Page 30 of Demons and Debts
‘Think I’m going to poison you, or something?’ I ask, a little insulted that she’d think I’d try to off her in such a dumb way. I’m a fucking incubus. I could literally kill her a thousand much cooler ways than poison.
But as she looks at me, I see a little surprise in her expression. That wasn’t what she was afraid of at all.
She looks away as I stare down at her, filling the bowl. I watch as she puts the spoon next to it, sitting down as she drenches the cereal in milk. As soon as there’s enough to just cover the flakes, she picks up the spoon and begins to eat quickly, not looking up from her food.
It’s a minute or two before she does glance up and finds me still watching her. Instead of looking at all self-conscious as I’d expect, though, she tilts her head to the side a little as she swallows what’s in her mouth.
‘I don’t like it when it gets soggy.’
Sure. Because that explains everything.
She takes another spoonful immediately, wiping her chin with the back of her hand when a drop of milk trickles down from her mouth.
I nod slowly. ‘Right. Look, I have to go … see to some things. Don’t leave the house. Understand?’
She nods with her mouth full and gives me an absent finger wave as she gets back to her breakfast and continues to stuff her face.
I back away from her slowly, trying to make out what about her is sooff. Why does she interest me? Maybe it’s because she’s different. Yeah, that must be it, I decide. She’s …interesting. The contracted girls aren’t like this one. They seem more likenormalhumans. This one not so much. That’s all it is.
I step into Vic’s study and I’m glad to find him already at his desk. Though I see as I catch sight of the clock on the wall behind him that it’s almost eleven; later than I thought. I glance out into the hall before I shut the door quietly, making sure none of the others are lurking.
‘We need to talk about Sie,’ I say, not beating around the bush.
He looks up and leans back, his chair creaking. ‘What is it?’
‘He’s on the edge,’ I say. ‘I went to see him last night before he and Paris headed out and Monique was blissed out in his bed.’
‘Good. At least he’s feeding.’
‘Not good,’ I tell him. ‘He looked like shit. Like he hadn’t had anywhere near enough. When I spoke to him, he played it off like he was fine, but …’ I run a hand through my short hair, ‘he didn’t sound like himself.’
‘What’s your medical opinion?’
I sit down hard, but when I talk, I practically whisper. ‘I think that if he’s not getting enough food, it won’t be long before he loses it and, when he does finally explode, he’ll take this whole MC down with him.’
Vic’s eyes are steady as he watches me; for what, I can’t say. Melodramatics, maybe?
Then he sighs. ‘What can we do?’
I raise my hands up in front of me. ‘I don’t know. Vitamins? Supplements? New on-call girls? Maybe I take a trip to the fae markets to see if they have anything.’
‘Fuck. That.’ Vic growls. ‘I’d rather cut off my left nut than go begging those sly pricks for help.’
I stand up. ‘We can always pay.’
‘They’ll only want the things we least want to give,’ Vic sneers and I shrug.
He’s not wrong. Those fae assholes want all the things. First-borns of the humans; their very souls if they can get ‘em. But with supes it’s usually a favor. You won’t know what they’ll demand, but it’ll be at a time and place of their choosing and you have to pay it. No matter what.
‘I’ll look into options,’ I say.
Vic gives me a nod. ‘Where’s the girl?’
‘Eating breakfast in the kitchen.’
‘Alone?’
I shrug. ‘Where’s she gonna go? As soon as she sets foot outside, we’ll know. Besides, we’re at least four hours’ walk from civilization.’
