by Auryn Hadley
I groaned, not sure if I was amused or disgusted. "Bel…" I decided to go with the shortened version, since I couldn't say his name the same way they did. "Bel, it doesn't work like that anymore. Women get married if and when they want. We sleep with who we want, and we basically don't need men to dictate our lives. Trust me, offering to marry someone out of the blue is a good way to get kicked in the balls."
"No sift?" He asked.
"Shit," Nick corrected without thinking.
Beelzebub nodded, his lips lifting into a smile. "No shit, then. I didn't get that part in my research." He scratched at his head. "Wasn't really looking for it either, though. Never thought women would really do it."
"Research?" I asked, letting the rest of that just slide on by.
"Yeah," Nick said. "We try to make sure we can blend with the cultures a bit. Draws less attention. There are demons who do nothing but keep track of cultural shift across the five worlds."
"Nice." It sounded like a really well-run system, but my introduction to the new guy hadn't gone unnoticed. Sam and Luke stood there watching but neither wanted to interrupt. Probably because they'd seen Nick's reaction. "Well, now that we all know each other..." I tried.
"You good?" Sam asked.
Beelzebub heard the voice and smiled. Unfortunately, turning exposed the angel in the room. "You let the bird into your house?"
"He's cool, Beelzebub," Sam assured him. "And if you try to make a scene in the house, Nick will be pissed."
Nick chuckled. "I'm not the only one." He tilted his head to me.
"So, I should probably warn you," I told the big guy, "if you try to hurt Luke, I'll drop you back into oblivion. He and I made a very unofficial deal."
Luke chuckled at that, earning a scathing look from the black demon. "Babe, you may be a Muse, but no human can knock my ass out," Beelzebub grumbled.
"She can," Nick said.
The big man scoffed. "Whatever. This is between Lucifer and myself. Not you or your girl, Satan, and I'll keep it outside."
Nick crossed his arms over his chest and leaned beside me, his body placed perfectly to work as a shield. "She pulled your aether from Gabriel. All of it. I couldn't even hold everything she withdrew, and she was full when she started."
"No human can do that." Beelzebub sounded uncertain.
"None before now," Nick agreed. "I should also mention that she doesn't like angels."
"Except Lucifer," I added. "Well, now."
The dark demon looked at the ground for a long moment, his head bobbing as he thought. When his eyes flicked up to mine, his expression was serious. "And you intend to help us?"
"I'd planned on it."
I couldn't quite get a read on this guy. He'd scared the hell out me when he'd arrived, acted like he was an old friend of Sam's, clearly respected Nick, but couldn't seem to pick a side of the fence. Then again, he had been napping for a few thousand years. I couldn't even imagine what it had been like the last time he was here, but one thing was clear. I didn't trust him any farther than I could throw him. Did I mention he was huge?
"You ever seen a demon, girl?" he finally asked, lifting his head to look at me. "You know you'd be playing for the minions of Hell?"
I shrugged pointedly. "There is no Heaven and Hell. Y'all are just an evolutionary effect of multiple dimensions and altered time streams." Then I smiled. "And yes, I've seen a demon. I happen to like the whole tail and horns thing. Looks pretty kick-ass."
That earned me a smile. "How old are you?" he asked, sounding impressed.
"Twenty-four."
"How long have you been playing with aether, child?"
"Intentionally? A couple of weeks. Unintentionally? Nick thinks I always have."
Nick smiled at me and reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. "She bends the veils."
"Damn," Beelzebub said. "Both, or just Earthside?"
"All of them." Nick's mouth curled into that lopsided smile. "Daemin, Angelis... all of them. Gabe's aether clung to her hands from Angelis to Earth – in flight!"
"Shit," Beelzebub breathed, pulling himself away from the wall. When he looked at me this time, it was with awe. "And she's helping us?"
I nodded slowly. "That's the plan. First, I need a seal, and to learn to walk in the corridors."
"Satan, you need to take her to Daemin. If she's here..."
"I know," Nick said. "The house is warded."
"That won't stop them!"
