Tempting the Dark

by Michele Hauf

  “How can we get Fuum out of you?” Jett finally asked Savin. “There must be a way, beyond exorcism. The dark witch might know a way.”

  “I’ve talked with him about it.” Savin poured another shot. “There is a way. And you know it.” He and Ed exchanged glances that Jett could not read. They knew something they were not telling her.

  “What is it?” she asked. “If you need my help...”

  “There is one way to scrub the demon out of Savin,” Ed offered. “And that requires his death.”

  Jett tugged Savin’s hand, forcing him to turn and look at her. “Is that true?”

  Savin shrugged noncommittally.

  Ed said again, “Yes, it is true. He’s gone over this with Certainly Jones. Years ago, the witch found an expulsion spell for Savin’s situation, but it’ll kill Savin to remove the demon within. And now I figure it is because she was once a queen. Very powerful. I assume she’s been able to root into him.”

  “It’s nothing,” Savin said to Jett, and he looked away.

  But Jett wasn’t about to let him dismiss it so casually. “It’s not nothing. It is your life.”

  “Sending the Other back to Daemonia will close up the rift and save you,” he said.

  Jett dropped his hand and crossed her arms. “There will be no sacrificing of one’s life today.”

  “Then we’ll do it tomorrow,” Savin said coolly.

  “I’m not going to let you do that,” Ed said. “There’s got to be another way to get that bitch out of you, Thorne. And I’m siding with your girlfriend. No sacrifices.”

  “Yet you would sacrifice me,” Jett said defiantly to the corax demon.

  His smirk was more evil than he might have wanted to display. “I don’t know you enough to trust you. And you are their current queen.”

  “What if I can find a replacement? Such as the one inside Savin did with me? As long as there is a queen to sit the throne, then that legion in Daemonia should be appeased.”

  Ed shrugged. “There is a time element here. Your kind are flooding the mortal realm.”

  “My kind? They are your kind, too, Edamite Thrash. More so, because I assume you are full demon. I am not. Do you forget that?” She beat her fist against her chest. “Half of me is human. And I can feel my demon side growing weaker every day.”

  Ed approached her, hand out and palm facing her. Jett backed up, and when her shoulder nudged Savin, he put an arm around her waist and held her protectively.

  “We’re not going to sacrifice Jett, either,” he said to Ed. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m just trying to get a read on her.” The demon did not relent.

  And so Jett would give him what he wanted. She pulled out of Savin’s grip and pressed both her palms to Ed’s temples, forming a connection that would open them both to each other. She saw his life, his triumphs and failures. His love—he loved a beautiful witch. And she touched his raven core that squawked and beat its wings frantically at her unwelcome invasion.

  At the same time, she gave him her truth. Her fall into the lava, which had burned and iced at the same time. Her hurried and bewildered ascension to the throne, and her desperate need to do as she was told for survival. She showed her ability to put a vile demon to heel, her ease at reading all others and her unrelenting power.

  When finally Ed was able to push away from her, he stumbled backward, catching himself against the desktop.

  “What did you do to him?” Savin asked.

  “I gave him my truth. And I showed him who his queen really is.”

  “You are never my queen,” Ed said with a sneer. “I am not from Daemonia. They are all...filth.” Jett lunged, but Savin caught her about the waist. “But...you are right,” Ed continued. “Your human half is growing more prominent. Should we send you back to Daemonia now, you may not—”

  “It’s not happening,” Savin interrupted. “Jett stays in this realm. Done deal. So let’s come up with another plan.”

  Ed eyed Jett and she saw in his eyes defeat and a reluctant submission. He nodded. “Yes, another plan. CJ should be here by now. He mentioned tracking the queen. But if we know where both are...?”

  Savin rubbed his chest. “Right. Hmm...”

  “What if there is another?” Jett suggested.

  “How many queens are there?” Savin asked.

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. How many queens does the world have? Many, yes? Fuum and I cannot be the only ones.”

  “I believe the specific queen for your Daemonian legion is the fix,” Ed said. “There’s CJ.”

