Paranormal After Dark

by Rebecca Hamilton

  “It’s a crutch, and not everyone has your stamina.”

  The elevator dinged. I stepped out without waiting for Lucy’s reply and breathed in the sweet air outside that deathtrap. One of the two doors in the narrow hall held the sign of stairs while the other vibrated with the thrum of loud music from within. I knocked and stepped back, checking to make sure my sword wasn’t obvious under my jacket. It opened, and a demon dressed in black lingerie to offset her mauve skin greeted me. Two tiny horns peeked out from the ebony curls that cascaded down her back. Warmth filled my loins and spread through the rest of my body. Marge gave a sharp intake of breath and Lucy stepped closer with her mouth slightly agape and her cheeks red. I gritted my teeth. Fucking succubus.

  Her gaze traveled from our faces and down our bodies, lingering on our breasts and hips. “New meat.”

  I widened my eyes and let a giggle escape my lips. “Love the costume.”

  She smirked and held the door open. “Thanks. It’s like a second skin.”

  We stepped inside, and she sauntered to a couch in the middle of the room. She straddled one of the men sitting on the couch and ran her hand under his blue t-shirt. He flashed his white teeth in a grin and ran his hand up her thigh to her rump. Her tongue darted out from her full lips, and she trailed it over his jawline. Another succubus, this one with a pale lilac shade of skin, was lip-locked with a man. Her fingers gripped his short hair as she rocked her hips against him. I cleared my throat and adjusted the collar of my jacket. The air hung moist and heavy with the musk of lust.

  “Make yourselves at home,” the first demon said as her playmate kissed her neck. “There are party favors in the kitchen.”

  “The good stuff?” Lucy asked.

  The succubus laughed. “Oh, you’ll have to wait for Cambione for that.”

  “And when will that be?” Marge asked with her lip curling, though she had a slightly glazed look in her eyes.

  I elbowed her. “You know. I could use a drink.”

  I pulled Marge into the kitchen and Lucy followed. The counters were filled with a multitude of liquors. Crystal glasses sat to the side. I spun on Marge, glaring at her.

  “You need to stay calm.” I kept my voice low. “Patience.”

  “But.” She let out a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair. “What the hell is wrong with me?”

  “Succubae exude an air of lust,” I said. “Especially for those that are attracted to women. Then they seduce and drain the life out of their victims.”

  Marge’s face turned crimson, and she scowled at me. “We should just fucking kill them.”

  “I know, but this is our chance at Cambione. Don’t screw it up like last time.”

  She snapped her mouth shut and crossed her arms.

  “Let’s worry about getting those men out before the fighting starts,” Lucy said.

  “That’s not going to happen,” Marge said. “Those demon bitches aren’t giving up their meals.”

  “She’s got a point,” I said.

  “You don’t care?” Lucy leveled her gaze at me. “They know nothing of what they’ve gotten into.”

  “The same could be said for anyone who gets involved with demons,” I said. “There are always casualties.”

  “Let’s try to make less, then,” Lucy said. She held my gaze for several moments.

  “Fine,” I said.

  Marge rolled her eyes. “What are we going to do then?”

  “We should assess the situation more,” I said.

  “What’s there to assess? We wait any longer and they’ll be fucking them into husks,” Marge said.

  “Are you all right?” the demon called.

  “Fine.” I grabbed a glass and poured liquor from a random bottle. I paused at the door and nodded at Lucy and Marge. “Come on.”

  The lilac succubus had stood up and was leading her prey to one of the doors to the left. His eyes had a glazed look about him, and he blinked several times. He gave her a dopey grin, sat in one of the chairs at the glass dining table, and pulled her down for a kiss. I walked around the couch, my mouth opening to say something, when the door behind them opened.

  The man who stepped out paused upon seeing us and ran a hand through his white blond hair. His abdominal muscles glistened in the low light, like he’d been oiled. If I had felt warmth earlier, now it was like fire. My nipples hardened, brushing against the soft fabric of my bra. I drew a shuddering breath and reached under my jacket. Lucy gave a low moan behind me. I pressed my lips together and narrowed my eyes at the incubus in front of us. It would be a cold day in hell before I fell to these petty tricks. His gaze raked over the three of us, and he grinned.

