by Sophie Stern
“Because of the darkness of the city, it’s better to have them be as dark as possible. This way, they won’t stand out as much. Grey will show up in the darkness, at least a little. Vampires will wonder what she’s hiding that she’s wearing shades when it’s already dark. This will reduce their chances of noticing her from a distance. It’s closer to what vamps like to wear. At least until they get up close, they may even assume that she’s one of them.”
“I like them,” she says, putting the shades on.
“Button one lets you see in the dark,” Ezekiel explains. “Two is your communications link. Three lets you record. Four gets you into whatever cameras you need to see. All of the controls are also linked to your wrist unit.”
“Very nice,” she says. She pushes them up on her head, reaches into her bag, and pulls out a package.
“What’s that?” I ask. “Money?”
“Ezekiel doesn’t deal in cash,” she says. “He deals in tech, and those a set of batteries I swiped from a squad of vampires last week.”
“What do they do?”
She shrugs, but Ezekiel is willing to give me a real answer.
“I can use them for anything,” he says. “And they’re basically impervious to detection. So, if I need to put them into glasses or a device I make, they aren’t going to be picked up by anyone looking for batteries or hardware.”
“So as long as someone doesn’t look at them up close, metal detectors and x-ray tech won’t be able to find these.”
“Pretty much.”
I feel like a lot of Ezekiel’s projects depend on people not getting too close, but I don’t want to be rude, so I don’t say that. He’s right, though. One of the problems with getting into the Mountain is that Derek doesn’t allow his citizens to wear tech. If they want to come in for any reason, they’re searched and forced through a type of x-ray machine that basically scans you and looks for batteries and metal.
“When are you going in?” Ezekiel asks. Amy raises an eyebrow. Neither one of us said anything about going to the Mountain, but Ezekiel is a demon. He’s not stupid.
“Right now,” I tell him.
“Do you have backup?”
“Daisy,” Amy says.
Ezekiel sighs and runs a hand through his long blonde hair. It should be illegal just how pretty he looks. He really does look more shifter than demon.
“Amy, you know it’s not a good idea to go without backup.”
“We don’t have time for backup,” she argues. “In case you haven’t noticed, the entire city is crashing and burning. People are being eaten alive. Slaughtered. Angels and demons and vamps are fighting in the streets.”
He shakes his head. “Then let me help you,” he says.
“Nope,” Amy shakes her head. “No way. Not going to happen.” She lowers her voice. “Your leg,” she whispers.
“My leg is fine,” Ezekiel says. He turns to me, “It’s an old injury from long ago. Apparently, pissing off vampires as a demon teenager is a bad idea.” For them to have hurt Ezekiel bad enough that he didn’t fully heal, they must have really had it in for him. There’s not much demons can’t heal from. He smiles sadly and turns back to Amy, “But I wasn’t suggesting I go with you. I was suggesting,” he says. “That you take this.”
He reaches for a small cannister. It’s gold with a silver lid and it has a faint glow.
“What is it?” I ask.
“Angel tears,” he says.
“Fallen angel tears?” Amy shakes her head. “What do those do?”
“No,” I say, reaching for the cannister. “Not fallen angel. Angel.”
Amy shrugs and hands me the tiny container. It’s heavy and weighted. It’s definitely something I never thought I’d see in my lifetime. Angel tears. How the fuck did Ezekiel manage to get these?
As if reading my mind, he answers, “Pure luck. And someone owed me a favor.”
“What do they do?” Amy repeats her question.
“Angels rarely cry,” I tell her. “When they do, they’re ridiculously powerful.”
“Powerful enough to kill a vampire?” She asks.
“Powerful enough to put magic users to sleep,” Ezekiel says. “And correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m guessing that’s your first goal.”
“How do we use the tears?” Amy asks.
“Just open the cannister and set it out.”
“It won’t affect us? Will it put us to sleep?”
“Harrison is a demon,” he says. “He’s immune to the tears of angels, and you’ll be wearing your shades. Keep them on. I’ve programmed some extra special elements that will ensure you’re able to get through just about anything those fuckers can throw at you.”
“Ezekiel?” Amy says.
“Yes?”
“Thank you.” She hugs him. “You’re the best.”
Ezekiel shoots a look at me, as if asking whether I’m going to permit him to hug my lover, and I just chuckle and motion for him to go for it. Amy isn’t some piece of property. She can hug whoever she wants to hug. Hesitantly, Ezekiel reaches for her and holds her tightly. Then he starts to relax and pulls her even closer.
After a minute, they finish and look over at me.
“What now?” She asks.
“Now it’s time to get dressed,” I reach into my own bag and pull out the uniforms we took off the vampires yesterday when she found me. “Our disguises are ready.”
Chapter Twelve
Amy
Perhaps sneaking back into the nightmare world of the Mountain is a bad idea.
Perhaps going on this mission is suicide.
Perhaps it’s a horrible plan.
But it’s all going to be worth it if we can get this fucking magical dome off our city. It’s going to be worth it if I can see the sun again. Keeping the magic up is impossible. Not only is there no way for magic users to keep this up long-term, but the effects would be disastrous. Everything would die. Even the vampires would die. They would kill off all the humans and then not have a way to get fresh food.
