Succubus Heat gk-4

by Richelle Mead

  "Yeah, we know the rest," said Cody, not unkindly.

  "And I was wearing this body, and now…now I'm stuck with it."

  Under normal conditions, this would have provided hours of hilarity. For now, I actually felt bad for her. "Well, hang in there. They say this won't last for long."

  Tawny nodded unhappily. "Yeah. Here's hoping." Then, unexpectedly, she brightened a little. "Oh, but hey, you were totally right about the blow-job thing."

  Hugh's head whipped around to stare at me. "What?"

  Before I could say anything, Mei thankfully shouted for everyone's attention. And when I say shouted, I mean it. She used her power to amplify her voice, so it rang painfully through the whole room, making a lot of us wince and cover our ears. Several people backed away, giving us a clear view of her and Grace.

  "We want to thank everyone for coming," Mei said, returning to her usual flat, emotionless voice.

  "And we appreciate everyone's help as we try to keep things running around here. Mei and I have everything under control right now, but the concern everyone's shown is certainly…admirable." There was the slightest wry note in Grace's voice as she glanced around at the assembled demons. Many of them straightened up and smiled, acting as though they truly were here out of concern for us.

  "We know you're as anxious to find Jerome as we are," said Mei. "And we'll be doing everything we can to locate him." Some of those smiles tightened a little, and the crowd shifted uncomfortably. As I'd told Seth, not everyone was so eager for Jerome's return.

  "Yes, of course," a booming voice said. Tom had joined Grace and Mei in the spotlight. "Jerome is our top priority, of course. And if-I mean, when-he's found, I'm sure Management will be most eager to talk to him about how this happened in the first place. No doubt he will need a little…rehabilitation, and should he be unable to fulfill his duties, I for one am ready right now to step up and run infernal affairs in Seattle."

  "Well, Tom." A dark-haired demoness from across the room straightened up from where she leaned against the wall. "If memory serves, your leadership in Tuscaloosa didn't end so well."

  Tom glowered. "That was not my fault."

  So it began. The meeting slowly degenerated into chaos and mostly became about each demon talking about why he or she was the best choice-and why all of the others were completely unfit. It was like a year of presidential campaigning condensed into an hour.

  "Look at Grace and Mei," noted Hugh. "They look like they want to smite this entire room."

  "Well," I said. "That's the thing. All these demons are talking about keeping hellish affairs in order here, but those two are the ones who are actually doing it right now."

  "Hell should just let them take over if Jerome doesn't come back," said Cody. I gave him a sharp look. "Er, I mean, not that there's any question of that. He'll be back."

  "Let's hope so," a new voice said. Cedric had strolled over and joined our circle, Kristin in tow.

  "Whatever," I said, unable to hide a smile. "You can't tell me you want him back. This is your perfect chance to create your great Northwest empire."

  He shook his head. "No, believe me, I want nothing to do with any of this. Compared to some of these losers, Jerome suddenly seems like an ideal neighbor." It was very much like what Isabelle had said. "I don't suppose," Cedric added, "that you're going to be coming back up to Vancouver?"

  I hesitated. Was I? Who did I answer to now? Did Jerome's orders still stand? "I…I don't know," I admitted. "I don't know what I'm supposed to. If I should leave."

  "Well," he said. "It wasn't like you were doing that great a job."

  "I was too! I'd gotten them to back down before their so-called angel spoke to them. She told them not to trust me." I frowned, wondering if I should go on. I didn't know who to trust without Jerome around, and as Hugh had said, Cedric was still a very likely candidate for Jerome's summoning, in spite of my gut instinct. "And you know…I think I have an idea about who did this and who that angel is…"

  Cedric groaned. "Will you give up on Isabelle already?"

  I shook my head and lowered my voice. "I don't think it was her. I think it was Nanette."

  The incredulous look on his face didn't change. "That's as ridiculous as Isabelle. You were there. You saw Nanette come to me because she was simply worried about managing her own territory."

  "Funny, she had a similar meeting with Jerome not long after that."