  “Well, well,” he said. “If it isn’t my Marguerite. And you’ve brought the famous Gabriella Di Luca.”

  A chill ran down my spine. “Cambione, then.”

  He gave a little mock bow.

  “Give me my contract.” Marge stepped in front of me. She tried to level her dirtiest look, but couldn’t quite pull it off with the semi-glazed look in her eyes.

  “Oh, but that merchandise has already been sold,” Cambione said.

  “Who has it?”

  He wagged his finger at her. “That would be telling.”

  “The hard way then,” I said.

  I darted to the side, pulling my sword from the sheath on my back. My boot landed in the side of the succubus in the chair, and she fell from the lap of her prey. My sword slashed across her throat in a quick move, and there was a flash of purple from the wound as she fell limp, her eyes staring at nothing. The stench of brimstone filled the room. The man in the chair started screaming while Cambione and the other succubus blinked in surprise. They expected more banter. I was over it. It was best left in Lucy’s movies.

  “Capture,” I told Marge as she leapt over the couch at Cambione.

  The mauve demon stepped in front of her and unsheathed her claws. Cambione smirked and crossed his arms. Lucy circled the couch, blocking the demons’ escape and produced two punch daggers from her sleeves.

  “I have some claws of my own,” she said.

  I pulled out a knife from beneath the jacket I wore. I’d taken a page from Adrian’s book and inscribed a binding symbol on its blade. He’d expect the sword and pay less attention to the knife. Once we had Cambione trapped, I would leave him to Marge. He smirked at me as I approached and stepped to the side to push the door behind him open. The lamia sprung from the darkness with her yellow-eyed gaze locked on me.

  Chapter 26

  THE LAMIA FLEW through the air at me. I jumped to the side to avoid her attack, and she crashed into the table. The boy screamed as her tail slapped him from his chair. He slammed into the wall with a loud crack and slumped to the floor. The lamia rose from the destroyed wood with her claws spread and a glare for me.

  “Cambione has told me you can’t die,” she hissed. “I think I will rip your arms off and watch you suffer.”

  Lucy stared down the succubus with her eyes glazed and her breath coming out in short pants. The demon grinned at her as she traced her tongue along her lips. Dammit, Lucy needed to get it together. Somewhere in the distance, a man was screaming. The lamia blocked my view of Marge. She jeered at me, and I could smell the blood on her breath from the five feet that separated us. I went low, aiming for the upper part of her tail and twirled so that I came up behind her. She flicked her tail at me. It hit me in my hip and sent me stumbling into one of the walls. Cambione rushed past me, sliding the patio door shut behind him. He gripped the side of the wall and began to climb it.

  “Son of a bitch,” Marge yelled.

  She had the succubus in a grip by her head. Marge slammed the demons face into her knee and twisted the creature’s neck. She let the body fall and sprinted to the patio. I glanced back in time to dodge the lamia’s claws aimed at my face.

  Marge ran back through the room. “He’s headed for the roof.”

  “Marge, wait,” I called.

  The la
mia wrapped her tail around my foot and flung me into the couch. It broke under my impact with a loud crack, and the man who had been huddling there and screaming bounced and tumbled to the floor. I scrambled to my feet before the demon could pounce on me. She crashed into the couch, turning it into nothing more than splinters and torn fabric. The man crawled backward until he was pressed into a corner. His nostrils flared as he gawked at the snakelike monstrosity in front of him. I’d have to deal with him later.

  The lamia’s hand flew out to strike my face. I ducked down, and it hit the wall, smashing through the plaster with a loud clatter. She jerked her arm free and turned to face me with another hiss.

  “Stand still. I thought you were supposed to be brave,” she said.

  “Oh, I am. I’m just not stupid enough to let you catch me again.”

  I leapt into the air and landed on her back. She twisted and clawed at me, but I held on tight. I dragged my blade across her throat. Black blood poured down her chest, and she made a gagging sound. She flung her shoulder back and dislodged me from my perch. Purple smoke puffed from the gash on her neck, and she dropped on the floor. Lucy stood over the body of the succubus Marge had killed. She blinked at me with a confused look on her face.