What are they going to do?
Eat demons?
Yeah, not so much.
Harrison is the best demon I’ve ever known. Well, he’s also the only demon I’ve ever known. I’ve always considered Ezekiel to be more of a shifter. His parents may not be his by blood, but damn if they don’t all act the same. Ezekiel even sniffs the air the same way they do. It’s unnerving.
I’ve never been one to give monsters a chance. Aside from my friendship with Ezekiel, I’ve never given a demon the time of day.
With Harrison, things are different.
We walk swiftly toward the Mountain. Determined. It would be a 45-minute walk in the daylight. It’s so dark and the city is in such chaos that who knows how long it’s going to take this time? I close my eyes and hope against all hope that somehow, this time, everything is going to be fine.
Harrison reaches for my hand and squeezes it.
“Hey,” he whispers. “You okay?”
“I’m fine,” I lie, but he sees through that somehow. He squeezes my hand again.
“Try again, love,” he says.
This time his voice is deeper, darker.
Threatening.
“Terrified,” I tell him.
“Better.”
It’s okay to be scared. I’ve known this for years. Fear gives us strength because it enables us to stay focused. When we’re scared, we’re paying attention. It’s when we get comfortable that people can sneak up on us and destroy us.
Today we can’t afford to get comfortable.
As we make our way toward the tower, my apprehension grows. Every so often, I see someone running, being chased by vampires. Other times, I see vampires walking by in groups. They’re always laughing and hollering.
Yelling.
They’re having the time of their lives because the vampires really do rule the night. Before the dome was put in place, they had to behave most of the time. They had to be tame and calm because if they w
eren’t, the humans, demons, and angels would just kill them in their sleep.
Things are different now.
They don’t have to sleep.
Harrison and I have our work cut out for us. Daisy is waiting at the apartment. She’s ready for our signal and is capable of doing just about anything we need. This might mean taking out a couple of security cameras. It might mean giving us directions. I’m glad to know we have backup today.
We’re going to fucking need it.
Harrison and I are darting down a side alley when he suddenly stops walking and pushes me roughly against the wall. He closes in on me, invading my space.
“Hey!” I shout, but then I hear voices and I know what he’s doing. A gang of young vampires runs by the entrance to the alley. They’re chatting and laughing and yelling. They don’t spare us a second glance. I suppose I have Harrison to thank for that.
“What are you doing?” I whisper. His lips are dangerously close to mine.
“If they think we’re kissing, they won’t cause trouble.”
“Maybe we should try to be a little more convincing,” I offer, and he brings his lips to mine. Kissing Harrison isn’t something that’s ever going to get old. He swipes his tongue over my lips and instantly, I’m aching and aroused. He chuckles against my mouth as he kisses me deeper. His hands find their way to my hips and he grabs me, digging his fingers into my skin.
“You’re wet,” he whispers.
“How can you tell? You aren’t even touching me there.”
“I can smell you, princess,” Harrison growls. He bites my neck, sucking, nipping. “If I slide my fingers down your pants, am I going to find you wet for me? Are you needy for me?”
“Yes,” I whisper. I’m not going to lie now.
Not again.
He plunges his fingers beneath the waistband of the too-tight uniform pants. He starts to stroke me. He’s firm. Persistent. He runs his fingers up and down my soft skin, teasing me, taunting me. I don’t want him to stop. I’m going to just die if he stops.
But he doesn’t stop.
He keeps going.
Harrison grinds against me in the alleyway. I can feel just how hard his cock is right now, straining against his pants. I want more than he can give me right now, but I don’t care. Life is too short to be well-behaved or proper. There’s a chance that even if everything goes right tonight, we could die.
Even if we get to the Mountain and we stop Derek and we manage to slide the Sword of Edith deep into his fucking chest, there’s a chance we won’t make it back out of the building.
I’m not about to die full of regrets.
So, I reach out for Harrison and this time, I grope him, stroking him. If he’s surprised, he doesn’t show it. Instead, he growls – fucking growls – at me and thrusts his hips forward, pushing his cock deeper into my palm.
“That’s it, baby,” he murmurs.
“You’re hard,” I say.
“That’s all thanks to you, beautiful,” he says. “You look so fucking sexy and your pussy is so sweet. Do you know how hard that makes me?”
“I do now,” I whisper, stroking him over the pants. Then I copy his movements and slide my own hand down his uniform pants. His cock feels even harder without the thick black fabric separating my skin from his. “No boxers,” I comment, and wrap my palm around his cock.
“Not tonight,” he says.
“You feel really good in my hand,” I whisper.
“Think of how good I’ll feel in your pussy,” he counters.
“Here?”
“Later,” he says, and he kisses me again. He keeps stroking my body, touching me, playing with me. He keeps teasing me until I’m so fucking close that I think I’m going to explode with need. I rub his cock harder, faster. My strokes are quick and hasty. I need this. I need him.
I need something to go right today.
For just this day.
I need it to all go right.
