Cursed

by Shawntelle Madison

  But one thing was painfully obvious as we stirred through the crowd in search of the tables toward the rear. I didn’t see a lot of women. And most of the men were gorgeous, too. I didn’t need to be a mermaid with keen eyesight to spot tight asses and abs like chiseled stone. Practically delectable like sushi. But there should be other women here too, hunting like we were. A lone blonde danced with a group of men, while a tall, leggy redhead did shots with other men at the bar. My eyes flitted around the room, counting like I was on a battleground looking for enemies. As we flowed through the crowd, a lot of men danced—with other men—but many of them were perfectly willing to have women join them.

  We reached an empty table and even Abby knew what was up. “No wonder she thought she was scoring.”

  Instead of continuing to count past the fifteen women I’d spotted, I hunted for a waiter instead. I’d need some liquor and a jug of water to survive tonight. Probably a lot more water than liquor to keep from getting dehydrated.

  Damn, the men here looked so good. And most of them were playing for the other team. I watched with fascination as one guy danced with another, his hands roaming across a wide back, then down to grip his dance partner’s narrow hips. Their heads were tilted away so I couldn’t see it, but my mind filled in the blanks as they shared a deep kiss...

  “Yo, Heidi!” Abby tapped me on the shoulder. Then on the head. “I can tell you need a drink. You’re getting pale.”

  “I’m already pale,” I murmured. One woman, apparently out with friends, was sandwiched between three guys, giggling and shaking her ass. Holy shit, I want to be a sandwich like that. Any kind didn’t matter. I was an equal opportunity filler.

  “Lilith, tell the waiter we want a pitcher of water and a rum and Coke. Light on the ice.” Abby had been out with me far too often.

  “What are you doing?” Abby asked me.

  “I’m fulfilling my part of the bet,” I said seriously. “I’m looking for a man for her.”

  “I don’t think most of the men here are looking for what she’s got. She’s missing—”

  “—how do you know?” I blurted. “There’s women here. There might be a few straight guys peppered in here.”

  “I doubt it.”

  “So you’re saying gay guys don’t have straight friends?”

  She crossed her arms. “I’m just saying the possibility of finding the kind of man she wants here will be a bit hard.”

  “I’d love some bright ideas, then. How about we go to a church service with a minor-demon succubus or hunt down quality men at the local coffee shop? I hate to break the news flash to you, but the lighting here is poor and those guys just want to have fun. I doubt they’re trying to get Double D over there into bed.” I jerked my head toward the blonde whose tits bounced around like two basketballs were trying to free themselves from a bag.

  “So what happened last time?” I asked Lilith.

  “I came in on Saturday, like today, and I had a few drinks. Not long after midnight, I was dancing with a bunch of guys.” She had a glint in her eyes that sadly resembled a hungry chick waiting in line at the buffet.

  “That sounds good,” I said. “Time for you to do it again. This time, single out a guy if he shows interest.”

  “How can she tell—” Abby asked.

  “We’re building up confidence here. A warm up.” I hoped.

  Lilith didn’t need to be asked. She darted out.

  I grabbed her arm. “Oh, uh, Lilith, could you look less like I’m-hungry-for-your-soul and more come-hither-and-fuck-me?”

  She nodded profusely. “That I can do!”

  “Go, get ‘em, Tiger!” I pushed her into the crowd. “Rawr!”

  This was gonna be good. Once on the floor, Lilith strutted her stuff. Almost a jerk-like motion where her limbs bent and flexed like she was convulsing. A couple, having a good time, quickly got out of her way to give her room. A lot of it.

  “Go, Lilith!” Abby yelled.

  I filled my glass with water and downed it. The liquor was next. Lilith’s jerky motion dance turned into some kind of hip-hop dance gone wrong. I tossed back the shot glass. Damn, I was gonna need more.

  “I need to go through the crowd,” I said to Abby. “See if I can find someone who parties for Team Heterosexual. Shit, even Team Bisexual is welcome. Did Lilith say she was willing to date a woman?”