  The glass office doors opened and Certainly Jones strode in. He took one look at Jett and slashed his hand before him. The sigils on his left hand glowed a bold emerald.

  The repulsion spell pushed Jett off her feet and she landed in Savin’s arms.

  * * *

  “CJ, this is Jett!” Savin said as he helped her to her feet. He charged toward the witch, who held his ground with palm extended and wards glowing. “Stand down!”

  The dark witch thrust a glinting green hex toward Jett. She managed to dodge it and put up her palm in retaliation.

  Ed called, “No! You cannot practice your demonic magic inside my wards!”

  A second round of hex from the witch was this time caught by Savin, right on the chest, as he jumped to stand before Jett. Savin yelped and clutched his stinging chest.

  The witch swore and reversed the spell, drawing back the magic into his hand, where he crumpled the hex and dropped it over a shoulder.

  “What the hell? She’s not going to harm anyone,” Savin insisted. “Man, that hex hurt! Jett, stay by me.” She clutched his hand, but he could feel her rage in the tight grip. “Settle,” he cautioned her quietly.

  “He was going to hex me!” she protested.

  “Sorry. I may have rushed to a conclusion—” CJ started.

  “This is ridiculous.” Jett tore her hand from his grip and marched past the witch toward the door. “I am out of here!”

  Savin took a step after her but then stopped. She needed to get out of here, away from the wicked energy of the lingering hex. One that still burned in his lungs. Whew! He glared at CJ.

  The witch shrugged. “I didn’t realize it was your Jett. It would have only shackled her, had you not taken the brunt.”

  “The brunt.” Savin pressed his fingers to his chest and winced. All in all? That had been a mere tap. “You’re slipping, witch. Didn’t even knock me off my feet.”

  “It wasn’t designed to—” CJ silenced himself with another glare from Savin.

  “I told her she could trust the two of you,” Savin said. “Good going. Now we’ve a Daemonian queen wandering the streets of Paris. And I’m going to wager she’s pissed.”

  * * *

  Jett charged across the street and raced blindly forward. Sure, Savin had tried to protect her. Feebly. The dark witch had actually blasted a stream of magic at her! What kind of hello, how are you, had that been?

  She’d trusted Savin. Had he walked her into a trap?

  Much as her darkness cajoled her to believe just that, Jett fought to remain on Savin’s side. He’d been just as surprised as she when the witch walked in with hell blazing in his eyes.

  She’d had to get away from them all. They needed to send a queen back to Daemonia to end the influx of demons into this realm, and she was an easy target.

  Yet they had another option. The demoness who clung to Savin’s soul. If he had so many friends like witches and other demons, surely between them they could figure a way to oust Fuum from Savin’s body and send her back. It couldn’t be that difficult to accomplish for men who were demon, or as a reckoner whose sole task required him to have an intimate knowledge of demons.

  However, to do it without killing Savin was key. She didn’t want that. Never.


  Shoving roughly past a man talking on a cell phone, Jett sneered when he flipped her off. If he only knew how easily she could take away his voice.

  Should she?

  She paused at a red light and turned back to listen to the man who walked a circle on the sidewalk. Some kind of business chatter about stocks peaking. To buy or sell? He talked so loudly. Was he not aware that everyone could hear him? Did no one respect personal boundaries anymore?

  Jett muttered a few words that began a spell, but the laughter of children interrupted her. Two kids, probably around ten years old, ran down the sidewalk with kites in hand. The moment curled into her chest and lessened her anger. The darkness receded and she turned to face the crossing. The light was green. She crossed without concern for the noisy businessman.

  Turning down a narrow alleyway, she rubbed her palms over her arms, whisking away the tension. A walk in the fresh air was what she needed. A few raindrops splattered her cheeks and she actually smiled. Yes, she really did want to exist in this realm. And to do so, she had to get control over her darkness.

  Or find a way to remove it from her completely. Could the dark witch help with that? No, she didn’t trust him as far as she could spit.

