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  I spun my claustranima and resheathed it. My soul spun around, encased in the diamond handle. It was amazing how little it was.

  “This heat is a bitch. I hope I get Antarctica next,” Dilana teased.

  Neither of us could wait for Mt. P’s Hell's Mouth to finally seal. I'd been stuck here for forty-three years. They were only open for fifty years and it usually took the angels a few to find them.

  “The Deumos should have scooped that guy up quicker.” Nye looked behind them for the beautiful protectors of the bantlings. Nothing. “How many closings you been through?”

  “Too many to count.”

  “Ever been stationed a couple months prior to one?”

  “Never, why?”

  “I used to be a closer…I was trained to read the signs. We should have a Deumos trying to kill us right now.”

  “And if the nasty little shit would have cut through town we would have had to abandon our mission to avoid being seen.”

  “Don’t curse, it’s not ladylike.”

  Dilana rolled her eyes then crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Let me get this straight, you want to be fighting with the females?”

  “No, but…at least we got it before it hit the distribution center—”

  I lifted my head to see if anyone was on a smoke break at the end of the road and my heart stopped. A normal was fewer than ten feet away and staring directly at me.

  “Oh heck,” I cursed under my breath.

  She was stumbling backward, but only on one leg. Her deep brown eyes caught mine. They reminded me of a cattail, the brown velvet tops telling of the softness and depth contained within. I couldn’t move.

  Fear crossed her tanned face. Her sunshine-colored hair was falling from a ponytail and framing her jaw line, which still had some roundness to it like a child’s.

  Single-leg-hopping backward she fell on her butt and screamed. Using her arms, she tried to get away from us. She hadn't released her gaze from me. What had she seen?

  “Nye. Nye!” snapped Dilana.

  “What?”

  “Grab her,” Dilana ordered.

  “Right.”

  I ran up the road to get the woman and she kicked my shin with her good leg, which caused a sharp pain to shoot up to my knee.

  “Don’t touch me,” she warned with a growl that was strangely arousing. Her hands pushed her up off the gravel and she stood on her good leg with her fists clenched.

  “Do you need help wrangling the two-year-old?” Dilana asked.

  The girl was short. She probably only came to the top of my abs, but she was definitely a woman. A woman with amazing curves. I shook my head and focused on the task at hand.

  “Knock it off,” I warned Dilana then turned back to the girl with my hands open. “Look, I’m not gonna hurt you.”

  “Kiss my ass, motherfucker. You ain’t layin’ a hand on me.”

  Jabbing at my gut, she made contact, which caused me to buckle over. Then she went for a kidney shot. Now she'd irritated me, not to mention I thought I was going to be pissing blood. I was definitely going to lay more than one hand on her now.

  Bull rushing her, I made her fall back, but I caught her around her waist before she hit the ground and then threw her over my shoulder.

  “Help! Help!” she screamed.

  “I am helping you,” I grumbled. “Hush up.”

  “Like hell I’m going to shut up!”

  Her body squirmed in my arms. I breathed in deeply to regain my composure and clasped down harder. Her fists attempted assault by pounding my back, but instead they felt like a much needed massage.

  “There’s my arrow.”

  Dilana’s accent wasn’t as pronounced as she spoke calmly, pulling the small arrow from the back of the woman’s thigh.

  “Your what?” The woman screamed in pain. “Who the hell are you? What the fuck are you doing to me?”

  “D, that was stupid,” I said. Setting the woman down on the bed of the truck, I ripped off my Ed Hardy T-shirt and strapped it to her leg. “You never pull out a protruding object. I loved that shirt. You’re buying me a’notheren.”

  “Why? You have four of that one.”

  “Three,” I corrected. “’Cuz of you. No gift wrap needed either.”

  The woman’s eyes looked back and forth and she seemed bewildered we weren’t even noticing her screams. Maybe our ambivalence to her was more unsettling than her injury. I was sure Dilana was trying to figure out how to avoid Gabriel’s wrath on this one. I was trying to figure out how to avoid this woman’s death. Either way, we were both calculating Gabriel’s fury.

