by Dante King
I held both fists outward, extending one to Oni and the other to Christina and Mareth. Oni took mine immediately and placed it on Maddie’s shoulder, holding his own palm over mine. Christina and Mareth stared at my other hand as if they’d never seen it before, sharing a confused look.
“You think the power of friendship is going to protect Maddie?” Christina asked, arching an eyebrow. “The only thing that’s going to shield that girl is turning her into a demon. You should pin her up against the wall right here and give her a long, hard fuck—”
I laughed. “Subspace,” I shot back, grabbing Christina’s wrist. “Now. We can talk about it there.”
Mareth’s eyes lit up. “Great idea,” the succubus purred, “but I’m not holding onto your hand to get there…”
I gasped as Mareth slipped her hand into my pants. The thing her fingers found in there was just as firm as my hand, but felt much better to have her holding it.
“We’re going to have to do something about your subspace so it doesn’t get invaded again,” Mareth purred against my ear. She didn’t realize I’d stopped thinking about anything but her fingers around my cock. “As soon as we can, we need to go visit Doris at the Subspace Commission and get some security installed. It’ll be expensive.”
“But it’ll be worth it,” I said as she squeezed my member. “I don’t want anyone fucking with me, my women, or my subspace again.”
I closed my eyes, struggling to concentrate. It was tough with Mareth feeling me up, and Christina jumping into the game, too. But after a few moments, the world dissolved around us, dumping our party back into the living room I’d created as the entrance of my subspace.
The place looked worse for wear. The cushy couch I’d made for Maddie to lay on was still torn to splinters, the kitchen counter cracked from the impacts of Mareth’s horns. At least all the steam and mist from the bathroom had cleared up—I would’ve hated for my subspace to get moldy.
As we passed through, Christina surveyed the damage with a jealous expression. “Damn, you two tore up this place,” she growled, nibbling her bottom lip. “I wish I’d been there to join in on the fun…”
I motioned for Oni to hand me Maddie. He gave her to me with a nod, passing the waitress into my arms.
I ran a hand down Maddie’s back. The poor girl trembled in my arms, squeezing me so tight it felt like one of my ribs might crack at any moment. She was terrified.
“Let me get you all somewhere to chill out,” I said as I looked up at Mareth, Christina, and Oni.
I waved a hand over the couch, and it reformed like an Ikea catalog in reverse. Pieces snapped back into place, moving like a VHS on fast-forward as that particular bit of damage was repaired. I didn’t touch the kitchen counter, fearing I might overextend my power too much. Besides, the visual reminder of how hard I’d fucked Mareth was a nice touch. I might just keep it.
Maddie’s eye opened a tiny crack, then shut back tightly. “Luke?” she whispered, as if she were afraid raising her voice might bring the monsters under her bed out to eat her. “Is that...is that you?”
Poor thing, I thought, stroking her hair. Jesus, I’ve really put you through a lot, haven’t I?
“It’s me, Maddie,” I assured her, holding her in my arms. Christina and Mareth took up places on the couch, watching me, while Oni sat cross-legged on the floor before the fire. “You’re safe now. You’re back in my apartment—the special one where nobody can hurt you…”
“That’s what you told me before,” she whimpered, shuddering. “But that awful man came and took me away. At first I thought he was normal—then I saw those horns…”
“I know, Maddie,” I said, every protective instinct inside of me going into overdrive. “I’m so, so sorry. I should have explained things better from the start. There are demons in the room with us right now, but they’re not going to hurt you, alright? They’re my friends.” I chuckled. “A couple of them are way more than my friends, actually…”
“I still don’t want to look,” she whispered, shaking her head. I didn’t blame her—demons were pretty terrifying when you weren’t the one having sex with them, after all. “They’re your friends from the diner, right? Christina and Mareth?”
I stood up a little straighter, surprised. Both Christina and Mareth looked the same.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’m surprised you remember them…”
A little giggle spilled from Maddie’s throat. “I remember all my customers’ names,” she admitted, clinging to the front of my robes. “Especially the cute ones. Helps me get better tips that way.”
