Page 6 of Burn for the Devil

Rather than taking an immediate left as I normally would and heading straight for the private bar, I wandered toward the main area. Thin wisps of dry ice fog floated through the air with the assistance of hidden fans and smoke machines while ominous electronic music pounded from the overhead sound system. Pedestrians of all ages mingled, clad in black or red, leather or velvet, their clothing either minimal or too much for the steamy temperature filling the space.

I stood in the center of everyone’s way, forcing people to walk around me, and observed the scene lying before me.The humans were enjoying themselves much more than the impression their attire attempted to convey through the dark tones of their outfits. The atmosphere sparkled with various pinpricks of light, auras shimmering around the men and women, and those barely having reached adulthood.

A couple individuals had black ether clinging to their skin.Lesser demons. If they felt me here, they didn’t let on. I wouldn’t bother them; they needed to eat too. Most humans in the room were a buffet of joy, lust, addiction, mixed with a common measure of anxiety and depression to spice up the selection. Anxiety would’ve drawn me, I would have transformed it to fear, but that wasn’t the flavor I searched for. I wanted something that would remind me of my woman.

Resisting the compelling scent of my favorite flavor I continued my search, my eyes darting from figure to figure. My gaze snagged on a cascade of mahogany hair set against jewel toned deep blue and I sucked in a breath. It wasn’t her; it wasn’t Samantha, despite her hijacking the mild rose scent. That particular fragrance belonged to my woman, and my woman alone. The elegant dress this woman wore was a poor imitation of a peasant-style gown, formed of polyester or rayon My female wouldn’t have donned the cheap fabric or tacky style. With a start, I realized she’d also be highly unlikely to frequent a bar such as this. I shook my head and resumed my perusal.

Gold, gold, gold.

There, in the far corner of the dance floor, I spotted an aura similar to Samantha’s.

My legs quickly covered the distance separating us. A few heads turned my way, curiously eyeing the man in a bespoke suit, glittering tattoos covering his neck and trailing to his fingertips beneath jewel-filled rings. I stood out, and I knew it. Reveled in it, really. My hair was blacker than midnight and shone like glass. My bright green eyes and light olive-tonedskin were enviable. I may not have been as pretty as some of the others in my circle, but I’d still take their breath away and consume it with the deepest of pleasure.

I stalked toward the oblivious woman. The faintest hint of glitter hung weakly in the atmosphere surrounding her figure. She had no idea of what she contained, and no idea I had my sights set on her. I told her to look, planting the suggestion in her mind, while sending her a thin thread of desire. It was too easy the majority of the time. I’d have to make this one work for it.

While there was no need to go to all this trouble, it was highly entertaining. In my position, I could have any number of terminally ill victims brought to me, delivered in the same manner as a burger and fries. Terminally ill, mentally or physically, criminal or addict, it was all the same. There was just something about hunting that kept my blood flowing hot, invigorating me.

The usual food was kept in figurative or literal cages, away from society by their own choice or ours, wasting away in fear and filling the ether with the nectar that gave us life. After a while, they went stale, they gave up, beaten down by the conditions that plagued mankind. Neither us demons nor the angels set this deluge into place, the societal ills having been unleashed by a force even greater than ourselves.

Under our care, the poor souls exited for greener pastures faster than if they had been allowed to languish in the garbage-strewn gutters. We performed a valuable service that enhanced the quality of this life for everyone. We were a clean-up crew, of sorts. Ilya had brilliantly monetized the emotions and sins of humanity a while ago, encouraging deviant and wasteful behavior through flashy images that preyed upon the public. It was pure genius.

I moved behind the tiny brunette I’d found. The skirt of her black dress swung when she whirled around to see who hadslid their hands down her shoulders. She tilted her head back, her lips separating slightly. Anxiety and longing skittered across her skin, a vein in her neck pulsing visibly. She welcomed me, despite her instincts instructing her not to. The warning bells in the back of her mind were dismissed and shut down when I curled my arm around her. Her acceptance was tangible, and in my hunger, I forgot I wanted a challenge.

Leaning down, I inhaled her scent. The faint fragrance of baby powder filled my nostrils. It was unexpected, but then I sensed she’d very recently given birth.Interesting.It might be her first night away from the infant. I closed my eyes, rubbing my thumb along the pulse in her neck. She’d connected with the tiny child, an iridescent thread joined to another soul. Even amongst the sin surrounding her she was still connected, the maternal bond, strong.

“Kenzie,” she said, her voice straining over the music.

“Ramone,” I answered her, leaning toward her ear, letting my lips skim the shell. A small shudder ran through her, and I pulled her closer.

We danced for a couple songs while she became braver, her small hands finally settling on my hips and keeping me close. After a bit, I held her against me, my arm over her shoulder, fingers skirting the swell of her generous, milk-filled breasts.

My hair fell forward, forming a curtain along the side of her face. “Allow me to buy you a drink.”

Her hesitation permeated the foggy air, and I knew it was because she was nursing a newborn child. My other hand smoothed down her side, halting over her hipbone. She nodded her compliance as my phone vibrated in my pocket. It could wait; I was famished.

Kenzie requested a drink named after fornicating by the ocean. Self-righteousness over what I was about to do to the single mother washed over me. Cheap drinks, cheap life.

I ordered Absolut Elyx and quickly swallowed three shots while she watched me in fascination, starry-eyed, keeping a palm over her drink’s opening. Internally, I snickered over the action and then caged her against the counter, pressing a kiss to the flesh of her neck. She shivered, and I locked onto the sweet scent of her desire.

When I gestured toward the rear of the establishment she gave me an almost imperceptible nod. Taking her hand, I led her to a set of doors and then down a hallway, stopping quickly to press my lips to hers after I shoved her to the wall. Scrambling, her fingers sought my shoulders, scratching the material of my jacket. I lifted one of her legs, gripping the flesh between her upper thigh and her pussy, the heat of her core soaking into my skin.

“Come,” I compelled Kenzie, releasing her as she panted for me. I stood behind her and marched her through another door.

The space we entered was the club’s private room. Music played overhead and a scant few people wandered under the soft lighting. Alastair waited for me in a booth opposite the sleek, modern bar. Kenzie’s head twisted and turned, taking it all in. She likely hadn’t known this area existed, until now.

I sensed Alastair’s internal eye roll and then felt something different. Something had changed in him. Forgetting Kenzie, I marched across the room. She increased her pace, trying to keep up.

“Fuck,” I greeted my best friend. He grinned at me, his eyes displaying a pearlescent sheen. “What the fuck, Alastair.”

His gaze roamed the small woman clinging to my side. “For me? You shouldn’t have,” he joked. I knew he wouldn't step out on his wife, Devane, with another female. Kenzie began to shrink back until I nudged her forward, my palm against her ass.

“Courtesy of Matthew,” Alastair answered my unspoken question over the change in his eye color.

Well, this was new. I’d never heard of vampire and angel blood and magic mixing but as they say, there was nothing new under the sun.

“Interesting,” I responded. He knew I had many questions, and I knew they would be answered later, the unspoken message received by me with a look of reassurance from my friend. There was a time and place, and this wasn’t the time.

Alastair was aware of my fixation on Samantha, and I could feel the weight of his judgement in response to Kenzie’s presence. It grated at me. My friend was nothing if not loyal in certain ways and I knew he took my companionship with this girl as a betrayal to Samantha, despite her ignorance of my existence. In matters of the heart, Alastair did not mess around.

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