Magic After Dark: A Collection of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Novels

by Margo Bond Collins

  “You do? Why make it difficult?” Grimstar asked. “If you long for it?”

  Alessa jumped up on top of the poker table with a single bound. “I am Alessandra, born of the house Ruspolis in Florence in 1498. In centuries past, I have been known as the scourge of Paris, the phantom of London. My life is not some trivial thing; breezes do not fell mountains. Let anyone try to take my heart; I welcome its removal by one capable.” She turned to face me. “It won’t be done by a mere worm, freshly dug from the ground, having yet tasted nothing in his life except dirt.”

  Grimstar clapped enthusiastically. “Now that’s what I call revealing the truth within. We have a winner.”

  Alessa looked down upon him. “So you’ll give us the magtroller? Or was your talk of your chips being good in this building just hot air.”

  “The magtroller is still the prize to be won. But it must be fought for. I can’t just give it to you.”

  “That wasn’t the deal!” I shouted. “We already took part in your contest.”

  “I said it’d be possible for you to win it by coming down here, not that it would be easy.” Grimstar shook his head. “The game was just the prelude, setting the stage for the fight to come. The magtroller is a powerful device; you must earn it.”

  “Just release me, and I’ll fight whomever or whatever you want,” I said.

  “Not you. You lost the prelude, remember. Plus, you’d like it too much. It’s the vampire who’ll face my newly found demon. To make things more interesting, she has to fight to save you.” He spread his arms wide, then brought them rapidly inward. From all directions, vines shot from the ground and trees, coming for me. “That is, if she still wants to after what has been said.”

  I whipped my left hand forward, momentarily avoiding the grasp of the oncoming vines, then used that hand to rip off the bonds on my right wrist. I then tore at the vines around my midriff with both hands, breaking first one strand, then several. Before I could make any further progress, both wrists were grabbed and I was wrenched backward. The vines pulled me away from the table, back toward one wall. There, my arms were pulled straight and horizontal. I was raised above the ground, the vines falling away from my torso, but remaining wrapped tightly around my ankles.

  Grimstar tilted his head, watching me struggle. “He doesn’t look quite like the delectable damsel in distress I was hoping for.”

  The gemin demon bounded forward and climbed up the vines holding my legs. “Get off me.” I jerked and flailed, trying to knock it off me, but the vines held me firm. “What’s happening?” I felt no pain, but the gemin demon was doing something. I tilted my head down to watch, but I couldn’t make out exactly what the creature was doing until it slid off me, taking most of my clothes with it.

  The jacket was completely gone, and the only parts of my shirt left on me were the cuffs and collar, leaving my chest and arms bare. The belt and top part of my trousers remained, but they had been cut off at the thighs. My shoes and socks were also gone. “What is this?” I struggled against my bonds, but the vines only tightened their grip on me until one shoulder popped. I stilled.

  “Yes, yes,” Grimstar said. “That’s more like it. Look at those bulging muscles. De-licious. Next, we need witnesses.” Grimstar stretched his right hand high, then pulled downward. The underworld reflection shrank, but didn’t fully disappear. The dactyls in the sky faded away, revealing the bottom of the covering we’d seen from above. Grimstar made another gesture, and the covering flapped open, revealing the light of the casino above.

  “Come, enjoy the spectacle!” Grimstar shouted out, and figures crammed against the railing in the floor above. Even though we were in the underworld reflection, and the watchers weren’t, it appeared that they could see us. And from the loud babble of conversation, they were excited to find out what would happen.

  “I have a blade I can lend you.” Grimstar drew a knife from his waistcoat and offered it to Alessa.

  The knife was a sickly, horrible thing, with black veins running through the metal. “Don’t take it,” I said.

  “Why not?” Alessa asked.

  She couldn’t see the black veins in the metal, the dark magic that suffused it. “Just don’t,” I said. Perhaps wielding the knife wouldn’t hurt her, but I was inclined to stay well away from it.

  Alessa studied me for a long moment, then jumped off the table and away from Grimstar, who shrugged. “It’s a powerful blade; it would have helped. But your choice.” He sheathed the knife, then gestured toward the stairwell. “Your combatant approaches.”