  For me it would be an extension on my sentence. Another twenty or thirty years, but Dilana, having chosen to marry and become an Other, had Kiyoshi to worry about. Length of sentence wasn’t her concern now. Gabriel had other tricks for her.

  The woman squirmed underneath my hand, which seemed massive on her hips. She kicked me with her good leg, hitting my thigh, which felt like a small dog jumping up on my leg. Her strength was already draining. I turned to look at her body splayed in front of me, her hips and curves clearly defined by her skintight outfit. Her arms, thighs and hips all had smooth muscular definition. It had been a hundred years since the curve of a hip made my mind rush to the thought of holding a woman close to me. But this woman’s body not only stirred the quiet beast inside me, it made me remember I had only tricked myself into thinking I was a eunuch.

  “What are you going to do with me?” she cried, shaking in fear.

  “Nothing. We’ll treat you and let you go.”

  “Right, like I believe that. I just saw…”

  “What did you see?” I growled, staring into her eyes. “Nothing is what you saw.”

  “Fine, I saw nothing. Drop me at the hospital and I’ll make my own way home. You’re right, I saw nothing. I know nothing. I can keep my mouth shut. Just…just…”

  “Hush up,” I ordered and threw her in the cab of Dilana’s truck. “Take my bike,” I barked at Dilana.

  “No. I got my truck,” Dilana thrust me against the driver’s side door. “Leave her.”

  “She’ll die if I leave her.”

  “So?”

  “You think ole’ high and mighty isn’t going to figure it out? Her spirit rises up and who ever meets her at the pearlies is going to send a little note to Gabriel. You wanna chance that?”

  “You can’t hide her in the house.”

  “I’ve got four days before Gabriel checks in. I’ll figure something out. I’m taking the truck.”

  I slammed the door and threw the truck into drive. Stomping hard on the gas, the truck peeled away from the side of the road, leaving Dilana standing stunned in my wake. I looked at the woman who crouched against the passenger door of the pickup and grunted.

  “Look. Really. You can drop me…anywhere.”

  Her hand was pressed hard against the window and the fear emanating off her made my stomach churn. I hated when women feared me, but I understood why. I was scary. Disgusting. The Dark One.

  Staring straight ahead, I kept my eyes focused and my jaw tight. There was no way this couldn't end badly. I hated the noon demons. Half the time they escaped because we didn’t want the normals to find out. This bantling turned down a dirt road which gave us a chance, but no, some dumb wench had to be running down it. Why the hell would this woman be running at one in the afternoon? Didn’t she have a life? I said a silent prayer of forgiveness for calling her such a hateful name.

  I could see her hand was reaching for the door handle, which made me wonder if she actually thought she could jump and survive. I laughed.

  “I wouldn’t try it,” I warned, shooting a look at her.

  Her breathing increased and I could see the tears in her eyes.

  “Don’t cry,” it came out as an order, but it was really more of a plea. “It won’t help.”

  “Don’t tell me what the hell to do!” she screamed with a fury I wasn’t prepared for. Her
eyes bore into me as she braced herself against the dashboard and the headrest. “If you think I’m just going let you touch…”

  “I don’t want to touch you,” I snapped.

  That made her catch her breath and her arms released their hold and crossed on her chest. Now she actually looked like she was pouting.

  “What? I’m just supposed to want to get between your legs because there’s a hole there? Nah.”

  “Why did you grab me?” she growled through gritted teeth like I'd just line jumped her at Target.

  “You’re hurt.”

  “You’re not going toward the hospital.”

  “No, I’m not. They couldn’t help you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because the poison that’s about to hit you in the next, say, five minutes, would take them hours to figure out.”

  Chapter 2

  Damarion

  I sat silent on the floor, my legs crossed beneath me. My shaved head was covered in tattoos that took the form of flames licking at my skull. I demanded we remain motionless in the darkened room. The few windows in the basement of my home had been blacked out. I was trying to feel the bantling that was supposed to emerge at noon.

