by Gina Kincade
Her lashes lifted and she looked at me dead in the eye. And that's when I showed her what I'd been living with over the years. "Watch me." I switched then. My once blue eyes darkened as she looked on. I saw her own widen. Once mine were completely black, that's when it happened. "I'm going to show you what happened to you the last time you hit thirty years old. Keep watching."
The vision she saw in my eyes was of Rosalind, the blond Sidney. She watched as the woman in my eyes went through the motions of her life in fast forward. Sid saw me with her, how we were together. Our perfect fit. And then she saw Balan arrive. He took her life with one single dagger wound to the heart. Rosalind died in my arms. I experienced it all as Sidney watched the big screen in my eyes.
Tears dropped in earnest down Sid's face and my fingers meshed with hers. This was the way she'd finally know the truth about me. It had taken me many of her lifetimes to share this with her. It was like a mountain had been taken off my shoulders. There was no going back for me now.
"I'm going to walk away and go do my thing," My eyes were changing back. "Look after Jester and I promise you I'll be back. You need to process what you saw. I get that." I leaned down and kissed her briefly on the mouth. That single gesture gave me more pleasure than maybe I'd ever had before.
"Not being with you has broken me, but I know you've flourished without me. If I could give my life for yours, I would in a heartbeat." I left then. I didn't trust myself not to break down.
We were simply on a countdown to death, now.
Chapter Nine – Sunday, 7:16AM
I'd checked Sid's computer records earlier. This was definitely the house. I looked around, admiring the posh abodes with their sprawling lawns and expensive cars in the driveway. This was where fuck-face lived with his unloved puppies.
I'd taken Sid's small van with the Sanctuary's name emblazoned across the side and walked up the long driveway to the pristine looking white door. Hitting the doorbell, it gave out a single chime. Moments later Mr. Watson himself opened it up.
"Hello, that was fast, but I'm so glad you came. Do you want to see the dogs?" He was all smiles, wasn't he?
"Sure, let's take a look." I followed him through the door and straight through another one, this one leading to the basement. It was well lit, so I followed him down the stairs.
The yapping started almost immediately. I counted three puppies, all with the same blond fur as Jester. "They look great. How much?"
Watson was grinning from ear to ear. "£150 each."
My eyebrows almost hit my hairline. "£450?"
"Plus obviously Jester."
"Jester's sick. I've already paid for him," my blood pressure was rising at a rapid rate. Negotiating with this evil fuck was taking all I had.
He looked ready to argue, but maybe it was the fact I stepped closer to him and I was a good ten inches taller, and a whole lot wider. "Sure, why not. You're doing me a favour."
"Here's the cash," I pushed a wad out of my wallet and held it in front of him. "I'll take the large cage as well."
Again, he looked ready to argue. I pulled the money back an inch or two and he almost bit my hand off. "Okay, okay." He snatched the money and I let him take it.
A feeling tickled my senses, but I dismissed it. The sooner I was done here, though, the better. Sid was waiting for me. I swallowed, and I would tell my wife that I loved her before she was going to be killed.
My heart complained, loudly, at seeing this yet again, but I didn’t listen. Sid was my everything and the quicker I dealt with this prick, the better.
Watson helped me load the crate into the van.
"Thank you for the business, Mr.?"
I stayed quiet. The van was locked up and the dogs secure. I turned to watch him carefully. It was obvious he was ill at ease. Watson wanted to high tail it back into his house and go count his money. Greedy little shit.
"My name's Alexei."
"Alexei?" The little man paled to a pasty colour that resembled flour.
I bent and took the trusty dagger out of my boot and held it up toward him. "Yeah, I'm sure you've heard of me in your travels. Not that you make it back home very often, do you? Well, neither do I."
"You're...him?" My reputation had preceded me on this occasion. I nodded.
"I'm pretty sure I've heard of you before, too... Grava."
Saying his name aloud caused a chain reaction that I was completely ready for. His cover was blown and the mask fell, exposing his true demon self. His human clothes were on the ground, the money I've given him fluttered in the gentle breeze.
The demon was squat, red and bald. The gold of his necklace sparkled under the late afternoon sun.
"So we fight over dogs?"
"We fight because you shouldn't be allowed in this society. I know of your record. The fact you beat the shit out of a small dog just proves you've got a limp dick and the morals of one, too. To answer your question, hell yes we're fighting over innocent little puppies."
The fat ball of red was faster than he looked. He exploded at me with a shriek as loud and as piercing as I've ever heard. But that didn't stop him hitting the ground as I punched him hard in the face.
I jumped on him and held the dagger against his throat. "This is for that vet who worked hard to keep a puppy you hurt from dying." I slit his throat, and he instantly sizzled into a puddle underneath me. Which unfortunately covered me in demon goo too.
"Motherfucker," I said, wiping what was left of Grava off my jeans. I bent down and picked up the money from the floor and shoving it back into my jeans.
The tingle began again in my head, and my thoughts instantly turned to Sidney. Something was wrong. I felt it as sure as I did the goo on my hands.
Running to the van, I started her up and threw her into gear.
