by Amy Sumida
My husband smiled but it looked strained. “You can call me whatever you like, Wife. Just as long as you look at me like that.”
Just keep looking at me as you are now, and I vill be happy forever, a man's voice—thick with a Russian accent—echoed through my mind. I flinched.
“Vervain?”
“I...” I smiled brightly. “I must be tired. Sorry.”
“It's okay. Here, let me help you.” Ilmarinen took my dress from me and slid it over my head. “There; now we can face the flock together.”
“The flock?” I asked.
“Our followers, sweetheart.” He took my hand and wove it around his elbow. “The humans who come to hear Vainamoinen sing and worship us.”
“Oh, yes; of course.”
We headed up from our subterranean suite to the main floor of Sampo; the club my husband owned. He shared it with his pantheon, but he had built it, and it was his. Ilmarinen walked me proudly through the crowds of fawning humans. The women eyed him covetously; gazes lingering on his boldly masculine body. I smiled, just as proud to be on his arm as he was to have me there.
The low lights combined with the pulsing music to form an intoxicating ambiance. Colored spotlights swished over the crowd; illuminating adoring faces and swaying bodies. The scent of lust and love rode the air along with a mix of cologne and perfume released from overheated flesh while the sharp accent of alcohol lingered beneath it all. My heels clicked on the glossy floor as Ilmarinen padded silently beside me; his gaze darting over to me every few feet as if I might flee. I smiled smugly; my husband wasn't even tempted by the other women there.
Vainamoinen was already on stage; singing to the humans. Vai's music was how the Finnish Pantheon drew followers to them in this age of forgotten Gods. They had clubs like this one all over the world and soon, they would replace the other gods. Replace and... I frowned. What was it that they were doing?
“Dance with me,” Ilmarinen urged as he drew me to the center of the sunken dance floor.
“I thought you had to work?”
“This is part of my work; going out among my followers.”
The humans parted for us, and when I glanced up at Vainamoinen, on his overhanging stage, he gave me a sublime smile. I knew he was happy for his friend. Ilmarinen had spent many years without love. Our marriage was a miracle for him. And for me, of course.
I stared up at my husband peacefully as he pulled me against his chest and moved me in a slow sway. His hands coasted over my back; one threading through my hair. He twined his fingers in my long tresses and pulled gently; just enough to let me know that he could move me in any way he wished.
“I will never let you go, Vervain,” he declared with a strange, intense look. “Now that I know what it is to have you, I will never give you up.”
When you need me, I won't fail you. And I'll never let go, another man's voice, different from the last, spoke in my mind.
“Shh.” I ignored the voices in my head and pulled on the back of Ilmarinen's neck until he lowered his face to mine. “What has you so upset?”
“Nothing,” he whispered. “I just—never mind. Kiss me again, wife of mine.”
I leaned up as he lowered his lips to mine and then opened my mouth to his invasion. Ilmarinen's tongue filled me; dominating the kiss as he did our dance. His hips pressed tightly against mine; the bulge of his cock nestling into the cradle created by the juncture of my thighs. The hand in my hair twisted as Ilmarinen wrapped it tighter around his fist but his other hand moved down to my ass; his fingers moving along the bottom curve and then up, between my cheeks. I moaned as he pushed in and up; working me from both the front and back with cock and fingers. I undulated against him and rubbed my aching breasts over the buttons on his suit.
“My wanton wife,” he whispered in my ear. “I can feel your heat against my fingers and dick. Do you want to fuck me? Shall I lean you against the wall and slide into you right here?”
Something clenched and shook inside me; excitement warring with disgust. I blinked it away but couldn't answer.
“Say it, Vervain,” he insisted. “Tell your man how much you want him inside you.”
“I do, but not here.”
“Are you sure?” Ilmarinen pushed against me from the front as he lifted my skirt in the back and moved his hand between my thighs. “You feel like you do.”
He slid a finger inside me, and I moaned, going limp in his arms.
“There you go.” He pumped faster.
Around us, the humans danced on in a daze; no one even glanced at us. They were enthralled by the song. The realization relaxed me. No one saw him touching me in the safety of the shadows. It also emboldened me to touch him. I undid his belt and then slipped my hand down his pants. Ilmarinen groaned and pushed into my grip.
“Naughty girl.” He smile was a baring of teeth. “Rub me faster.”
I increased my speed as he did; his finger sliding wetly into my sex as his thumb rubbed that other hole.
“Now, do you want me to fuck you?”
“Yes.” I pushed back onto his fingers.
Ilmarinen made a growling sound of victory and lifted me off my feet to carry me to the edge of the sunken dance floor. A tremor of fear sliced through me as he leaned me against the wall; club patrons walking past just above our heads. When I glanced up and saw Vainamoinen watching us avidly, my fear magnified. Ilmarinen had my panties off and was spreading my legs around his waist when I started to protest. But I didn't have to; a man parted the crowd of dancers to step up beside us.
