A Demon Made Me Do It (14 page)

“
There you are,
sweetheart.” The silky voice caressing the air is the most welcome
sound I could ever hope to hear.

Bones!

My eyes fly open to the most amazing,
unexpected sight. I’m lying on a bed, surrounded by bunches of red
satin. Dozens of candles flicker aimlessly, giving the cozy room a
sultry glow. Soft music plays soothingly from an invisible stereo,
and the faintest hint of musk fills the air. But I’m only vaguely
aware of all these things as I search for the beautiful face of my
savior.

Bones, oh, Bones…I need
you…

From the shadows, Bones steps forward.
His perfectly chiseled torso gleams under the glow of dancing
firelight. His eyes, deep with a carnal lust, gaze upon
me.

I open my arms gratefully, welcoming
my hero, my love, my friend. Now I’m safe. Now I’m protected. Now
I’m loved. He leans down, closer…closer…I can almost feel his hot
breath on me…

“
My sweetest love…” he
murmurs.

Oh, Bones, I love you so
much…

“
Please, please take me…” a
soft voice moans. Stunned, I jerk my head and see a nude woman
lying beside me, aching for her seduction.

No…

The look in Bones’ eyes…the sincere
expression of love and desire that’s supposed to be only for me, is
instead being used as his weapon of romance with the nubile beauty.
He grins, delicately stroking her body with his fingers. The sounds
of her pleasure drive a knife through my heart. He lies down on top
of her and presses his hungry mouth against hers.

No!
Stop it! Stop kissing her like that!

I want so badly to push him
off her, but I can only lie here, paralyzed—forced to watch the
scene of seduction as it plays out. I know they can’t see or hear
me, but I am painfully aware of
everything
they’re doing.

I feel sicker and dirtier than I’ve
ever felt.

I try to shut out the image, but even
with my eyes closed I still see them clearly—the loving way Bones
kisses and caresses her…the girl’s indescribable pleasure at his
tender embrace and gently gyrating pelvis.

My heart shatters into a million
pieces over and over again as I’m forced to watch him make love to
girl, after girl, after girl… after girl.

I don’t know how many hours pass. I’ve
cried so much my tears have all dried up. Every once in a while,
Bones turns to look directly into my eyes and give a smug smile,
before returning his mouth to the young beauty beneath him. The
sights and sounds of pleasure beside me play over and over like a
broken record of perpetual torture. Instead of growing numb, each
passing minute hurts me more and more.

I want to die.

A sharp cracking noise whips through
the air, and I’m bombarded with a brilliant, sickly yellow light.
Nausea floods through me once more, and I squeeze my eyes
shut.

When I open them again, I’m lying on a
bed of scorching white sand. The air feels like it’s coming from a
blast furnace, and my eyes are so dry the lids are like
sandpaper.

Slowly, I sit upright. I squint to
block out the painful brightness as I assess my new
surroundings.

Nothing.

I’m all alone…not a soul is
in sight. There are no signs of life anywhere. The air is dead and
stale—as if no life has
ever
existed here.

This place feels like
death.

Empty, lonely,
vacant,
death.

Hello? Hello?! Is anyone
here? Can anyone hear me?

Silence. Sickening silence…unlike any
I’ve ever experienced. Everywhere there is absolute
stillness.

I am completely alone in this desolate
wasteland.

Totally, utterly, shamefully
alone.

I no longer exist.
Have I ever existed?

Hello! Anybody! Please, is
anybody out there?

…
Nothing. Even my thoughts
are barely a whisper.

Hello?! Somebody! Anybody!
Is anyone out there? Can you hear me?

My heart races
uncontrollably as I wipe the perspiration from my brow. Barely able
to feel my legs, I force myself to stand. I need to get out of
here. I need to go somewhere else.
But
where?
Each step is exactly the same as the
one before it. Every view and angle of this barren desert of death
is exactly the same. Miles and miles and miles of flat nothingness,
expanding for eternity.

With me in the center.
Alone.

The realization of what this means
hits me full force.

I’m doomed. Eternally doomed. Damned
to walk this barren wasteland alone, tortured with everlasting
isolation. I’d thought watching Michael and Kayla die was horrific;
I’d thought seeing Bones’ true colors was heartbreaking.

This is
so
much worse than those.
Infinitely
worse.

I fall to my knees, my silent cries no
longer audible even in my head. My eyes are too dry for tears. I
can’t swallow, and the brilliant light curdles my blood.

Please, please, let me
die.

Or am I already dead? Is this my
eternity?

No, this is worse than
death. This is…
nothing.

Hours pass…days…I don’t even know.
Time does not exist. I can’t think clearly anymore.

From somewhere, a soothing voice is
calling to me. I’m hallucinating, hearing things…

Come back, wake up…you’re
gonna be okay. Open your eyes…

But my eyes
are
open. There’s no one
here. The disembodied voice speaks again, louder now.

“
You’re safe, I gotcha,
open your eyes, come back to me. You’re strong… fight it… remember
who you are…where you come from…where you want to be…”

Suddenly, I’m spinning again. Rainbows
of psychedelic colors blur and swish around me. I’m
falling…floating….

…
I’m lying on wet grass,
freezing and shaking. Trying to gasp the fresh air, I choke on my
own breath and cough. Where am I now?

“
There you are…atta girl…I
got you…you’re safe. Just breathe…”

There’s the voice
again...
coming from right behind my
ear.

Only my legs are on the
grass, the rest of my body is propped up on something strong and
warm.
Something with arms wrapping around
me…

I struggle to break free, but can
barely move.

