Page 16 of The Succubi's Choice

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* * *

Katya’s waiting for her in the car, and gives her just a single raised eyebrow when Miri kicks the door open.

“It was nothing,” Miri complains, keeping her voice intentionally light. “I spent the entire time talking in vagaries and innuendos, waiting for him to pick up on something.”

She starts the car, as Katya raises her other eyebrow. “Used your charm?”

“Confused the heck out of him I think.” Trying to not be jittery, Miri pulls back into the Silverlake traffic, twisting the air conditioning down. “Anything else?”

“I have quite a bit of paperwork for the banshee event,” Katya says, turning her phone screen to show her, even though Miri’s driving. “They want some follow up protocols for dealing with the girl.”

* * *

When she gets home,after the rest of the day filled with dull paperwork, she’s tired. One does not frontload that amount of adrenaline without feeling vaguely sick to the stomach for the rest of the day.

She opens the door to her apartment, and is greeted by Gabriel and Lundy casually sitting around her kitchen table, sharing coffee as if they are friends.

They both look up as she comes in, and it takes way more energy for her to not just turn and walk right out the door than it should.

Gabriel smiles, because he’s genuinely a cheerful person who likes seeing people. “Miri! Lundy was telling me the good news.”

She shoots Lundy a glance, but his expression doesn’t change. “Isn’t it time you pick up your son?” She asks, dumping her purse on the couch.

“His mom has him for the week, they’re going to take a trip to her parents,” Lundy says coolly. “We were discussing your new changes in your feeding schedule.”

“When you put it like that, it just sounds creepy,” Miri shoots back. “Like I’m a pet that needs to be taken care of.”

Lundy pulls out a file of paperwork, one that Miri has seen many times, and hands it to her. “Got you the seven PM to ten PM hunting times. Another succubi had later so I couldn’t get it for you.”

Cause only one succubi is legally allowed to hunt in any given area at any time. Despite the fact that Los Angeles is so fucking huge the chances of them hitting up the same person is so slim.

“Still have me on Tuesday and Friday?” She asks, peering at the paperwork for any other restrictions, but despite her distrust nothing seems to be popping up.

“Still Tuesday and Friday.”

She doesn’t try to hide her relief.

Part of the reason why she’s friends with Gabriel is that he is very, incredibly, unnaturally, chill. Like, he should care a hell of a lot more about the part of the world she inhabits and the morally gray existence of getting your sustenance from sex, but as long as they don’t interfere with his essays or the sections he teaches, he couldn’t give a shit.

Lundy doesn’t shrug, but if he was the type to shrug, he totally would’ve. “I received your report today, it’s not often you have to deal with computers like that.”

“Yeah, cause computers is what made it weird,” she shoots back, staring at the paperwork. “I got Katya to stay in the car, she now thinks I’m babying her.”

Gabriel’s eyebrows climb.

“That was smart of you.” Lundy settles back, crossing his arms, as if daring her to say something incriminating in front of Gabriel.

“I can write a separate report for you, if you need,” she says, suddenly exhausted from the tests that she could fail.

Lundy hesitates, and, with a too-obvious glance at Gabriel, stands. “Lets go talk in my car.”

Not looking at Gabriel, cause keeping secrets from him always feels like the worst, she follows Lundy out.

Outside, Lundy’s grays stick out in the light. “Good instincts,” he says with something approaching gentleness. “Gabriel would be better off not knowing that.”

“The guy was just a human when I saw him. Talked about his roommate, never said demon or anything.” Miri blurts out, even though they’re nowhere near his minivan. “He seemed overwhelmed, not evil.”

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