Demon Bound

by Chris Cannon

  “Better wording,” I said. “Still not thrilled with the situation, but I will smile and nod if you promise to get me home in a timely manner.”

  “Of course.” He held his arm out like groomsmen did at weddings when they escorted people to their seats. I placed my hand in the crook of his elbow and together we walked up to a set of double doors which swung open like they were motion activated.

  If there was some sort of Disney Beauty and the Beast hell, I was in it. The walls were lined with bookshelves that were encased in glass. Dark green vines with blood-red roses and shiny silver needle-type thorns writhed on top of the glass like some sort of sentient security system. So many books and no way to touch them. That was wrong.

  Couples milled about the room in gowns and suits. Humans and demons mingled with vampires and other creatures who had fangs and horns. Most of the couples were mixed combinations. Were the humans all prized possessions?

  Instead of a champagne fountain there was a fountain spewing a thick red liquid. Punch. I chose to believe it was punch. There was a buffet featuring steak, both cooked and raw. Everything about this room was disturbing.

  And why was a bombshell in a skintight leather dress slit up to her hip coming our way with a fangy smile on her face? Was she one of Bane’s love interests?

  “Bane, it’s lovely to see you,” the woman said. “This must be Meena.”

  “It is. Meena, this is Sybil. I believe she’s acquainted with your friend Jake.”

  “You’re Sybil?” was all that came out of my mouth. Jake had lied to me. Sybil was sex on a stick. She was curves and temptation and lust wrapped up in a long-legged leather-covered package.

  “Yes. Not what you pictured?” Sybil faked innocence.

  I shook my head. “Jake never described you. I thought you’d be older.”

  “I am. One of the perks of being a vampire is the ability to stay young and beautiful forever. Right, Charlie?”

  Charlie must have been the name of the blond, tan young man next to her who was looking at her with complete adoration. “Of course, Sybil.”

  “If you have to cue them to say those things,” I said, “it doesn’t count.”

  Sybil’s fangs came out…literally. I’d thought they were scary before, but when they were fully extended they were an inch long. “Mind your manners, Meena, or I’ll turn Jake just to spite you. If you’ll excuse us.” Sybil and her boy toy wandered away.

  “I hate her,” I told Bane.

  He smiled at me.

  “What?”

  “I like your spirit. With the right training you could rule over a city.”

  “I never thought of myself as a politician.”

  “I wasn’t talking about a democracy.” Bane moved forward. He introduced me to men and women who all had some sort of tell that they weren’t completely human. Some women styled their hair to show off their horns while others used glamours to make their demon traits not so visible. Some of the men sported tails like the old-fashioned drawings of the devil.

  “Are you hiding a tail?” I asked Bane.

  He snorted. “I hide nothing except my coloring.”

  Now that I took a moment to stare at him, I could see there was a tinge of ice blue to his skin. His nails glistened like ice, and his eyes were such a pale blue they varied only a few shades from the white of his eyes. He stood still while I studied him and he seemed to be waiting for some sort of response. I went with the truth. “Like you told me when we met, you are a stunning yet disturbing individual.”

  A man, or more likely a demon, with icy blue eyes and pale skin came toward us, pulling a vacant-eyed, dark-haired beauty along with him.

  “You have a new companion,” the man said. “We should get together for dinner soon and share in our good fortune.”

  Bane’s arm went around my shoulders and he pulled me to his side. I would have elbowed him but this new guy creeped me out in a way that no one ever had.

  “Meena still has her free will,” Bane said. “Even if she didn’t, I wouldn’t be inclined to share.”

  “That’s a shame,” the demon said.

  “Please take me home,” I whispered after the creep walked away.

  “The party isn’t over.” Bane kept his arm around me and I didn’t try to push him away. Apparently, he wasn’t the scariest monster at this event.

  He introduced me to other couples. I smiled and nodded. The percentage of humans with blank stares was highly disturbing. When we had a moment alone, I asked Bane, “Why did those people lose their free will?”

