in. Would anyone hear her if she screamed? The corridor had been deserted; they were likely the only souls in this part of the hospital.
“You will not be harmed.” His soothing words aside, he matched her retreat smoothly, keeping his body between her and the entry at all times. When her back hit the wall hiding the examination room, and her eyes widened in terror, he stopped, leaving a few feet of air between them.
“Have I been anything but good to you yet, sweetheart?” There was a slight taunt in his smooth voice, one dark eyebrow curving up as if to suggest that she was being ridiculous when her eyes instinctively darted around the room in frantic search for some way out. She found nothing.
“You lied.” Selma stared back up at the man who had her cornered. She set her jaw, hoping to convey something other than ‘weak female’ to whatever instincts triggered his prowl. “You took advantage of me.” Though she tried to keep her voice calm, it held a shrill note that spoke of her fear as much as the tremble of her hands emphasized by the small rustle of shaking paper clenched in her fist.
“Hmm, whatever do you mean? You no longer see demons, correct? I promised you as much.” He took a step closer, causing her to flatten herself against the wall. So much for putting on a brave act.
“Y-you branded me!” She slung out the accusation while holding up the paper depicting the little mark.
“Ah.” He glanced at it before bracing an arm against the wall, right next to her head. “So you can see the mark, then? I suppose I should have realized as much.”
Her breath hitched at his sudden proximity and her brown gaze locked on his face so that she wouldn’t be caught off guard by any attacks. He really was very tall, and his broad shoulders seemed to cage her in from above as oppressively as the rest of him kept her trapped against the wall.
At least his eyes weren’t orange flames anymore.
“What did you do?” It came out as a scared whisper this time.
Dr. Hershey raised the hand not currently supporting his weight against the wall and, with the faintest of touches, traced a circle around the outer edges of the mark. “I blinded you.” It was a soft murmur. “Really, Selma, you must have known deep down what we really are. Through every evaluation and every drug they gave you, you must have known.”
She stared up into those amber eyes, trying to deny his words from taking root. He was right—of course he was right. Deep down that nagging feeling nurtured by all the questions that couldn’t be answered—the ones that had plagued her for years—had never been silenced... Like how a young woman, without weapons, could have left that scar on her calf, or why some of them would follow her when they saw her staring at their otherness.
She had never dared to think the thought through, because if she actually acknowledged the concept, she’d lose it.
The shaking of her hands moved up her arms and down through her body until she was trembling like a leaf in the wind.
“Don’t be scared.” His hand, still unnaturally hot, stroked down over her arm. “Let it settle; you’re special, sweetheart. And so very valuable.”
It wasn’t that his touch soothed her, but it did jolt her out of her downward spiral and back into the immediate situation of being marked and cornered by a monster. She cringed away from his hand, not wanting to give him any doubts about her feelings. “What do you want from me?”
That deviously quirked smile returned as he caged her in fully, placing the hand she’d shied away from against the wall next to her head. She swallowed nervously as a few flashes of how he’d touched her body during the ‘examination’ passed through her mind. This time there was no doctor’s coat and no professional persona to hide behind—there was just the very large creature who’d tricked her into spreading her thighs for him, and her own raspy breathing.
“It is not a matter of what I want; it’s what I need. You don’t understand the value of what’s between your legs, my sweet. You’re a perfect Breeder, so incredibly rare. Most we come across cannot tolerate the attentions of a Lord, but you... you open so beautifully wide.”
“B-breeder?” There was that uncomfortable word again, the one scribbled underneath the round mark, and followed by notions of ‘mating’ and ‘specimen’. “You want to... breed me? L-like an animal? Are you out of you mind!” Monster or not—strike that; the fact that he was a monster was definitely worse—that was not something you should want to do to people!
Dr. Hershey chuckled. “No, definitely not ‘like an animal’. You will be bred by one of my kind, not another human; your womb would be wasted on the rats already overpopulating this planet.”
“I don’t...” She was about to tell him that she didn’t understand, but stopped before she finished the sentence. There was nothing to understand—not now. She could mull over everything later, when she was safe. Right now the only thing that mattered was that she was alone with a man talking about breeding her.
“HELP!” She screamed at the top of her lungs at the same time as she drove the heel of her right hand into his ribs, swinging the other at one of the arms keeping her trapped against the wall. “SOMEONE HELP ME!”
