Daemon Persuasion

by S. K. Gregory

  “I understand why you feel this way.”

  “Feel what way? I’m not interested in you,” she snapped, but now that he was right in front of her, she couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to kiss him.

  “You feel it don’t you,” he moved closer to her.

  “I feel it.” He bent his head towards her.

  “We have to resist it.”

  “Resist what?”

  “Nadine’s ability. She incites lust, it infects everyone around her.”

  “Uh-huh,” Mackenzie mumbled. She was finding it hard to concentrate, with his body so close to hers. His shirt was still open, tribal symbols trialed down is chest, similar to the Pariah, but different.

  “Tell me to stop,” Taryn said. His face was inches from hers now.

  “Huh?”

  “Order me to stop,” he whispered, his lips on her hers.

  “Stop,” she said. Some part of her brain that was still functioning caught on to what he meant. She pushed him back, “Stop. You don’t want to do this.”

  He relaxed; her ability obviously trumped Nadine’s. Unfortunately, she could still feel the effects.

  “Now you know how the gas attendant died. Her ability is toxic to humans. She can kill one with a single kiss.”

  “You should go,” she said, putting some distance between them. She couldn’t look him in the eye.

  “She’ll be gone by morning.”

  He was true to his word because a few hours later, Mackenzie felt the effects Nadine carried in her wake lift and she took a deep breath.

  Oh, my God I nearly kissed Taryn. She pressed a pillow over her face and screamed into it. She felt better afterwards but she doubted she would ever be able to face him again.

  She was up before dawn, watching the sunrise over the trees.

  No one else seemed to be up, so she wandered downstairs. She was surprised to hear voices coming from the study. Pausing outside the door, she could hear Frances and Taryn inside.

  “I’ve already said I can’t tell you what I’m doing,” Taryn was saying.

  “Very well, don’t tell me, but why are you wasting time with that half breed? She should have been put down years ago. She’s an abomination.”

  “She’s useful to me at the moment.”

  “And when she stops being useful?”

  “Don’t worry; when I’m done I’ll do what’s necessary. I’ll take care of it.”

  Chapter 19

  “You’re being uncharacteristically quiet,” Taryn said the next morning at breakfast. It was just the two of them; Frances hadn’t made an appearance yet. They ate in the kitchen. She’d stayed in her room the day before, pacing a hole in the carpet. After hearing the conversation between Taryn and Frances, she wasn’t sure what to believe anymore.

  “I’m fine,” she said stiffly. She wasn’t going to let him know she had heard him. He didn’t intend to help her or her mother. She had been an idiot to trust him. Of course, he was going to keep her alive, he needed her. He would probably promise her anything until she killed Lucien. Then he could take the talisman for himself and get rid of her.

  That’s what he thinks. Once the spell was completed, Taryn was going to join his brother.

  “I want to know how the spell works,” she said.

  He looked up from his toast, “It’s complicated, I’ll take care of it.”

  “You’ll take care of it, right. Like you’ll take care of me,” she blurted. She walked outside away from him. She really needed to learn to keep her mouth shut.

  “What’s bothering you now,” he sighed, coming up behind her.

  “Nothing,” she muttered.

  “If this is about night before last, just forget about it. We couldn’t control it. Trust me I am definitely not interested in you.”

  Of course not, crazed, toxic succubae are your thing.

  Mackenzie noticed a target practice area set up in a clearing.

  “I thought you were going to teach me how to handle weapons?”

  He seemed relieved that she had changed the subject. He picked up a set of throwing knives and handed them to her.

  “I’ll set up the target.”

  Mackenzie held one of the knives feeling the weight of it in her hand. Taryn had his back to her as he set the target up. It would be so easy to finish him off here and now. She raised the knife just as Taryn turned to face her.

  “You’re holding it wrong,” he said. He stood behind her and raised her arm moving the knife up beside her ear.