  “They made deals,” Bane said.

  “I thought demons ate the souls and the bodies died.”

  “If a bit of the soul is left behind,” Bane said, “the body survives and remains animated.”

  “That’s horrible.”

  “That is why people should be very specific when they make deals,” Bane said. The sound of a violin drifted through the air. “Time for us to be seated.”

  I really wanted to go home. Like really, really wanted to go home. How much longer would this party in hell last?

  We moved with the crowd toward the tables that magically appeared in a horseshoe pattern. A podium was at the front. When Bane led me to the seats next to the podium, a sense of unease trickled down my spine. I didn’t like being the center of attention. Sybil sat at the end of the table. Good. Small talk with her would’ve added to this hellacious experience.

  “Have a seat while I welcome everyone.” Bane pointed at the chair to the right of the podium. Did that mean he was in charge? Carol had said he was the head demon. Did that mean he was the leader over all the otherworldly creatures?

  He stood at the podium and cleared his throat. “I’d like to thank you all for coming to this event sponsored by Bane Industries. It appears that collections are up across the board. While there are a few disputes over who should have rights to certain humans, the majority of our businesses have been running smoothly this past quarter.

  “There have been some transitions in Crossroads recently. I’m sure you’re aware that Zelda and Carol are now in my employment.”

  “You should have let us drain them,” a fanged male near Sybil said.

  My neck muscles tensed. The individuals sitting closest to him not so subtly inched their chairs away.

  Bane tilted his head and stared at the young vampire. “If you had defeated them, then that would have been your right. Since you failed every time you came up against them, I made the decision that they could be useful to me.”

  Now was the time when fang-boy should’ve apologized. He didn’t.

  Bane gave a dramatic sigh. “Take care of that imbecile.”

  The creatures on either side of the vampire attacked. One punched his hand into the vamp’s chest and pulled out his still beating heart with a disgusting squelching sound. The other grabbed his head and ripped it off. Like popping the head off a doll. Except with a doll there wouldn’t have been blood spatter, followed by a feeding frenzy.

  I closed my eyes, but the sound of bones crunching and lips smacking made me lightheaded. The metallic smell of blood filled the air. Then there was growling. One growl in particular seemed far too close to me. I opened my eyes and came face to face with a black-eyed demon with large canines bared at me.

  “Bane?” I croaked.

  “Touch her and I’ll make you eat your own intestines,” Bane stated in a cold, calm voice.

  The demon backed up, but he never took his eyes off me.

  “That goes for all of you. Anyone who comes at me through my employees, human or otherwise, will be destroyed in the most painful manner I can devise. Is that clear?”

  The other creatures nodded.

  “Feel free to stay and socialize. This meeting is adjourned.” He touched my shoulder. “Time to go.”

  The warnin
g should have made it better, but it didn’t. When we landed in a giant office, I clutched at Bane’s arm so I wouldn’t drop to the floor.

  “Meena?” Sage appeared next to me and swooped me into his arms. In a few quick steps I was seated on a red leather couch.

  “That totally sucked,” I announced to no one in particular.

  “What did you do to her?” Sage asked.

  “I took her to a board meeting,” Bane said.

  “Humans do not belong at those meetings,” Sage snapped.

  I was grateful to be reunited with him but I didn’t understand what was going on. “Sage, how did you get here?”

  “I tried to travel with you, but Bane dropped me in this prison.”

  “Overdramatic much?” Bane said. “It’s my office, which was in lockdown so you couldn’t leave.” He walked over to the wall and punched a code into a panel featuring unusual symbols rather than numbers. “Now you’re free to go.”

  I felt like I’d ridden the world’s tallest roller coaster ten times in a row. I leaned forward and put my head between my knees, becoming vaguely aware that I was back in my normal shorts and T-shirt. “I need a minute.”