  The stairwell had now been lit up, and a little dog, a pug, was awkwardly hopping down the stairs, taking it slow, intimidated by the gap between each step. Alessa glanced across at Grimstar, a questioning look on her face, but I saw what she didn’t. A black aura, the one I’d noticed earlier, surrounded the pug.

  “It’s a demon!” I flailed uselessly against the vines that held me.

  The pug reached the bottom of the stairs. Alessa stepped warily back as the dog waddled toward her. When it stepped into the shadowy underworld reflection, the pug paused and sniffed the air. Then, as it continued forward, it grew in size with each step. Its skin blackened and expanded, and, like burning paper, pieces of the skin flaked away. What remained was hardening into scales.

  Within moments, the dog was no more and in its place stood a black hulking monster, all claws and teeth. Its eyes were small and crimson-colored. It rose up on two legs, straightening its back, the size of it enough that its head reached the level of the watchers on the floor above. It opened its mouth, showing a double ring of spikes for teeth, and it gave a roar, drops of black spittle the size of snowballs spewing from its mouth. Those closest to the railing shrank back, then rushed closer again when the beast fell back on all fours.

  “Get your money down!” Grimstar said, his voice ringing out. “All roulette tables are now taking bets on this fight. Black for the demon. Red for the vampire. House takes no commission. Place your bets.” Some of those near the balcony scrambled back toward the tables, jostling against those continuing to press forward.

  The demon charged at Alessa. She raced out of the way, letting it run past. It swiveled to face her once more, terrifyingly fast for something so big. As it stalked forward, Alessa circled away, sizing it up.

  “We have a helsing warrior, strung up and ready for savoring, looking de-licious. We’ll take bets on him too. Put your money on the green zero box for his survival, chips on double zero pay out on his death. Giving fifty-fifty odds, and once again, no commission, get your bets down. The vampire is nominally supposed to be protecting him, but, well, we all know the history between helsing and vampire. Place your bets.”

  The demon charged forward, slashing downward with both arms at once. As Alessa dashed out of the way, her feet tripped over a root and she fell. The demon was upon her in an instant, jumping at her, legs first, the claws on its feet as long as those on its hands.

  She rolled out of its way, splashing into an oily pool, then quickly got to her feet and backed away. The way the root had tripped her made me wonder whether the environment was going to help the demon. Other than the vines which held me, the rest had retreated back into the ground or back into the black forest that continued to sway like it was battered by a storm.

  The demon charged once more, and this time Alessa managed to dodge the flailing claws and get some return strikes in, getting hold of a forearm and launching two swift kicks against the side of its head. The demon swung its body, and Alessa went flying through the air, but she landed on her feet. The demon, hurt, pointed its mouth upward and roared at the ceiling, then suddenly sprang away from Alessa. I’d been so absorbed in the fight, it took me a moment to realize where it was headed.

  Directly at me.

  Shit.

  Chapter 22

  I looked over its head at where Alessa hesitated, just realizing what the demon was doing. I had no reason to expect help from her.

  “Le
t me go!” I shouted. Grimstar simply smiled.

  The demon continued to bear down on me at speed, its jaws opening in anticipation, its rows of teeth glinting with black saliva.

  I convulsed my body. “A single arm,” I shouted. “Just release one arm.” It wouldn’t be enough to fight off the demon, but at least I would be able to fight. I didn’t want to die strung up and helpless, a trapped insect. We helsings weren’t afraid to die, but we died fighting. Not like this! my mind screamed while my arms wrenched uselessly at their bonds and the demon’s teeth got ever closer.

  The demon came to a sudden stop, then fell to the side. Alessa had a hold of its leg. Its other foot scissored across at her, and she had to release its leg and jump back. The demon jumped to its feet, looking from Alessa to me, the three of us facing each other like points on a triangle. The demon made its decision and rushed toward me, and Alessa ran up behind it. The demon turned its body and backhanded a blow, catching Alessa square in the midriff.

