Fear Episode Two

by Nicholas Bella

  “We have a balance in our triumvirate, my Lord,” I began to explain, but she held her hand up, stopping me.

  “Bullshit. Your triumvirate is in disarray and you’re too blind and foolish to admit it. See, I know this balance you speak of and it is based on your fear. Fear is something no one can hide from me. Fear doesn’t tell lies like people and demons do. I picked up on such little details when I observed all three of you together. I see all things when no one knows I’m watching,” she explained, then she walked up to me, taking my hand into her own bloody one. Her victim’s blood was cooling a bit, but still squishy as our palms connected.

  “Especially when no one wants to look at you, my Lord,” I said.

  She giggled. “Are you trying to insult me?”

  “Not at all, my Lord. You are powerful, yet unnerving. To look upon you may attract unwanted attention… from you. And since you enjoy what you do, creating fear, it is understandable that people avert their gazes in your presence. So, you can observe,” I clarified.

  She nodded. “Astute demon… the Agoto chose wisely in picking its human host. So, what are you going to do about your little relationship problem?”

  I felt insulted having been called a ‘host’ for my Agoto. I saw it more as a partnership, a union. I decided to not fret on it, what good would that do? I sighed. I was just about to tell her that I had no idea what to do about Andre when the solution came to me. I chuckled, then smiled at how simple it all was. Why hadn’t I thought about it before? I was over three centuries old, yet this elementary idea only came to me after I’d been submerged in the Oasis pool. Well, I guessed I could believe that it worked and gave me inspiration.

  “Well?” Oria asked.

  “I will top Andre from the bottom. Dominate him even when he’s inside of me. As a leader, it is my job to keep the peace. Quell the disturbance in my triumvirate by giving my challenging mate what he wants all the while staying in control, my Lord.”

  I silently chastised myself for not having thought of it before. It might have smoothed things over better between the three of us. Unfortunately, before tonight, the thought of allowing Andre to slide his cock into me put me off by the fact that I knew Andre wanted to dominate me when he first entered our relationship. Therefore, I felt outright denying him was the best option. I had to admit now, the thought of topping from the bottom did appeal to me. Perhaps, I would give it a try.

  “Thank you for your wisdom, my Lord,” I said. To say anything else would have been an affront. Oria was several millennia older than I was, and she knew the truth, even though I didn’t want to admit it. All in all, she forced me to be honest with myself.

  She released my hand to make an offhanded gesture. “You see, pairing you with me was another wise decision of our King. He knows of the unrest in your relationship and how stubborn you are. Rather than interfere as he had in the past, he commanded me to… well… command you to take a dip in the pool. Though it was dangerous, it was something he was willing to risk in order to set you on the right track. Andre is to do the same… not so much Brian. You see, you are not the only one who fears being dominated. I saw Andre’s fear.”

  “I see. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I do have more clarity having done so. Also, I’m already pretty certain I know what Andre fears, my Lord,” I said. So, Adriel was once again one step ahead. He was more than wise… he was shrewd.

  “Do you?” she asked.

  “He’s afraid of being dominated because he’s been—"

  “Wrong,” Oria said, cutting me off. “Andre is afraid that he’ll enjoy it. That the alpha male in him wants to be topped by someone higher on that ladder than he is. He loves when you fuck him, but he doesn’t want you to think that makes him weak,” she said, then sighed. “Such human emotions you both display. I suppose it is because, though demon, you are still human. Your human souls are intact, your conscience, your upbringing, your issues.”

  “My mates would consider that their greatest strength, my Lord,” I pointed out, thinking about Brian and Andre’s strong sense of morality.

  She only rolled her eyes to that. “Well, at least you know how to heal the wound of your relationship now. Where to next, young demon?”

  “The catacombs, then the sewer, my Lord.”

  “There’s shit and rats and other disgusting things in the sewer. Do you want me to ruin my pretty dress and shoes?” she asked, then made a sweeping gesture over her completely bloodied clothes.