Well. That might be a way to make this next part easier.
“Maddie...there’s one way I might be able to help you with all this. If you’ll hear me out?”
There was no response from Maddie.
“I know, I know,” I said, chuckling a little bit. “This is all really scary. But if you’ll just listen to what I have to say…”
“Luke,” Mareth said. “She’s asleep.”
Ah. So she was. In all the excitement, Maddie passed out. Well, I couldn’t really blame her—it had been an exciting few days. Now that I thought about it, when was the last time Maddie slept. When was the last time I slept?
The tiredness I hadn’t allowed myself to feel rushed in, and my knees sagged. “Fuck,” I grunted, shifting Maddie’s weight from one arm to the other. “I think we could all use a break after that little adventure…”
Both Christina and Mareth looked like they’d much rather have encouraged me to fuck Maddie back to full wakefulness rather than wait any longer. Yet after a few moments, they shared a look and shrugged.
“Let her catch a nap,” Christina said, stretching out on the couch. “We could all use one—you included.” Her tongue lolled out of the side of her mouth, as if reminding me all the things she could do with it. “You think you’ll need a little help falling asleep?”
“Nah,” I said, carrying Maddie towards the bedroom. “I’m fucking wiped.”
Someone—probably Maddie herself—had made up the king-sized bed while we were away. The sheets and pillows were pristine, as if the woman herself had been looking forward to slipping underneath the covers with me when I got back to my subspace. I tucked her in, not terribly worried about the blood all over her clothing. It would wash out.
“Rest up, babygirl,” I said, putting my fingers against Maddie’s forehead. “We’ll talk about this in the morning.”
By the time I got back to the living room, Christina and Mareth had both passed out. The two demon girls lay in a tangle of each other’s arms, snoozing peacefully. I longed to join them, but there wasn’t enough room on the couch for all three of us without waking them up and shoving them aside.
Oni sat in front of the fire, his eyes trained on the door. “You don’t need a nap?” I asked.
He shook his massive head from side to side. “I require very little rest, Master,” he rumbled, his hands on his knees. “You should lie down along with the rest of the group. You need to recharge your demonic energy. Should any demons attempt to gain access to this subspace, I will stop them.”
I had no doubt that he would. And that bed looked so fucking cozy…
Another yawn sealed the deal. I was fucking wiped. “Wake me up if anything happens,” I told Oni, retreating towards the bedroom.
“Yes, Master,” Oni said.
The bedroom was dark as I climbed beneath the covers, snuggling up next to Maddie. Karl’s blood made a mess of the blankets, but I was too tired to care. I threw an arm over Maddie’s side, holding her close, and by the time my head hit the pillow I was out like a light.
I’m not sure how long we slept. Time inside of subspace was already weird—I just know that when my eyes opened, Maddie’s body curled up next to mine beneath the blankets, I felt like a million bucks.
“Hey,” I said, kissing Maddie awake. “How you doin’?”
Her eyes fluttered open. For a long moment I could tell she didn’t remember where she
was or what had happened, and was just giddy with the excitement of waking up next to me. That was a good feeling. Then memory came rushing in, and she closed her eyes and snuggled up next to me tighter.
“Are those demons still here?” Maddie asked, nodding towards the bedroom door.
“Yeah, but they’re asleep,” I said, rubbing her lower back. “Even demons need to do that every now and then. Actually, scratch that. Do you smell that?”
It had been so long since I’d experienced the scent of something as ordinary as bacon and eggs that my mouth began to water. Maddie’s stomach let out a very undignified rumble as she pressed her body against mine, and she giggled at her own embarrassment.
“I think one of those demons you’re so afraid of made us some breakfast,” I said. “Tell you what—if you want to keep your eyes closed, I’ll guide you out there. We can talk about that proposal I wanted to go over with you yesterday…”
Maddie thought it over for a moment or two, then nodded. “Sure. I’m starving. And it’ll be good to have someone else waiting on me for a change.”
