by Elise Marion
“Drop your shield and face me like a woman,” Lilith jeered.
“Put him down first,” Addison countered. “Gently.”
Lilith relented, laying Micah on the riverbank to her left. He rolled onto his side, coughing and sputtering and spewing water.
Dropping her barrier, she remained in midair, levitating at eye-level with the serpent.
“Here I am,” she said, refusing to tear her gaze away from the demon’s, no matter how frightening it was. “I have to admit, you’re a bit more impressive than the last demon that tried to kill me.”
The snake seemed to smile, flashing its fangs. “Oh, honey,” she purred, her voice sticky sweet like honey but sharp as the edge of a knife. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Lilith lunged, but Addison jumped left. The snake barreled past her, skimming the surface of the water and making a sharp U-turn to come back toward her.
This time when she lunged, Addison went up. The river grew smaller beneath her as she cleared the tops of the trees, and still, Lilith kept coming, uncoiling her long body from the bottom of the riverbed and hurtling upward. Addison halted suddenly, then went back down, swinging toward the serpent’s broad head with a powerful right hook. Her high-pitched shriek echoed through the tree boughs as they hurtled back toward the water, propelled by the force of Addison’s power. She followed it up with a left cross, throwing Lilith into the water with a splash that caused two walls of water to rise up on either side of her long body.
She plunged downward, intent on not letting the demon gain her footing now that she had her on the ropes. But Lilith was quick, recovering from the blow and slithering back up toward her. Addison missed her completely and found herself tangled up in the serpent’s body. Lilith coiled herself around her, forcing the air out of her lungs as she squeezed her in an unbreakable grip. Gasping for air, Addison pounded her fists against the snake’s body, but Lilith seemed to not even feel the blows. Her scales felt thick and hard, like chinks of black armor.
Her head curved around, careening toward her and closing in for the kill. Addison held one hand out and used her telepathy to hold her back. The force slammed into Lilith like an invisible brick wall, halting her just inches away from Addison.
From her left, a bellow of rage signaled Micah’s appearance. He had leapt from the limb of a nearby tree and flew at Lilith, his golden knives glinting in his hands. Maintaining her hold on Addison, Lilith swung her head around to meet Micah.
One of his knives sank into her belly and he hung there, digging it in as she shrieked, releasing Addison.
Addison fell into the river with a splash, her mouth and nose filling with water. She kicked and flailed for the surface, trying not to think of what other creatures could be in there with her. She resurfaced, swiping her dripping bangs out of her eyes just in time to see Micah careening down toward her. His knife still embedded in the snake’s belly, he tore a jagged slash on his way down, opening her up. A white beam of light shined out from the gaping wound, and Lilith threw her head back and screamed, a mixture of agony and rage. Micah hit the water, swimming toward her as the demon writhed and screamed, the white flash emitting from her belly like a beacon.
“Go, Addison, move!” he yelled, swimming toward her faster than anyone his size should be able to.
Addison recovered from shock and moved, swimming toward the riverbank. She held on to the grass as Micah came up beside her, one arm around her as he clung to the bank, as well, pinning her against its muddy side.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
She nodded. “I’ll probably have nightmares about snakes for the rest of my life, but I’ll live.”
He chuckled. “Tell me about it. Stay here, I’m going for the boat.”
“No need,” she said. “I’ll bring it to us.”
She reached out, grabbing hold of the boat and dragging it toward them through the water telepathically. Across from them, what seemed like hundreds of black, slimy beings fought their way out of Lilith’s split middle. They spewed from her in a dark mass, screeching and snapping at each other as they found freedom.
Addison’s eyes went wide as they kept coming, so many she couldn’t even keep count. They splashed into the water, some swimming for the shore and crawling out onto the bank, scaling trees and climbing out of sight.
“What the hell?”
Micah grunted. “The bitch was knocked up,” he muttered. “They don’t call her the mother of legions for nothing.”
“That is so gross,” she grumbled while scrambling into the boat.
The last of the demons crawled from their mother’s womb and disappeared into the trees, and with another shrill cry, Lilith disappeared in a flash of white light so intense, Addison had to shut her eyes against its brilliance. When she opened them again, a gigantic owl swooped down over their heads, talons extended. Remembering that Derek had mentioned the owl being one of Lilith’s animal forms, she ducked just before it could pluck her from the boat.
“Uh, Micah …”
“Goin’ as fast as I can, cher,” he replied, turning the engine on and throwing the boat into gear.
Within seconds, he had them speeding over the water, with Lilith and her progeny in hot pursuit. The owl gave a loud sound, similar to a dog’s bark, sending flurries of wind over them as she flapped her gigantic wings and came down toward them again.
Addison found her handgun in the bottom of the boat and raised it, taking aim at Lilith. The white beam of light whizzed straight toward her, but one of her demonlings jumped from a tree bough and in the light’s path, taking the hit in its mother’s place. It disappeared in a flash and a spray of black demon blood, and Lilith escaped unscathed. The other little demons raced alongside them on the bank and in the trees, keeping pace with the speeding airboat.