  Sage placed his hand on the back of my neck and a nice calming warmth traveled into my body. “Better?” he asked.

  “Yes.” I sat up and took a few slow, even breaths.

  “I can teleport you home,” Bane said.

  “No, thank you. I prefer to walk or ride in a car.”

  “I’ll have a driver waiting for you on the street.” Bane went to his desk and made a call.

  I pushed to my feet and was relieved to find I could stand on my own. I could feel Bane’s eyes on me. Glancing up, I met his gaze. “What?”

  “You’re not afraid of vampires, but blood makes you squeamish.”

  “Wrong. I’m good at pretending not to be afraid,” I said. “And that zapping teleporting stuff makes me more nauseous than the blood, but now that you mention it, the blood is very disturbing and I would like to avoid any monster feeding frenzies in the future.” I realized my voice had become louder by the end of my statement and I sounded kind of unhinged.

  “You’re entertaining when you rant,” Bane said. “I can’t promise that you won’t see blood spilled, but I can promise it won’t be yours.”

  “Can you promise that?” Sage asked. “You’re exposing her to unnecessary danger by involving her in your business. What if someone comes after her when you’re not around?”

  “The bracelet and my promise to eliminate anyone who harms her should keep her safe.” Bane opened a desk drawer and pulled out a black velvet box. “I could give her a flashier bracelet to make people more aware.”

  He popped the box open. The bracelet inside sparkled like it had its own energy source.

  Common sense told me you never accepted sparkly objects from men, because unless it was a wedding ring they had ulterior motives. Still. I moved forward to get a better look.

  “Do you like it?” Bane asked.

  “Don’t touch it,” Sage warned.

  I shoved my hands in my pockets and moved closer. Diamonds in every shape and size were connected together with white gold to form a band. There was a large blue sapphire on either end where the bracelet would clasp together.

  “Holy crap,” was the only thing I could manage to say.

  Bane gave a deep chuckle like my reaction amused him. “It’s one of a kind.”

  “We should go,” Sage said. “I’m sure Jake and your father are concerned about your disappearance.”

  That brought me back to reality. “He’s right.”

  “Just a minute.” Bane pointed at Sage. “I could have killed you, but I didn’t. Remember that the next time we meet.”

  Sage gave a terse nod and then pulled me from the office. A driver waited in front of the building in a navy SUV.

  My cell buzzed repeatedly as we climbed into the back seat. I checked and there were ten missed texts from Jake and a dozen calls from my dad. I called home first.

  “Meena? Are you okay?” My dad’s voice blared through the phone. “Where in the hell have you been?”

  “I’m okay. Bane took me to a monster meeting. I’m coming home. I need to text Jake.”

  “Wait,” my dad ordered, and then Jake was on the line.

  “Meena, you’ve been gone for four hours.”

  Really? It hadn’t seemed that long. “See you soon.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jake

  Meena’s dad paced the kitchen, which he’d been doing for the last hour since he’d come home from work. “We have to find a way to get her away from Bane.”

  “We’re studying books. Zelda and Carol are helping.” I hated feeling helpless. “I can hold my own in a fair fight with another guy. How in the hell am I supposed to keep her safe from a demon?”

  “It’s my job to keep her safe. Not yours.” He pointed at me. “I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt because you haven’t bailed on her yet. She’s going away to college. Don’t be the reason she has to stay in this demon-infested town.”

  I opened my mouth to reply. Her dad cut me off.

  “Don’t bother arguing with me. I was a seventeen-year-old boy once. I know what you’re thinking about.”

  “Okay.” There was nothing I could say to that, so I backed up a step. “I’ll wait in the front room.”

  I sat on the couch. Marshmallow hopped up next to me and rubbed against my left arm. “Does that mean I’m supposed to pet you?”

  She meowed. I lifted my hand and she rubbed her head against my palm. Her fur was soft and warm. Maybe there was something to this cat thing.