So that’s how we ended up at the kitchen counter, being served breakfast by two gorgeous demon girls. Not that Maddie saw them, of course. She also didn’t notice the huge cracks in the surface of the table we were eating on, which was good. She might have asked about it, and I wouldn’t have lied—I’d have told her about Mareth’s horns and how much she’d loved getting taken in such a rough way. After all, if I’d tried to lie, the succubus would’ve gloated over the truth.
We were halfway through our plates when Christina spoke up. “Are you going to keep your eyes closed around us forever?” the blonde demoness teased. “You know we’re not going to eat you, right? I mean, not in the bad way…”
“Soon,” she said, in a way that let me know her fear was now mostly just for show. “I want to hear what Luke has to say, first. I nodded off before he could explain it to me yesterday. Something about my future?”
Aw shit, I thought. Here we go.
Maddie’s future was indeed the topic of conversation. It hung in the balance, and while I could influence her in one direction or the other, it would be up to her whether she joined the team. I really, really hoped she did, though—she’d make one hell of an asset to our group.
“Alright,” I said, pushing my plate away. “You’ve had a couple of close calls already, Maddie. Clearly, you’ve figured out by now that when you climbed into my trunk, we weren’t heading to the Hundred Acre Wood. I won’t mince words with you—this is Hell. Christina and Mareth are demons, but they’re bound to me. I’m a potential candidate to replace Lucifer as Archlord.”
To her credit, Maddie took this news with more calmness than I expected. “The Lucifer?” she asked, her eyes going wide. “Like, the Devil?”
“It’s a long story,” I said with a sigh. “Suffice to say, we’ve got to do something about you, Maddie. I can’t have you walking around out in the Academy when every demon within a hundred yard radius looks at you like a delicious meal. So you’ve got a choice to make.”
A single tear trickled down Maddie’s cheek, but she smiled. “I don’t see that I do have a choice,” she said, laughing a bit. “You’re the only thing standing between me and those monsters, Luke. I’d be dead if it wasn’t for you…”
It was kind of your fault to begin with, I thought but didn’t say. I hadn’t asked Maddie to climb into my trunk and follow me to Hell, but here we were.
“If you want, I could...I could take you back to Earth,” I said, a catch in my voice. “I wouldn’t blame you—not after everything that’s happened. I know dealing with all this has been a total mindfuck. But I’m kind of thinking you don’t want that, do you, Maddie? After all, you’re a brave woman—you followed me down here, hiding in the trunk. I think you wanted an adventure.”
“I got one,” she said, her eyes still shut tight. “And you’re right, Luke. I don’t think I can go back to being a waitress after all this. So what’s the other option?”
One of my hands moved downward, massaging her lower back as we got to the difficult part. Reminding her I was there.
“Mareth was always...like the way she is,” I said, ignoring the way the succubus stuck out her tongue at the remark. “But Christina used to be a human, Maddie—just like you. She was frightened by demons, and freaked out by the whole Hell thing.” That was a lie, but a pretty white one in the grand scheme of things. She didn’t need to know Christina had been almost as excited by the Infernal Academy as I was. “Then I turned her into a demon. My demon. And all that fear—it just went away.”
Maddie nodded in my arms. “I remember—at first, when I saw you guys in the trunk, I thought you were all in costumes. But you weren’t, were you? That’s the way Christina looks now.”
“That’s right,” I said. “You can open your eyes and look at her if you want. She won’t hurt you.”
“Not unless you want me to,” Christina purred in a sultry tone.
Maddie snickered at that. “I’m okay like this for now,” she said. “I don’t need to freak out again. I kind of like just sitting here in your arms with my eyes closed, actually, Luke.”
“I like it, too,” I admitted. “Remember when you and I, uh, fooled around in subspace? And you wanted me to go all the way, but I held back?”
“How could I forget?” Maddie said, the corner of her mouth curling in a smile.
