Escape

by L. L. Frost

  SUCCUBUS DREAMS: ESCAPE

  SUCCUBUS HAREM PART 24

  Copyright © 2019 by L.L. Frost

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the writer, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Cover design by L.L. Frost

  Book design by L.L. Frost

  Printed in the United States of America.

  First Printing, 2019

  Contents

  1. Luscious Globes

  2. Puddle of Goo

  3. Catalyst Woo-Woo

  4. (un)Melted

  5. Bridges

  From the Author

  Also by L L Frost

  About the Author

  “Tac, get your furry ass back here!” I shout as I scramble up onto the windowsill.

  Of course, the beast ignores me as he makes a large loop of the backyard, hunting for the mist monster.

  Unsure if I can wrangle the cat monster alone, I drop down onto the peaked roof and scurry across toward Kellen’s room. My bare feet slip and slide on the tiles, and my back itches with the need to let my wings out for added balance, but I stifle the urge. If the neighbors missed the giant winged cat, I’m not going to give them a second chance at discovering our house’s inhabitants are less than human.

  All we need right now is an investigation team arriving on our doorstep ready to banish us back to the demon plane for being indiscreet.

  I reach Kellen’s window and peer inside.

  The storm demon lies sprawled in his king-sized bed, face down and glorious, golden ass on full display. My mouth waters, and for a moment, my brain short circuits with images of digging my nails into those luscious globes. That ass really should be illegal.

  Luckily, or unluckily, a crash from the below knocks me back to my senses, and I check Tac’s progress.

  Heavy fog covers the backyard, making it difficult to see. Finally, I spot his back end as he shoves through the low brush and manicured trees that line the stone wall separating us from the neighbor on the left. In his excitement, he forgot to fold his wings back and seems to be tangled, but that won’t last long.

  With both hands on the windowsill, I hop up to perch on the ledge. Electricity prickles at my skin, an invisible wall that sparks and spits at my presence. While I’ve been to Kellen’s room a few times, his wards reset daily. Whatever Tobias may have hinted at about Kellen’s feelings toward me, he obviously doesn’t trust me enough to give me a free pass while he’s sleeping.

  “Kellen!” I bang a fist on the open shutter for good measure. “Kellen, wake up! I need you!”

  In answer, he snorts and burrows farther into his pillows, the fluffy rectangles almost hiding his entire head.

  With a huff, I yell, “Kellen, sex!”

  He perks up instantly, pushing up to kneel in the center of the bed and peer around the room with charming, confused interest.

  When he spies me at the window, he gives me a sleepy grin and waggles his fingers in invitation. “Hey, babe, what are you doing out there when you could be in here?”

  The stinging ward flows away to be replaced by the mouthwatering scent of ozone, spring rain, and the first curls of desire. I mentally slap myself to stop from diving from his windowsill straight into his bed.

  I hook a thumb over my shoulder. “I need you out here.”

  “On the roof?” His brows arch. “I’m game, but we might fall off.”

  He crawls off the side of the bed and stretches, the long, hard lines of his golden body on full display, including the semi-hard cock that sways between his legs.

  I drag my eyes from all that temptation. “Put on some pants.”

  His arms drop back to his sides. “That’s not the direction this is supposed to go.”

  Another crash sounds from the backyard, and I twist to see what’s happening. One of the trees now lists to the side, and Tac’s tail takes out a shrub.

  “What’s going on out there?” Kellen joins me at the window, his body a warm, crackling presence against my bare arms.

  I point downward. “Tac escaped.”

  “Shit, why didn’t you say so?” He turns, grabs a pair of sweats off the corner of his dresser, and tugs them on. “What’s he doing out there? He knows better than to leave the house.”

  “There’s something in the backyard.” Not wanting to get into whether what I saw exists right now, I keep it simple. “He went after it.”

  Kellen nudges me back onto the roof and climbs out. “Why didn’t you get Emil?”