  Cedric's face kept that cool, skeptical expression that demons excelled it. But, I was pretty sure I could see a spark of interest in his blue-gray eyes. "That doesn't mean anything." Another gut feeling told me he was lying. He started to turn, but then Cody spoke, voice hesitant.

  "Excuse me…do you know…are we mortal?"

  Cedric hesitated a moment and then laughed. When none of us said anything, he glanced between all our faces. "Oh. You're serious?"

  "Why is that such a crazy question?" I demanded. "We've lost everything else that makes us immortal."

  "You've lost it to keep you out of trouble," said Cedric. "Nobody wants you guys running around unsupervised with your normal abilities. So when you lose an archdemon, you get cut off. But you're still immortal. You think you can get out of your contract with something as easy as death?"

  "So we could get hit by a car and still be okay?" asked Cody.

  "Of course. Sure, it'd take awhile to recover. You'd heal like a human, but you'd eventually heal."

  "What if we got decapitated?" asked Peter.

  "Yeah," agreed Cody. "Like in Highlander ?"

  Cedric rolled his eyes. "Don't get decapitated, and we'll never have to find out." He focused on me. "Look, stay here for a while. Something tells me that the Angel of Darkness isn't going to be making any appearances anytime soon. I suspect the distraction is over."

  "I agree. Thanks."

  He gave me a curt nod and started to turn. Then, he glanced back at Tawny and did a double-take. "What's your name?"

  "Tawny," she replied.

  He eyed her from head to foot and then turned to Kristin. "Get her number and set up a date."

  I saw a spark of something in Kristin's eyes, and it took me a moment to identify it. Jealousy. Reflecting back on the way she doted on his affairs, I shouldn't have been surprised that she had a crush on him. She flipped through a few pages in her clipboard, her lips tight and disapproving.

  "You've got a lot of appointments this week. You hate it when you've got back-to-back events." She spoke levelly, but I could tell that while part of her warning came from true concern, another part of her welcomed the chance to throw a kink into his dating life. Cedric didn't appear to notice.

  He waved a dismissive hand. "Cancel something unimportant. You'll know what to do."

  He wandered off while Kristin took down Tawny's number. "We'll be in touch," Kristin said flatly.

  "Huh," said Tawny, once Kristin was gone. "He's kind of cute. Maybe this body isn't so bad after all."

  I exchanged glances with Hugh and Peter. They looked a lot like I felt: weary and frustrated, with the secret suspicion that this was all almost funny.

  "Well," I said, watching Tawny smile with delight. "At least someone's happy with all this."

  CHAPTER 13

  Hearing Cedric assure me I couldn't die lifted a huge weight off my shoulders. I left the Cellar with much less anxiety, though I still had no intention of doing anything that might test how exactly we'd heal from decapitation. So, while I still operated with caution, I no longer felt suffocated or threatened by every aspect of the world.

  Rather than go home, I drove down to Dante's shop. His store/apartment was in Rainier Valley, on the southeast side of Seattle. He had no regularly posted hours for his assorted "psychic" services, but he would usually hang around there at night if he had nothing else to do. It tended to be the time drunk people or couples out on dates (or high teens) would wander in looking for fun and novelty. Daytime business hours didn't generally bring out that many who were seeking hel
p from the divine unless, perhaps, it was someone seeking advice on stock trading.

  Dante had no customers tonight, however. The shop and its flickering neon sign seemed sad and lonely. I pushed through the unlocked door and found him leaning against the checkout counter, leafing through a copy of Maxim .

  "What gives?" I asked. "Your subscription to Frauds and Scams Weekly run out?"

  He glanced up at me with a smile, flipping black hair out of his face. "Just needed something pretty to look at since I didn't know when I'd be seeing you again."

  I planted a kiss on his cheek. "Holy shit. That's the sweetest thing you've ever said to me."

  "Yeah, well, I can make some filthy sexual suggestions to you if you'd prefer."

  "What, and ruin foreplay for next time?"

  This made his grin grow, and he shut the magazine. "To what do I owe the pleasure? Shouldn't you be visiting our neighbors to the north? Or is that done? I honestly can't keep track."