“That would’ve turned you into a demon,” I told her, holding her tighter. “If we go all the way now, you and me, you’ll transform just like Christina did. You’d be part of the team, and you wouldn’t be afraid anymore. You’d be able to fly—to do magic. We’d all love to have you join us…”
“Fuck yes,” Mareth said, giggling. “You’re so cute, Mads. You’d make the sexiest little demon…”
Maddie thought about it for a long time—so long, in fact, that I’d started to wonder if she’d gone to sleep in my arms when she spoke again.
“I don’t want to be weak anymore,” she said, her face pushed into my chest. “I don’t really want to be a demon, Luke—but if that’s what it takes to stop being so helpless, then that’s what I want to do.” She looked up at me, her eyes opening. She still refused to take in the rest of the room—those eyes were for me, only. “Take me,” she whispered. “Turn me, whatever you want to call it. Because I’m not leaving you, Luke. If I’ve got to be a demon to join your team, then...fuck. Do it!”
My hand slid even lower, cupping Maddie’s firm ass. Both of my demon girls grinned at the sight, their long tongues bobbing.
“You mean that, Maddie?” I asked. “You can’t take this back. Once you’re in, you’re in.”
She beamed up at me, her eyes rolling back for a moment as my hand slid between her thighs. “Yes, Luke,” she panted, burying her face against my neck. “Claim me and add me to your harem, Master…!”
She started to laugh, and so did I. “Where the fuck did you hear that?”
She giggled. “Those books you left me to read while you were gone,” she said. “That’s the way all the princesses and concubines talked in them. I thought you liked that kind of thing?”
All of a sudden, I became keenly aware that both Maddie and I were covered in Karl’s blood. “I do,” I told her, glancing over at the bathroom door. “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t the two of us get washed up?”
Maddie’s eyebrows wiggled. “Yes, sir,” she whispered, moaning with relief as she pressed her body against me. “I’m so ready for that. I need a nice, hot soak!”
I glanced up at my group. “We’ll be back in a bit,” I said, realizing that all of them meant to stay right where they were. “Maybe you should have a look around the dorms…?”
Both Christina and Mareth shook their heads.
“No way,” Christina said. “We’re not leaving you alone after all that. We’ll be right here. You go and have fun!”
“We’ll be cheering you on,” Mareth added with a giggle.
&
nbsp; “I will guard the door, Master,” Oni rumbled. He was the only one in the subspace who didn’t seem to find this whole thing hilarious. “I will alert Mistresses Christina and Mareth should we have any intruders.”
“Thanks, Oni,” I said, turning my gaze on my two demon girls. “No pranks, you understand? We’ll be out when we’re done—I don’t want to hear anyone sneaking the door open, or any shit like that.”
“We’ll be very respectful,” Mareth cooed. “The binding ritual is an extremely intimate event.”
“Don’t worry, Luke,” Christina said, yawning and stretching out across the couch. “We’ve got plenty to entertain us here. Hey, there’s booze in the fridge, right?”
I laughed. This group was going to be just fine. More than fine, actually. A new family.
Then I carried Maddie into the bathroom to fuck her brains out.
Chapter 29
“It’s okay, Maddie,” I said, closing the door behind us. “We’re alone now.”
Now that there was a locked door between us and the rest of the group, Maddie opened her eyes and allowed herself to look around the room. Unlike the rest of my subspace, the bathroom hadn’t been touched during my binding session with Mareth. Everything was right where it belonged, from the plush towels hanging from the rack to the thick bath mat on the tile floor. Maddie let out a happy little squeal and stepped onto that mat, brushing herself off.
“Thank you,” she said, glancing back at the door. “I know I don’t have to worry about them, that they’re your friends, but they’re still scary…”
“Hey!” a muffled voice came through the door. “We heard that!”
Maddie rolled her eyes. “Maybe we should get some water running, huh? Give us a little privacy?”
My hands went back to her sides, holding her tight. Now that this moment was finally here, I almost couldn’t believe it. She looked so good, and I’d already made her come twice when the two of us fooled around in my subspace last time. This next one would be it—once we were done, Maddie would be mine forever. My beautiful demon.