  “Umm,” was all I managed to get out before she burst into a fit of maniacal laughter.

  She pointed at me. “Your face, you should see your face.”

  “I wasn’t sure if you were serious, my Lord.”

  “I don’t care about going into the catacombs, sewers, or these clothes.” She grinned. “Did you know, as a torturer in hell, I make souls drink human sewer water as punishment? I even make them eat the chunky parts, turds and all that nasty sludge.” She then burst into a fit of laughter and I had to wash my mind of the mental image she had painted for me.

  “Disgusting enough to be a fitting punishment, I’m sure, my Lord,” I said. And hoped we could move on from the subject.

  “Will there be demons to kill?” she asked, looking up at me with gleeful anticipation in her eyes.

  “That is what I’m hoping, my Lord. I have not gone into these places before.”

  “Thought you were too good?”

  “Perhaps, my Lord. As a practice, I don’t really hang out in the underground.”

  “Yeah, even now, you fear ruining your designer clothes,” she stated.

  “I wouldn’t say I ‘fear’ it. Just dread it, my Lord.”

  “A thin line, a very thin line to a demon like me,” she pointed out.

  “In any case, are you ready, my Lord?” I asked, holding my hand out to her.

  She raised both hands for me to carry her. “Take me to paradise, then.”

  I scooped her up into my arms and teleported us to the famous catacombs of Paris, France, which were in the center of the city. The walls were lined with the skulls of countless humans for miles, some in the design of religious symbols. The image was both macabre and artistic, the atmosphere was eerie in a sense, as much as awe-inspiring. It was the first time I’d ever been to the catacombs, so I supposed I’d try to take it all in as I searched for demons. I placed Oria down on her feet just as a big, furry rat with a long tail scurried by.

  “Oh!” she yelped, then reached down with lightening quick speed and snatched up the fat, wiggling rodent. She sniffed it and examined it, turning it this way and that as it struggled to break free.

  “It might bite, my Lord,” I warned.

  She shrugged, then opened her mouth, revealing rows of sharp teeth right before biting the head off the rat. Blood squirted from the gaping neck wound as the limbs and body twitched from the sudden trauma. I fought to keep my expression neutral as she crunched on the head of the rat. I’d seen many disturbing and disgusting things in my time as a demon. Didn’t mean that I couldn’t be or wasn’t grossed out by some of the shit I’d seen. You get over it.

  I motioned for us to head in a northern direction. “Shall we, my Lord?” I asked once she had swallowed her mouthful.

  She nodded and tossed the carcass of the rat to the ground. “Can I give you a kiss on the cheek?” she asked, and I knew why.

  “Now, you’re just being a bitch, my Lord. And I mean that in the most respectful way,” I said.

  She brought her tiny hands up to her mouth to stifle her evil laugh. “I am, aren’t I?”

  “Very much so, my Lord.”

  She grinned. “Okay, I’ll play nice with you. No kisses. My, my, my… you’re quite uppity for a demon.” She walked past me in the direction I had suggested, and I didn’t say anything to her comment. I was only hoping to find something in this stinking, disgusting grave littered with so many corpses and who knows what else. I’d hate for this to have been a wasted trip. Only time would tell. I
did wonder what Brian and Andre were up to. I hoped their night was going better than mine.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Andre

  I teleported Tyson and myself to a bar in Mississippi, one known for its fine, racist patrons. Before entering, I checked my text messages, as Raphael has sent me one telling me he wanted both Brian and I to visit the muse demon in Florida—a friend of his—and take a dip in her Oasis pool. Supposedly, it would help open us to more inspiration. I could tell by the way it was written that it wasn’t a suggestion.

  “Bad news?” Tyson asked me, which drew my attention from my phone to him.