"Sorry dogs, but I need to get back to Sid. She's the one I'm doing all this for." I was maybe six minutes away, and the roads were relatively clear.
Sidney Washington was in my head and in my heart and there was nothing I could do about it. I wanted to keep running from the inevitable end but it was no good. There was no other place I'd rather be than at her side.
I'd been trying to be the better man, to protect her. But what I really needed was for someone to protect me against the allure of this woman. Sid was a goddess as far as I was concerned. I didn't deserve her, but I'd have given the world to have her by my side forever. And I was going to be damn sure I would be there for her in this life and the next. And probably the one after that, too, if I could stay alive and out of trouble—which was something that was definitely getting harder to do.
The grounds of the Sanctuary were quiet—deathly so—as I arrived back minutes later. The dogs yapped in the car, but they would be fine for a little longer.
I stopped at a noise which sounded awkward and wrong. Pulling the knife from my holster around my lower leg, I stepped into the shadows of the oak trees which surrounded the properties. Waiting for Balan to show his face. I didn't have to wait long.
Sid walked out of a side door, stumbling to a halt about twenty feet in front of me. She looked in one piece and unharmed. Balan appeared at her side.
This was it. I was going to lose Sid once more.
I didn't know if I'd survive it this time.
Chapter Ten – Sunday, 7:56AM
"You're back." The look of astonishment on Sid's face broke my heart. The fact she thought I'd fuck up and do the same thing again made me want to prove her wrong even more.
"I'm not going anywhere this time, babe. I love you if you haven't realised that." I didn't know if she believed me.
"What you told me was the truth." She said slowly.
"Of course. Being a demon isn't something you joke about." I was stalling, hoping for a miracle but knowing they didn't exist.
"You're earlier than I thought you'd be, Balan." The ethereal prince shrugged and a smile played across his handsome face.
"You'd said all you needed to say to each other."
"There'd never be enough time with Sidney."
My knife spun from my hand—not by my action— and flew through the air, hovering two inches from Sid's chest.
Tears ran down her face as she looked between me and my dagger. "I love you, Alexei. I'll see you in the next life, apparently." She gave a watery smile, then the dagger smashed into her body and she instantly crumpled to the earth underfoot.
"No," I screeched, running for all I was worth toward her body. Balan watched the display in front of him. I didn't care. Sid was dying. I could feel her life-force edging further and further away.
"Baby, don't leave me." Her eyes were open as I reached her, but her breaths were shallow. The dagger slipped from her body and I held my hands on her stomach over her wound.
A tilt of her lips and her eyes closed. My heart broke and my own tears fell in earnest. I wanted to scream but there was nothing left inside me anymore. I'd lost her too many times.
I had to fix this. There had to be a way.
"Balan. Help me." I stumbled to my feet toward him.
"I can't help you. Only you can help yourself. You're a demon, try using that to your advantage for a change." Cryptic. Always cryptic. And it didn't fucking help.
I scrubbed at my eyes and knew the answer was in front of me. I blinked. Looking directly at Balan. Right in front of me.
"You're going to save Sidney," I murmured. The prince didn't say a thing, only stood there watching me carefully.
Balan spoke at last. "You know the rules: I can only take the life. I can't save it, Alexei."
"I know the curse. I've lived with it for a long time. But there's one thing I've never tried." I stepped closer to him, ignoring Sidney's body beside me as best I could. "You shouldn’t be saving a life. That doesn't mean you can't. And I'm using my unique abilities as a demon."
I put my hand on Balan's shoulder and he stood, looking almost right through me. Focusing on tuning in, in moments I had transferred his skills into my own body. He might not be able to save Sidney, but I could take his power and do it for him. This had to work.
This prince of darkness was strong. Stronger than any other living creature I'd tried it on. It ate away at my brain, but immediately I felt lighter, omnipotent and part of all living things. There was also a streak of good and evil running parallel through me as it obviously did for him.
All the while Balan stood watching me; as if this was something he's always known I'd do. Well he could have fucking let me in on it years ago.
Stumbling back to Sid's lifeless body, I placed my hand on her wound. The world spun around me at a rapid rate and I closed my eyes. Time passed then slowed down to a crawl and begun to rewind until it stopped.
The air changed around me, the temperature dropped and the old oaks began to sway with a swishing sound. I was caught in a vacuum and I could feel every emotion, every wish, and every promise. The hatred was deep, deep within the earth but love fed us all and kept us going. Ying and Yang. Good and evil. Rich and poor...
The world which Balan lived was full of temptation, full of decisions to change the world. My mind blurred, it was too overwhelming. I floated back toward Hell—where I belonged. There was nothing I could do. I wasn't good enough. Sidney deserved better.
Sidney... the name repeated itself over and over until a beautiful vision of her floated to the front of my mind and calmed my erratic fears. Everything would be okay. Life would be okay.
Bringing life back to her was my priority. She was too important to lose. All the animals here depended on her; all the people who worked for her loved her. Sid deserved so much more than she had. She would live and love again, even without me...