"I know," Nick said again. "We need to seal her, key the gates to her, and train her. I can't take her to Daemin until she's keyed in, because as soon as she's outside wards, the angels are all over us. That means we have to figure out a way to get her stable in the corridor first."
Beelzebub nodded slowly, looking like he finally understood. "Which is why you wanted me here."
"Wait," I interrupted. "Why?"
Beelzebub grinned smugly. "No one can down angels as well as I can, girl. No one. He wanted you to have a bodyguard."
"Another," Sam added.
Luke huffed but was smart enough not to say anything.
I let out an awkward laugh, looking at the four of them. Sam and Luke were quiet, Beelzebub looked full of himself, and Nick seemed embarrassed. Yeah, I'd have to ask about that later, but if I had a bodyguard, that implied something very important.
"Does this mean I won't be stuck in the house forever?"
"Eventually," Nick promised. "It'll take a bit, then we can move you to a safer place. First, we seal and lock you. I'm not about to take any risks, little dove." He turned to face me. "You mean too much to me."
"Us," Beelzebub corrected with a knowing chuckle. "If she's as strong as you say, that girl's good for more than just keeping your bed warm. Means you're going to have to share her." He paused to scratch at his closely shaven hair. "Just can't believe you went and fell for the Muse. Damn, Satan, you never do anything by halves."
"No," Nick admitted. "I don't. Seems she doesn't either. Yeah, and she's serious when she said to leave Luke alone. He got her out of Angelis. Sia's pretty fond of him."
Beelzebub nodded in understanding, finally giving Luke something other than a terrifying glare. "Satan told me that fight was a long time ago for you, and that you only did it because you had no other option." His eyes flicked over to me, but it was almost too fast to notice. "And the Muse says I can't take my pound of flesh. You owe me, though. Alter my skin to blend in with the people here, and I'll call it even."
Luke chuckled. "Don't need to."
"Three days ago, I was terrorizing people as a Moor. Maybe you've forgotten, but I certainly haven't, and while it may amuse you to see people shrink in fear of me -"
"Black is normal," Luke cut in, refusing to let him finish. "That's what the race is called now. About twenty percent of this country looks like you. Yeah, there's still some prejudice, but it's not socially acceptable. You're fine, Beelzebub."
The new guy looked over at me. "Is this true? You were scared when we met."
"Oh, no no no," I told him. "Some guy twice my size walks in and threatens to fuck me? That was the problem. Not the color of your skin. It's that you were acting like some misogynistic prick."
"Mis-og-o... What?"
"Sexist," Nick supplied. "Person who thinks men are better than women. Doesn't work like that anymore. Gender and racial equality are a thing now."
Beelzebub's eyebrows shot up. "They have advanced a lot."
"Yes, they have," Nick agreed. "Sam? Why don't you let our friend watch some TV? Might help him more than just talking."
"CNN," Luke suggested, heading back down the hall with the other two.
Once they were gone, Nick sighed and finally relaxed. Neither of us said anything. I think we were both waiting for the fight to break out now that their boss – Nick – was out of sight. It didn't happen. Instead, I heard the new guy laugh outrageously when the television was turned on. Considering it sounded like the news, he was probably more impressed at the con
cept than anything else.
"So," I said, leaning my shoulder against Nick's, "were you really going to beat the shit out of him?" The thought was oddly pleasing.
He looked at me sheepishly. "I didn't really think about it. Just saw some guy grabbing my girlfriend."
I bit my lip to keep from grinning like an idiot. "Gotcha. So I guess this Bel guy didn't get the complete debriefing, huh?"
"No." He lifted his arm to drop it over my shoulder. "The only people who know that you're the cause of the warped veils are in this house. When we figured out it was you, the three of us agreed that the fewer people who knew, the less chance there was of the angels hearing it accidentally."
"Spies?"
He paused, sucking at one of his incisors. "It's always possible. We're people, little dove. We make as many mistakes as anyone else."
"Just have more time to do it," I said, understanding what he meant. "Nah, I get that. Just trying to wrap my mind around the bigger picture because it seems like I'm kinda a big deal all of a sudden."
