by LJ Swallow
He gasps a laugh. "I think she wanted to believe I was you."
No. No. No. I squeeze my anger into his neck.
The demon retches as the disease takes hold, fluid filling his lungs and I keep my grip on him while I grasp at what the hell is happening here. Xander's right. Vee needs to learn to defend herself until she grows into the strength we presumed she could summon.
A movement from the sofa catches my eye as Vee sits and props herself on one arm. She stares, pale face marred by shock, and touches her mouth with shaking fingers.
"Ewan. What are you doing?" Her eyes flick to the dying demon. "Who's that?"
"The demon you thought was me," I snarl. I shake him again. "Isn't that right?"
The guy turns his head to look at Vee, blood caking his face. "Don't you recognise me, sweetheart?"
She continues to touch her lips. "He was one of the guys who came on to me. The one who touched me. Why is he in here with us?"
"The bastard glamoured himself to look like me," I bark out. "He'd already magiced you into a state of uh... arousal. I just arrived. He was the one who brought you in here, not me." I meet Vee’s eyes and wait for the truth to catch up.
"Omigod." Vee tears her gaze from mine and slumps back down again. She rakes hands into her hair. "He’s the one I kissed?"
"Yes," rasps the demon with a laugh. "We could’ve had so much fun if your friend hadn’t interrupted."
The demon bastard doesn't laugh for much longer as the blackened veins burst sending a putrid darkness across his skin and choke the remaining life from him. His body slackens, and I drop the evil creature’s neck. I wish I'd prolonged his death, but I want this over and to get Vee the hell out of here.
I rest back on my haunches and look to Vee. "I'd ask if you were okay but guess that's a bloody stupid question."
She chews on a nail, eyes hard and not glistening with the tears I’d expect. "Don't tell anybody else what happened to me.”
"That's your biggest worry here?" I ask. "That the others would find out? Vee, a guy just assaulted you."
"He only kissed me." She glares at the body on the floor.
I blink. "That’s still assault."
As I stand and then sit next to Vee on the sofa, she shifts slightly and pulls at the dress to cover more of her legs.
Realisation hits as she refuses to meet my eyes. "He wasn't me," I say. "The scum dead on the floor who touched you is—was—an incubus. Do you know what they are?"
"Sort of. I know they feed from humans, and it has something to do with sex." She swallows.
"Demons. They’re male succubi who feed on unconscious females by having sex with them. The sexual energy fuels them. You’re their food source."
"But how could he?” She grits her teeth. "Surely I'd know what he was."
I point at Vee's arm, at the smallest mark, no bigger than a thumbprint bruise. "Magic, Vee. You had no idea." She closes her shaking hand over it.
"This is bullshit, Ewan! You guys say I have special powers, yet demons can still freaking attack me?"
I recoil at her anger. Vee's breathing's shallow, cheeks pink, and she can't look at me. I ache to put arms around her and hug tight, but don’t know if she wants me to.
"You can’t always spot demons. It sucks, but it’s true. Don’t you think our job would be a hell of a lot easier if we could pick demons out more easily? We're powerful but not infallible, Vee. You didn’t feel in danger or know, so nothing triggered your powers."
Her demeanour changes, and she drops her head back onto the sofa."Fuck. I passed out. Was he... When you walked in. It was just kissing, wasn’t it?"
"Yes." My stomach twists at the thought of what I could’ve seen, and I give in to my need, wrapping Vee in my arms and holding her close. Vee's cheek touches my chest, but her muscles remain tense, and she doesn't yield to my desperation to comfort her.
The succubus told us there were four of them altogether, which means I need to get Vee to safety, then find and subject his friend to a painful death too.
I can't help the question rattling in my brain. Why me? Why not Xander? I saw Vee with him, intimate, when I arrived, positive she wanted him. The incubus must've seen both of us in her mind. Why did Vee favour me?
I wish she bloody hadn’t. Everything between us was already a mess and is now fucked up more than ever.
