by Lucy Auburn
“I’ll try,” I said, the words sticking in my throat. I cried so much last night; I didn’t want to cry anymore. It made me feel weak and small, like a child. “Is there anything you can tell me about my real parents? It’s been on my mind all night. I want to know.”
Maggie glanced down and away, her face troubled. “They gave you up when you were very young. Because of how strong your powers were, even as a baby, it was decided that you must be the child of two very strong fae. But no one knows which fae—the fae folk are good at keeping secrets. All that I know is that you have a birthmark on your inner thigh that means you’re a fae from the Lightblood line.”
I blinked at her, filing this new bit of information away with the rest of the new things I’d learned, which were now crammed into an overflowing corner of my mind. “I didn’t think there was anyway special about my birthmark. It’s just a brown stain in the shape of a teardrop.”
“That teardrop is a flame,” she said, her face growing brighter as she realized there was something new—and less troubling—to share with me. “You see, long ago, there was only one realm: Earth. And the fae folk lived in it alongside human beings, which is where many of the old legends and myths come from. Most of the gods and goddesses you learned of were merely very strong fae that humans mistook for all-knowing creators.”
I smiled a little. “So you’re saying my great-great-grandfather is Prometheus?”
Maggie chuckled along with me. “It’s not that far away from the truth, actually. You see, the Lightblood family were powerful and slippery tricksters, known for their ability to bend reality around themselves. As Earth grew crowded and humans began to fear and punish the fae who they saw as gods, the Lightbloods stepped in and created a new home for the fae: the Realm of Light. It lives just next to Earth, on its own separate plane. This is where the strongest, oldest fae spend most of their time—and it’s where you’ll go to introduce yourself and learn more about your powers, once they’re unborn.”
“Wow.” I said, my tongue sticking to the roof of my mouth. “So you’re saying my ancestors created a whole world?”
“In a sense. The realm isn’t as large as the Earth, but it’s big enough to hold a few thousand fae. And it wasn’t the only thing they created,” she said with a grimace, “but it is the largest realm in existence, other than Earth. Without it, the fae would no doubt be extinct. That’s why you have the birthmark—fae with Lightblood ancestry are important to your people. So they were given a mark that would reveal them from the time they were born.”
I sat back on the couch, rubbing the space between my brows. “I think I need some coffee. Maybe spiked with a little bit of rum.”
Maggie patted my leg and got up to head into the kitchen. “I’ll hold the rum, but coffee is just the ticket. You’ve got a long day ahead of you—and more long days after this. Did you bring your books to study?”
“I did,” I admitted, voice cautious.
“Go ahead and get them out, then. Focusing a little on the normal parts of your life may be just what you need to ground yourself a little in this chaotic time.” Almost ruefully, she added, “By the way, since you put my landline down as your number at the police station, they called early this morning. Some detective by the named of Leon... Hardness? Wants to see you at three o’ clock.”
If I’d had any coffee in my mouth I would’ve spit it out. “Hardwick, Maggie, not Hardness. Oh my god.”
She grinned wickedly as she poured a fresh mug of coffee and handed it over to me. “Is there any difference? I can’t hear it at all. Old eardrums, you know.”
With a shake of my head, I grabbed my book bags and pulled my studying out of them. Maggie was right; the more normal I could make my life feel right now, the better.
I dragged my feet all the way out the door to the police station. Technically, I didn’t have to go in, because they hadn’t arrested me or drawn up any charges against me of any kind. But Maggie had told me that going in was the smart thing to do, so I buckled down and did it.
It seemed like a bad sign that the sexy, overly-serious detective from earlier had taken an interest in me. Though my classmates’ statements had cleared me—and put Talia away—I was still far too close to the entire thing to feel very comfortable about it. And the more the detective questioned me, the closer I might get to cracking. I didn’t know what Talia had said, either; and if our stories contradicted, we could both get in further trouble.
But there was no way I was telling some cop that my foster mother told me I’m a succubus, and a demon possessed my best friend and made her stab a man, or that the dark hunter I made out with put a spelled knife in her heart to banish the demon from her body. Even thinking it made me feel crazy.
So I tried to think normal thoughts about normal things as I drove to the station. Maggie had offered to come with me, but I told her I was fine going it alone; after all, this was my mess that I’d somehow gotten myself into. Showing up with Maggie at my heels wouldn’t make me look like much of a competent adult.
Detective Hardwick was waiting for me when I stepped into the precinct. He was leaning up against the reception desk up front, one of his thick brows raised when I walked through the door to check in. “You’re late,” he said, uncrossing his arms and murmuring something to the receptionist. “Come with me to my desk. I have some questions for you.”
Irritated that he hadn’t even given me the chance to say hello or ask him any questions of my own, I followed close on his heels. He took long strides, taking me through the office and to a desk in the back corner, with low cubicle walls around it. I stared around at what was clearly his territory; the wall behind the desk was covered in photos that must have been related to cases he was investigating. Grabbing a folder off the messy surface of his desk, he motioned towards me. “This way. I managed to secure a room for us to have our discussion in.”
