Page 28 of Chaos
But how was any of what just happened even possible? I shouldn’t be able to just waltz into someone else’s dream. Was this some side effect of the mental acrobatics he put me through this afternoon?
I’d never been in another person’s subconscious while they were asleep. But I could feel the small bit of sexual energy from the brief interlude as it nourished me. Just a taste. A light snack, if you will. Everything about the dream burned brightly in my memory. How his touch had felt, the taste of him, the way the castle smelled, the cold air. This hadn’t been a shared fantasy,and the details weren’t fading from my mind the way dreams usually do. I’d been there. Really there.
Was this something I could do? A fucking succubus superpower?
In moments, my computer was powered on and I had a search engine running. I simply typed in succubus, and my God, there was a lot of shit to wade through.
Some of it was expected. Female demons who feed off their partner’s sexual energy.
Bo-ring.
But when I dug a little deeper, there was a wealth of information I’d never heard of before. Some of it was clearly bullshit. Like that our bodies were scaled and we had wings like a gargoyle or horns like a goat. Other details were steeped in truth, though they might miss the mark or be slightly exaggerated. Like that we hypnotized our prey and could enslave them. I mean, maybe I could do that. I wasn’t actually sure. It’s not like I’d ever tried.
And then there was my favorite. The articles that said we were a myth created to excuse infidelity. Ha! There was no excuse for that, succubus or not.
I scanned an article about succubus and incubus lore, skimming the details about impregnation and demonic behavior until I found what I needed. Dreamwalking. I added the new term to my search, and bingo! There it was. Over and over again, page after page, references to my kind visiting mortals in their dreams and awakening all sorts of sexual desires.
It was brought up too many times not to have a kernel of truth to it, and I’d clearly just experienced it. So why had Lilith never mentioned this to me before?
The best way to answer that question was to simply ask her. Pulling my phone off the charger, I dialed her number. It ranguntil her voicemail picked up, and I rolled my eyes. Who knew what my aunt was up to?
“You’ve reached the voicemail for your very own fairy sex mother. Unfortunately, I’m tied up . . . or rather, have someone tied up at the moment. Leave me a message, and I’ll call you back—if you’re a good little poppet.”
“Auntie Lilith, it’s me. Listen, I need your help with something. Uh, I think I just dreamwalked? Is that a thing? Have you ever heard of that before? It was weird and also felt so good. What does it mean? Is this something I can use to help me? Call me back.”
After I ended the call, I sat at my desk for another minute, my fingertips drumming out a mindless beat on my thigh as all my unanswered questions danced in my mind.
The internet was only going to get me so far. It’s not exactly like there was a trustworthy source of information available. Supernaturals were way too protective of their secrets to post something humans could find and use against them. So the only way I was going to get any answers was Lilith.
Unless . . .
Maybe I test the theory myself? See if I can make it happen on purpose this time.
As the idea took hold, excitement swelled within me.
“We’d need a good test subject,” I murmured, standing and starting to pace. “Malice is out because there’s no way to know if our connection is due to his lesson or my ability. And if it works with Sin, then that might just be because we’re the same. I need someone else. Someone who I don’t share any sort of link with.”
Chaos’s handsome, grumpy face appeared in my mind, a thrill rushing through me at the possibility. I wondered if I needed to be asleep for this to work or if I could simply choose to join him? It stood to reason that I’d be able to walk right in ifthis was how succubi typically fed. How else could we make our decisions and pick our targets?
Laying on the bed, I closed my eyes and pictured my angry warrior in all his broody glory. His scent, the warmth of his skin, the way his bearded jaw brushed my face when he kissed me. And then it was there, the path I needed to find him. I didn’t knowhowI knew it was true. I just did. Chaos was deep in a dream, and all I had to do was go to him. I took one step down the path and appeared on a warm, sun-drenched balcony. He stood there, facing away from me as he stared out at pristine blue water.
He turned his head, his skin bronzed by the sun and glistening in the light, hair longer than I’d ever seen it, eyes blazing with desire as soon as they lit on me.
He stared at me, passion crackling between us as he said, “I’ve been waiting for you.”
Chapter
Seven
CHAOS
My mystery woman was even more beautiful than I remembered. All I had to go on was the brief glance of her I’d snuck as she and the queen’s ladies passed me by. This was likely to be my final day on this earth, the eve of war. My king knew he was asking all of us to pay the ultimate price to keep Sparta safe. In exchange, he was offering his men one final night of revelry.
I didn’t intend to waste a second of it.
“Get over here,” I ordered, turning so I faced her fully.
Her brows lifted in mild surprise at my demand, but she didn’t seem put off by it. “What if I’d rather you come over here?”