  “You need to extend your arm fully, then release,” he instructed. On her first attempt, the knife bounced of the top of the target. She tried to focus, but she was finding it difficult with Taryn so close. Even his presence irritated her.

  She threw the next knife, which hit the outer edge of the target.

  Taryn moved away from her to get a better view. She took a breath and threw the next knife. It hit dead center, so did the next one and the next one, until they were all gone. “Not bad,” Taryn said, grudgingly.

  Her victory was short lived; knife throwing seemed to be her only skill. No matter what weapon they used, she couldn’t get the hang of it. They tried more sword fighting, staffs, and even crossbows. Mackenzie noticed Frances watching them from one of the second floor windows, after Taryn flipped her onto the ground for the third time.

  She waved at her just to annoy her. She was sure Frances hated her because she was ‘contaminated’ with human blood. Which was exactly how she felt about the demon blood inside her. Contaminated. Unclean.

  “I thought the women in your family had no real power. Frances seems to rule the roost around here.”

  “She’s my father’s older sister. She tried to take over after my grandfather died. My father wants her dead, so she’s hiding out here.”

  “How come you know where she is?”

  “I was the one who helped her get away.”

  “And Nadine?”

  “She comes and goes as she pleases.”

  Mackenzie could think of a couple of responses to that but she restrained herself.

  “I mean, what was the slap about?”

  There was a loud clang as something struck the front gate. Startled, Mackenzie and Taryn glanced at one another, then jogged toward the end of the driveway.

  A blue Ford Mondeo had driven into the gate. Steam was escaping from the engine and Mackenzie could make out someone slumped over the wheel through the broken windscreen.

  “Call an ambulance,” she said, hurrying towards the car. Taryn pulled her back.

  “Are you insane? It’s probably a trap.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, someone is hurt.”

  “No human can see this house, it’s protected.”

  “Maybe that’s why they crashed, they didn’t see the gate.”

  “I’ll check it out, you stay on the property, do you understand?”

  She nodded. He opened the gates and moved towards the car.

  “Hello? Are you okay?” he called. He tugged on the driver’s door handle but it wouldn’t budge.

  Mackenzie stood with her toes against the property line. She wanted to go out and help but after everything that had happened lately it was too much of a risk.

  Taryn pulled the handle as hard as he could and the door opened with the sound of crunching metal. He leaned in to check for a pulse.

  “Well?” Mackenzie called.

  He straightened up and shook his head, “There’s no pulse.”

  Mackenzie saw the movement but before she could shout a warning the body in the car lunged at him. It drove a Freddy Krueger style hand into his gut.

  “Taryn,” Mackenzie screamed. He was so shocked, he didn’t even react right away, giving the Pariah plenty of time to remove the knives and drive them in again and again. Taryn’s knees buckled and he sank to the ground blood spraying over him.

  Mackenzie slipped the knife out of the sheaf on her belt, running at the Pariah. Taryn was right about t
he spells. The Pariah didn’t even see her until she left the cover of the property. With the element of surprise on her side, she caught the Pariah in the neck with the blade. It lashed out with its clawed hand swiping at her. She leapt back but the claws ripped through her shirt and into the skin on her stomach. She cried out in pain. The knife hadn’t done enough damage; it stopped flailing and tried to finish Taryn off.

  The Pariah attempted to crawl away, but he was losing a lot of blood and he didn’t get very far.

  “Hey!” Mackenzie screamed at it. It turned to look at her.

  “Kill yourself,” she said, with enough force as she could muster. Its hand trembled as it tried to resist, then it swung the knife up, impaling its own face. It fell to the ground.

  “Oh, my God, Taryn,” she cried dropping to her knees beside him. She pressed her hands on the wounds trying to stem the flow of blood.

  “Help me,” she screamed towards the house. “Just hold on, you’ll be okay,” she said.

  Taryn tried to speak but only managed to spray blood over himself. His skin was grey.

  Frances and her staff were running towards them.