  "Well. About that." God, how I was going to explain what had happened? Had all of this seriously happened in just one day? It felt like a year had gone by since I got woozy in the car. "Something strange happened today."

  "Strange like you sold out of Jane Austen books at the store or strange like the rules of time and space as we know them are about to be ripped apart?"

  "Mmm…more like that last one."

  "Shit."

  I took a deep breath, figuring I should just get the big stuff out of the way. "There's no easy way to put this, but…I'm not a succubus anymore."

  "I never believed you were a succubus."

  I groaned. That had been an old joke between us when we'd first met. Oh, the irony. "I'm serious," I said. "No more succubus. And Jerome's disappeared too, possibly opening up Seattle to a new demonic reign."

  Dante stared at me, eyes speculative as he assessed me for the truth. He was speechless for the first time I'd known him. Not waiting for more witty commentary, I plunged forward. I explained about the summoning, what it had done to all of us lesser immortals, how demons everywhere were now sizing up Seattle, and why I needed to find Jerome as soon as possible.

  When I finally finished, it took Dante several moments to gather his thoughts. "So…you've seriously lost your succubus powers?"

  "Abilities," I corrected. "And yes, I have. Are you saying that after all that other stuff I just told you about the balance of power in Seattle, my succubus status is what caught your attention the most?"

  He shrugged. "You gotta admit it's weird. Besides, that other stuff doesn't affect me. You do." His eyes narrowed. "Am I going to have to use a condom now?"

  "What? No. Of course not."

  "You sure?"

  "You've never batted an eye over me stealing pieces of your soul these last few months, but the nonexistent threat of child support suddenly scares you?"

  "Well, yeah, seeing as my bank account's got more in it than my soul."

  I glanced around the shabby room. "Debatable."

  "Cute," he conceded. "But I'd be asking a few more questions about all of this if I were you. Like, can you die?"

  "I already asked that one," I said smugly. "And the answer is no. Our immortal bodies are still essentially the same. We're just cut off from all the perks." I hoped he didn't ask about decapitation because I honestly wasn't in the mood to debate that.

  "Okay, so what do you want from me?" he asked.

  "What makes you think I want anything?"

  He looked at me.

  "Okay, maybe I do want something. But come on, who else would know more about this stuff than you?"

  "Who knows more about demons? Hmm, let me think. I know. How about the demons you work for , the ones who are all-powerful and have been around since the beginning of time?"

  "They're not all-powerful. Otherwise they wouldn't need a human for the summoning-or end up getting summoned in the first place. And that's what I need you for. There can't be that many humans in the area capable of doing this, are there? You have to know who they are."

  Dante opened his mouth, no doubt with a snappy reply ready, and then abruptly closed it. "I don't know," he said slowly. "I don't keep track of those things."

  I leaned toward him, incredulous. "Of course you do! Do you not want to tell me? Why?"

  He sighed, his hesitant expression turning typically annoyed. "Because those kinds of people get pissed off if you start advertising their names."

  "What, you're afraid they're going to come beat you up?"

  "No. Not exactly. But there's sort of…a professional courtesy in these circles."

  "I'll be discreet. I won't tell them where I got the information."

  "Most of them already know we're together. They'd figure it out. They keep an eye on those kinds of things." He turned considering. "Of course, in that same vein, a lot of them know you as a succubus and might just think you knew through your own connections."

  He still seemed hesitant, so I played a mean card. "Well, I can always go ask Erik if you're too nervous about it."

  Erik was another mortal in town who dealt with the occult and paranormal. Unlike Dante, who was a practitioner, Erik simply studied and built up knowledge of the magical undercurrents in the city. He had a psychic's gifts and was attuned to what most human eyes didn't see. Sometimes he could even see what immortals couldn't. He and Dante had an old, old grudge and didn't enjoy being around each other, to put it mildly.

  My attempt to bait Dante didn't work, though. "Don't even try it, succubus. Making me jealous of the old man won't make me help you."

  I looked up at him pleadingly. "What will make you help me?"