  She flew backward and landed on the poker table, smashing it to pieces. Grimstar took several quick steps back as splinters and cards and chips exploded upward. Within moments, Alessa was back on her feet and running at the demon. Its claw swiped at me just as Alessa charged into it, knocking it down. As the demon struggled to its feet, Alessa stood in front of me, panting heavily.

  “And the helsing is injured!” Grimstar announced loudly. “Will he bleed out?”

  I was injured? I hadn’t even felt it. Looking down, I saw a flap of skin hanging loose from my chest and blood streaming down. Even seeing it didn’t make me feel pain; it just added to my rage at being so powerless.

  The watchers on the floor above strained closer, screaming and shouting. One troll leaned too far forward, and the railing buckled and broke. He fell, twisting as he did so and grabbing the edge of the floor. Two woodfolk fell just behind the troll, crashing to the ground.

  The demon, seeing fresh meat, ran for the troll and the woodfolk. The troll, clinging on frantically, stared down in horror as it dangled before an onrushing beast. Several hands grabbed him, pulling the troll up just before the demon reached it.

  One of the woodfolk was on his feet in an instant, skittering away at a speed that even I wouldn’t have been able to match, disappearing up the stairwell. The other, stunned from the fall, staggered upright, only to be knocked back down again by a thunderous blow from the demon. The woodfolk’s body bounced across the muddy ground, his limbs cartwheeling, landing not far from me and Alessa. The demon pounced on the woodfolk’s body, more interested in dead prey than live.

  When Alessa approached the demon from behind, aiming a blow at the back of its head, it lashed out with a foot, sending her spinning backward. She crashed against my chest and grabbed hold of my neck to stop herself from rebounding to the ground. Her muscles bunched as she prepared to leap away, then her body stiffened. She sniffed, her face close to my bloody chest.

  I strained against the vines again, using every last ounce of my power, but there was no give at all in them. Alessa’s face transformed, her fangs elongating, the skin tightening around her bones, her pupils becoming ringed with red. She became the inhuman monster I’d seen in the mindtrap.

  “When was the last time the vampire drank?” Grimstar’s voice boomed out. “Can she resist the song of her addiction? The song of her soul?”

  The demon’s teeth crunched into the woodfolk’s corpse.

  Alessa face was so close that I couldn’t make out all of it at once. The stretched skin, the fanged mouth, the blood-rimmed pupils all passed in and out of my vision as her faced bobbed close to mine, so close, too close. Her hunger was a palpable thing, I could feel it coming off her in waves.

  “Do it. End me,” I snarled. I didn’t want to die, but rage roared through me. Grimstar had rendered me impotent for long enough. I didn’t want the killing blow to drag out any longer.

  She roared out her own fury; she was what I had always known her to be, a savage creature made up of pure want and need and desire. Her mouth opened, and her fangs reached for my throat. My breath stilled. As she bent toward me, I could only see the top of her head, her black hair. I felt her breath, though, hot and pulsating. I smelled her stench, foul and ancient. The points of four teeth touched my neck. They tightened on my skin.

  Then…

  Then they were gone, and Alessa fell away from me. I felt an absence, almost a disappointment. I realized my eyes were closed, and I opened them.

  “So near, but double zero bettors denied,” Grimstar shouted. “For now, at least.” A chorus of boos rang out, drowned out by cheers as Alessa stalked forward toward the hulking monster that still fed on the body of the unfortunate woodfolk. The crowd had already forgotten about the danger, with many leaning out over the railing once more.

  “With the vampire in her primal form; this is now beast against beast,” Grimstar said. “Does that change things?”

  The demon raised its head from its gory meal, turning. It picked up what was left of the corpse and threw it. Alessa shifted to the side, and the body splattered against the far wall.

  It raised its head and roared, then charged forward. Alessa stopped her advance, standing absolutely still. My heart leaped in my chest as the demon dived down on her, claws first.

  When the demon landed, Alessa wasn’t in its claws. She’d rolled under it, grabbed one of the poker table’s legs, and stabbed it up through the beast. The demon staggered backward, now leaking dark blood.