“Boss,” the man's gruff voice interrupted Ilmarinen just as he positioned himself at my entrance.
Ilmarinen glanced over his shoulder with a scowl.
“Sorry, Sir, but uh... we have a new acquisition,” the bouncer stammered. “We need your input.”
Ilmarinen sighed in irritation but then nodded crisply. His expression turned pensive as he stared down at me. Then he eased me onto my feet and slid my dress into place before he tucked my panties into his pocket. As he did all that, I buckled his belt for him. The bouncer's gaze darted over us and then quickly away.
“Come along, Wife.” Ilmarinen took my hand and led me off the dance floor, after the bouncer.
We headed into the hidden elevator and down to the sublevels of the club. The music faded to a low hum as soon as the door whisked closed and then continued to soften as we descended. I could still hear the bass—my hearing is exceptional—but the words were lost to me.
We exited the elevator on the first sublevel, strode down a hallway, and entered a large room filled mostly by a machine. I stared at the metal gears and the odd mountain of parts. It had three metal chairs attached to it; all in a row. Two chairs faced each other and already had occupants. A couple of Asian men sat strapped into the chairs; metal bands across their chests. They stared at us in fear; unable to speak since they were also gagged. The third seat was to the far left, facing the back of the chair in the middle, and it was empty.
A man I vaguely recognized stood at a control panel beside the empty chair. He smiled smugly when he saw me. “Brought your wife along to watch?” He asked Ilmarinen.
“She needs to know how we get our power,” Ilmarinen said with a hard look at me. “You know how we've faded, Vervain. I built this machine to renew us and destroy other gods who may stand against us.”
“You're killing them?” I asked warily.
“Before they can kill us.” Ilmarinen took my upper arms in hand and leaned down to stare at me. “We must do this to survive, sweetheart.”
“Okay,” I whispered. “Do what you have to do, Ilmar.”
“She calls you Ilmar?” The other man chuckled.
“Shut up, Lemminkainen!” My husband snarled.
Lemminkainen grimaced but shut up. I stared at his face; he looked so familiar. He even smelled familiar, but his name was new to me. Why did I get the sense of being on a beach when I looked at him?
“I'll take this one,�
� Ilmarinen announced as he headed toward the empty chair.”
“Fine,” Lemminkainen moved away as he gave me a snide smile. “You look pretty today, Vervain.”
“Thank you,” I murmured in confusion.
“Leave my wife alone, Lemminkainen!” Ilmarinen snapped.
Lemminkainen held up his hands and moved to lean against the wall.
My husband began pressing buttons and the machine whirred to life.
“How does it work?” I asked in trepidation. “It won't hurt you, will it?”
“No; not at all,” Ilmarinen promised me as he sat in the third chair. “Stand behind me, Vervain. You'll be able to see the process better.”
The other two men started to glow and then scream past their gags. I stiffened, and my husband reached back to take my hand to reassure me. As he did, the glow narrowed into an arrow and shot from the man at the end, into the one in the middle, and then out of his back and into Ilmarinen's chest. A zap of energy flared through his hand and into mine, and I tried to jerk away, but he held me tightly.
“It's okay, sweetheart,” Ilmarinen closed his eyes and groaned as magic filled him. “It's just a little magic.”
My arm came alive—every nerve bursting with power—but my heart raced with fear. This was wrong; something about the energy felt off. I tore at Ilmarinen's grip until he finally released me. Lemminkainen laughed softly to himself as I reeled back to press against the wall behind me. Something inside me cringed in revulsion.
“The god in the center is the conductor,” Ilmarinen explained while his body began to glow with power. He didn't even notice my horror. “We must have two gods from the same pantheon for this to work. The machine follows the connection in the conductor down to the other god and then uses that bond to draw out his magic; taking it back through the conductor and into me.”
The other gods stopped screaming; all they could do was moan.
“Why do you need a middle man?” I whispered as I gathered my courage and stepped forward. That same part of me that had cringed, also knew that I had to convince my husband that I was okay with this. I had a feeling that my life depended on it.
“The magic is tricky; it wants to stay where it is,” Ilmarinen murmured. “We get around this by going through the conductor; it makes the magic feel as if it's simply being drawn into a similar shell when, in actuality, it's being pulled all the way through and into me.”
The god in the last chair jerked violently and suddenly disintegrated. I gaped at the pile of dust on the chair; the metal bands left holding nothing but air. Ilmarinen sighed contentedly as his magic-sucking machine powered down. The surviving god—the conductor—slumped forward in his chair; hanging limp against his bonds.
“The process slowly drains the conductor. Unfortunately, we won't be able to acquire his magic; it's used to power the machine. But it's a small price to pay.” Ilmarinen waved a hand at the comatose god and then stood and stretched luxuriantly. He looked more vibrant and slightly bigger. When he set his stare on me, he was smiling wickedly. Despite his amorous look, I felt no evidence of his arousal when he pulled me into an embrace. “Unfortunately, the transfer of magic dampens the libido so we'll have to wait to finish what we started on the dance floor. But when I take you to bed tonight, my sweet wife, I'm going to fuck you as I never have before.”