Micah steered the vessel around each bend in the river, his biceps bunching and his hands tight on the wheel, legs braced wide like a sailor. Addison tried to pick off as many of the little demons as she could with her gun, but there were too many—she’d never get them all, especially with Lilith’s menacing presence overhead.
“Oh, screw this!” she huffed. Throwing the gun aside, she turned to Micah. “Stop the boat.”
He gave her a wide-eyed look that clearly read ‘you’re crazy.’ “What?”
“Just do it! Trust me, I’ve got this.”
He hesitated only for a second before killing the engine and letting the vessel slow, muttering under his breath in an unintelligible string of Cajun French. Ignoring him, Addison went up, levitating high over the water. Spreading her arms wide, she allowed the darkness in her to have its moment. It had been fighting to come to the surface since Lilith’s appearance, and she realized now that it was likely what had drawn the demon to her. They always knew how to find her, because she was one of them in a way.
“What are you doin’, cher?” Micah called out from below.
She knew her eyes were completely black when she looked down at him.
“Trust me,” she said again.
He appeared uncertain, but didn’t protest as she remained in midair, calling out to the newborn demons with a silent, thrumming pulse of dark power. They became attracted to it, unable to resist her pull. Lilith circled overhead, seeming uncertain of what to do as her progeny left the trees and leapt out into the open air toward Addison. When the first demon landed on her, wrapping its arms around her leg and holding on tight, she tamped down a scream and fought to not kick the thing off. Then she closed her eyes and waited, knowing more of them would come. She bore it all in silence as they enveloped her in a swarm, crawling over and around her, toppling over each other, until all she could see were their black, writhing bodies blocking out the sun.
Biting back the urge to rip them all apart one by one, she let go of her dark side and pulled on the light. She thought of standing in an open field with Micah and his hand on her face. She thought of his deep voice and his breath on her cheek as he urged her to find th
e light. Then, she smiled as she closed her eyes and saw Jack’s steel gray gaze, just as she’d imagined it that day in the field.
“You are someone,” he said, his voice insistent. “You matter … to me.”
The warmth in her chest exploded outward in a starburst of light. The sound of demons howling their pain filled her with revulsion and satisfaction as they fell away in a shower of dismembered body parts and dark blood.
Glancing around her, she was relieved that she still retained her strength. The last time she’d used so much power at once, she’d passed out and slept for twenty-four hours. It would seem practice had honed and focused her abilities. She lowered herself slowly, relieved to see that she’d gotten them all. Not a single demon remained, and above them, Lilith made her escape with a shriek. She hadn’t been close enough to be hit with the effects of Addison’s light. The mother of legions had lived to fight another day.
Micah started the boat the second her feet had touched the bottom. Steering down the gently curving river, he narrowed his eyes at her.
“Don’t you ever scare me like that again,” he grumbled.
Chapter Thirteen: Point of No Return
“You really ought to be taking it easy after that,” Micah insisted as they neared the back door to Temptations. “Homework and dancing the same night after being attacked by one of Hell’s most powerful demons?”
Addison shrugged. “Look, I still have to work and I still have class. I wouldn’t have come so early, but I left the bag with my notes backstage the other night and I need them. You didn’t have to come with me.”
“Like hell, I didn’t,” he retorted. Leaning against the brick side of the club, he watched as she tried the door and found it unlocked. “I’m not lettin’ you out of my sight again. You’re lucky I couldn’t get Reniel on the phone, or he’d have you on lockdown faster’n a hooker holds her hand out for cash before a blow job.”
She paused just within the darkened back hallway leading into the backstage area. “What’s this? You can’t put me on lockdown yourself?”
He followed her, letting the door swing closed behind him.
“Hell no,” he muttered. “I’m not too much a man to admit you could kick my ass from here to Georgia. Reniel could take you in a heartbeat, though. Enjoy your freedom while you can, ’cause soon as he gets here—”
Addison turned to face him, one hand on her hip. “Look, I get it. You’re shook up after what happened this morning. But I’m okay, see? I handled it. We knew this was going to happen. Lilith is still out there, and she’s going to come after me again. We’ll be ready next time.”
Micah watched as she strode off down the hall, leaving him behind.
You’re shook up after what happened this morning.
That had to be the understatement of the century. He was shook up, all right, but it had nothing to do with what had happened with Lilith. Yeah, he’d been freaked out when that gigantic thing had come up out of the river and snatched him under. But he’d known Addison had what it took to fight her off and he’d been right.
The thing that had his stomach in knots had more to do with what had happened before. Specifically, the moment he’d lost his damn mind and kissed her. He hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it. Even after she’d fallen asleep pressed up against him, he’d lain awake listening to the crickets and reliving the moment over and over again. It hadn’t helped having her lush body pressed up against his, tempting him with the promise of more.
It would have been different if he’d tried to kiss her and she’d pushed him away. Maybe he could have blamed the hooch, or pretended he’d wanted nothing except physical release. But there could be no pretending now—not after he’d gone and opened his big mouth. What had he been thinking, telling her about his mother and Tracy? Letting her in on the details of his past had left him feeling vulnerable, and he’d let his guard down. Before, he could blame it on Nybbas and his trickery. This time, he couldn’t even blame the moonshine. He’d certainly been drunker before, and had been in complete control last night. No one to blame but his fool self.