  “Pivane. Do you feel it yet?” I whispered.

  “No, Yahweh. I cannot.”

  I looked at Pivane with his hair tight to his head. The sharp nose and small features suited his name of weasel.

  The seven in my charge attempted to locate other demons in their bantling stage, all while playing like a happy, little middle-class-Brady-fucking-bunch while those who dwelled in this village went on cheering for the local teams and shopping at Wally World, oblivious to the fact that every day demons emerged from the Hell’s Mouth, a place tucked safely beneath their chemically treated lawns.

  But right now, I needed to focus. Looking around the circle, it consisted of Pivane, Nemesio, Cailean, Keir, and myself—the five of us focusing on the demon, helping it enter the world.

  Nemesio was a vixen. Her black hair was always slicked back and kept short at the jaw line. Her piercing blue eyes had destroyed more than one male. The muscular cuts in her body were usually only seen between the pages of Maxim.

  Cailean was just as bad. She was only five foot but her body was definitely made for sin. Her double-D chest, which was always clad in leather, crumpled men left and right.

  Keir was the scariest. I had yet to figure out why.

  Focus! Noon retrievals were supposed to be the easiest. This shouldn’t be an issue. Keir’s body jerked and fell forward. Shit.

  I looked at Keir passed out on the floor and groaned. My hands pressed against the cracked foundation of the basement as I began to lumber up the unfinished wooden stairs in disgust. Shoving open the door, I wandered down the taupe-colored hall.

  How the hell had the Frozen pulled this shit off? It was bad enough they'd gotten the last three midnight risers, but to get a noon one? I knew I was going to be paying for this one.

  Crossing into the kitchen, I looked for something, anything that could serve as food. Ramen. Fuck. One of these days I was going to get a thick, juicy steak. I missed those.

  My punishment could have been worse. Being caught in bed with a member of the royal family hadn’t been the best way to get ahead. Luckily I was saved, if being stuck in the formulaic kitchen of another suburban home in this shithole town could be called salvation. But I was going to have to answer for the latest losses.

  A light glowed from the white microwave and inside, a Styrofoam cup spun slowly. The humming from the molecules being bombarded allowed me to zone out. It was as if my brain was rotating in the small box.

  “Is there another?” Pivane asked as he came into the kitchen.

  “Did you call them back in?”

  “Done. Zuma saw the Dark One cut off the head.”

  “What?”

  “The back road off 34. Zuma almost had the bantling when the Dark One killed him.”

  “Why the hell didn’t she attack?” I raged.

  “A normal was on the road. The Big Female shot her.”

  A triple beep brought me back from my anger.

  Yanking the door for the microwave almost completely off, I gulped the salty juice. I hated my dependence on the overly MSGed mixture. Being on earth was turning me into a damn diabetic but instead of sugar, it was salt. With each failure, I felt a loss to my body strong enough to make my head spin in weakness, something I couldn’t display to the jackasses with me in the house. They'd turn on me in a second. I guess that’s the price one paid to be in charge.

  I stormed off to my office only to find Nemesio. Pushing past her, I fell into my faux leather chair, the poly-blend fabric crackling as I sat. I was much too much of a man to be sitting in such a small chair.

  “Tell me Yahweh, how can I service you today?” Nemesio slithered while her hands slid down my chest as I sat back in my chair. “It's been so long. Have you forgotten how I’ve helped you in the past?”

  “Yes,” I said, not wanting to remember the alcohol induced error.

  “You appear to be in a precarious position. I see frustration has you weakened. Yahweh, I’d hate to have another in your place. May I ease you?”

  “Nemesio, take out your needs on another in the house or destroy a normal’s love, but leave me to my work.”

  I examined the map in front of me. The repeated use of the same holes had to be the problem. All the Frozen had to do was keep watching those places. Did the Prince not know he was the cause of all this carnage and not me? It wouldn’t matter; I'd be the one to blame. My brain was becoming mush and the streets on the map started to cross each other as my vision doubled. Throwing my head back, I brought my hands to my eyes, hoping to rub away the film that seemed to be growing over them.

