by HDA Roberts
She sucked in a breath as she looked over the summary page.
"Damn, Matty," she said as she flipped through the little book, "You'd need a team of people just to keep up with the paperwork."
"There are teams of people; one with the Archons' combined trust and another with my individual one. I don't know any of them, and I don't know what's best for anything. You are the smartest businesswoman I know, and I trust you; can you help?"
"This is a lot of work, Mathew," she said, "Full time work, as a matter of fact."
"It goes without saying that you'd get a cut."
She turned her eyes on me, smirking just a little, "What sort of a cut?"
"What's standard?"
"For a business this extensive? About ten percent of the annual profits and incomes. That's after taxes and all the rest of the expenses and so forth," she said, a twinkle in her eye.
"Take twenty."
She blinked. Hard.
"Matty, I was kidding. People get five percent, and that's if they're good."
"Take twenty," I repeated, "That still leaves me with crap-loads more money than I could ever spend. And you'll be able to run and grow your own holdings while you're growing mine. I know that it's a lot to ask of you, especially when you're trying to build your own business, but there's no one else I'd trust with this."
"Matty, if I did this, I'd make more money in a year than I'd see in the next thirty on my own, and that's a conservative estimate. It is not a lot to ask, it's a lot to give. Are you sure you want to give it to me?"
I nodded, "I wouldn't give it to anyone else."
She leant back in her seat, tapping at the little book, thinking hard.
"This will take some time to set up. I'll need to vet staff, set up premises somewhere and make arrangements to get someone to take over the day to day management of my holdings so I can focus on the bigger picture for both of us."
"I may be able to help with one of those," I said with a smile, "Is that a yes?"
She smiled widely, wrapping her arms around my neck, "Oh yes," she said, flushed, "do you have any idea what I'm going to be able to do with these resources? If you thought I was good at getting information before, just imagine what I'll be able to do now."
I smiled back at my friend.
"Thanks you, Tethys," I said, hugging her, "I can't tell you what this means."
"You just gave me everything I've been working for on a platter, Matty. You don't thank me for this. And that you're trusting me with all of that... it means a lot to me, too."
I smiled as she held me a bit tighter.
"Cassandra's going to be pissed. She has no idea what I came here for."
"Oh, can I tell her? Please, please?!" she said, bouncing up and down.
"Just wait until I'm out of the room."
"And what was the thing you thought you'd be able to help with?" she asked.
I smiled even wider.
"Premises," I said.
She raised an eyebrow.
"Oh yes," Tethys said as we came out of the sky into the front drive of the House, "This will do very nicely."
"I use a tiny portion of this thing," I said, "The rest is yours, if you want it."
She went towards the door, and the guards glared at her as she walked up the steps. They knew who she was and they didn't approve. Cassandra didn't either, but (as you know) she was conveniently elsewhere, almost as if someone had planned it that way...
Tethys was grinning like a kid in a toy store as she walked into the reception hall and took in the marble floor and mahogany staircase.
Webb was off after six, but one of the valets took Tethys' wrap and my overcoat.
"You've been holding out on me," she said, rounding on me, suddenly very close again.
"Hardly," I said, "I told you I had a place."
"You didn't tell me that you had a palace."
"Well, it's one of the most heavily defended homes in the country, if not the world. Even another Archon would be hard pressed to do anyone a mischief in here. There's space for anyone or anything you might want to bring in. Hell, you can have your own wing, if you want."
"First you ask me to run your business, now you're asking me to move in with you," she said with a sultry look in her eye, "Aren't we moving fast tonight?"
She grinned, sliding past me, brushing her back against my front.
"I'm saying that the space is yours, if you don't think this will be a good fit, that's up to you of course."
She gave me a look, half glare, half pity, "I'll want Kandi to come with me."
"Like I say, up to you."
"What's the catch?" she asked, "I'm looking for the catch, there has to be one somewhere. Nobody just comes out of the blue and drops this in your lap for nothing."
"It's not like I'm not getting something in return," I replied, "What you'll be doing for me is invaluable; that you are someone I can completely rely on is priceless. From my perspective, I'm getting the better end of this deal."
She smiled, moving to put her arms around my chest, "So," she said, her eyes locking with mine, "Where's your room?"
"Have you no shame?"
"Not really, but I figured you'd be wanting me to take a look at this place. The decor is going to need work, and I know for a fact that your tastes run more towards 'modern comfort' than 'turn of the century splendour'."
"Please don't bankrupt me remodelling," I begged.
She grinned evilly, "No promises."
I showed her around the place, and I laid out the few things I knew I wanted. Mostly I intended to just leave her to it. She laid claim to the suite right next door to mine and informed me that she wouldn't be sleeping in there too much. She smiled in a certain way that made her actual intentions ambiguous, but I chose to take that as meaning she'd be working.
"You sure you want to up-sticks just like that? I know you're a nester and you told me how much you love your place," I asked as the tour was winding down.
"Let me see, sub-basement adjacent to strip club," she said, "or a suite in my own palace. It's a tough one."
"I have a lawyer, he'll draw up any paperwork you might need," I said, "Just let me know if there's anything not covered under a Power of Attorney."