  Marge met us halfway up the stairs. She scowled down at us, her fists clenched. “Did he come this way?”

  She slammed her fist in the wall, cracking the plaster. She stood there for a moment, just staring at the wall. Poor girl. I’d been in her place multiple times. I would have Allegra in my grasp only to have her slip away, laughing. I took a step towards her.

  “Don’t,” she said. “Just go upstairs and look at the circle on the roof.”

  I nodded and slid by her, pulling Lucy with me. Cambione or one of his demon lackeys had painted a circle in the center of the roof. It was actually two concentric circles with a large triangle in the center. In between the circles were symbols painted with quick almost messy strokes. They had a very tribal look to them. At the Cardinal directions was one of the symbols I’d seen on the back of Lucy’s tarot cards. It represented Throne of Lust. I walked the entirety of the circle.

  “Summoning circle, like the other one,” I said.

  “Looks like they are calling more up each night,” Lucy said. “That’s a lot of demons, even for this city.”

  I sighed. “Once again, our main culprit has escaped.”

  “We have some leads however.”

  I snorted. “Not good ones.”

  Lucy looked around. “Maybe the men downstairs know something.”

  We headed downstairs Marge was still in the same place. She’d made a fist-sized hole in the wall. She rubbed her bloodied hand and watched us descend the stairs. She didn’t say anything but followed. Both of the men had remained where I’d left them, one huddled in the corner while the other sat slumped against the wall. I checked for a pulse. It was faint. Lucy hauled the other one up and set him on one of the chairs.

  Lucy looked at the man in the chair. “Tell us how you knew the party would be at this hotel.”

  He blinked at her. “What? What the hell was that? Who are you people?”

  I moved next to Lucy. “Focus. How did you know about the party?”

  “I g-got a text,” he stuttered, running a hand through his hair.

  “Yeah, that ain’t happening again,” Marge said.

  “What else have we got?” Lucy asked.

  “Computers,” I said. “Adrian should be able to take a look if he’s not too caught up in his little project.”

  “It shouldn’t be too hard to get the files from the concierge,” Lucy said.

  “Yeah, I doubt these zombies will miss them.” Marge looked over the remains of the room and the two men. “What about this?”

  “We’ll take them with us,” I said. “I’m sure Jonah would love to have more than one person to test.” My gaze traveled to the remains of the lamia and two succubi. “We’re going to have to clean this up.”

  “How the hell do you propose that?” Marge asked. “The cab driver ain’t going to look the other way when we drag a snake body out.”

  “Looks I may need to call Adrian again.” I let out a sigh and crossed my arms. That was not a call I was looking forward to. Hopefully, by now, he’d gotten our first guest situated. I pulled out my phone. “You two deal with the computer. I’ll handle our cleanup and exit”

  After a short conversation with Adrian, I began dragging the bodies together. His arrival sped things up and, thanks to his tiny robots, the room looked as if hell had not come to earth. We loaded the bodies, both living and dead, into his van where it was parked in the delivery area of the hotel. I stared out the window as we drove back to the office.

  Somewhere, Cambione and a whole nest of demons were hiding. I just had to find them and end this infestation.

  Chapter 27

  A HEAVY HAZE hangs in the room, casting odd shadows in the purple light. The air is filled with soft sighs and little moans. Arms wrap around me from behind and fingers trail up my stomach to my breasts. My nipples harden as the thumbs circle around them through the sheer gown, sending a delicious chill down my spine. I swallow and wet my dry lips with my tongue, allowing a moan to escape my lips. A deep heat is building in my loins. I lean back against a solid chest. Teeth graze my earlobe, and a man’s chuckle echoes.

  No, something isn’t right. That chuckle is too light and too triumphant for anyone I would trust. I pull away and turn to face him.

  Cambione crosses his arms and smirks at me. “Well done. I see the stories of that strong will of yours are true. But then, you wouldn’t have resisted Mother for so long if it wasn’t.”

