Page 56 of Corrupt Shadows

I glance at the clock on the stove through her eyes. “It’s three a.m., witch. You’re just proving my point further that coffee does not help insomnia.”

“Fuck off, Lorcan.” Evie continues preparing the coffee, grabbing a gourmet bag of whole coffee beans. She opens the bag and measures out four scoops of beans into her grinder. The obnoxious hum of the machine sounds, but it does nothing to drown out her voice. “Who cares about some demon? I’m already fucked.”

“I told you that Solomor is within that woman. She might look innocent, but I promise you that he is not.”

“It’s fine. I’m still alive,” she says, rolling her eyes. Evie removes the container with the freshly ground coffee, dumps it into the basket inside the coffee machine, and presses Brew. A little green light glows, and the heating element clicks when it turns on. “Besides, I made her—him, whatever—leave.”

“After letting him in. You put yourself at risk, and for what?”

Coffee drips into the pot. She ignores my admonishments as she gets out the sugar and creamer, then snags her favorite mug off the rack. The pale-pink roses and skulls look more grim than usual in the low light of the stove hood. Evie leans her body against the sink as she waits for the coffee to brew.

Then I realize she’s drunk. The run-in with the pastor has shaken her more than I thought. Her familiar coasts into the room and lands on the kitchen island with a squeak. I mentally roll my eyes. Fluffy Fucker can’t help but get in the way every chance he gets.

Evie sets down her empty mug and goes to the bat. I tune out her warm and fuzzy emotions and bathe in my rage instead.

“Enough, witch. It’s time you take my words seriously, or you won’t like the consequences.”

“Make me,” she mumbles, continuing to pet the bat.

Unhinged laughter escapes my hold and travels along the bond to my little witch. She freezes, like a mouse caught in the claws of a cat. I sever our connection without warning.

Back in my own mind, I stand from my bed and meld into the nearest shadow, not giving a fuck I’m only wearing gray sweatpants, pass through various shadows and make my across towns until I finally reach Evie’s living room in the Shadow Realm. I barely pause before moving with purpose toward the rose-framed mirror in her office, traveling through the veil, and stepping into the witch’s apartment.

She’s still talking to Fluffy Fucker, but I don’t miss the unease in her tone. I enter another shadow and exit one directly behind Evie in her kitchen. I silently creep up behind her, then simultaneously remove the cigarette from between her fingers and grasp her throat in a bruising grip.

The bat backs away as fast as his little legs will carry him, then growls at me in a frequency so low, no human would have a chance of hearing it. I raise an eyebrow at him, then dart my stare toward his cage in the other room. He narrows his eyes and shakes his head. This little fucker. We stare at each other, waiting for the other to back down.

Eventually the bat huffs and takes flight. He flaps his wings a few times and coasts to land on the curtain rod in the living room. I roll my eyes, resolved to ignore the little heathen.

I press the side of my bearded face into Evie’s cheek, then realize I never donned my mask. No matter, I’ll just make sure the little killer can’t face me. I take a deep pull on her cigarette, hold the smoke in my mouth for a moment, and fully inhale. My movements are almost ritualistic, soothing my nerves with its familiarity. Fucking blissful.

I cover her small hand resting on the counter with mine, the cigarette pinched between my fingers. Smoke trails from my lips as I whisper next to her ear. “You have been a bad girl.” I squeeze her throat tighter. “You don’t take your safety seriously, so now I must do it for you.”

I drag her body back toward mine by the hold I have on her neck. The warmth of her skin seeps through her think tank top into my bare tattooed chest. My cock takes notice and hardens against her lower back, my sweatpants doing nothing to hold it at bay.

She gasps as I lightly rock my hips, rubbing my erection against her and proving to her just how fucked she is.

“Use your shadows,” I growl.

“No.”

“Uncage them, now. I can feel them pressing against your skin, witch.” I run the fingertips of my hand holding the cigarette down her arm. “Feel their agony? They’re starving from being trapped so long. The more they suffer, the more you shall as well.” I put the cigarette to my lips and take another drag. Smoke slowly slips from my mouth as I press featherlight kisses along her neck. When I reach her pulse point, I nip and suckle at the spot, speaking into her mind as I drive her body mad.

“Would you rather your shadows lash out at someone against your will? What about if they attack that peculiar pink-haired friend of yours? Could you live with yourself if all you had left of her was her teeth that you salvaged after you murdered her?”

Evie’s heart rate gallops in her chest, and I know I’ve found my mark.

“If you don’t use them, they will use you.”

I inhale once more and stab out the cigarette on her countertop between her ring and middle finger. As far as she’s concerned, it was a narrow miss.

“You can kill the pastor if you decide to be smart. Let your magic out before you get yourself killed. It’s not too late to go after the pastor, and as for Solomor…” I release her and fade back into the shadows, whispering huskily into her mind. “If I ever catching you talking to a demon other than myself again, I’ll introduce you to a side of myself that only the damned see.”

TWENTY-FOUR

Lorcan

I follow the demonic presence closest to me through the shadows. Solomor is not powerful enough to realize I am stalking him through the Shadow Realm, and even if he was, it wouldn’t make a difference. He can run back and tell whoever holds his leash whatever they want. It won’t change the fact that I will protect my little witch from everyone, excluding myself. Solomor comes to a halt, and I step out of the shadows of my realm and see the blinding midday light in the Human Realm. I take in my surroundings, noticing nothing unusual.

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