That startled her, "You're really serious about this, aren't you? You really trust me that much?"
I nodded.
"You realise that with that sort of power, I could thoroughly rip you off."
"I know you could," I said, walking her towards the garden.
"And that doesn't worry you?"
"Nope."
"You realise that men who trust succubae tend to come to bad ends, right?"
"Maybe, but one could also say that spending time with a Shadowborn is bad for your health, and yet here you are."
"I love you, what's your excuse?"
"Same thing, really," I replied with a smile and a little blush.
Just to clarify, it wasn't that sort of relationship. We did love one another, but it wasn't in a romantic way. Well, not entirely. Ours was a friendship, based on trust and respect. The fact that she occasionally tried to trick me into a physical relationship kept me on my toes, and the outrageous flirting was fun. I missed her when she wasn't around.
Yes, I realise how deluded that all sounds, but I really did think of Tethys as a friend (a very attractive, flirty friend), and besides which I was still head over heels in love with Cathy, and there was nothing that could change that. But that didn't mean that I wouldn't do just about anything for Tethys. She really was one of my very favourite people.
"You realise that when this becomes physical, our business relationship may be affected?" she said.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to keep it from getting physical," I replied with a smile.
"You're less fun when you're on your game. I miss the days when a statement like that would make you blush like a novice nun and clam up tighter than a mussel," she said, squeezing my hand.
"You know ve
ry well just how easily you make me blush," I said as we emerged into the garden square, lit by dim lamps which cast a soothing glow over the plants. We sat on a small bench, her close to me.
"Told you I'd end up living with you," she said after a quiet minute in the cool evening.
"And far ahead of your estimate, too."
She held my hand, "I won't let you down. I wanted you to know that."
"I already know that. Just remember that this is a big thing. If you need help with something, ask for it. That's what the money's there for. There are no judgements with me, you know that."
She smiled evilly, looking up at the stars. There was a subtle enchantment built into the square that blocked out the lights of the city and let the stars shine brightly. Normally you'd need to go to the desert to get a view like that.
"I'm going to turn this place into a new Caligula's Palace, you realise that?" she said, turning back to me.
I shook my head, "Well, I wasn't expecting you to turn it into a convent."
She snorted, leaning her head against my shoulder, "Oh, this is going to be so much fun!"
We sat like that for a while, just enjoying each other's company.
Naturally someone had to come and ruin it...
"I see the half-breed's attempts to seduce you have finally born fruit," said a familiar voice from right behind us.
I turned to glare at the two interlopers, Tethys turned too, but her face was suddenly pale with fear.
There were two beautiful women, both about the same height with perfect, pale skin. There, the similarities ended; one was a delicate redhead with soft eyes, wearing a calf-length white dress which left her arms and feet bare; the other was curvaceous, radiating sensuality, with black hair and red eyes. Her clothing was all black and tight, with a plunging neckline, revealing a bare midriff.
Rose and Gabrielle. An angel and a demon, my liaisons.
"You know, I'd just about persuaded myself I'd imagined them," I said to Tethys as I stood to greet them.
"Me too," she replied, taking my hand again. Gabrielle scared Tethys, and that made me edgy.
"Good evening, Mathew," Rose said with a beaming smile that soothed me, "and to you too, Miss Smyth."
I replied in kind, trying to be polite, "To what do we owe the pleasure?" I asked.
Gabrielle snorted; I wasn't a fan of hers.
"Something funny?" I asked the demon.
"The way you say 'pleasure'," she replied, "It interests me."
I felt power then, coming from Gabrielle. It radiated off her like a wave and slammed smack into a Telepathic shield I'd put around Tethys and myself, just in case. Even so, I felt a tingle of desire. That was worrying, if I could feel it through a shield that strong, I could only imagine I'd have been a gibbering wreck if I'd got the full blast. Tethys squeezed my hand tighter, moving in closer to me, protectively.
Gabrielle smiled nastily as she felt her gambit fail, licking her lips slowly before turning her attention back to Tethys.
"Relax, half-breed. If I wanted to play with your toy, I'd have done it and thrown away the broken pieces long since," the demon said, looking Tethys in the eyes. Tethys looked away and moved behind me; her go to move whenever something nasty came around.
"Isn't that sweet? She thinks he can protect her. He can't, but I can. Come to me little girl, I'll show you things you've never imagined," Gabrielle said, reaching forward.
"Touch her, and there won't be enough of you left for the devil himself to scrape back together," I said softly, and all the more menacingly for it.
Gabrielle turned her attention back to me, and her mental attack redoubled. It made me wince slightly, but that was about it.
"Enough!" Rose said, smacking Gabrielle's arm, "You know the rules, and you know what happens if you break them!"
The demon sighed, and her attack ceased, she blew me a kiss and stepped back a little.
"Again, I apologise for my associate. She's not known for playing well with others," Rose said.
"Evidently," I said, "What can I do for you?"
"You learned today about something called Source," Rose said.
I went pale.
"Yes?" I replied warily.
"You need to deal with that. Quickly. It's not what people think it is," Rose said.