Dr. Hershey grunted when she impacted with his chest, but that was about all her fighting di
d. Even when she kicked at his shins he barely flinched, and when she tried to dive underneath his arm he easily caught her. He pulled her in, constricting her movements by locking his arms around hers and her body, pressing her back against his chest so she couldn’t bite him.
“LET ME GO!” Selma tried to head-butt him by tossing her head backwards, but she only connected with his rock-hard chest, which seemed to hurt her more than it did him. She screamed again, struggling wildly against his grip, but he didn’t budge.
“There seems to have been a minor miscommunication,” his smooth voice sounded next to her ear. “You appear to believe you are in danger; that is not the case. I took away your Second Sight so you could be more comfortable, nothing more. Calm down, sweetheart.”
There was nothing more she could do—he was simply too strong. She went lax in his arms with a defeated whine, breathing heavily from exhaustion after the short, but wild, struggle to get free.
“Good girl,” he murmured, his head bending down to rest against hers, though his grip on her didn’t loosen. “You have nothing to fear.”
Selma drew a shuddering gasp when he breathed in deeply, obviously taking in her scent. Something hard started growing against the small of her back in response, causing terror to stir in the pit of her stomach.
“Please don’t rape me.”
It was a ridiculous request, of course. He was... some form of a... monster, and his kind had no quarrels with imposing their desires with or without consent, as she had seen from the three who had attacked that girl. Not to mention the things the doctor had already done to her, under the disguise of a concerned healthcare provider.
The monster chuckled against her ear. “Selma. What did I say? You won’t be harmed, sweetness. You’re much too valuable, and I am duty bound to kill anyone who would do damage to your beautiful little pussy.”
Said pussy clenched unexpectedly at his words, and she flushed dark red at the memory of what he’d written down about her fondness for dirty talk. But why was she even reacting to it now, of all times?
“It’s my closeness,” Dr. Hershey said, as if he’d read her thoughts. He’d likely just seen her blush and put two and two together. “The mark attunes your senses to us more than they already are. Don’t be embarrassed, my sweet; it’s just your true nature finally being freed.”
“Y-you say you won’t force me...” She drew a deep breath to calm her nerves as the thing at her back reached full size and pressed achingly against her. “Yet you want to... breed with me. And the... I don’t... I don’t understand!”
“Shh, calm down.” Dr. Hershey cradled her closer against his chest—and by default, his straining cock—as if to calm her with his body heat that leached through her clothing and sunk into her skin. It didn’t work.
“I will explain, little Breeder.”
“Stop calling me that!”
That low chuckle, huskier now, brushed against her ear again. “It is a title of honor among our kind. You will learn, in time, when you have grown accustomed to our ways.”
“I have no desire to grow accustomed to the ways of monsters!” she snarled, anger taking a forefront to fear since he really didn’t seem to want to hurt her... at the moment. “Why did you lie to me? If... you really are a monster, why try to... why trick me?” What she wanted to ask was why he didn’t just force her, instead of going through the scam of her ‘examination’, but despite her anger she didn’t find it wise to antagonize him too much. No one said he couldn’t change his mind.
He hummed in an amused tone. “Demons, Selma. We are demons, not monsters. And I needed to examine you to ensure that you are fit for mating. Besides, the mark can only be applied to a female in complete sexual exhaustion, and I have found less resistance if it is induced under the guise of treatment. You must understand, the Breeders who find their way to this place are as scared and convinced that their minds are damaged as you were.
“They are slowly introduced to life with us, so the transition is minimally traumatizing. Of course, that’s a little too late for you. I should have known you’d see the mark, but it’s been so long since I have been around a woman with full compatibility.”
If he truly was trying to explain, he wasn’t doing a particularly good job.
“But why me?” It was the question she’d asked herself so many times over the years, oftentimes while huddled in her bed crying, only to be answered with silence.
“Ah, I cannot answer that, I’m afraid. All we know is that the women who can see through our human disguises are biologically compatible with us. Since our own females are... shall we say less compliable, we look for mates among your kind. And you... your body is primed for it beyond average, sweetheart. The way you took my fist—the way your pussy milked me throughout the session... you were made for a Lord.”
The pride in his voice, as if she was a particularly precious pet, made her cringe, the desire to not be wrapped up in his arms suddenly overwhelming. “Please... let go of me!”
“I will, if you promise to stay calm and not attempt anything stupid.” The demon gave her body a small squeeze; a gentle reminder of how superior his strength was to hers.