  A low moan catches my attention. On a bed of silk in the corner of the room lays Marge. A succubus, her skin the color of roses, lies next to her and trails her hand down Marge’s abdomen. Marge arches her back as the demon’s hand slips between her thighs.

  “She was almost as strong. It’s taken several dreams to get to her.” His smooth face becomes marred with a scowl. “Of course, it took me having to loose valuable tools. No matter. You and Marguerite will make better substitutes.”

  The world shifts, and I am lying on a bed. The silk beneath me slides along my bare skin, sending a shiver up my back. Cambione hovers above me. His knee spreads my thighs apart. I catch my breath sharply, and my hips rise in anticipation. Coldness erupts in the pit of my stomach as I stare into his pale violet eyes. It moves through my body, dousing the fire he’d lit in me. I sit up, push him to the side, and climb from the bed. I march over to Marge and the demon and yank them apart, causing the succubus to tumble off of the bed with a surprised yelp. I wasn’t going to fall for this game, and I’ll be damned if I let Marge fall prey either. I wrap my hand around her wrist and drag her through the haze to a wooden door that seems an eternity away.

  “You’re right,” I call behind me. “I’ve resisted your mother. You’re nothing compared to her.”

  “Maybe I haven’t used the right incentive.” His voice floats from in front of me. John materializes from the mist and gives me his light grin. “Would this be better?”

  My heart pounds in my chest, but I narrow my eyes. “I’m not fooled by cheap imitations.”

  I step around him, lugging Marge with me. She stumbles along with dull, lust-filled eyes. I fling the door open and step through to our freedom.

  The last thing I hear is Cambione’s laughing words. “Oh, how little you know.”

  Chapter 28

  I PAUSED IN the foyer of our office and rubbed my hands together, blowing on them. The temperature dropped when the sun had set, and already the melting snow was turning to ice. Last night’s dream had left a chill colder than any winter. This wasn’t the first time the Throne of lust had invaded my sleeping world. Naamah, or Mother, as Cambione called her, tended to do more often than I cared to admit. However, this was the first time I’d had someone else with me. I had to find Cambione and kill him before he broke Marge’s mind. Our
new guests would be the perfect place to start.

  The door opened behind me, and my hair whipped around my face at the wind that came in uninvited. I smiled at the two people who entered. Lucy struggled to push the door back in place while holding a large plastic bag. Her father held another and brushed small flakes of snow from his black long coat. He removed the bowler hat and looked down at me, laugh lines crinkling as he returned my smile.

  “Jonah.” I took his hand in mine. “How was your flight?”

  “Don’t get him started again,” Lucy said. “He complained during the entire taxi ride.”

  “It was the poorest excuse for first class that I’ve seen,” Jonah said in a crisp London accent.

  He turned his gaze to me, and I was caught in his clear gray eyes. His salt and pepper hair was trimmed from when I’d last seen him months ago. His beard was short and neat. He hadn’t aged much since I’d met him, but he had one of those youthful faces. I chuckled to myself. Youthful with a little help, that was.

  “How have you been? How did the conference go?”

  Jonah let out a long sigh. “Long-winded. There was a lot of skepticism, of course. Some priests actually believe that the demons are just as hidebound as they are.”

  “So they’re as useless as always,” I muttered.

  “Don’t discredit them. The Pope is a forward-thinking man. I expect to see changes in the near future.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

  “Where are the boys?”

  I glanced around. “I just arrived myself. Adrian is probably upstairs, though.”

  “And were you able to procure what I asked?”

  I smiled. “Upstairs. We have three that Adrian has made accommodations for.”

  He nodded with a smile of his own and squeezed my hand. “Shall we, then?”

  They didn’t try to push me to take the elevator. Lucy and Jonah knew me well enough not to fight me on the little things. We climbed the stairs to the second floor which Esais had claimed most of as the library. It had taken him months to fill the shelves with old books of different creatures and lore of magic. Before Viktor, I think he’d chosen it as his sanctuary. Now he rarely seemed to be around long enough to enjoy it. The library once again went neglected as I unlocked a door across the hall from the stairs. When I opened the door, shouting met my ears.