  “No, I don’t think so. Just a mission from my…” I let my voice trail off. Raphael… he was my mate, no doubt. But was he my lover? My leader, for sure. It felt weird calling him any of those things, though. For so long, I’d been the master of my own life. I had lived alone and answered to no one but myself for years. And now, I was a mate to two men, one whom I did have to answer and submit to. To say that I was still conflicted about it all would be an understatement. In any case, Raphael gave the command and I would follow. I just needed to make preparations to visit this Saleah at my earliest convenience.

  “From your?” Tyson pressed.

  “None of your damn business. Now, back to what we’re doing here,” I said, placing my phone back into my pocket. “This is the unwashed armpit of America. The patrons of this bar like to wear white hoods and hate everyone who isn’t white and straight. Basically, it’s a demon hot spot. I was even thinking of collecting some souls here for my king just to tempt them into taking a ‘favor’ from a gay, black man. But, I’m getting off topic.”

  “Kind of, yeah,” Tyson retorted.

  “Hush and listen,” I interjected. “You go in first, order a drink, and act normal. In about ten minutes, I’m going to walk in and approach you. I’m going to pick a fight because of the racist shit you yelled at me on the road before throwing your beer and cracking my car window.”

  Tyson laughed. “I did all that, eh?”

  “That’s the story we’re going with. I want to get the others involved, and most likely, they will.”

  “If this place is as volatile as you say, I think you just walking in should get the ball rolling,” Tyson said.

  “You wanna bet?”

  “Twenty dollars says we don’t even have to pretend that I wronged you on the road. These assholes will just want to kick you out because you’re the wrong color.”

  “Well, you may have less faith in humanity than I do, but I’ll take that bet. But if that doesn’t happen, we go back to my plan, fair?”

  He nodded. “All this talk about bar fights, I forgot, why are we going through the trouble anyway?”

  This short attention span having motherfucker right here. I sighed. “Because, I want to punch you in the face hard enough to make you bleed.”

  Tyson frowned. “There are easier ways for me to draw blood rather than getting punched in the face.”

  “I’m sure, but I’m hoping to get it here and there so they don’t wipe it up, well, not all of it at least,” I said.

  “You sure you aren’t doing this just to start a fight with a bunch of racist rednecks?” Tyson asked.

  “Oh, that’s a bonus, but demons come here a lot. We don’t need them getting curious if they happen to sense demonic blood. If they see or hear a fight break out, or hear that one did, maybe they’ll overlook it, especially if it’s all over the place.”

  Tyson sighed, then rubbed his temple. “I see your point. I’m low enough to the demonic totem pole that the upper levels don’t pay that much attention to me, but it would make my blood being in this place less conspicuous. Are you hoping the right demons come by so you can see if one of them works for Katashniel?”

  “That’s the plan for this location and many others. We’re bound to catch some fish with this bait.”

  “Metaphors, got to love them.” Tyson sighed. “Okay, not too thrilled about having to bleed all over the country—”

  “More like the world. Katashniel’s crew is scattered everywhere, we can’t think small,” I said.

  “Fine.” Again, Tyson sighed and rolled his eyes.

  “You heal fast?” I asked.

  “Not as fast as you, so please take that into consideration when you’re kicking my ass,” he said.

  I smirked. “I’ll be gentle.”

  “So, when we go in here, if no one reacts to you, do you want me to say some racist shit to you to get you all ‘fired up’?” he asked, with the air quotation marks.

  “Oh yeah, something that would piss me off enough to punch the shit out of you.”

  “Hey, I thought you said you’d be gentle. Remember, we’re just acting in there,” Tyson pointed out.

  I laughed. “And I’m a damn good actor. Was the star of my high school and college drama classes,” I stated.

  “How wonderful for you. Just remember that I don’t mean any of the shit I’ll say, okay? I love all living beings.”

  “You’re a woke demon, all for diversity?” I asked, and the sarcasm was all in my expression and voice. No way could I hide it.

  He nodded. “I am.”

  “You did something wrong, that’s how you became a demon anyway. You weren’t respecting life when you went to hell.”