  She leaped up and kicked out with both legs, knocking it down. Lying on its back, it lashed out with all four limbs at once, but Alessa evaded its blows to land on its chest and stab down again and again with the broken table leg. The demon raised its limbs to strike again, but before they could, the demon unleashed a final wail, and its limbs collapsed.

  Alessa continued to stab downward, black blood splashing upward. The crowd, which had initially roared approval, began to quieten as she hacked further into the demon’s body. She finally stopped, letting the table leg fall from her fingers, crouching poised, scanning all around her. When her gaze fell on me, I feared she would return and finish what she had started, this time not stopping until my blood and life force were fully drained.

  Instead, she ran to the stormy forest, jumped to the lowest branches, then climbed higher. From the top branches, she leaped up for the railing, grabbing hold of one of the rungs by its base. The watchers scrambled back out of her way as she swung upward onto the top of the railing. From there, she jumped up and wrenched the magtroller down from the ceiling, grabbing hold of the railing once more as she fell.

  “This is mine.” With the fangs out, her voice had a harsh, grating quality. She hung from the railing, swiveling around, looking from one face to another, daring anyone to stop her. She then let go, and fell back down to the lower chamber. “This time you will keep your word,” she told Grimstar. “You will allow us to leave with this.”

  “Of course. Why do you think I would not?” He splayed his fingers wide, and the vines released me. I fell, landing face first in fetid, bubbling mud.

  Having the bonds suddenly released after holding me tightly so long sent pulses of agony tearing through the muscles of my arms and legs. I screamed into the mud, then rose to my knees. My chest still bled, and it had started to sting, but it wasn’t going to kill me.

  “Come on.” Alessa crouched down beside me, putting a hand on my back. She stank of demon blood.

  I tried to slap her away, but my arms were rubbery and didn’t respond with any force.

  “No nonsense.” She had returned to her normal human shape. “Let’s get out of here.” I allowed her to help me to my feet.

  Alessa started for the stairwell, her arm around my back, keeping me upright while my legs staggered beneath me. Lights came on, and ground returned to a normal floor as Grimstar dismissed his underworld reflection. The demon’s body disappeared, though the ravaged corpse of the woodfolk stayed where it was, and the poker table
remained smashed.

  “This way will get you out without having to pass through the main part of the casino.” Grimstar directed us to a door behind him.

  Trolls, woodfolk, humans, and vampires watched silently from above. I spotted Kingston staring down at us with a frown on his face. Alessa hesitated, then went the direction Grimstar indicated. Grimstar held the door open as we passed through.

  “Must do this again sometime. It’s been de-licious,” he said, closing the door behind us. A small stairway led to an emergency exit which opened out onto the street.

  “I’m okay,” I said once we got outside. Alessa released me, and I was able to stay upright. Blood flow had returned to my legs and arms, and the wound in my chest continued to improve.

  “Let’s get away from here,” Alessa said. “A few blocks at least.”

  I nodded. We walked for around ten minutes, randomly choosing a direction at each intersection, neither of us saying a word. We didn’t pass too many people, but of those we did, each and every one stopped to stare. I was close to naked with a bleeding slash across my chest. Alessa’s evening dress was shredded, and her skin was blotched with dark blood. One person crashed against a lamppost as she turned to watch us go by.

  Finally, Alessa stopped, leaned against a wall, and slid down to sit on the ground. “I need a rest.”

  I slid in beside her. “You deserve one.”

  “Not too close. I stink.”

  “We both stink.”

  Not long afterwards, rain began to fall. Alessa looked up and let the drops fall on her face, then used the rain to clean off some of the blood. “Something going right for once,” she said. “I didn’t wish for rain, but if I’d thought about it, I couldn’t have come up with a better wish.”

  “If rain is the best you could wish for, then your imagination isn’t up to much.”

  She smiled. “Perhaps.”

  After being inside the underworld reflection for so long with its oily water and the sticky, warm mud, and all its strange smells and sounds, the cool rain did feel refreshing. It soaked into my hair and trickled down my chest and legs. “That’s not the only thing that went right,” I said. “We have the magtroller.”