  It hadn’t always been this way. Only a few years ago we’d averaged eight to ten bantlings per week. They’d been easier to locate too.

  Nemesio straddled me. I opened my eyes only to see her piercing blue eyes staring back at me, melting my reserve to tell her to fuck off. She was evil. Her body oozed sex, but her mind…her mind was a minefield.

  “If I didn’t know you better, I’d assume you were trying to take my position.”

  “I’ll take whatever position you want,” her tongue licked my ear and continued up to my horns. For the proper angle, she stood up, which caused her perfect rack to land on my lips. She sucked the small horns on my head and they grew.

  “You want to know what position I want you in?”

  “Yes,” she purred.

  “The-get-the-fuck-out-of-my-office-position.”

  She pulled back and looked at me. Her hand slid down my face.

  “I thought you preferred the bent-over-your-desk-your-dick-in-my-ass position,” she growled with a desire that made me want to wretch at the thought of any sexual congress involving her hollow body.

  “You suck your brother with that mouth?” I snipped.

  “That depends. Who’s your mother?”

  “Get out!” I ordered, shoving her back.

  Falling back, she caught my waistband and tugged. My cock popped up like a damn Jack-in-the-box.

  “Hmm…looks like you need a release. I could just…” dropping to her knees her lips came close, but I lifted her back up.

  She turned herself around and straddled me once again. This time she bent over and hiked up her skirt, which could only be described as a belt for her thong. As she shoved her perfect ass in my face I knew there was only so much more I could take. Forty-nine years and only one slip…no, the Princess could never forgive me.

  “Are you sure?” she teased, wagging herself in front of me.

  That’s it. I slammed her down hard against the desk, my hand firmly locked between her shoulder blades. Her back crackled under the pressure.

  “You want to fuck me in the mood I’m in?” I pushed harder on her back to get my point across. “You sure about that? Pain is the only feeling you’ll receive.”

&n
bsp; “My pain is your pleasure, Yahweh,” she said, her voice ragged as it tried to escape her lungs.

  “Who sent you?”

  “Your scent drew me to your office. Your body excites me. Let me…” she gasped for air, then with a flick of her wrist locked the door from across the room. “Pleasure you. My body was put here for you.”

  As a damn temptation. Fuck you, Lucifer the Fifth…I will not…my cock strained in the air, the head mighty with a drip of cum. It begged for a release. Released into what? Nemesio’s…I looked down and only saw her openings warm and wet.

  Closing my eyes I slammed myself hard into her core, the source of all evil in my world. My hand moved to her head, forcing it into the wood of the desk. I didn’t want to hear another word come from those venomous lips. The soft flesh between her legs tensed, grabbing hold of me. It was always open and warm, but today it was as if it wanted me, needed me, inside.

  “If you speak one word during this, I'll kill you.”

  Her ass was like an apple, round and hard, just the way I liked it. Any of the Deumos, Nemesio's kind, were tens on the human scale. Any human would want his dick wrapped by one like Nemesio. Her kind really knew how to suck and pull on a cock.

  I grabbed her hips and pounded harder, my eyes trained ahead on the door. I focused on the Princess. Trying to envision her underneath me. Fuck that. I wanted this to be painful. I'd already had a shitty morning. If I thought of the Princess, I’d ease up the assault of Nemesio’s body.

  The Prince. That was enough to make me pound her. My fingers dug into her skin. Yeah. Fucking him in the ass would make me feel better. That cocksucker deserved it. Sticking me in this stink hole just because his sister liked the taste of my cum. Not. My. Fault.

  A tail was starting to emerge from Nemesio, a sign she was actually enjoying this. I didn’t want that. Pounding harder, I arched my back and let out a roar as her tail whipped behind me and the barbed end pierced the skin on the back of my neck. To demon men, it was a sign of conquest, but to me it was a brand of dishonor. Sexually gratifying Nemesio wasn’t high on my priority list.

  Now Nemesio was moaning.