I swallowed. “I thought you said on the phone that this was an informal thing. Is it a serious questioning?”
“Just come with me,” he snapped, his voice taking on a strangely deep and husky quality. “I’ll explain in private.”
An officer at the desk next to us looked up at that, craning his head over and frowning at Leon. But the detective just blew him off, leading me towards a back hallway with a door in it that said “SUPPLIES” in dark lettering. As unconventional as this all was, I didn’t feel like I had the ability to say no. So I followed him into the supply closet.
It was cramped, but there was a fold-out table in the middle of the room. Leon locked the door behind us, something that it didn’t seem like a supply closet should do. I glanced at the lock nervously, suddenly wishing I hadn’t let Maggie bind my powers up again. If being a succubus meant I could defend myself, maybe now was a time to use that ability.
Looking over at me, Leon must have sensed my nervousness, because he explained. “You don’t have to be nervous. I just don’t want the other officers to overhear fae business.”
I blinked at him, my world going topsy-turvy for what must have been the tenth time in the last two days. “What business?”
Throwing the folder down at the table, the detective took a seat and motioned for me to sit opposite him. I did so warily, holding my purse tight in my hands.
“This case,” he started, opening up the folder and sliding a picture across to me, “is very unusual, you see. That’s why it was assigned to me.”
I blinked down at the photo, nausea rolling in my stomach. It was Todd’s body, that much was clear, and he had died messily. I turned away from it, unable to blink the image of the blood from my mind. “Why are you showing me this?”
“Because of this,” he said, finger landing on a spot on the photo. Reluctantly, I looked back, and was drawn to the part of the photo he was pointing out. It was Todd’s neck, marked with a black inky symbol that burst out like a star, or the rays of the sun. “Have you ever seen anything like that before?”
I stared at him. “No, of course
not!”
He leaned in close, that intense look on his face that I first saw when he questioned me after the murder. “What are you, exactly? Naomi said that you’re a succubus, but I’m not sure I buy it. I’ve seen a lot of things in my life, but I still don’t believe in coincidences. And it was a huge coincidence that a strange new fae was at the party the same night a demon killed this man.”
Shrinking back, I said, “I had nothing to do with it. I don’t—I didn’t even know what I was.”
He made a dismissive sound. “I don’t believe that for one second. What I do believe is that there’s something you’re not telling me, and I’m going to figure out what it is.” Leaning back, the detective crossed his arms and continued his line of questioning. “What fae family are you from?”
I didn’t know if I should tell him what Maggie had only just barely begun to explain to me. She’d said that Lightbloods were powerful, after all, and for all I knew that could somehow point the finger at me in Todd’s murder. So I gave the detective a different kind of truth. “I was adopted when I was a baby. I never met my birth parents. Whoever they are, or whatever fae family I come from, I don’t know. I barely know what it means to be a succubus at all! I just—I just want Talia to be released. Please. She’s innocent.”
“That’s not going to happen until the person responsible for your classmate’s murder is found, and I’m still not convinced that she didn’t have something to do with it. Demons don’t just possess humans randomly—for all we know she willingly chose to be possessed, so that she’d have the strength to carry out the murder.”
Tears pricked my eyes, but I swallowed them down. I’d promised myself that I would be strong, after all. “Please, you have to believe me. She had nothing to do with it.”
He grunted. “We’ll see. One more question: did you drain a human named Jacob Crane last night?”
It took me a moment to catch up. Jake. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It’s against fae laws for fae to hurt humans against their consent, you know,” he murmured, those blue eyes intense on me. “Not that there aren’t exceptions made, or rules broken. But from what Jake told me the other night, he wasn’t into having his life force drained by you.”
I flinched away, unable to stop from asking, “Is he okay?”
Those eyes shot me a dismissive look as he grabbed the photo of Todd and put it back in the file. “Jake will be fine. But as for you? I’m not so sure. You see, this city doesn’t treat darkside fae very well. We prefer to haul them out in body bags the second they start trouble.” Picking up the file, he stood up and reached out to unlock the door. “You can go now, Pierce. But if I ever find out that you’ve been draining humans without their consent—well, you’ll have a lot more to worry about than just a few questions.”
Under his disapproving eye, I fled the room and then the precinct, walking as fast as I could without looking suspicious. My hands shook as I unlocked my car and started the engine, heart racing.
I’d been a lot of things in my life—screwed up in so many ways—but I’d never been on the wrong side of any laws like this before. When my powers came back, I would have to figure them out fast, or it would be the end of me.
Chapter Seven
Leon
I didn’t know what Selena Pierce had done, or where she came from, but I didn’t like any of this. No succubus was going to show up in my backyard without an explanation.
Sitting at my desk, I tried to organize my thoughts around my open cases, but knew that I had to get to the bottom of the mystery that was Selena first.
And once I’d figured her out, I was sure that I could figure out who the hell summoned a demon to possess a human—and then killed some dumbass college kid for no reason at all.