I opened my eyes and sucked in a deep breath as Sidney's heart began to beat once more under my hand. My own heart kept time with hers as we became one, if only for a moment. Then the blackness started to descend and Balan stood before me.
"You did well, Alexei. You finally listened to me. You made your choice and have broken the curse. You are ready to die."
Ready to die. Yes. I'd saved my wife, the love of my life, and I was ready to die. "Yes," I answered but I didn't know if my voice was still working.
Blackness overcame me and I finally felt at peace with the world.
Chapter Eleven – Sunday, 5:46PM
A gentle purr woke me from my deep slumber. I battled against the darkness to open my eyes. It took everything I had to do so but somehow I knew it would be worth it.
Sidney stood next to me, a wide smile on her beautiful face. "I thought I'd lost you again."
I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came forth, so I shut it again. Running her fingers across my brow, she bent and kissed me on my dry lips.
"Someone wanted to see you." Sid moved to pick up something at my side, and brought the little kitty up to my face. She quickly escaped her clutches and settled down under my chin for some insta-sleep.
I smiled, lifting my hand slowly to take hold of hers. Everything felt right. Sidney bent down again, stroking my cheek with her spare hand. "I don't know what to say to you, Alexei. You saved my life. You risked yours." But I was already shaking my head.
"I had no life if I'd lost you again." The words came out soft and croaky. Sid smiled and I saw a rogue tear escape. I let go of her hand to wipe it away. "No tears. No more sadness. There's been enough of that for a dozen lifetimes."
"Balan said the curse has been lifted. You'd been selfless and given your life."
I let those words sink in. It had been so long since I'd been without the darkness hanging over me. "He also said that, because I'd been saved by using his abilities, I had his energy running through me so... I'm not quite human anymore." Sid's eyes were wide with wonder, and a little excitement. "My new abilities would come out in my work, he'd said."
Everything was working out for the best. "Kiss me," I murmured, pulling her down toward me. "I want to make up for all the time we've lost."
The kiss was perfect. As she was. I couldn't have asked for more and I would be forever grateful for that twinge of inspiration which had made me think of how to save her. I suspected I had Balan to thank for that.
First things first though. "There's something I need to tell you." Sid stopped dropping kisses over my face for a moment to look down at me. "I might have made your life harder with three more puppies as well as Jester.
"I know, I heard them barking after we'd brought you into the treatment room. They're already in the shelter." Her hand drifted down my t-shirt, landing on my stomach. "Thank you for rescuing them. You're my hero."
"You haven’t heard yet about what I did to the owner. If you're impressed now—"
"Later. Right now, I want to take you home and love you until neither of us can walk straight."
"Sounds like a plan." I slowly pulled myself up, taking the kitten into my hand. It was still asleep. My head felt a little woozy and my original gunshot wound ached. "But what about your work?"
"I've booked two days off for my honeymoon." My spare hand snaked around her neck and I pulled her closer. Energy was fast returning to my body and I knew exactly what I wanted to waste it on again.
"Straight after I put this pussy to bed, I'm going to take another pussy to bed." That earned me a soft punch to the leg, but she laughed, helping me fully up off the table. "There's one thing for damn sure though."
"What's that?" She asked, pulling open the private door so we could leave.
"This cat's name won't be baby. It'll be Rambo or Spike or Mad Max or something. She deserves something better than Baby. And, let's face it; I can't be calling her that."
Sid laughed. "We'll discuss it."
I followed her out of the door and toward the exit that lead to her house. I was happy.
It was a great day to start the rest of my life with the woman I loved. My wife.
Healing Hearts by Muffy Wilson
Everyone gets what they deserve. Everybody knows that.
Hell, it didn’t matter
anyway.
It was the wee hours of the morning and Brianna was all alone on the barren, black, wet streets. Curiously, she was unafraid to walk the night with the underbelly of society that lives in the darkness.
It was probably just like the night her sister was murdered. She was probably troubled by the same things—haunted by the depths of her own depravity. The clack-clack-clack of her heels on the sidewalk announced her approach as she headed…where? Home? That was a laugh. It made her think of the first time—her first time, maybe her sister’s first time—on the streets and in the black flesh pits of San Francisco that served up watered down whiskey, easy women and the finest drug connections money could buy, steal or cheat. Shrouded in the black lies hidden by the night, she did whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted and with whomever she wanted. The rain always had that effect, kept the good ones home while the creeps washed out of every skank black hole.
It was like that her first night…and he was a creep. But she did him anyway, holding her breath as he huffed, thrust, and panted into her young pink mouth. She thought of her kid sister. Was he the one?
The police didn’t know and had no more leads. What was she to do? She had to find out; she had to help. At least, she had to try.
But, she got swept away in the trying.
If she had any doubt about what she had become, it vanished with that blow-job stuffed into her sweet Mona Lisa smile. Every night since, her skirts got shorter and the nights longer and the creeps, well, the creeps were all still creeps.
It was getting harder to remember what her kid sister looked like and why she was here. It was getting harder and harder…and easier, too. There were nights she didn’t care who killed her sister and there were nights she could think of little else.
The line between purpose and obsession became obscure.