9
VEE
Ewan keeps his promise and doesn't say a word to Xander. He messages him and escorts me from the club, through the fire doors at the back. An alarm sounds, but Ewan strides through despite somebody appearing in the doorway to yell at us.
"I told Xander to meet us at his car," Ewan informs me and we walk across the dirty tarmac in silence.
I shake, my mind missing chunks of the last hour, and when I close my eyes, all I see is Ewan's face looking down at me, his lips on mine and hands on my body. I waver between anger over the attack and mortification I imagined the demon was Ewan. Why the hell did I?
As Xander strides towards us, he clicks the key fob and the lights flash as the Aston Martin unlocks. Ewan pulls open the car door and I slide onto the cool leather seat, not looking at him as he slams it shut behind me. I huddle down in the seat as the two guys talk.
I’m beyond grateful Ewan found me when he did, but I can’t separate the incubus and him in my mind. He probably takes my inability to meet his eyes as pissed off with him, or upset by the attack, but I’m bloody embarrassed I’ve revealed my feelings. Ewan now knows how I see him. How can I look Ewan in the face knowing he doesn’t want me, but that he knows I fantasise about him?
Minutes later, Xander climbs into the driver’s seat and I eye him warily. He starts the engine.
"You're a bit of a lightweight, huh?" he says as he releases the handbrake.
"Pardon?"
"Ewan said he found you sitting in a corner after throwing up in the bathrooms. Seriously, you had one vodka, Vee."
"Must've been something I ate," I mumble. The perspiration across my back cools under the car's air con, and I shiver.
"All good. But you should've stayed with us or told us where you were going."
"I lost you in the crowd."
"Yeah, pretty crazy in there, huh?"
I clear my throat as he manoeuvres the car onto the nearby street. "I think next time you guys should go on your own."
"Not your best intro to hunting if you don't see us kill the bastards. Demons were in there. Found a couple of succubi, and Ewan took out one of their male counterparts before he found you. He's headed back to find the fourth in the group before he comes home."
I swallow. "Good."
Xander sighs and leans over to switch on the car radio. "I don't want to sound like a chauvinist dick, but I think we need to teach you more skills to defend yourself. I mean, Ewan freaked when he couldn't find you, and I admit I was a bit worried too."
A muscle in his cheek twitches.
"Or maybe just teach me how to use my bloody powers!" I snap then draw in a shaky breath.
"Did something happen to you?" he asks in a low voice. "You're tense."
I breathe out, pushing away the truth ready to come out of my mouth and find vague words instead. "I had a stressful evening."
Xander huffs. "Yeah, waste of fucking time. I questioned the succubi before I killed her, and she’s no idea who Portia is. No demons apart from those predators. Sure, we cleared out that gang but they’re low life, a demon underclass. Their kind live for one thing only."
I dig nails into my palm. Don’t I know it.
"I hope Joss and Heath had a better evening than us and found some clues. The longer this goes on, the worse things could get between us and the fae," he says. "I don’t have time to chase around. I need names and to deal with the fucking problem."
Xander slams his foot on the accelerator and I lurch, gripping the seat.
"You didn’t stay behind for your fun," I say with a weak smile. "At least you would’ve achieved something for y
ourself."
For a moment Xander stares ahead, gripping the steering wheel tighter. "Some things are more important."
I think his pause is the end of the conversation as I stare at his hard-set jaw, but he turns his head to me. "I spent a long time looking for you, Vee, and I can’t lose you." The strange intensity in his eyes matches that from before, but is as unfathomable. He looks back at the road. "Besides, it’s not like you could ride home on Ewan’s bike dressed like that."
His attempt to backpedal doesn’t fool either of us.
JOSS
Vee's distress hits my radar as soon as she walks into the lounge room. She flops on to the armchair and leans down to undo her shoes, before kicking them off and wiggling her toes. Xander walks in too, then heads into the kitchen to speak to Heath.
What happened? "Where's Ewan?" I ask Vee.