  “Help is coming,” she said. He gripped her arm; she took his hand and held it tightly. “Don’t die.”

  Chapter 20

  “Get him back inside,” Frances said, dragging him behind the gate.

  The staff lifted him and carried him to the house, laying him on the dining room table. He wasn’t moving.

  “You have to do something,” Mackenzie said. The housekeeper ushered her out the door.

  “Let them help him,” she said.

  They stood in the kitchen together. The housekeeper handed her a damp cloth. At first, she didn’t know why and then she looked down at her bloody hands. She scrubbed it off in a frenzy.

  “Are you injured?” the housekeeper asked.

  Mackenzie lifted her shirt to find shallow claw marks in her stomach, but they were barely bleeding.

  “I’m fine. Do you think he’ll be okay?”

  The housekeeper shrugged.

  Thirty minutes later, a man came into the kitchen, wiping his hands on a black rubber apron. He was short, with thinning grey hair and round glasses.

  “Is Taryn going to be okay?” What she meant was, is he alive?

  “He has lost a lot of blood. He’s going to need a transfusion.”

  “So give him one.”

  “We’ve discovered something of a problem, with his blood.”

  “Does he need a relative?”

  “No, any demon blood can be used to transfuse another demon. They are universal donors.”

  “Then what’s the problem.”

  “It appears Taryn is not a full demon.”

  “Of course he is, I’ve seen his family tree. Trust me it’s all demons.”

  “There was always doubt over the boy’s mother. From what I can see she was human.”

  “No, that’s not possible. It’s against the rules.”

  “Rules can be broken, you’re living proof.”

  “How did you know?” she sputtered.

  “Your scent. It’s unmistakable,” he replied.

  “You‘re wrong about Taryn,” Mackenzie said, shaking her head. The way Taryn spoke about her heritage, he couldn’t be half-human. Or he didn’t know he was.

  “Believe it or don’t believe it but right now you are the only one compatible for the transfusion.”

  “And if he doesn’t get one?”

  The doctor looked at her as if she was stupid, “He’ll die.”

  She could see Frances in the hallway. Her face was cold and emotionless. She knew what Taryn was now. Any family loyalty she felt before was gone. So if she were to walk out the door and leave him to die, no one would stop her. She could get out, forget all this. If Lucien came looking for the talisman he could have it. That was all he wanted anyway. If the roles were reversed, he would let her die too.

  She looked in on him from the doorway. His skin was pale, his stomach covered in bandages. He was hooked up to a drip.

  If he were standing here in her place, he wouldn’t care. That was the demon part of him she guessed. It was part of her too. But so was her mother’s blood.

  She kneeled down beside him and whispered in his ear, “You owe me you bastard.”

  The doctor began the transfusion.

  Exhausted after giving blood, Mackenzie was dozing in a chair. All she wanted to do was sleep for a days but she knew it was too risky. Frances might do something crazy. She lurched out of the chair grabbing the table for support. Taryn was still out. She shook him by the shoulders.

  “Taryn wake up,” she said. She slapped his cheek.

  He swiped a hand at her then it dropped with a thud onto the table.

  “Get up now,” she ordered. Taryn sat upright so fast she was sure he had torn his stitches.

  “Can you walk?”

  “I don’t know. What the hell happened?” he groaned.

  “You were stabbed. You’ve had a transfusion. Demons heal fast though, right?”

  “Yeah, they do,” he muttered. He was completely out of it.

  “Taryn focus. We need to leave right now. It’s not safe.”

  He swung his legs off the table trying to stand. He tipped forward into Mackenzie’s arms. She struggled to hold him up. His skin was sweaty and she couldn’t get a grip on him.

  “Move your ass, Taryn,” she ordered.

  The door to the dining room opened. Frances came in, flanked by two bodyguards.

  “He’s not going anywhere. Neither of you are. Grab them,” she said.

  One of the bodyguards pinned Mackenzie’s arms behind her back while the other threw Taryn over his shoulder. They were taken downstairs to the basement and locked in a cell.