  He shrugged. “Yeah, and I make no excuses for my past, but I guess your kind would get touchy about that. You were a human that had a demon born into you, right?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. I have morals and shit.”

  “Well, I was a thief when I was human, but I never killed anyone because I have morals. I went to First-hell, did my time and earned my place back into this world. Granted, I was reborn as a demon, but I want to do right this time around,” Tyson said.

  I could tell he was being honest, at least, this time. As a lawyer, I had a knack for being able to tell if a perp was lying or not most of the time. And now with my demonic senses, I was even more in tuned. That wasn’t to say I was a bona-fide lie detector, I wasn’t, I just had a feeling. I decided to cut the guy, er… demon, some slack. “And you are by helping me and by joining the Society,” I said.

  He smiled and it was genuine. Maybe he needed this little mission as much as I did. It was true that I got off on taking out evil ass demons. I could kill a dozen a night or more and be loaded with so much energy, I’d go home and fuck Brian’s brains out and still have some energy for whatever Raphael wanted to do. Shit, why was I even thinking about him? Ugh, he was really working himself into every part of me.

  I cleared my mind because it was starting to go to places that would wake my dick up and no way was I interested in fucking Tyson. Not that I had permission anyway. “Okay, let’s get this over with. I want to hit up at least two more places before I hit the hay. I may be a demon, but it’s been a long fucking day. Oh, and I still need to go to Florida to that seer, so yeah, get on in there.” I gave him a gentle shove toward the direction of the tavern, which was about a block and a half away. I didn’t want anyone to see us together by teleporting too close.

  Tyson squared his shoulders and strutted down the street toward the bar like he didn’t have a care in the world. He entered and I set my watch to keep the time. I wanted him to get comfortable and look like a regular patron before I came in. My plan was to wait for someone to start some shit with me first and if that didn’t happen, then I’d engage Tyson so he could kick it off. It would look more natural if it wasn’t him though. Here was to hoping these racist sons of bitches held true to form.

  After a good fifteen minutes had passed, I made my way into the bar and as I had suspected, all eyes were on me. I was surprised the music didn’t stop playing with a scratch, it was that surreal. I adjusted my nice leather jacket and walked up toward the bartender.

  “Glad this place was open this time of night,” I said in my attempt to make small talk.

  “Yeah, why is that?” the bartender asked with a sneer.

  “Well, my car ju
st broke down and I had to walk—”

  “Look, boy, I don’t really care. It’s best you find somewhere else to go,” the bartender informed me.

  “Look,” I said, holding up my hands. “I don’t want any trouble. Just looking for something to drink and to wait for my ride. I’ll be out of your hair in like an hour.”

  “That’s fifty-eight minutes too fucking long, nigger,” another voice said from behind me.

  I checked my watch and he was right, I had been in the place two minutes. Good to know he could tell time. I turned around on my swivel chair to face the two men who were now flexing their fingers into fists.

  “Now, that wasn’t nice at all. Where is all this southern hospitality I keep hearing about?” I taunted.

  “You’re in the wrong place for that, buddy,” the other guy said. I could tell by his gruff voice that he wasn’t the same guy who’d called me a “nigger”. Naw, that was his blond-haired partner with the missing teeth and rank ass breath.

  I chuckled. “Shouldn’t you both be home fucking his sister?” I asked and nodded my head at the one who dropped the “N” word on me.

  “Motherfucker!” snapped the blond, who reared back and took a swing.

  I could see his fist coming from miles away and had to make a decision. Which would be cooler, to let him punch me and see just how ineffective his blow was or dodge his pussy ass punch and deliver him one hell of an uppercut? Ahhh, decisions, decisions. I let his fist connect in the end and my head didn’t even move because I had more than enough time to brace for it.

  “Ow!” he hollered and took a step back, shaking his hand I was sure was aching from the blow he gave me. He’d put everything he had into that punch and I was sure he was disappointed to see that I was smiling at him.