“
Let me go…” I
croak.

“
I can’t. You aren’t strong
enough yet. Try to relax for a few minutes. You’ll feel better,”
the masculine voice says in my ear.

Is some stupid Sapie
really trying to save me?

I’m too weak to fight—I have no choice
but to stay where I am. And where I am feels good. Warm. Safe. My
head begins to clear, and I realize how much I need to be held
right now.

“
Who are you?” I
whisper.

“
A friend.”

Gradually, I feel myself return to my
body. Objects around me slowly take shape. My senses re-engage; my
breathing and heart rate stabilize.

“
Where are we?”

He props me closer to his chest. He’s
warm. Very warm. Definitely not a Sapie. I must admit, if I can’t
move, this is a very comfortable resting place.

“
We’re in Baymore Park. Do
you remember what happened?” The tenderness in his voice reminds me
of how someone would talk to a wounded child.

“
I…I was walking…I...I saw
an Altrumina…and then…and then—”

“
He laid the whammy on
you,” he finishes.

“
No…that wasn’t it… I went
places…I saw things…”

“
Trust me, that’s what
happened. I saw everything…well, almost. I got here right as he
touched you.”

My head is clearer now and my body
feels strong enough for me to sit up on my own. Reluctantly, I
disentangle from his protective embrace, briefly meeting his
concerned eyes before I glance around. He’s right; we’re sitting on
a patch of grass in Baymore Park, not ten feet from where I
encountered the Altrumina.

A flash of fear shoots through me.
“Where are they?” I ask, panicked. I’m feeling stronger now, but
definitely not battle-ready.

“
Part of one is over
there…” he says, pointing. “There are some pieces over there,
there, and there, but to be honest I’m not sure exactly which parts
belong to which.” His dark blue eyes twinkle mischievously. “Hope
their mommas didn’t wanna give them a proper funeral.”

“
You did this?” I ask. He
nods.

“
Sorry I didn’t stop him
before he touched you. I was a few seconds late.”

“
A few
seconds
…I don’t understand…I was gone
for …
days…
”

He shakes his head. “Maybe in your
mind you were, but trust me, I was here and saw the whole thing. It
couldn’t have been more than thirty seconds, tops. After I killed
the first one, the others attacked, which is why it took longer
than it should’ve…”

I look around again. “That’s
impossible…I wasn’t here. I was somewhere else…in a cage. I
couldn’t move…”

Again, he shakes his head. “Nope, no
cage. You were here the whole time. But I do believe you thought
you were somewhere else, doing something. From the sounds of it, it
wasn’t very pleasant, either.”

Talk about the understatement of the
century.

Bewildered, I force myself to stand
up. My legs are rubbery, but I’m feeling stronger by the minute. I
hobble toward a wooden bench, my new friend right beside me. I
still feel queasy, but once I sit down and take several deep
breaths, I begin to feel better.

He sits close beside me.

“
Y-you could you hear me?”
I ask. Although I’m warmer now, my teeth chatter uncontrollably. He
nods, brushing his onyx hair away from his face, then scooches
closer and wraps his arm around me.

“
I heard you screaming and
moaning…calling out some names.” He looks away.

I close my eyes. The haunting visions
are still there, but thankfully, are fading further away with each
passing moment.

“
It was horrible,” I
whisper.

“
I know.”

“
If you hadn’t been here…if
you hadn’t killed them and broken their spell—” I can’t even
continue…the thought is too unbearable. According to him I was only
under for a few seconds. Some Sapies get cursed for
years
.

“
I’m
livid
with myself for not stopping it
sooner. I saw him come up behind you, but was too far away…too
late…” I hear the angry bitterness in his voice.

“
Thank you. I- I’m not used
to playing the damsel in distress role; I take care of myself. But
thanks, you really saved my ass back there. I guess I owe you one.”
I feel a small smile begin to form. Strange how just moments ago, I
never thought I’d be able to smile again.

“
Think nothing of it. We
all need some help from time to time. Doesn’t make you
weak.”

“
How’d you do it? How’d you
kill them? I don’t see any weapons…”

“
I had to do it the old
fashioned way. When in doubt, rip ‘em to shreds.” He grimaces as he
glances at his hands; they’re covered with deep, red
gashes.

“
They touched you? But
how…?”

He shrugs. “I’m immune to psychic
demons. Always have been.”

I inspect my own arms; just the
faintest threads of pink remain. Once I replenish, they’ll
disappear entirely.

We sit in silence, staring across the
now deserted park. My breathing has returned to normal, but for
some reason my heart is still beating too fast. The first hints of
dawn threaten to break the night sky. My countdown has
begun.

I start to chuckle.

“
What is it?” he
asks.

I tilt my face to his. “I don’t even
know your name. I know we’ve seen each other at Demon Bar and that
time in the alley, but…” My voice fades away at the look in his
eyes.

He stares at me silently
for so long I wonder if I’ve somehow offended him. Maybe he wants
to stay anonymous? Many demions do, especially ones from other
tribes. I just assumed he’s—at least, according to
him
—a friend. Is it so
unusual for friends to know each other’s names?

“
Sorry, forget I said
anything—” I look back up at the grey sky.

“
No, please forgive my
rudeness. In all the excitement it
did
slip my mind that we haven’t
actually been properly introduced. My name is Kieron Ambrose. I—I’m
from the Proelater tribe out West. Our families are allies.” His
introduction feels oddly formal, forced.

“
Nice to meet you, Kieron.
I’m Lucky. Just plain ol’ Lucky. From here.”