Now, he couldn’t stop thinking about how it felt to kiss her, or the fact that his attraction to her wasn’t completely one-sided.
Jack’s girl … your best friend’s girl.
Repeating it to himself over and over didn’t help. Every time he told himself she was Jack’s girl, the startling reminder came rushing at him.
Jack’s dead.
That hurt just as much as realizing that he and Addison would never work. Two people with that much baggage were destined to fail, and he’d screwed up more than his fair share of relationships. Even with her past and half-demon blood, she was too good for him.
“Did you get lost back there?” her voice called from the dressing room.
Snapping out of his wandering thoughts, he continued down the hall and into the backstage area where the dancers changed and did their makeup. He found her crouched beneath one of the long makeup counters, searching for her bag.
“It’s quiet,” he remarked, glancing around the empty room.
“Yeah, no one’s ever here this early except the owner. He probably made a bank run or something. Idiot always leaves the back door unlocked.”
He leaned against the door leading out to the stage and watched her. He should have looked away instead of salivating over the display of her perfect ass as she bent over to retrieve a notebook, but he wasn’t a damn saint.
“Can I ask you somethin’?”
She straightened, slinging the bag over her shoulder and tucking the notebook under her arm. “Sure.”
“Don’t you got enough stress without having to worry about …” he trailed off, turning his head sideways and reading her neat handwriting on the front of the notebook in permanent marker. “American Lit?”
She sighed. “You think I should drop out of school until this is over?”
He shrugged. “I don’t have an opinion one way or the other, but it just seems like it would be easier. Getting a degree doesn’t seem that important when the world needs you.”
She seemed to consider that for a moment, fiddling with the wire coil along the side of the notebook. “I know you’re right, but … well, it’s hard to explain. I just need something else to strive for, you know? A degree does seem like a small thing when you think about what I’ve been chosen to do. But when that’s over … what, then? Most of the world won’t even know I had a hand in saving it. No one will thank me. No one will recognize what I’ve done. I’ll go back to being a stripper from the trailer park.”
He couldn’t resist the urge to come toward her this time, but he did stop short just before touching her. His hand lingered inches from her face before he remembered and dropped it back to his side. Yet, he could still smell her, still feel her just inches from him as he gazed down at her.
“There are far worse things to be in this world, cher,” he murmured.
Her eyes grew wide when she glanced up at him. She looked afraid. He felt afraid.
“Still,” she replied. “I want more. I want it for me.”
He smiled. “Then I guess that’s all that matters.”
She nodded and moved beyond him, going back to avoiding his gaze. Their bodies brushed as she passed him, making her way to the taproom.
“We might as well hang out here until my shift,” she said, oblivious to the primal reaction she’d set off in him. “By the time we get home, we’d just have to come back again.”
“Yeah, sounds like a plan,” he croaked, fighting to control the erection causing his jeans to feel painfully snug.
He followed her out onto the stage, lingering there while she went down the stairs and made her way to one of the tables. She settled on one of the chairs, and he sat on the edge of the platform, his feet dangling over the side. He tried not to watch her too closely, but couldn’t seem to help it. He told himself it was just to ensure that a giant snake didn’t come up out of the floor and swallow her, but
gave that up after a while. He contented himself with contemplating the way the overhead lights gleamed off her hair, making strands of gold come alive amidst the crimson. He watched her eyes moving back and forth over her textbook and the notes, and the little furrow of concentration between her eyebrows. Her lips parted and began to move as she read the words, which he found adorable. His lips moved when he read, too.
At some point, her head came up and their gazes locked. Her pen paused over the page she’d been taking notes on, and he could have sworn he heard her breath hitch. Tension thrummed between them, a palpable force. He had to do something to break it, or he would cross the room, lift her up onto one of those damn tables, and let nature take its course.
“All done?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.
She cleared her throat, blinking as she stared down at the book. “Um … yeah, just about. I need a break from reading, I think. Can’t concentrate.”
He stood, shoving his hands into his pockets. Glancing up, he caught sight of one of the four poles lining the stage.
“You mind if I ask how you got into strippin’?” he asked, reaching out to grasp one of the poles.
She stood, stretching. “Well, after high school, I got a job waiting tables at Café du Monde.”
He cringed. “Yuck.”
“Tell me about it,” she said with a little laugh. She strolled closer to the stage, gazing up at him. “I hated every day of it and the money was crap. I figured if I was going to get my ass pinched by strangers while serving up drinks, I might as well make some real money doing it. So, I came here to get a job as a waitress.”
“Lemme guess, they took one look at you and said you were too hot to be a waitress.”
She scoffed. “Yeah, no. I worked here for months before I started dancing. I did okay waiting tables, but once I started school, I realized I was going to need way more money to support myself. So, for weeks after my shift, my friend Maria would take me aside and teach me the tricks. She got me in as a dancer, and I’ve been up on that stage ever since.”