  “She’s only mentioned men,” Abby replied. “Although I’ve yet to see a succubus turn down either sex for a meal.”

  “Good point.”

  I strolled through the crowd, stretching across sweaty bodies and easing past hot men. It was hard not to be pulled toward them. Almost like an invisible line tugged me in their direction, beckoning me to let my hair loose and move with them. Suddenly, there were hands on my hips, hands on my shoulders. I flowed with the pulsing music, shaking and grinding, bobbing my head to the beat.

  “Work it, girl!” one man yelled.

  And work it, I did.

  In the haze induced by the dancers, thoughts swam around in my head. Wasn’t I supposed to be doing something right now? Scoping out men? One sexy man closed in front of me, his hips moving in time to the beat. He was good. My red hair fell out of my topknot, and I lost myself to the music. I was just one with the mass of bodies. One of the dancers flowing with the music. Whistles and cat calls filled the air. Sweat mingled with sweat. The faint scent of pot from someone who’d taken several generous drags before he entered the bar. I gripped skin, heated and firm. They had no idea I was no mere woman, but that didn’t matter. Only the moment.

  Until I caught the dirty look from the muse across the room. Her arms were crossed and her brown eyes cast a fish net of venom my way.

  I mouthed, “I was scoping out men.”

  “Uh huh,” she replied.

  I left the tangle of bodies and spotted Lilith at the bar.

  Time to get back to work.

  Chapter 2

  Lilith moped at the bar. Her attempts to buy a guy a drink didn’t look too good. After she pushed the drink in his direction, he shook his head and pushed it back. Even with the roar of the music, I focused enough to hear him spout, “I’m not that drunk. Just ‘cause you’re in drag doesn’t mean I’m interested.”

  Wow. He wasn’t even that good looking either. Jerk!

  I marched over to them. He looked me over and murmured, “hey,” when I squeezed myself between them. Let’s see if he could take what he dished out to others.

  “Did you find someone?” I whined to Lilith loud enough for the asshole to hear. “I’m not having another three-way again unless we find someone who’s willing to let me give them non-stop blow jobs and spankings.”

  Lilith stared at me as if I’d gleefully taken a dip in the East River. I took the lemon drop martini he rejected, downed it in a single gulp, then I licked the sugar off the edge, my tongue sliding down the glass using suggestive flicks. The man watched the whole time, mouth agape. Take that, fucker!

  “What’s your name?” he asked me.

  “We’re a package deal, Sweetie. Too bad you missed out.” I laced my arm around Lilith’s and left the bar.

  She reluctantly followed. “He was interested,” she hissed. “I could practically taste how hard his—”

  “Not worth it. He wanted us as a package deal not you alone.”

  “I wouldn’t mind a three-way.”

  I snorted. “The bet was a date for you, not a porn video.”

  Lilith followed me as I went around the tables, checking to see if a new target came my way. It didn’t take me long to catch the gaze of a man staring at me. He sat with a bunch of other guys. There were a few couples at the table, some of them gay. He was the only one checking me out, and the other women in the other room. Bingo.

  “Lilith,” I whispered in her ear. “I want you to go dance.” I pointed to the spot where a group of guys were dancing with some girls. Lilith would stand out, not in the best way, but at least my pitch would show she was
trying to have a good time.

  After Lilith left my side, I headed to the table, making sure to pull my hair back into a messy topknot and yank down the hem of my dress. I wasn’t on the menu tonight.

  Almost everyone at the table looked up when I approached.

  “Michael, it looks like one of the ladies spotted you,” one man on the end said, his arm around his date.

  Michael, a brown-haired guy who had the rough looks of a younger Keanu Reeves, grinned at me. He had an adorable over-bite, but he’d work for tonight.

  A few guys slid out so I could take a seat next to Michael. It was a tight squeeze, but we all fit. Michael didn’t look too bad now that I was closer. But he had a smell deep under his skin that immediately turned me off. The sea lingered under his fingernails and permeated from him. Not that he didn’t wash or anything. To a human nose he was crisp and clean. But I had a nose as good as a shark’s. Michael worked as a fisherman, or even more likely, as someone who got his pay from working on a boat. The very thought made my stomach churn. He wasn’t for me though, I reminded myself.