  He traced the outline of my lips with his fingertip, gray eyes wicked and thoughtful. "Not sure it's anything you can do while cut off from your super-secret powers. You're not a sex goddess anymore."

  "Hey, I don't need super-secret powers to be a sex goddess."

  Just then, three twentysomethings stumbled in, staring wide-eyed at the shop as they tried to stifle nervous giggles. They undoubtedly had the same kind of potential that high teens did. I gave Dante one last frantic plea. "Please? Just give me the names. You don't have to do anything else. And I won't say anything. I swear it."

  Dante scowled, glanced at me, at the potential customers, and then back at me. He told them he'd be with them in a minute and then hastily jotted four names down on a scrap of paper. Two of them I recognized.

  "Thank you," I said. I beamed, and to my surprise, something in his cynical expression softened a little.

  "God, that smile," he muttered. "You might just be right."

  "About what?"

  "You really don't need any powers to be a sex goddess. Your hair's a little messy, though." He walked around the counter and gave me a quick half-hug. "Be safe, succubus. Don't test the limits of that not-dying thing."

  "And buy some condoms?" I teased.

  He shrugged. "You're the one who was having prophetic dreams about having kids a little while ago." Turning away from me, he put on his jovial con-man persona and beckoned the group over with pitches about palms and Tarot.

  He'd spoken the words in a light, off-hand kind of way, but as I slowly walked back to my car, they slapped me in the face.

  Prophetic dreams…

  Nyx's dreams.

  The things she'd shown me during that time had been so vivid that they seemed almost more real than my own life. The thing is, by almost all accounts, Nyx had a grasp on the future and could show people things that would happen to them. That was how she spread chaos in the world, by showing people these visions and making them think they knew how their futures would unfold. Unfortunately, while the visions came true, they never came true the way their victims thought they would. She'd led a lot of people to their deaths that way.

  Nonetheless, it seemed fairly clear that the dreams she'd sent to me had been distractions, not destructive images of what would come. In my visions, she'd shown me-over and over-with a daughter, waiting for a man I loved to come
home. The dreams had consumed me, almost making me want to sleep and have my energy taken each night. As I'd noted while holding Kayla, there was no way any piece of the vision could ever happen to me. I couldn't have any sort of relationship like that. And I certainly couldn't have a daughter, not of my own blood. Immortals didn't reproduce. When I'd sold my soul for immortality and shape-shifting, I'd given up certain aspects of my humanity. There could be no child for me. Not ever.

  And yet…

  I came to a stop on the sidewalk, still about a block away from my car. What if Dante had inadvertently stumbled onto something? What if being in this stasis had altered that piece of me that had lost the ability to conceive? Cedric had said I was still technically immortal, but he'd also said my body would respond and heal like a human's. What all did that entail? Would unprotected sex lead to conception? Is that what Nyx's visions had been pointing to? She'd sworn she'd shown me the truth. Had she?

  I was breathing fast again, though at least this time, I knew I didn't have to worry about giving myself a heart attack. Okay. I needed to calm down. This pregnancy possibility was as distracting as the hooking-up-with-Seth possibility. I'd never get anything accomplished if I lost myself in fantasies.

  With a sigh, I glanced down at Dante's piece of paper, now crumpled in my hand. I'd clenched it into a ball without even realizing it as I walked. I'd been too preoccupied to even notice…

  Babies and Seth. The things I wanted most.

  I forced myself to keep moving toward my car. But as I unlocked the door, I had to wonder ruefully if maybe I shouldn't be so quick to get Jerome back after all.

  I started following up on Dante's leads the next morning. Leaving my place was a little harder than I'd expected, though. Despite the fact I got ready plenty of mornings without shape-shifting, my closet seemed terribly small. And while my hair seemed fine when I finished it, I had a feeling it'd be frizzy the next time I checked the mirror. The only bright part was when I found Dante's watch under the bed. I thought I'd lost it yesterday, so at least my accessories collection was still respectable. Nonetheless, I had a feeling I was soon going to discover just how much I'd come to rely on my abilities.