"Some demons were at the club. He stayed behind because one of them disappeared and he wanted to kill it.” Her voice is flat. "We came home because I wasn't feeling well."
"Bad night, huh?"
"I think she had too much to drink." Xander walks by again. "I'm going to shower the demon filth off me."
His footsteps thud upstairs as I focus on Vee’s face. "You don't seem drunk. Did someone try to attack you again?"
Vee abruptly stands and grabs her shoes from the floor. "I'm tired, Joss. Long night. Eye opening."
I watch in disbelief as she follows Xander upstairs. A thought crosses my mind: is she heading after him? Or avoiding me? My bedroom door opens with a familiar creak. Okay, she’s not following Xander.
Vee’s response to me was weird though.
I put down the book I was reading and pad up the stairs after her. I rap on my bedroom door. "Vee?"
Xander appears from his adjacent bedroom, shirtless, holding a towel. He shakes his head at me. "You three are sad bastards, all desperate for her attention. Just go out and get laid, Joss."
"Shut the fuck up. Something's wrong. What happened?"
Xander shrugs. "We lost her for ten minutes or so. She was throwing up in the bathrooms, apparently."
I didn’t detect any drunkenness around her. The club isn’t far from here. She couldn’t sober up this quickly. "Who found her?"
"Ewan."
"And he said nothing happened? No demons or fae approached her?"
"Ewan would've said if there'd been any problems. The girl's not used to clubs and drinking. That's all."
"And did you find any information about Portia’s attackers?”
He snorts. "Nope. Wild fucking goose chase."
“It wasn't a wasted exercise if you found some renegades to wipe out.”
"True." He pushes down the handle on the bathroom door. "I’m getting my shower. Stay out of Vee’s bed."
"My bed," I remind him.
He shakes his head and walks into the bathroom. I knock on my door again. "Vee?"
A tired Vee opens the door and stares back at me. She's changed into flannel pyjamas with black cats on them, her brushed hair framing her face. A mess of emotions emanates from her and I can’t sort through which is strongest. Upset? Fear? Anger? What the fuck happened to her?
"Can I come in?" I ask.
Without speaking, Vee steps back and I close the door behind me. My room looks the same, but with her possessions spread around. The lemon scent I associate with Vee, and a subtle perfume she wore tonight, fill the air around.
"You look like you need a hug," I tell her and open my arms. "I guess you felt a little out of your depth tonight?"
Vee hesitates before stepping into my embrace. She doesn't hold me in return but her body gradually relaxes in my arms. I place my chin on her head, relishing the warmth but worried by the confused emotions within her. This is what I worry about: Vee might be our missing Fifth, but how strong is she? She's not one of us yet.
"Ewan and Xander should've looked after you properly."
The emotion in her switches, annoyance bubbling through, and she pulls back to gaze up at me. "I don't need looking after. Hell, I've lived my own life without four big, bad guys looking after me."
"Wow, okay." I stroke her hair. "You gotta understand most girls we come across need rescuing."
Despite her hard look, tears reach her eyes, and she swallows. "I don’t want this conversation. I had a shit night. If you want to help me, do your Joss thing."
"My Joss thing?" I itch to follow this up with the same banter as earlier, but her face warns me not to. "I'll do whatever you need," I whisper and cup her cheek. "What do you need?"
Vee’s mouth close, with her skin velvet soft beneath my fingers, and her scent surrounding us, all pull together in an intoxicating mix. My need to protect and be what Vee needs is challenged by a need of my own. Would kissing her amplify my ability to take away whatever upsets her? Or would my physical desire rush through and wipe that power away, replacing the comfort with something else? I ache for this girl, literally some days, but now I hurt because I want to show her I can be tender and loving. I want to show that my straight-down-the-line statements that I want sex with her are only part of how I feel.
I hold both Vee's cheeks with my hands and extend my arms so the intimacy drops. She looks back, pale. "Just a hug, Joss."
I do as she asks. Ewan can tell me what happened because her evasiveness hides the truth. "I wish you'd tell me what’s really wrong."