  “He asked for alone time.” Another thing I don’t want to get into. “And you’re more direct.”

  “Tac only listens to Emil, but if he asked for alone time, there’s no budging him. He probably warded his room.” Crouching, Kellen places one hand on the roof tiles and slides gracefully toward the lip of the roof, out of sight of our neighbors.

  I follow with far less grace and a lot more speed. I reach the end of the roof ahead of Kellen, my wings slipping from my back as my feet find air, and I half tumble, half glide to the fog covered grass below. The gray tendrils reach up to curl around my legs, sinking through the thin material of my yoga pants to stick against my skin. Cold and wet, it chills me to the bone in an instant.

  The fog crawls up my legs and over my hips, growing heavier as more and more sticks to me until my body feels like it’s made of lead, dragging me toward the soft ground.

  My wings flap, dispelling some of the invasive fog, but it slinks back in, adding more layers until it becomes impossible to take a step forward. I don’t remember it being like this in Dreamland when the nightmare monsters worked to block my path and cut me off.

  Kellen lands beside me, his rain-cloud wings drifting over me to melt away the entrapping fog. He stares down at the shrouded ground, then lifts a foot, studying how the unnatural mist clings to his leg. “What is this?”

  “It comes from whatever Tac is chasing.” I huddle closer to his side. “Keep your wings out. It doesn’t seem to like them.”

  “Put yours away.” His hand slides over my wings, stroking the small feathers close to my spine. “I don’t want whatever this is to hide in your feathers and find a way inside you when you pull them into hiding.”

  A shudder rolls through me at the idea, and I snap them back into their place along my spine.

  Kellen’s palm covers the bare skin of my back as if to make sure they fully vanished without leaving an opening for the fog to creep in. “Did you get a look at whatever this thing is?”

  “Kind of.” I shiver at the memory of the large, red eye blinking at me from right outside my window.

  He strides toward the break in foliage, his hand on my back keeping me close. By now, Tac has disappeared from view, but a path of destruction shows the way. “Is it a demon? Or did it feel like human magic?”

  I hug my elbows to become smaller, careful to stay within the protection of Kellen’s wings, if they can really be called that anymore. They’re more like a cloud encircling us now. “It was from Dreamland.”

  He frowns. “Another baku like Tally?”

  Twigs crunch under my bare feet. I wince, wishing I had the forethought to put on shoes, but that would have taken too much time. “No, not a baku.”

  Kellen grabs an uprooted bush and tosses it to the side. “A succub
us, then?”

  I shake my head, my braid whipping against my back. “No, not a succubus.”

  “Only two demons live in Dreamland.” Without any effort, he shifts the knocked over tree upright once more. “You sure it wasn’t a baku? They take on some weird appearance.”

  I scowl at him. “I know what baku look like. And feel like. This wasn’t a baku.”

  “Had to be one of the two.” We stop our forward movement at the tall brick wall, and Kellen cups his hands over his mouth. “Tac, buddy, where you hiding?”

  A long, tufted tail swings into view, tick-tocking in front of us. I follow it up to find Tac perched on top of the wall in front of us. His wings flare wide, blocking out the moon, and he lets out a loud snuffle.

  I point a finger at him. “You get down here right now, mister! You are in so much trouble!”

  “Yes, threaten the cat monster,” Kellen whispers. “That always works.”

  Tac’s feathers flare, making him look even bigger, and he stays rooted in place.

  “You don’t scare me!” I rise onto my tiptoes, chest puffed out. “I can get big, too!”

  Kellen’s soft chuckle earns him an elbow in the side, and lightning sparks in the cloud that surrounds us.

  Brushing away the little bolts of electricity, I jump and catch Tac’s tail, the tufted tip tickling under my chin. “Get down, before Emil finds out you’ve been naughty. He’s not going to buy you any more prime rib!”

  “Careful, Adie, his tail is really”—Tac’s tail curls up, lifting me with it—“strong. Here, I got you.”