  We introduced ourselves to each other. Might as well get the small talk out of the way.

  “See my friend over there?” I pointed to the succubus trying to bust a move and do the robot to techno-music. “It’s her birthday tonight and she could really use a hero.”

  ###

  After sharing a drink, and some polite conversation with Michael, I managed to convince him to be nice to the not-quite-birthday girl. Thank the shifty underworld gods I didn’t have to go further into my lie and tell him something outlandish like she had testicular cancer.

  I slid out of the booth with Michael following me. I didn’t have to nudge him or anything. He simply walked up to her and asked to dance. He kept a healthy distance, though, from her flying fists. He tried to do his own thing without cramping her style. After a while, I even caught him laughing. At our table, the muse appeared to be pleased with my handiwork. I flashed her the thumbs-up with a proud grin. I did this.

  The music eventually slowed down and Lilith got a slow dance. From my new spot holding up the wall, I prayed she didn’t get herself into trouble. Her hands were wrapped around his waist as if she was a black widow trying to keep her lover/next meal close. She was facing me with his back turned away. There was a blissful expression on her face. Not exactly one a woman would have when she was content, though. Her eyes formed slits and her hands—not exactly claws—stretched down his back. Michael continued to sway to the music, unaware of how close he was to death in heels.

  Eventually, I looked away. Thirst pecked at me, reminding me how long it had been since I’d had a drink. Liquor processed far faster in me than most creatures. If I didn’t keep up the fluids I shriveled up like an old raisin in the sun. I darted to the table where my full pitcher was waiting.

  The muse was busy typing—probably a love note to an author—on her smart phone, unaware of the guzzle action I had going on with the pitcher. Damn, it was refreshing. From a few tables away, I heard some dudes say, “Even my Uncle Chuck can’t put down that much. That’s my kind of woman!”

  I wish it was beer. Maybe then I could feel a buzz.

  Abby looked up. “Where’s Lilith?”

  “She’s slow dancing,” I said after a healthy burp. “Probably feeling him up right about now.” I made grinding motions with my hips. “She might even get some digits tonight, too.”

  “Then where are they?” Her normally soft voice darkened.

  I twisted around. “They were right there—” I pointed to a spot on the dance floor where a couple was doing their thing. Not a succubus/human one.

  “Oh, fuck,” I groaned.

  “You search the dance floor,” Abby said. “I’ll check outside to see if they went to get some fresh air.”

  I combed over the dance floor, even managing to avoid joining some hot guys, but didn’t see Lilith or Michael. Lilith’s sweet, yet slightly tangy scent lingered where they’d last danced, but it was gone now. Faintly as if they’d been there at least ten minutes ago. I followed the trail. It got cold near the door, though. Too many people going in and out. Panic fought with common sense. There was no way she’d go back on her promise. She told me she’d be good. That she wouldn’t ruin a perfectly good night. But as I glanced into the ladies bathroom, only finding humans, and then an empty men’s room, a sinking feeling stabbed into my gut and twisted viciously.

  A part of me felt really bad. I’d convinced Michael to do this.

  I finally made it outside to find Abby. She came up 2nd Avenue, her face reflecting frustration. “I didn’t see them.”

  “Me neither,” I admitted. “The trail got cold at the front door.”

  “So where could they be?” Abby asked.

  Standing on the sidewalk, with heat rising from concrete, we glanced around as humans milled about around us, almost expecting Lilith to show up with her arm around Michael’s. We’d feel foolish and she’d get a good joke at our expense.

  Abby looked down. Then up. “The roof.”

  “No way.” I backed up toward the street until I caught a brief flash of brown hair. It darted out of sight, then reappeared again. “What the fuck is she doing up there?”

  “I don’t want to know.”

  I stormed down the sidewalk toward the nearest alley. Abby wasn’t far behind. From there, I spotted the closest fire escape. With a quick jump, I made it to the lowest rung and yanked down the stairs. From there, the two of us rushed up to the roof. With each step, I hoped that damn succubus hadn’t messed up. Hadn’t sucked that poor man dry.

