Page 64 of The Wickedness of Man

“Then they’ve been planning it for a very long time,” said Carmilla with a nod. “Yes, that’s what I’m afraid of. They starved you; they contained him, and while not keeping him celibate, they ensured he would never trigger his own awakening—until now. They made me believe I’d won the demonic lottery, finding the two of you and arranging your meeting.”

Despite fearing what it meant that the organization had an interest in the two of us, together, I couldn’t help but watch the way Magda moved; in the way she worried with her hair and ran her deft fingers through the damp strands. I longed to touch her. To kick the doctor out, rip Magda out of her clothes and say, “To hell with it all,” and spend however long my last few hours of freedom were losing myself to the feeling of being inside of her… She was like a hunger I couldn’t sate; a thirst I couldn’t quench. I forced my gaze away, only to find the doctor watching me out of the corner of her eye.

I can’t let them get to her.Ever.

I pulled the key fob I’d stolen from the garage out of my pocket. “Listen, take this—the car doesn’t have GPS or Bluetooth, the windows are tinted, and the plates are digital, so they’ll change every fifteen minutes. Take Magda and get out of here. The two of you have a chance, but they’re going to come looking for me. Demon or not, I’ve never known the organization to lose track of asingleagent. I’m a risk to you both so long as we’re together.”

Carmilla placed her hand over the keys but didn’t pull away from me. “Caleb, you’re the sweetest demon I’ve ever met—but you’re also incredibly naïve for someone who hunts people for a living.”

Shame flashed through me. “I didn’t do it because I wanted to,” I snapped. “I had no choice. The organization would have killed me if I refused.”

“I don’t do this because I have a choice either,” said Carmilla, her gaze sad. She replaced her glasses; in control of the situation again, and placed a hand on my arm. “So, believe me when I tell you that there is no way that I am letting either you or Sleeping Beauty here go back there…” She tilted her head enough to let me see that she’d wrapped her tail around Magda, who looked like she was about to pass out. “Or out of my sight until I know what those fuckers want from youboth.”

My knees went weak, and I stumbled to the floor. “You’re… siphoning our energynow?”

“I’ve been pulling it from both of you—I’m feelingextremelypowerful right now, so I suggest you just settle for a while.”

“Please—you don’t understand what they’ll do if they?—”

“Caleb,” said Carmilla, “you two being low on energy will make you harder to track. I will take care of the situation.”

“Carmilla!” I tried once more, but my vision was darkening at the edges.

She leaned in close to my face, her eyes glowing a deep, vivacious red. “I’ve been alive for more years than you could possibly imagine, child. I’ve fought these monsters on two different continents and in several countries. I’ve got more reasons than you could ever know for taking them down, so you’re just going to have to trust when I say I can handle myself… And in the meantime, please remember this: You’re not the only killer demon the organization ever created.”

Magda

Ihadn’t quite lost consciousness by the time Carmilla rolled her neck, steppedoutof her human visage—or rather, dropped the hint of being human at all—and became a succubus: wings, tail, horns from her temples… a smile that revealed gleaming fangs… her eyes shining red in the center of black sclera. She shook her leathery wings out as if they needed a good stretching, and then lifted me with her tail, and hefted Caleb with both arms.

Is that… is that what I’ll look like?

She sailed from the window and landed, silent as a shadow, behind a dark black SUV I didn’t recognize, but that responded to the fob in her hand.

“Where… are… taking…” I managed.

Carmilla pressed the lift button and the trunk opened. She trundled Caleb’s larger form inside and then pulled me around and laid me down next to him.

“Your friend’s apartment—above her café. It’s unlisted, so it should be safe,” she said. “For now, why don’t you two just get comfortable? You’ll be back here a while, and I’m going to need all the help keeping your powers contained as possible.”

“Wait… w-what?”

She shoved me toward Caleb; even in his sleep, he rolled over to pull me to his chest, and once there, I felt like a safety blanket had been wrapped around me. My whole body felt warm; tingly even. I began drifting downward into sleep, even as I fought to surface once more, but it was too late. His heartbeat pounded gently in my ear, and I nuzzled tighter against him.

“Therrrrre we go,” said Carmilla. “This is what you twoshouldhave been doing safely back at my office hours ago.”

She closed the trunk, and I went into blackness.

“We’ve basically been inseparable since we were kids. I’m so glad you were able to help her. I mean, after everything that happened with my brother… yeesh. But then she just meets that hunk and in one night… I mean… wow. You must be a miracle worker.”

I lifted my head, confused.Katie?

I opened my eyes to find myself on Katie’s couch. The lights in her living room were dimmed, but the kitchen light was on, and at the small table in her corner, she and the doctor were chit-chatting amicably. Katie’s back was to me, but Carmilla cast a glance over her shoulder and caught my eye, then turned her charms back on Katie as my friend plied the succubus with some of her mouthwatering bear claws—my favorite pastries. I closed my eyes. How was it possible to have slept so much and still be this exhausted? It took me longer than I realized to understand that although I was in the vicinity of Katie’s couch, I was not actuallyonit.

Underneath me was a now-familiar chest, rising and falling in gentle breaths. I snuggled into Caleb before I realized what I was doing, curling a knee on top of his abdomen, my fingers tangling into the light tuft of his chest hair. He squeezed me against the couch cushions, his chin resting on my head, one hand wrapping around my bare waist, fingers toying with the edge of my panties. A noise rumbled low in his throat in as he slept, and I sighed contentedly.

Wait a minute… my underwear?

My eyes snapped open again. I struggled to right myself, and then looked down at Caleb. He was down to his boxer briefs, and I was in my panties and bra.

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