  I heard a car pull up. Meena’s dad beat me to the door. He yanked it open. When Meena came through he hugged her and said, “Don’t do that again.”

  “I’ll try not to.” She glanced over at me. “Sorry I didn’t text or call you. I didn’t get the messages until we came back.”

  “Who is this?” Meena’s dad pointed at Sage who had calmly entered the house like he belonged there. This should be interesting.

  “Apparently magic runs in the family but Grandma refused the call. Since Carol and Zelda have been retired from fighting the good fight, some spark of magic inside me perked up, which earned me a familiar. This is Sage.”

  “Try that again,” her dad said, “using words that make sense.”

  Meena walked over and sat on the couch. “Sage, would you mind transforming? I think that’s the quickest way to explain things.”

  “Don’t freak out,” I told Meena’s dad.

  “Okay.” He sat on the couch.

  The air around Sage shimmered, his arms and legs contracted into his body, his torso shrunk, his head disappeared, and poof, he was a cat.

  “Hello,” Sage said.

  Her dad pointed at Sage in cat form, and then at me. “You saw that too, didn’t you?”

  “Yes. He’s some sort of man-cat or cat-man and he’s supposed to help protect Meena.”

  “And he’s going to live with us,” Meena said. “In cat form most of the time.”

  “Because that makes it better.” Her dad rubbed his eyes. “I don’t like this when-did-my-life-run-off-the-rails feeling. I appreciate that both Jake and Sage are here to help you, but I’m not happy about any of this.”

  “It’s not like I caused it,” Meena said.

  “No, but you’re smack in the middle of it,” her dad said. “I’m going to throw a frozen lasagna in the oven. Anyone who wants to stay for dinner is invited.” With that he headed into the kitchen.

  I joined Meena on the couch and wrapped my arms around her. “You were gone too long. I was worried.”

  “It felt like I was gone for only an hour,” Meena said.

  “Time flows at different rates in different realms,”
Sage said from the floor where he was currently cuddling with Marshmallow.

  “So where’d you go?” I asked.

  Meena explained about Bane and the monster board meeting with the blood fountain and the vacant-eyed humans missing their free will and the vamp who had no common sense.

  “So if you sell your soul they might keep you around as some type of living doll? That’s horrifying.” I cringed. “And the fact that they turn on each other like that is…disturbing doesn’t seem like a strong enough word.”

  “Speaking of disturbing,” Meena said, “I met Sybil.”

  Crap. “Really? How’d that go?”

  “You failed to mention that she’s drop-dead gorgeous.”

  I shrugged. “I hadn’t noticed.”

  Meena rolled her eyes. “Nice try. Next time tell me the truth. Okay?”

  “Sure.” Like she wanted to hear that Sybil was what most guys dreamed about.

  Meena glanced the direction her father had gone before saying, “Sage, why did you tell me not to touch Bane’s diamond bracelet?”

  “That bracelet is meant for a demon’s companion.”

  “Then why didn’t the vacant-eyed girl have one?” Meena asked.

  “Let me rephrase. That bracelet is for a demon’s willing companion…someone he’s romantically involved with,” Sage said. “The bracelet warns other demons and creatures away. The more extravagant the jewelry, the more exclusive they are. Once put on, it can’t be removed by anyone except the demon who gave it.”

  “Really glad I didn’t touch it,” Meena said.

  “Just so you know, I hate Bane.” Leaning in, I kissed Meena, trying to see if things were still good between us. I didn’t have any diamonds to give her or magical powers. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed me back. The world felt like it was back on track. When the kiss ended Meena said, “FYI, I hate Sybil.”

  And then I had an idea. “We should fix Sybil up with Bane.”

  Meena laughed. “That would solve some of our problems.”

  I leaned my forehead against hers. “I hate that I can’t protect you from him.” I had a funny thought. “Do you think anyone has ever made a deal to be the most powerful demon in the world?”