Page 12 of Demons of Eden

“Definitely an incubus,” Rio grunts out from between tightly clenched teeth, almost like it pains him to offer the simple information.

“Rio’s right. Based on what you’ve said and the energy you’re giving off, the father is most likely an incubus,” Daion agrees after a few seconds, as if to allow the information to sink in. “It would explain why you didn’t realise he was a demon. Their subspecies has the power to be seen as whatever it is the person seeing them desires. You wouldn’t have even thought to try and actively check what he is either, thanks to their charm effect. It puts people at ease, makes them not want to search too deeply.”

It’s really starting to feel like there’s a lot more about demons I should have been taught, other than my mother’s solid advice of,‘You should stay away from demons, Eden.’Though I was only ten at the time when she said it, so I’ll have to give her a pass for not warning me about the dangerous allure of sex demons. Hell, I’m not sure I’d want to have that conversation with her at twenty-six, either.

“They can really do that?” I ask, wondering if I should be concerned.

“Yes. It’s actually a fairly default state for their kind, and I doubt it was purposefully done to trick you. However, there would be obvious signs of mental trauma if he’d attempted to use his abilities to coerce you. The effect of that type of control is very short-lived.” Daion frowns for a moment before nodding to himself, apparently coming to a quick decision. “I vote that we help her find him. She’s right. He’s her best bet for survival, and it would be less suspicious for the three of us to be out searching for a demon.”

“Fuck no!” Rio smacks his hand against the wall twice, accentuating his words. “How could you?—”

“I thought we all agreed to a fair vote on this?” Torrin points out, and the blond man quite literally huffs at the interruption.

“Well, if we’re already voting, then I vote we throw her out of the door right now and never speak about this again,” he snaps, before turning the full force of his irritation back on Daion.“Why would you agree so quickly? She could be lying about everything!”

“She’s not,” Daion replies bluntly, sounding almost tired as he turns to Torrin. “You get the tie-breaker.”

At his words, almost all of the attention in the room falls to Torrin, including mine. Only his attention is directed elsewhere, as his focus is entirely on me instead. He’s staring, so I stare right back. Despite how rugged he looks between his clothes, his messed-up hair, and rough stubble, there’s an undeniable softness in his hazel eyes. There was kindness in how he treated me when he arrived and also in the way he chose to be warm and jovial as he offered up their food to a stranger. I hold my breath, trying not to get too hopeful as I wait for him to vote over my fate.

The seconds tick by, and I have to fight off the urge to fill the silence. Thankfully, he gives his answer before I break.

“My vote is to help her.”

“Oh, thank fuck.” I sigh, sagging in my seat as relief washes over me. With that settled, I reach for the pie and the fork, digging right in.

“That’s not…nevermind,” Torrin says with an amused chuckle, changing his mind about whatever he was going to say.

Goddess, this apple pie is fucking perfect. After the amount of takeout I’ve eaten, I really shouldn’t have room for more food, but there’s always room for pie. Especially when it’s this damn good.

“This is fucking bullshit,” Rio hisses after a prolonged moment of silence.

I think he must have been counting on Torrin siding with him over Daion. Though, I don’t know why he thought such an obviously lovely guy would do that. Torrin’s already my favourite because of the pie, and offering up the rest of their food didn’t hurt his case, either.

Daion’s currently in my neutral zone, I think. He doesn’t seem to be super jazzed about my being here, but at least he’s willing to help despite whatever weird feelings he seems to have about my situation. He’s doing this because he’s simply a good person, good enough to ignore his personal issues, whatever they are.

Unlike Rio, who's lucky to still be alive after the shit he pulled. Watching as he storms out of the room, I consider all the different poisons or curses I could use on him but quickly shake the thought off. If I kill or otherwise harm their friend, the other two will probably change their minds about helping me. Once he’s out of sight, I settle for sticking my tongue out in his general direction. If bodily harm is off the table, I can at least match his childish attitude to make myself feel better.

“I saw that!” Rio’s voice snaps from down the hall, and my eyebrows shoot up.

How the fuck did he…

“We have cameras,” Daion says, answering my silent question as he gestures around the room.

“Oh,”I grumble, not seeing the so-called cameras, but returning to my pie with a shrug. “Is he going to be a problem?” I ask. Despite the fact they’ve already agreed to help me, I get the sense that Rio isn’t entirely on board after the vote he lost. “Maybe I can just hire you two?”

“Nah, he’ll get over it. Besides, we’re a team, so after he pouts for a while, he’ll step up. He’d never leave us hanging, and he’s far too paranoid to sit a case out,” Torrin reassures me while eyeing the pie I’m devouring a little longingly.

Maybe he did want some of it?Oops.Well, he shouldn’t have only stuck one fork in it. What was a witch supposed to think?

“Okay, so what now?” I ask, only feeling a bit guilty. I’d offer him some of the pie now, but at this point my saliva is probablyall over it. Though, I guess he could eat the edges? Seeing as I started in the centre.

“You could tell us your name, seeing as you skipped right past introductions,” Torrin answers, smirking at me. I blush, completely having forgotten, seeing as I’d managed to pick up all of their names from their interactions with each other.

“In my defence, none of you introduced yourselves properly either,” I point out. I was also a little distracted from getting attacked, and then there was food. The first food I’ve been able to stomach in days. Who could possibly blame me for forgetting about dumb introductions then?

“I suppose we didn’t, did we?”

“Well, you’re Torrin, that’s Daion, and the jackass is Rio, right?” I confirm, gesturing at each of them, and then off in the general direction that said jackass had left in.

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