  Abby and I had to cross over two buildings, but I didn’t need to get up close to see them. There she was, slow dancing with Michael, his back presented to us. Gusts of wind ruffled his curly brown hair. They swayed to the bass from the music below us.

  Michael was limp in her arms like a fucking deflated balloon.

  I stopped cold. Abby stumbled at my side.

  “What the hell did you do?” I moaned.

  Lilith’s head snapped up, her face filled with guilt. “Just dancing with him.”

  “D-dancing?” I stuttered. I ran over and snatched him from her arms. Reluctantly, she let go. She didn’t reach for him while I searched for a pulse. Rather difficult when the poor guy, who was most likely around one hundred and eighty pounds, wasn’t holding up his own weight. Lilith skulked away, whispering softly, “He was so sweet. I just wanted one taste. A sliver of his essence.”

  “A sliver?” I lifted his arm and it flopped back down. “You were slurping from the bottle a little too much here.”

  Abby crossed her arms. “I’m really disappointed in you, Lilith.”

  “I know,” she said. “It was really dumb of me.”

  I exchanged a glance with Abby. Here I was holding this man, his chest hardly moving, and the guilty party hiding her face.

  “What do we do now?” Abby asked.

  “We can’t just leave him on the roof. It will be hot tomorrow and he’s not in good shape.”

  “A hospital?” Lilith suggested.

  I glared at her. “I’d love to know how we wheel him into the emergency room. How we explain his condition?”

  “I think we need a need to make a pit stop to see a wizard,” Abby said.

  I shook my head. This was gonna suck. Among the supernatural creatures lurking the world, spellcasters like wizards used white magic to heal and help the less fortunate. We all knew one wizard in particular from our therapy group. “Nick is so gonna chew me out for this one.”

  Chapter 3

  I’ve experienced hardship before. Especially when I lived in the sea. Dark things lurked in the ocean’s depths. Creatures that hid from the bright lights of the humans’ submersibles. But eventually they did come out to hunt for prey. It always happened. No matter what the merfolk did. It was just in their nature to consume. I didn’t have to close my eyes to imagine them coming for me. Slithering toward me.

  In h
indsight, those monsters didn’t give me quite the headache the succubus did. And that was why I forced her ass to hold Michael’s shoulders while we carried him down the emergency stairwell. The metal moaned with each step we made. Enough to make me question if the structure could hold our weight.

  “Maybe we should call Nick,” Abby suggested from the alley where she waited for us to come down.

  “And ruin the surprise?” I snorted.

  My muscles twitched as we reached the ground. He hadn’t gotten any lighter. Suddenly, Michael’s right arm jerked. The succubus, ever diligent with his care, dropped him. His head hit the concrete with a dull thud.

  “Pull yourself together!” I snapped. “Just go get us a cab! Quickly!”

  Lilith left us and Abby took her place. “He’s okay. Just unconscious.”

  “As if that’s an improvement?” I glanced around. A dumpster blocked the view from the street. “I need your help to hoist him over my shoulder so we can get him into the cab.”

  “You know, Lilith is probably sorry,” Abby said. “You shouldn’t be so hard on her.”

  “I know,” I grumbled. With a mighty heave, the muse hoisted Michael over my shoulder. My eyes bugged out and my back spasmed from the weight. The merfolk was pretty strong, but not as strong as werewolves. This dude was over and above my limit. Poseidon’s balls, the succubus was gonna owe me big time. I shuffled toward the street with Abby trying to do what she could before the public saw us.

  Thankfully, by the time I made it to the curb, just a few pedestrians gave me a weird look. For good measure I muttered, “This is the last time I carry your boyfriend’s drunk ass home.”

  The cabbie, an older Indian man, tried to offer a hand, but Lilith shooed him away. Getting him into the back wasn’t pretty. He kind of plopped into the seat—but with some maneuvering of limbs, we got him inside.

  Once the door was shut, I gave Nick’s address in Brooklyn. If he wasn’t home we were screwed.