“Ain't that the truth?” Lemminkainen snickered.
“Clean up here and put the conductor back in his cell,” Ilmarinen ordered Lemminkainen as he took my hand and moved us toward the doorway. He paused when we came abreast of the smirking man to add, “If you ever say anything crude about my wife again, I will fucking kill you. Don't even look at her, Lemminkainen. Do you understand me?”
Lemminkainen swallowed visibly and then nodded.
“Good.” Ilmarinen took me out of the room and led me back to the elevator. He pressed the button for the third floor above ground.
“Ilmar, are you sure that taking that magic doesn't hurt you?” I whispered. “When you touched me, I felt something... dark.”
“I'm fine, sweetheart,” he purred as he angled his body against mine.
I eased into his embrace.
“There,” he moved my hand over his heart. “Do you feel that? My heart beats strong; just for you.”
Do you feel me here? My own voice filled my mind and something zinged through my body; a pull... toward someone else.
“Kiss me, Wife. Help me stoke my embers back to an inferno. I have faith in you to reach me past the effects of the machine.”
I looked up at my husband and smiled as his lips descended to mine. He clutched me tightly and filled my mouth with his commanding tongue. I opened my jaw wider and let him plunder as he needed to. My husband was a possessive, dominating man; he craved my submission. I gave it to him eagerly but a small part of me was sickened.
Is this conquering? Or is it a mutual victory? There was my voice again. When had I said those things? What did it mean?
Ilmarinen growled and started to squeeze my breast but then the elevator door opened, and he withdrew suddenly. His vivid blue eyes scanned the private lounge on the third floor of his club. It was empty and the door to the security room was shut. My husband drew me out with him but left me standing before a set of couches.
“I need to check in with security; wait here. Right here, Vervain.” He pointed to the spot where I stood.
“Okay,” I whispered.
Ilmarinen smiled smugly and strode into the security room. He was gone several minutes, but I remained where I was; waiting as ordered. He finally returned and noted my position with a satisfied smile.
“Good girl.” He stroked my hair back from my forehead then kissed me. He began to grope me; gently at first and then savagely. Finally, he growled and jerked away. “It's not working. The magic is still riding me. I need more.”
Ilmarinen looked me over thoughtfully and then sat in the middle of one of the couches. He stretched his arms out to either side of him, along the top of the couch, and smiled lasciviously.
“Dance for me, Wife.”
I inhaled sharply as he lifted an expectant brow. The music was softened significantly up there; not a lot to dance to. Ilmarinen grinned and then reached for a panel behind the couch. He pressed a few buttons and music started playing through the hidden speakers. Surprisingly, it wasn't Vainamoinen's music. This song was tribal and slow; a thumping beat perfect for swaying to. I began to move my hips and trail my hands over my body. Ilmarinen smiled as he watched but then he glanced down at his crotch and scowled again.
“Strip,” he commanded.
“What?” I whispered.
“Take off your clothes and touch yourself as you dance,” he clarified with a rumbling tone.
I glanced at the door to the security room.
“I told them not to come out here until I give them leave to do so,” he assured me. “Now, strip for me like the naughty girl you are.”
I danced for my husband, slowly removing my clothes and touching myself as he directed. I undulated and spun, and he watched with hungry eyes but his sex didn't stir. So, I climbed onto his lap and straddled him. I even undid his pants and rubbed my sex over his. Nothing worked. Ilmarinen finally pushed me off his lap with a frustrated snarl and zipped up his pants.
“Put your clothes on, Vervain!” Ilmarinen snapped as he yanked my panties out of his pocket and threw them at me. “I thought you might be sexy enough to pull a reaction from me but it appears that I was wrong. We'll have to wait for tonight after all. You had best think of a way to make this up to me.”
I cringed as I hurried into my clothes; wondering when he had changed from my adoring husband into this cruel stranger. I remembered the god disintegrating into dust and shivered. I had a feeling that stealing magic was affecting Ilmarinen far more than he knew.
Chapter Forty-One
Later that evening, after Ilmarinen had seen to all of the business issues with the club and settled back into the ro
le of doting husband, he escorted me down to our suite and chose a gown for me to change into. It had a deep V neckline and an empire waist with a slight train in the back. Once again, it was my husband's favorite color; sapphire to match his eyes.
“Where are we going?” I asked Ilmarinen as he led me out of our suite and down the long hallway.
“To accept our worship.”
“Okay,” I whispered in confusion. I dearly hoped the worship didn't involve another machine.
We passed a room with a wall full of monitors. I noticed several news stations playing on the screens. A man sat at a desk in front of them, noting things down on a pad of paper.
“What's he doing?” I asked Ilmarinen.