I rub him harder and faster. Harrison’s face tightens.
“Amy,” he says. “I’m so close.”
He doesn’t want to fuck me in the alley, and that’s fine, but Harrison needs to be focused if we’re going to do this thing right. Sending a man into battle with an ache deep in his core? That’s so not my style.
So, I drop to my knees.
The gesture surprises him, but he doesn’t complain as I reach forward and pull his pants down. I slide my tongue over his cock and take him deep in my throat. He tastes good.
Strong.
Masculine.
I grip his ass and pull him forward, thrusting his cock even deeper into my mouth. Then I swallow hard and I keep going.
“That’s it, baby,” he groans. “That’s my good girl.”
The complement shoots straight to my pussy. Yeah, I love feeling like I’m doing something right. If possible, I’m even more wet, and I slide one of my hands between my legs so I can rub myself while I suck on Harrison’s cock.
He gets closer, but so do I.
Closer.
Closer.
Closer.
Everything seems to fade away as I hear him whispering to me, telling me what a wonderful, naughty girl I am. The sounds of fighting, of vampires, of running: it all just vanishes. All that’s left is Harrison and me and our bodies.
And this moment.
All we have is this moment.
When we come, we come together: an explosion of hearts and lights and bodies. Fireworks shoot off in my soul as I suck him harder, take him deeper. I need this more than I’ve ever needed anything else in my life and when our bodies finally calm, when the pleasure begins to fade away, I look up at him and smile.
He’s more than just a partner tonight.
He’s mine.
He’s my demon.
Chapter Thirteen
Harrison
By the time we reach the tower, it’s mid-morning. We can’t tell how bright the sun is in the sky, but we can make an educated guess. I hate looking up and seeing the darkness that wraps around the city. It squeezes everything, making the world seem much more sinister than it actually is.
We need to pull this off.
We need to.
If we can stop the magic users, if we can kill Derek, then the vampires will burn, and the city will be restored.
Sort of.
The city will still be in total chaos, but at least there won’t be vampires anymore.
I may be an Earthborn demon, but I’ve been around long enough to know that anytime a powerful leader is destroyed, someone else takes his place. The city is going to need guidance. They’re going to need people in place who can keep it working and running well.
But we can’t implement any sort of government until the old one is thrown out, and we can’t do anything if we’re dead.
Derek is a total asshole.
He plans to kill us all, but that’s not going to happen.
Not if Amy and I have anything to do with it.
Now we run.
Faster and faster. We get closer and closer to the Mountain. I can see it now: rising up high above the other buildings in the dark city. Just a little bit more. Just a little while longer. Soon we’ll be able to sneak in. Soon we’ll be able to stop this.
I hope.
But when we round a corner, we find that we’re not exactly alone in our plan. We practically run into a group of fallen angels who turn angrily to look at us.
They sneer at us, but then one person speaks up.
“That’s her! She’s the one who killed Zax!”
“Get her!” Someone shouts.
“No, he was a dick!” Someone else yells.
Mass chaos ensues, with some of the angels wanting to kill Amy and others wanting to let her go. Amy’s shades let her see exactly what is happening despite the darkness, and she looks around rapidly before spotting a dumpster. She darts to it and hops up. Then she yells.
“Hey!”
Instantly, the angered crowd fa
lls quiet. How the fuck did she just do that? She seriously managed to tame an entire group of people who were yelling and angered. That’s how strong this girl’s presence is. That’s just how determined she really is. Her strength shines even in the darkness of City 3140.
“You guys hate the vampires, right?”
A few fallen angels mumble things, but a couple of them actually nod emphatically.
“Good, me too,” she says. “That’s why demon-boy and I are going to go stop them.”
Demon boy?
Is she talking about me?
What the actual fuck?
We’re going to have to work on her dirty talk. First, she called me her lover and now she’s calling me demon boy.
If anything, I’m a demon giant: strong and brave.
Yeah.
Or a demon warrior.
She can call me that.
“So, if you want to help and you want to see this city rebuilt in a way that leaves room for all of us to live peacefully,” she says, “I’ll tell you what you can do.”
“What makes you think we want to help?” One of the fallen females says. She crosses her arms and looks up at Amy. “You killed our leader.”
“Your leader was a dickhead who murdered his own child,” Amy responds. A few people gasp. They didn’t know, apparently. “And his wife is helping us tonight. She wants justice for this city just as much as you do. We all want the same thing here: the sun back.”
“And a city without vampires,” says one angel.
“And a city without demons!” Says another.
“Hey,” I say, holding my hands up. “I’m right here. I can literally hear you.”
The angel has the decency to blush before turning around and slinking back into the crowd. Better, but what the actual hell?
Amy has the crowd all riled up. She’s not going to give away our entire plan, but she is doing something that only she could do: giving everyone hope. She’s letting them know that the battle isn’t over yet. The war isn’t finished. We still have a chance to save everyone, but she’s also right when she says we can’t do it on our own.
There are a lot of angels here tonight. They have something the humans don’t: strength.
Oh, and numbers.
There are a lot of fucking fallens here.