“I promise.” As if she had any other option. No one had come when she’d screamed for help before, and she would not be able to make it to the door and out before he caught her. Besides... as confusing and terrifying as this evening had turned out to be, a not small part of her hungered for any answers he might possess. Answers she’d been too afraid to hope for all her life.
The strong arms wrapped around her loosened, and she quickly stepped away, spinning around so she could keep a watchful eye on him.
The lazy smile spreading over his face as he leaned against the wall on his shoulder told her that her mistrust was not particularly well hidden.
She didn’t care.
“What are you going to do to me?” Selma stared up at his amber eyes, and that decadently handsome face, not bothering to keep the accusations out of her tone. “Are you just going to kidnap me from the hospital?”
He shook his head and folded his arms across his chest as he took in her stubborn, but frightened, expression. “Missing girls lead to investigations, and it is crucial that we keep a presence in as many mental institutions as possible; Breeders are often sent here by ignorant humans. You will remain in my care for the week, and then I’ll sign off on your paperwork before transferring you to the local Lord’s domain.”
She gaped at him. “You expect me to keep quiet and just go willingly?” Demon or not, he must be insane. The second she laid her eyes on another human being she would be screaming for help. He expected her to keep up pretenses of everything being all right for an entire week? Well, he had another think coming!
Something shifted in his eyes; something dark. She automatically shrunk back from his suddenly threatening aura, any rebellious thoughts instantly evaporating as he stared her down.
“That is exactly what I expect, Selma. Did you hope to rouse the humans to the fact that demons walk among them? Do not be foolish; they locked you in here for that very reason. Now, play along nicely and I will make your time in my care very pleasant; fight me, and you will regret it.”
“You promised not to hurt me!” It was a silly thing to cling to—the word of a demon—but it was all she had as his dark presence grew, forcing her to accept his control over her.
The shadows in his eyes and around his body faded as he took in her shaking form. With a soft sigh he raised a hand and brushed his thumb over her bottom lip. “My sweet, you will never need to fear for your personal safety, but I will not hesitate to silence any nosy humans, should you go running that pretty little mouth. Do you understand?”
Her eyes went round at the warning, and she quickly nodded. Other people’s pain always made her ache to help—it was the reason she had run after that girl to save her, dumb as it was—and the threat of being the cause of someone’s death... No, she would have to find her own way out of this me
ss—which required knowledge.
“You keep saying I am meant for ‘a Lord’. What are they? Demon royalty?” Her forehead furrowed at the thought of monsters having nobility.
Dr. Hershey’s thumb moved from her lips to her cheek, stroking it adoringly. “Yes. They are the strongest among us; they are bigger and more powerful, and thus need a mate who can endure being mounted and bred by them. Unfortunately, only the purest of Breeders are capable of that, and as you are so rare... our Lords are not producing enough progeny.”
Selma paled several shades and swallowed hard; that did not exactly sound pleasant, from the Breeder’s perspective! Then again, she wasn’t planning on letting anyone mount her, Lord or otherwise. With an inward shudder she released the rather intimidating mental images his words had conjured and focused on the problem at hand—getting all the information she could out of the demon who’d tricked her.
“So you are not a Lord?”
He shook his head, a regretful frown pulling on his dark eyebrows as his thumb swiped back over her lips. “I am not, so I will not be bidding for the pleasure of claiming you. A pity—seeding your womb when you are ripe for impregnation would have been very satisfying.”
Her nose scrunched up. “B-bidding? Like an auction?” No matter his assurance that he didn’t plan to have her bred like cattle, he sure didn’t help the picture the more he revealed about their customs. She briefly wondered if there would be a line of scared, kidnapped women up for sale, being paraded around an arena for perverted demons’ viewing pleasure.
“Yes, though monetary compensation is only a part of the price for claiming a Breeder. It is a complicated system—do not worry yourself with such matters, sweetness. Whoever your mate will be, he will ensure your well-being.”
She couldn’t hold back the disbelieving scoff at his dismissive attitude towards the entire insane arrangement, hysteria threatening to bubble through her carefully held-together focus. “My well-being? I am expected to serve as broodmare for some oversized demon, but of course he won’t rape me, I’ll just magically lust for my owner, and now you tell me that he will care for my well-being! Who the fuck are you, to think you can determine my life? Your kind has ruined me, and now...“ She gasped for air, feeling a refreshing rush of heat blaze through her as a lifetime’s worth of anger mounted within her for every word pouring out of her mouth. “Now you act as if any of this is for my sake! Fuck you, and fuck your precious Lords!”