I'm surprised when her arms wrap around my torso. "It doesn't matter. But one things for sure, the same thing won't happen again, and I'm ready to fight every last one of the bastards."
I detect an intense anger pushing out the fear; an inner strength greater than I expected. I’m positive she’s using this skill to deal with whatever the hell happened tonight. My need to protect Vee is joined by a new realisation: I underestimated her.
We’ve all underestimated Vee. And I believe there’s more to Truth that we still don’t know.
10
VEE
Last night’s memories follow me into my dreams, confusion wrecking my head. They're vague, disturbing, the magic causing me to fade in and out of awareness. I remember his mouth on mine. His taste. Scent.
How he looked like Ewan.
I turn in bed and cover my head with a pillow, anger seeping in as I remember the violation. I wish Ewan hadn't killed the bastard—I’d rather have ended his life myself. Like many girls, I've experienced sly groping from guys who stood conveniently close on buses. Once before I had a guy kiss me without consent and I rewarded him with a knee to the balls. But this...
Helpless. I don't do helpless. The guys need to show me how I can defend myself against these people who want to prey on or kill me. If my power needs working on to reach full strength, I need to protect myself in the meantime. Give me daggers, holy water, or whatever else the Four use, and I’ve no more qualms about using them.
Before we left the room last night, Ewan explained there was nothing I could’ve done in the situation. The incubi and succubi at the club acted in pairs, distracting the victim so the other could use magic to induce arousal and then sleep. Only once their victim slept could they steal the energy they needed by a sexual assault.
Ewan told me I was lucky, and I understand what he meant but couldn’t say the words. Lucky I wasn't raped. I shake away the thought. I don't want to run through the memories again. Can't.
An unspoken question hovered between us last night. Why did the incubus disguise himself as Ewan? I want to ask, but I know the answer. Of the two guys I spent time with last night, Ewan’s the one I fought my attraction to. I've no doubt if Heath or Joss had been present, it could easily be one of them.
But it wasn't, and now I can't look Ewan in the face.
The sun has barely risen when my sleepless night ends with a need to take in fresh air and nature to clear my mind. I step out the back door, heading for the path towards the open fields, and find Xander outside, alone, on his phone. He hastily finishes the call when he hears my feet crunch across the
ground and tucks his phone away.
"You're up early for somebody who had a heavy night," he says. "How's the hangover?"
Still wound tight from the events last night, I snap back at him, "I wasn't drunk."
"Sure." His eyes glisten with amusement. Xander’s jacketless in the cool morning, a black shirt unbuttoned across a grey T-shirt, which stretches across the contours of his chest. His eyes are bright, curious even. "Where are you headed?"
"A walk," I say.
"Not far, I hope."
"Not sure."
"Want some company?"
I fold my arms across my chest. "Really, Xander?”
"Why so shocked?"
"I'm too tired for War games if that's your intention."
He grins. "No, I'm in a better mood today."
I shrug at him and we trudge away from the house, across the field towards the woods bordering the property. My breath mists around my face, and the crisp air carries the damp earthy scent around. We don't speak, but the discomfort I expected isn't with us. I guess the desire to be around them all also applies to the guy I don't particularly like spending time with.
I wait for some snark or a reference to our encounter in the club before Ewan arrived. Was that moment between us a challenge from Xander? Or a warning? He stares ahead, hands in pockets and cheeks reddened by the cool. He's as beautiful as the other guys, but the tension around him rarely leaves. I’m confused because I secretly love the idea of meeting his challenge and seeing where things could lead.
I also like that Xander's the guy less inclined to wrap me in cotton wool—he could solve one problem. I halt. "Can I ask you something? My power, whatever it is, can you teach me how to use it?"
Xander stops too. "You already know. You've been doing it for years—detecting lies."
"Not that, the other thing. The light."
"Ah." Xander purses his lips. "I would, but, to be completely honest with you, I don't know what your true powers are. I can't teach you anything."