  “What are you going to do with us?” Mackenzie said, slamming her hands into the bars.

  “With you? You’re expendable. But my nephew here is worth something to his father. You’ll stay here for now, half breed, until I decide what to do with you.”

  When they left the basement, Mackenzie began searching for another exit. The cell they were in had been dug out of the earth. Steel bars surrounded it and beyond that were stonewalls. The door was locked with a key.

  Taryn was unconscious, and of no use to her. She felt like giving up, just letting Frances do what she wanted; this was never going to end. She slid to the floor. She was just a half-breed. No matter what Taryn said, she had serious doubts that there was any demon in her.

  But even though she felt like giving up, there was still a tiny stubborn part of her that wouldn’t let her. What was it that Taryn told her? Anger is the key?

  She went to the door, trying to summon up whatever demon was in her. Bracing herself, she kicked the door as hard as she could. It didn’t even budge. She fell to the ground clutching her leg.

  “Did that hurt?” Taryn said.

  “I think I broke my ankle,” she moaned.

  He laughed softly. Mackenzie propped herself up against the wall, massaging her ankle.

  “Why are we down here?” he said. He seemed dazed.

  “Your aunt isn’t exactly happy with us.”

  “She never is. What did she say?” He wasn’t even surprised to be locked up.

  “Something about speaking to your father. Maybe she’s going to hold you for ransom.”

  Using the wall as leverage, he got up.

  “We need to get out of here.”

  “Duh. Any ideas?” she said.

  “One. It probably won’t work and we could both die.”

  “A lot of your plans are like that. But since we’re going to be murdered anyway, let’s go for it.”

  “I’m going to try and transport us outside the compound,” he said.

  “Why don’t you just transport us out the door?”

  “Because I can’t. Not with the spells on the place. You can’t get in, but you can get out. The only problem is I have never traveled that far before and I
’m still weak.”

  Mackenzie sighed, “Let’s do it.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “What choice do we have?”

  “Hold on to me,” Taryn said.

  She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tight. The red mist enveloped them, but when it cleared, they were still in the cell.

  “I can’t do it,” he gasped. He was shaking from the exertion.

  “Yes, you can,” she ordered.

  She squeezed her eyes shut, praying it would work. The ground disappeared under her feet. When she opened her eyes, she was relieved to find that they were outside.

  “You did it,” she said.

  Taryn sputtered a mouthful of blood on her and passed out.

  Chapter 21

  Mackenzie half dragged Taryn along the side of the road. His legs kept buckling and she was having trouble holding onto him. A big rig appeared in the distance. Mackenzie started waving frantically to stop it. As she watched it, a black BMW roared past, coming at them fast. It had to be Lucien.

  “Taryn, move, he’s here.” He tried to pick up the pace, but only succeeded in tripping over his own two feet. The black BMW screeched to a halt, close to Frances’ front gate. Lucien got out along with another Duke. This one looked barely old enough to shave. They looked around the spot where the gates were, but they didn’t seem to be able to see it. He looked in their direction and even from this distance, Mackenzie could see Lucien grin at her. He began walking towards her. She froze in fear, flashbacks of the knife in her back, filled her mind. The truck caught up to them. Taryn waved an arm, and the truck pulled up. Lucien started running.

  Mackenzie yanked open the truck door to find a bearded man wearing a t-shirt with the slogan, ‘Jesus is my co-pilot.’

  “Please sir, we’re being chased,” Mackenzie cried.

  “Get on up in here. Quick,” he said. They climbed up into the truck and the man drove off. Lucien reached the truck as it was driving away. He slammed a fist into the side of it.

  Mackenzie watched him in the mirror, as he raced back to the car.

  “Taryn,” Mackenzie whispered, shaking his arm.

  He began muttering under his breath. Mackenzie looked back in the mirror just in time to see the engine of Lucien’s car become engulfed in flames.