"And what is it?" I asked.
"Can't tell you that," she replied, "You wouldn't go anywhere near it. And you have to. We can't intervene in this. It's in human hands, a human needs to deal with it."
"Or as close to human as a Shadowborn and a half-breed can get, anyway," Gabrielle chimed in unpleasantly.
"Don't you have a goat you can be fondling?" I snapped at the demon.
Rose hid a smile and Gabrielle scowled.
"A word of warning," Rose said, "One you must pay attention to."
The way she said it had me paying very close attention, not that words out of an angel's mouth were easily ignored, bearing in mind my hopes for a pleasant afterlife.
"Do not use any magic on Namia Sutton before the end. No, don't ask why or when that is. Just know that if you do, the chances of a positive outcome drop to very near zero. Do you understand me? No magic that would strike her, or even touch her. Nothing, not even something positive."
I nodded carefully.
"And if I don't deal with the problem, or I'm unable to?" I asked.
"Bad things happen. Very, very bad things," Rose replied.
"Any time-frame?" I asked with a resigned sigh.
"Months, not very many of them, so don't dawdle," Gabrielle said.
"Isn't this really the sort of thing the S.C.A. should be dealing with?" I asked, clutching at straws.
"If it were that simple, do you think we'd be here watching you dance around your gal-pal?" Gabrielle said.
"Alright," I said, scratching my head, "Can I take it from your warning that Sutton is involved in this somehow?"
"That's not for me to say," Rose said, stepping away from us, "just remember what we said. We'll be watching."
"Couldn't you at least tell me where to start loo-" I began.
They vanished.
"I hate it when people do that," I said to Tethys, who was still hiding behind me.
She peeked over my shoulder and let out a sigh of relief, "Don't antagonise Gabrielle, Matty. She's not to be trifled with."
"Neither am I," I replied confidently.
"Mathew, I may be described as a Succubus, but I'm not, not really. I'm only descended from a creature very much like her. I'm the diluted version. She's the original."
"Please, you'd need ten of her just to make a dent. She tried tonight, made exactly no progress," I said, rubbing her arms in what I hoped was a comforting gesture. She went even paler.
"She made a move?" she asked, her voice a strangled squeak, "On you?"
"Eggs against concrete, Tethys, she's no threat to me."
"Matty, you know that I'm attached to you, and I hate to tell you this, but that started because I tried for you and failed. There's nothing more attractive to something like me than being rejected, because it doesn't happen very often. Or at all, really. Less so for someone like her."
"So you're saying that if we ever... then you'd lose interest?"
She smiled, cupping my face gently before planting a little kiss on my lips.
"Not anymore," she said softly, "Now we're rather stuck with each other. You may well be the best friend I ever had. I love you for that far more than I'm attracted to the challenge you represent. And when we do end up together, when, not if, then you and I are going to share an eternity of debauchery that will leave us both repeatedly begging for mercy. Over and over and over."
I shivered, and she wrapped herself around me in a warm hug that made me feel safe and loved. That girl made my head spin something vicious...
"So, we're together, thick and thin, all that crap. True friends, confidants, occasional sleeping partners. Sound good to you?" she asked, whispering in my ear.
That's sleeping as in snoring, not sleeping as it anything else, just so you know.
"Sounds great," I said, holding her tightly to me.
"Good. Then it looks as if I have my first task as your Spymaster," she said with a grin.
"That seems like a very unsubtle job title. Who's going to tell anything to someone called a 'Spymaster'?" I asked.
She snorted and rolled her eyes, "We don't tell people that, you nit. And besides, I have lackeys for that sort of thing. They just know me as the person who pays their snooping fees."
"Snooping fees? Aren't you just a font of official jargon."
"Shut up," she said, returning my smile, "I'll start getting everything set up tomorrow. Tonight, I have some things to do back at the 'Cat."
I escorted her to the gate, where she called a cab and I put her in it.
"See you tomorrow," she said.
"Looking forward to it," I replied, still smiling broadly.
She drove away and I went back indoors, relieved and also a little nervous. This whole Angels and Demons crap was not in the small print when I learned I was an Archon. Probably for the best, I'd have given the ring back.
Chapter 3
"Why is that woman in my house?" Cassandra said, waking me up the next morning, looming over my bed as I blinked sleep out of my eyes.
"What?" I asked.
"Your Succubus. What is she doing here, and why does she have bags?"
"You know how you were telling me to get a handle on all the paperwork, the responsibilities and the administrative mess?" I asked.
"Yes," she replied slowly, her eyes narrowing.
"She's here to do all that," I said, rolling over, determined to get back to sleep.
"Mathew Graves, I will not have that woman living here! She's a danger!"
"If that's what you're worried about, then this is the safest place she could possibly be, seeing as how it's physically impossible for anyone to do me harm within these grounds."
Her mouth opened and shut a few times as she digested my argument.
"This isn't over," she said before disappearing.
Heh, not bad for a man who hadn't had his breakfast.
I went back to sleep.
"Webb wants to know how long she'll be staying," Cassandra said a while later, waking me up again.