  Kellen’s large, warm hands curl around my calves just as Tac leaps over the wall and into the neighbor’s backyard.

  With a yelp, I kick my feet against the rough brick wall, nailing Kellen in the process. Clutching Tac’s tail tighter, my bare arm scrapes against the wall, peeling away skin, before my shoulder slams into the lip at the top.

  My arm goes numb, and I lose my hold on Tac’s tail, the puff of fur at the tip slapping me in the face as he escapes once more.

  I scramble to catch the top of the wall, my nails breaking against the rough bricks. With a roll a power, my talons burst free, and I dig my toes into the side of the wall, finding purchase in the mortar as I climb.

  “You okay?” Kellen calls up.

  My fingers curl around the spiked wrought iron cemented into the top of the wall, supposedly meant to discourage people from climbing over the top. So much failure in this design.

  I wave down at Kellen as I peer into the neighbor’s yard.

  More fog here. It completely covers the ground and rises high enough to brush at the windows on the first floor of the house. The very bright, someone-is-home-and-awake windows.

  I scan the fog. “Tac!”

  His tufted tail lifts from the fog and waves in the air.

  I carefully climb over the pointy wrought iron, hissing, “Tac, get back here!”

  His tail curls into a question mark. For a moment, I think he’s actually going to listen, but then he vanishes again.

  “Adie, you really shouldn’t go over there,” Kellen calls. “The neighbor doesn’t like to be disturbed.”

  “Shh,” I lift a finger to my lips. “They’re awake. We don’t want to draw attention to the backyard.”

  “That’s really not—”

  “There he is!” The tips of Tac’s wings poke out of the fog. “I’m going in.”

  “Adie, wait—”

  Kellen’s voice cuts off as I dive over the wall. My skin buzzes with energy, the hunt to bring Tac back home humming through me.

  Demon cats aren’t born in the demon plane. They don’t gain corporeal forms and venture over to the human side. They’re created through strife, war, and a powerful need for vengeance.

  If Tac reveals himself to a human, he’ll be put down without question.

  No coming back.

  I can’t let that happen. He’s one of mine, the same as Kellen, Tobias, and Emil. The same as the imps, Torch, and Vova. I won’t fail to keep him safe.

  The fog cushions my landing, almost welcoming as it curls around me, and the bone-numbing cold sets back in. It covers me up to the hips, creating a tactile barrier almost like cotton. I push through it toward the triangle tips of Tac’s wings. They zig-zag across the yard, a pair of sharks on the hunt, and my stomach rolls to imagine him actually chasing that floating eyeball.

  Something brushes against my calves, and I jump in alarm, my arms sweeping outward to push aside the fog. It rolls in on itself, creating waves that curve upward, high as my shoulders. In the momentary reprieve, I spot something thicker than the fog, a tentacle that flits across my path. Then, the waves crash back down to fill the opening.

  Another brush against my calf, this one accompanied by a stinging bite. I yelp and spin, waving my arms to create a small circle of open space.

  The flash of tentacles comes again, a stream of fresh mist trailing in its wake.

  My voice comes out muffled and high-pitched with fear. “Tac, buddy, if you’re going to catch it, it’s over here.”

  “Adie, get out of there!” Kellen whispers loudly, and I flinch again, spinning until I spot him perched on top of the wall.

  The moon turns his fiery hair into a beacon, gilding his golden skin. Sparks of lightning dance along the arm he holds out to me, too far away to reach.

  I try anyway, my hand lifting, and a bulbous, red eye lifts from the mist directly in front of my face, tentacles weaving a barrier to block my escape.

  Shrieking, I stumble away from the floating eyeball, and my heel catches on something in the fog-shrouded yard. My arms pinwheel for balance, but gravity already drags me down.

  Gray mist curls around my arms, making them heavy as I fall. My ass hits grass, and my momentum carries me backward.

