Page 42 of Succubus Shadows (Georgina Kincaid 5)

Seth moved away, escaping the arm, and suddenly seemed very interested in trying on the jacket. The salesman found Seth's size, gushed with compliments, and then left the two of them to mull it over.

"It looks great," said Simone, coming to stand right in front of him. I couldn't see any space between them. She casually straightened the jacket's lapel, not that it needed it. "Fits you like a glove."

Seth grabbed hold of her hands, pushed them away, and then backed off himself. "You need to stop this," he said, lowering his voice so others wouldn't hear.

"Stop what?" asked Simone.

"You know what! The innuendoes. The touching. All of it. You can't keep doing it."

Simone took a step closer, putting her hands on her hips. Her voice was soft as well, but it was more of a purr. What made it especially irritating was that, really, it was my voice. "Why? Because you don't like it? Come on, Seth. How much longer are you going to keep fooling yourself? You know you still want me. This scam of a wedding isn't going to change that. What we had...what we have is too powerful. I see the way you look at me - and you don't look at her that way. You say I've got to stop? No. You're the one that needs to stop this wedding. End it with her. Or if you don't have the guts, then let us be together again. At the very least - just one more night. I want to feel you again, feel you in me. And I know you do too."

I was aghast at the boldness. I couldn't believe what that bitch had tried to do. Impersonating me was bad enough, but now blatantly trying to lure Seth into her bed? Unforgiveable. I expected Seth to be outraged as well, but his face was the picture of calm.

He took off the jacket and set it on a counter. "I don't know who you are, but stay away from me. Do not speak to me again - or Maddie." There was a stern, warning tone in his words, that anger I rarely ever heard from him.

For once, Simone faltered. "What are you talking about?"

"You aren't Georgina," he said. "I should've listened when my niece first told me. Georgina would never do this, no matter how she felt. Georgina wouldn't openly try to break up her friend's wedding. She wouldn't betray Maddie."

Simone's eyes flashed with anger. "Really? Then how exactly would you classify your little spring fling?" I wasn't surprised she knew about that. Everyone in my hellish circle had figured it out when Seth's soul darkened.

His smile was both sad and cold. "Georgina did that...inadvertently. She was aware of what she was doing, but the motivations...well, they were different."

"Stop trying to justify infidelity. And stop talking about me in the third person!"

"You aren't her," said Seth again. "I know her. I would know her in almost any form. And although you look like her, you - obviously - do not know her."

He turned around to leave - and ran into Jerome.

Seth hadn't seen Jerome enter or teleport into the shop. Neither had I. Yet, even if the demon had strolled in openly, I think Seth would have had the same astonished and deeply disturbed reaction. The cool attitude he'd shown with Simone vanished.

"Sorry," said Seth, stepping back. He glanced uneasily at Simone, who was just as surprised. "I'll - I'll leave you two alone."

"I'm not here for her," growled Jerome.

"What?" she exclaimed, seeming deeply offended.

Jerome's dark eyes bored into Seth's. "I'm here for you. You need to come with me. Now."

When a demon tells you to do something, it's pretty hard to refuse it. My friends and I might joke about the silliness of Jerome's John Cusack guise, but underneath all that, Jerome was f**king scary. And when he turned his demonic wrath on a human, it was outright terrifying.

Yet, with a remarkable show of bravery, Seth asked: "Why?"

Jerome looked displeased that Seth hadn't instantly jumped to obey. "To get Georgie back."

"Back?" repeated Simone. "But if she comes back - "

Jerome lifted his eyes from Seth and glared at her. "Yes, yes, I know. But you might as well give it up. You failed."

"But I can - "

"Clearly, you can't." Jerome strode over to her, leaning close to her face. He pitched his voice low, but I could hear it from my observer's view. "This is not the way. I know why you're here now, but tell Niphon that every time he tries to fix things, he ends up f**king up more. It's too late. I'll deal with this. It doesn't involve you."

"But - "

"Enough." The word boomed through the store. The salesman looked up, startled, but kept his distance. "I didn't question your presence before, but now you can go."

Ostensibly, it sounded as though he were giving her permission to leave. But both she and I could hear the underlying meaning: if she didn't go on her own, he would "assist" her. She made no more protests.

Jerome returned to Seth. "Georgina's been taken. We're going to get her back. And you are going to play a role in that."

Seth couldn't speak for a moment, and when he did, it was to utter the most obvious response: "How?"

"To start with, you can stop wasting time here with stupid questions. Come with me, and you'll find out." Jerome then made a masterful play. "Every moment you delay, she's in more danger."

Nothing else could have spurred Seth into such action. He flinched at the words, and his face ran through a kaleidoscope of emotions. "Okay," he said to Jerome. "Let's go."

Chapter 19

"Real," I gasped out. "That was...real. Seth didn't give in to temptation. Seth stayed with Maddie."

"Maybe," said One.

The instinct to claw his eyes out rose within me, strong and sudden. It was animal and rash - and impossible since I had no form here. It was an urge I'd had on more than one occasion with the Oneroi.

"True. It was true." This was like a child's game with them, over and over. Or maybe the true/false section on the SAT. Circles. Circles. My life was a circle. "And Jerome..." The end of the dream came to me where my boss had spirited Seth away. "He's coming for me. He took Seth. They're going to do that ritual. Erik's going to set it up."

"Yes. And he's going to fail."

"No, he won't," I cried. Every ounce of me had become desperation: voice, mind, soul. "Jerome will come for me. He'll save me."

"No one is coming for you," said Two. "They will try, but they will fail."

Again, they sent me back to my world, and as much as I yearned for familiar faces, the doubt and uncertainty the Oneroi kept bringing up filled me with a despairing kind of confusion.

I was at Erik's. And apparently, so was everyone else.

His store had a large back room used for storage that I'd only once caught a glimpse of. It reminded me of a garage, with unfinished cement floors and plain drywall on the sides. A small table held a bowl of burning incense that made the air hazy. The edges of the room were stacked with boxes and crates that appeared to have been shoved to create an empty space around the edge of the room. Also along the edges was the Seattle immortal club: Hugh, Cody, Peter, Carter, and even Mei. Roman was probably there too, hidden because of Mei. In the center of the room, Erik was drawing chalk patterns on the floor. Jerome stood nearby, and Seth hovered uneasily between them and my friends along the wall. I think he was having a hard time deciding who was safest. If not for Mei, he probably would have chosen my friends.

Mei watched Erik and Jerome with disapproval, her nearly black eyes narrowed and brick-red lips pursed. At last, she uncrossed her arms and strode toward the center, her stiletto heels clicking loudly against the cement. Seth scurried out of her way, retreating to the safety of my friends.

"This is ridiculous," Mei said. "You're wasting everyone's time. Even with all of them" - she gestured to the wall gang - "it's not enough to bring her back. You need to report it and get another succubus."

"I report it, and there'll be another archdemon here too." Jerome cut her a look. "I'm kind of surprised you haven't done that already."

Good point. As his underling, Mei obeyed him, but she was ambitious. If Jerome got in trouble for losing me, it could be to her advantage.

"I don't need to," she said flatly. "You'll be telling them yourself soon. Why do I have to be here? I have no connection to her."

"Because I told you to! Stop arguing." Jerome glared at her, and the two demons locked gazes. At last, Mei gave a sharp nod, but it didn't seem like she gave in because of his authority. It was more like he'd communicated something, and she was acknowledging it. She returned to the side of the room, opposite my friends now.

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