  A left turn and then another left lured her close to the scent of a river. She wasn’t near the Seine, but she remembered a canal that jutted out from the river on the right bank where she walked. Had to be close.

  The sudden sensation of another nearby—demon—slowed her pace. No. She didn’t care. She must not. Let them be wary of her. If they were smart.

  Venturing forward, she heard voices and slowed. Now the shiver of recognition shook her shoulders. A demon was just around the corner. He was powerful and...speaking to a human, if she guessed right. His sensual voice and promising words would appeal to any woman who wanted to be praised for her beauty.

  Darkness rising, Jett tightened her fist. “There is only room for me in this realm.” She rushed around the corner.

  The human woman saw her and fled. And having lost his prey, the demon, who sported long dark dreadlocks and a furrowed brow, turned to growl at her. Fangs lowered and glinted. And when Jett sensed he would lunge for her, instead the demon cracked a smile and shook his head.

  “It’s about fucking time,” he said. “You, my lovely bastard child, have been very naughty.”

  Chapter 26

  Arms held slightly away from her body and fingers curled to ready as weapons, Jett walked a tight half curve about the demon who had just called her naughty. And...his child. Her entire body was tight and ready to defend. Yet as she took in the demon’s arrogant grin and assessing gaze, she saw so many similarities between the two of them. Her breath left her in a hush.

  “I heard you’d come to the mortal realm,” he said, propping a hip against the brick wall and assuming a cocky pose before her.

  He was lanky and his wrists were wrapped with leather straps and buckles. His arms, revealed by a sleeveless shirt, were blackened with so many tattoos Jett could not determine where one sigil began and another, possibly a skull design, ended. His hair was as dark as hers. And his nose long and...so much like hers. Eyes glowed red now that the human had fled. Jett could not determine if they had been brown, like hers. The one thing that drew her interest the longest was the glowing sigil between his brows that formed a symbol denoting his rank and heritage. Only demons of royal birth wore such, in various places on their bodies.

  Jett absently touched her hip, where beneath the silk shirt a sigil to match the one on the man’s forehead heated and glowed.

  He noticed and nodded. “Yep, it’s me. Daddy dearest! Sorry I didn’t stick around for all that child-birthing stuff. Cramped my style. But look what I did for you. A queen! And then you flee the throne, you ungrateful bitch.”

  Jett lashed out and slapped his cheek, dragging her fingernails across the human skin he wore. Dark runnels of blackest blood oozed down his cheek, and she wiped the thick substance from her nails across her pants.

  “Ah, that’s sweet.” He lashed out a very long tongue, licking away the blood even as the slashes healed. “So, you going to speak to me, or do I have to narrate this little tête-à-tête? One way or another, it’s going to end with me kicking your ass back to Daemonia where you belong.”

  “I do not belong in the Place of All Demons,” Jett hissed. Her body shivered, and she knew it was nerves, and fear. She mustn’t cower before this vile man, father or not. She lifted her chin, assuming the regal mien she had grown to accept. “How dare you speak to me with such disrespect!”

  The demon laughed in a low rumble and shook his head. “Fair enough. My girl knows how to play the queen, that’s for sure.”

  “I am not your girl.”

  “Beg to differ, Jettendra. You’ve got my blood in your veins.”

  “And who else’s? Did you rape a frightened human woman? Is that how I was conceived?”

  He swiped a dismissive hand between them. “Rape is boring. I prefer seduction. And...” He blew out a breath. “I don’t remember them all.”

  “You are despicable.”

  She stood before her demon father. And she had never felt more repulsed. Not even in the twenty years she had lived in Daemonia. He was vile and idiotic and—Hell, this was her father?

  The demon held out his hand to shake. “Drav,” he offered. “Seventh underlord of the clan Tratch.”

  Tratch. Yes. That was the legion she had ruled.

  Jett considered his hand, and when she did not shake, he grabbed her arm and pulled her to him, chest to chest. His gaze held her speechless, and...she had not felt so helpless since that day she was tossed into the falls and taken to the throne.