Todd hadn’t been the kindest or most compassionate person in the world, but so far I hadn’t found a good motive for anyone to kill him. The only lead we had was the possibility of self-defense, but I was the only detective on the case who knew that our number one suspect had been possessed by a demon. And while I didn’t rule out her involvement—stranger things had happened—I was sure that someone more powerful and knowledgeable had to be involved as well.
“I’m heading to lunch,” I said as I stood up, knowing Detective Yates would insert himself into my business if I didn’t give some sort of explanation before leaving. “And I’ve got a lead to follow up on.”
My nosy neighbor leaned back in his chair and gave me a curious look. “See ya around, Hardwick.”
My motorcycle was waiting outside for me. Pulling on my protective gear—I was a rider, not an idiot—I kicked into gear and peeled out onto the highway. I had one destination in mind, and only one: the Collective, a local private club that was a front for the fae.
I hadn’t lied to Detective Yates—I had a lead to follow up on. But it wasn’t one that I would keep a record of; fae business stayed completely private. Only the police commissioner, another fae blood like me, knew about the supernatural origin of the work I took on. The other detectives often resented me for taking their cases, but if they knew the sort of killers I dealt with they would run in fear.
Vampires. Dark fae. Demon-blooded shapeshifters. And even the occasional light fae like me, turned to killing because of greed or anger. The beast inside me wanted to put them down, but unlike them I was in control; I kept my darker instincts in check.
My mind wandered back to Selena, my little problem of the day. Baton Rouge wasn’t the biggest city, and more importantly, the fae population was small. Anyone new in town was required to register their presence with the local ambassador from the Realm of Light.
Parking outside the Collective, I hung my helmet off the handle of my motorcycle and headed to the front doors. There were two guards waiting right outside, and others just inside the doors; fae took security very seriously. I stalked up to them and pulled out my I.D. badge.
“I have business with the ambassador.”
The guard to the left gave me a short nod and keyed in the code to open the doors. They unlocked with a click—one that also removed the protective spells on the doors—and the other guard grabbed a door handle to usher me in.
Not very talkative, these guards, but that made sense; they were most likely one of the lower fae, capable of brute strength and little else, or even wildlings shaped into human form. Heading through the entrance, I flashed my I.D. to the second set of guards and walked determinedly in the direction of the office.
I passed by many amenities as I went: a fully stocked bar, an indoor heated pool, a small gym, a rehearsal space with mirrored walls where a yoga class was being held. Once, the fae lived with the barest of comforts, but as those of us on Earth became used to what humanity had our ideas of good living changed.
Smelling a familiar scent as I passed by one of the smaller meetings room, I cut my eyes over and saw Naomi. She was talking to an older man in a nice suit—no doubt a potential client, offering her a fortune in exchange for her hunting skills. Glancing over, she saw me and closed the door in my face, and I resisted the urge to snarl. Naomi was a good hunter, but a terrible friend—and I hadn’t counted her among mine since she left my sister and broke her heart.
Putting Naomi out of mind, I stalked down the hallway towards the door I was looking for. This office had tall, ostensious doors. Fae were fans of privacy and regalia, at least on the surface. There were ears all over the place, listening for secrets. Nothing the ambassador did would be completely private.
Of course, he had his own ways of keeping secrets if he chose. I knew that about Petyr; we were friends and allies in the fight against the dark, even if we didn’t always see eye-to-eye.
The doors were closed to indicate he had a visitor in his office, but I could wait. Closing my eyes, I leaned against the wall opposite his door and let my mind wander for a while. After a few minutes my stomach started to growl. Frowning, I glanced over at the closed doors and inhaled with my fae senses�
��I smelled tension, heard footsteps pacing. Whoever he was talking to was upset, which meant he wouldn’t be done anytime soon. I might as well go get some lunch from one of the restaurants inside the Collective that served food to satisfy any fae.
But just because I was going to get some food didn’t mean I had to give up my place in line outside of the office. I needed to keep an eye on things so I could be back as soon as this meeting was over, because Petyr rarely had more than a minute of free time. I closed my eyes again and reached inside for the thing that lived within me.
My double and I had a sometimes uneasy relationship. We were the same person—except when we weren’t—but just the fact that he existed meant that I lived a split life at times. It was hard to explain to others; most people just believed that he was a simulacrum. But when my double was out he lived a kind of alternate reality from my own, and even though we always came back together, every time we split he grew a little less like me. Sometimes this made things… awkward.
I felt him there, waiting. He knew when I was about to bring him out. Grabbing ahold of him, I tore him out of me until he was standing right in front of me.
“Wait here,” I told him, and he nodded. “As soon as Petyr is free let me know.”
He raised an eyebrow at me. “You think I don’t know what to do? I’m just as hungry as you. Go eat.”
As always, it was surreal to be bossed around by an identical version of me. I liked it better when we wore different faces; but for a simply task like this one, there was no need. I left him there, knowing that I had just a short half hour before we would be merged again—whether either of us liked it or not.
Without my double inside me I was missing a fundamental part of what made me... well, me. The beast was gone as well; I didn’t know why, but they were one and the same, even if they only ever came out separately. With my double I was a fae, a walker with shapeshifting powers; without him I was just a man with an identical twin—or a fraternal one if we changed faces.