  I catch myself on my elbows, shaking the hair from my eyes. Somewhere along the way, my braid came loose, and the white stands, tipped in blue, pool around my shoulders and down over my breasts.

  The nightmare monster follows, spitting out fog to fill my small oasis of cleared air. The glowing red light of its eye fills my vision as a buzzing noise vibrates out from its center. Horrified, I stare at the razor-sharp teeth that spin like a chainsaw at the center of its tentacles.

  Shrieking again, I kick out, its soft, gelatinous body giving like slimy jello against my bare foot. It spikes up into the air, its maw now fully visible and positioned to come down right on top of me.

  Tac lunges out of hiding, his wings spread wide and flapping for added height, his mouth open and dagger-long fangs silhouetted by the moon.

  Fog clings to his body in a shroud of gray, with tendrils that shoot down, connecting it to the greater mass on the ground to pull him back down.

  But the demon cat’s wings flap again, the powerful blast propelling him higher while at the same time pushing the fog outward. The stuff peels away from my body like Velcro, taking pieces of skin with it. I wince with pain as the smell of copper fills the air, beads of blood rising to the surface in a gory simulation of goose bumps.

  The nightmare creature twists in midair, tentacles sweeping toward Tac, but too late. His massive jaws close around it with a decisive snap.

  Immediately, the fog in the backyard lightens, the oppressive weight dissipating to something more natural.

  Skin on fire, I push to my feet as Tac thumps back to earth, a gelatinous tentacle still sticking from one side of his mouth.

  My stomach rolls, and I point at the ground. “Drop it.”

  With a loud snort, his jaw drops to reveal the squished remains of the monster before he snaps his mouth closed once more.

  “Adie, get back here,” Kellen hisses, and I turn to see him still perched on his side of the wall.

  My hands move to my hips. “Why are you still up there? I could have been killed just now! You’re completely useless!”

  “I told you not to go over there.” He flaps his hands in a come here motion. “Now, get your del
icious ass back on our side of the wall before you’re caught.”

  “Far too late for that, Mr. Cassius,” a testy voice seethes from behind me. “We have discussed your beast being in my yard. There is a clearly marked perimeter he is not to cross.”

  Mouth open in shock, I twist to face the back porch where a tall, reed-thin woman stands.

  Or, more precisely, an ice demon. She clutches a white bathrobe at her neck, her frozen gaze jumping between me, Tac, and Kellen. What skin is exposed glitters with fresh frost, accentuating the sharp planes of her face. Her white hair, pulled into a tight bun on top of her head, scrapes the top of the doorframe. In an ice cavern, she’d blend in with the stalagmites, just another pillar or ice.

  My focus shifts back to Kellen, voice accusing. “You could have just said our neighbor is a demon!”

  “Is this your newest plaything, Mr. Cassius?” Ridicule curls through her voice. “You should teach her some manners.”

  Oh, she did not just say that. I lift an arm, finger out. “I’ve dealt with enough assholery from demons today. I don’t need your attitude, too.”

  “Hasn’t anyone ever told you it’s rude to point?” Ice crystals form along my finger, cold enough to burn.

  I flick them away with a snap of my fingers. “Don’t try to tempt me with your paltry show of power. I live with a god who breathes ice ages. Your little snowflakes don’t bother me.”

  The frost along her jaw grows until it forms a jagged beard of icicles.

  “Sorry about the late night visit, Fuyumi,” Kellen cuts in, his voice filled with false cheer. “It seems we had an invader, and it escaped into your yard.”

  On cue, Tac’s mouth gapes open, and the remains of the nightmare monster roll off his tongue to splat onto the ground. Long lines of red-tinted drool follow.

  Fuyumi’s lip curls in disgust. “So I see. Is this serious? Do I need to take my babies to the mountains?”

  “Not sure yet, but we’ll keep you informed.” Kellen dangles his arms between the wrought iron spikes. “Is your number up to date on the neighborhood watch list?”