"All your life," he corrected. "And I do want Bel, as you call him, to keep an eye on you. With the way the house is warded, we'll know if anyone is inside, so he doesn't need to hover over you or anything."
I nodded, but my mind was replaying all of those little bits that had been thrown out. At the time, I hadn't gotten the chance to even think about half the things the big demon had said, but now? Oh yeah, Beelzebub had dropped quite a few interesting hints.
"So he and Sam had a thing going a while back?" I asked, watching Nick's reaction from the corner of my eye.
He reached up to push his long hair back and sighed. "That was a very long time ago, Sia."
"Not for Bel. He made a comment about how he and Sam used to share. I'm just wondering if that was both fucking the same girl, group sex, or if there's a relationship there I kinda need to know about. Sam already told me he's into guys."
Nick's head whipped over, his eyes just a bit too wide. "Sam told you that?"
"Yeah. When we first met, he agreed that you were hot then told me he was a try-sexual." I paused, aware of the apprehension on his face. "Why?"
"Some of the things we've done were out of ignorance. Humans weren't very civilized when we first met them, and it can often take us a little longer to adapt. Lack of generations and all that."
He was clearly avoiding something, and I was dying to know. "Like orgies?"
"Among other things," he reluctantly admitted. "We only started using skins here regularly around the Bronze Age. Before that, the fear of our appearance was one of our best tools. We looked like monsters. Rape was considered an acceptable way to claim a girl at one point. Just take her, and she was yours." He sighed. "Even the women didn't know any better, and they weren't given the option to consent. Once they were, it got harder for us. Then we realized some were drawn to the idea of danger."
I could see where this was going. "But not enough to go around, huh?"
"No," he agreed. "Many demons found a solution that kept everyone happy."
I noticed how vague he'd made that. "Were you one of them?"
"Sia," he groaned. "It was a long time ago."
I giggled. "Which means yes. So, I guess a few guys got together and made agreements or something?"
"Look, it wasn't anything as devious as that. It was just that if a woman was interested in more than one of us, we never questioned if that was normal. We came from a place where women didn't exist. It only made sense that we wanted her happy, and sometimes that meant she wanted more than one lover, so friends learned to share the same woman. Sometimes at once, sometimes she had separate relationships with each one. For us, there were no social connotations to it. Regardless, they spoiled and pampered her." He glanced up. "On the midworlds, the women were used to it, but humans? Those girls loved the attention. From their point of view, it was a good deal. The additional lovers made sure no one abused her, and they all kept her in luxury."
"But surely you saw that other humans didn't have the same types of relationships, right?"
His tongue flicked across his lips. "We did. We also saw how angels treated men. Back then, angels enslaved men, and those men enslaved their wives. We had no interest in making love into some kind of torture."
I thought about women's place throughout history, and I could see why their offer would be so appealing even if society didn't approve. "You know, that all makes sense. So why didn't you get in on the good deal? I mean, you already told me you haven't slept with a human before. Overly jealous?"
"Um..." He glanced to the far side of the room. "I only said I've never had sex with a human."
"But you've made out a time or two, huh?"
I saw a smile flash across his lips. "Or so. My work kept me closer to Angelis. I spent a lot of time on Tyrnigg with the fairies. That, and my name? The demon of seduction was tempting. Satan?" He shook his head. "The church simply had too much power, and I've earned a place as their enemy. For good reason."
Nope, I was not letting him derail this. "So y'all had like, fairy gangbangs?"
His head dropped to his chest. "Dove, it was a very long time ago, ok? We weren't trying to take advantage of her."
"Nick..." I giggled. "I'm not pissed. I mean, the idea of you and a couple of hot demons getting kinky?" I flashed him a devious smile. "C'mon. That's hot."
"You're not...."
I shook my head. "This is the twenty-first century. We humans have figured out there are more options than heterosexual monogamy. In fact, we ladies? Believe it or not, sometimes we think the idea of multiple hot guys being into us might even be a good thing!"
"Bel's into you," he said softly, glancing over to check my reaction.