  “That’s right,” he said. “You grew to become a powerful half-breed, but you’ll never be full demon like Daddy. Cocky is good. But you watch yourself, youngling. I can eviscerate you with a sweep of my hand. But I won’t.” He shoved her away from him. “Because we are going to get you on your way back to Daemonia so whoever is in charge can seal that damned rift and keep all the deplorables out of my territory.”

  His territory? Jett guessed Edamite Thrash might have qualms about such a bold statement.

  “No one is going anywhere until I have the answers to the questions that have haunted me for years,” Jett said. “And you may wish to believe you are stronger than me...but I have a reckoner on my side.”

  Drav mocked a shudder, which shook his dreads. “Yeah, I noticed. Disgusting. Why the hell did you hook up with him?”

  “I don’t owe you any details regarding my love life.”

  “Ah. It’s a love life, is it? So you’ve fucked him. That is some kind of ill shit. Cripes. But hey, just means you’re as fucked-up as your daddy. Good going!”

  “Who are you?” Jett insisted, because she wasn’t certain she could endure standing in the demon’s presence for much longer without flaying him to a heap of demonic sludge. “Royalty? Why are you not in Daemonia sitting the throne yourself? And why me? Why kidnap an innocent child and force her to such servitude?”

  “Servitude?” His laughter sounded like stones clacking against wood. Jett clenched her fists. “You were treated like the queen they made you, sweetie. Don’t deny it.”

  “I was stolen from a safe home in the mortal realm and forced to another land to learn ways unfamiliar to me. I was a frightened child! They insisted I breed for them! I barely escaped becoming a broodmare.”

  “Yeah. Well. Had to be done. Fuum was getting antsy.”

  Jett gripped her father by the throat and squeezed. She pushed some of her influence in through his skin, and she could feel his skeletal structure shudder. “Fuum?”

  “You are good at exerting influence,” he managed through his compressed trachea. “Pain gets me off, sweetie.”

  Jett shoved him away from her, and his shoulders hit the wall so hard th
e brick cracked. The demon slipped on that malicious grin again and clapped slowly as he nodded in appreciation for her display of power.

  “Enough with the dramatics,” Jett said. “Tell me about you and Fuum.”

  Drav exhaled, his shoulders dropping. “Fine. We’ll get the catching-up shit out of the way, and then down to the real nitty-gritty. Fuum. The worm bitch. I was having a fling with her at the time—”

  “In Daemonia?”

  “Sure. I used to go back and forth between realms all the time. The advantages of being born into legion governance. As a Tratch I was privileged and have always had the ability to move from one realm to the other at will. But you know that. You didn’t need any special release to get here. You just had to wait for the right moment, eh?” He winked.

  Jett sneered at him.

  “Right. So we were getting it on, and Fuum wanted to come to this realm, and I was willing to help her. The best way to do that? Replace her seat at the throne with another queen.”

  “But I was not a queen,” Jett protested.

  Drav swiped a finger over a lingering trace of black blood on his cheek and showed it to her. “You had the royal blood, sweetie. And I had the influence. So I searched for my by-blow—uh, that would be you. You were an easy find.”

  “Your—How many half-blood children do you have?”

  “Truth? Not a hell of a lot. Surprising, considering my frequent copulation habits—”

  Jett put up an admonishing palm between them. “Just stick to the details.”

  “Right. I located my daughter who had been adopted because, well, your mom didn’t survive the birth. That’s kind of a side effect of having a demon’s baby, if you’re a human. Can’t be avoided. Anyhoo. I found you and had you brought to Daemonia. Stupid little boy got taken along with you, though. That wasn’t part of the plan. But then again, he did serve Fuum as a vessel to get to this realm. All in all, it worked out swell.”

  “I hate you.”

  “Yeah? That feels so good.” He slid a palm over his chest, and Jett could not look at him any longer.

  She turned away, crossing her arms and sighting the nearby canal. Moonlight glinted on the water. Silver and clean and not at all like anything in Daemonia. She had never expected to meet her father. And she would never have guessed it would go down like this. What an utter asshole.