I nodded. "Haven't made up my mind about him yet. I'm not convinced that he isn't a dick, but he's pretty."
A little smile was curling one side of Nick's mouth ever higher. "Sam's into you."
That actually made me laugh. "Sam's into anything with a pulse, and I'm not sure he requires even that."
"Seriously," Nick said. "Does that upset you?"
"Um..." Yeah, my opinion on Sam was dangerous territory. All of a sudden, I wasn't so sure this had been a good topic. "It's flattering?"
"Sia?" He turned to face me. "I told him to be more respectful. He's a good guy, but he doesn't always like to stay on his side of boundaries."
I scrubbed at my face. "He's a friend, ok? I'm not upset if he flirts, and I'm most definitely not going to cheat on you. I promise! Nick, you deserve to finally have a woman who is devoted to you, and I want that to be me. I mean, I spent four years trying to find you. Now that I have? Nope. Nuh uh. Not going to screw this up."
Moving closer, he pressed a hand to the back of my neck. "There's nothing to screw up, little dove. I'm ok with us. I'm more than ok with us. I just know that you make my friends happy, and I don't want to lose that either. We've all been through so much together and I like how we're finally able to all be happy together."
"I know. And I'm just a flash in the pan, right?"
"A year is still a year," he told me as he pressed his forehead to mine. "A day passes the same to me as it does to you. Once you learn to control aether, there's no reason you won't be able to maintain your life."
Sucking in a breath, I looked up, still shocked to see darkness instead of stars. "What? If I learn how to do this aethercrafting stuff, I can live longer?"
"It's the internal aspect. Luke will have to show you that, but yes. Many Muses used their talents to live a few lifetimes."
"And be young? Not like some two-hundred-year-old wrinkled old lady?"
"You can age if you want, or not." The smile on his face was almost confused. "You'd really want to live longer? Most don't. They give up after a few generations."
"Why the hell not? Of course I like the idea of living as long as I can."
He tilted his head slightly. "And when everyone you love has gone?"
Thrusting my arm out, I gestured aroun
d the house. "Luke, Sam... You! Nick, I have no family. My friends? They're a joke. The only people I give a damn about kinda can't die. Duh!"
He was nodding, but not looking quite as thrilled as I felt. "And when the world has changed so much that you can't recognize it?"
"Nick!" I gasped, shaking his shoulders to make my point. "I don't recognize Vesdar or the other places either."
"Maybe not, but they've all still given up eventually." With a relieved sigh, he pulled me against his chest and wrapped those amazing arms around me. "But I'll take all the time with you I can get."
With my cheek smooshed against his pecs, I managed to mumble, "Then stop suffocating me and start teaching me, demon!"
Chapter 29
After that first day, Beelzebub was completely respectful, and he never made a move to get even with Luke. Once he began to realize how much the world had changed while he slept, he even apologized for his rudeness to all of us. Me, more than the rest. The last time he'd been on Earth, women had been treated as property, raised and trained to submit to their men. The concept of birth control amazed him, resulting in many embarrassing questions. The idea of equality thrilled him in a way I never would've expected. In less than a week, we'd even become tentative friends.
While Beelzebub threw himself into learning modern culture, I focused on mastering aether. Then, one evening, after surpassing every challenge he set, Nick finally agreed that it was time to take the next step. With a sigh, he pulled me into his lap, wrapping his arms around my body protectively.
"Before you try to cross the veil, you need to be sealed," he said gently.
I nodded. "Ok. How do we do that?"
"It hurts." One finger pulled the hair away from my neck. "It's a brand, little dove, just with aether instead of iron."
"Pretty sure I'll live. How do we do it?"
He kissed the side of my neck, trying to distract me. "You willing to let Luke help?"
I pulled away and turned to him. "Stop avoiding the question, demon."
Nick laughed, the sound warm and melodious. "Angel, demon, human. The three of us can weave aether together, calling to the pattern of your own life to raise the symbol on your skin." He shrugged. "It means lying naked with the two of us standing over you, doing a little chanting to keep our weaving synchronized."