A Devious Descent (The Deviants #1)

CHAPTER 16

Frankie

Z arreth left to find Ronin and see if he learned anything more about the weird hell-human things roaming around.

I call the greenhouse to see if I’m needed at work this afternoon. I dread asking for another day off, but I need time to clear my head.

“Thank you for calling Grassroots. How may I help you?” I almost drop the phone, shocked at how professional the voice on the other end sounds.

“Um, is Dave there?” I ask, recognizing the voice, but not being able to place it.

“Is this you, Frankie? It’s me, Carol.” What the hell is Ms. Anderson doing answering the phone? I thought Dave didn’t like her.

“Ms. Anderson?” I ask, confused.

“Yes, it’s me dear! Dave told me about your brother, and he was struggling with the cash register so I told him I would help until you were ready to return.”

That woman really is a godsend. “You don’t know how much that means to me. Can you tell Dave I will call him later with an update?”

“Take all the time you need, honey. I’ll take care of Dave. He’s really just a big teddy bear, you know.” Her voice almost sounds whimsical.

“Um, sure.” What is happening? Has the whole world gone mad? “Thank you,” I add before disconnecting.

I call Jess next. “Finally!” she wails into the phone. “I’ve been worried sick about you.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t call earlier. A lot happened last night, and I needed time to process it. Can you come over?”

“Be there in ten,” she replies before disconnecting the call.

She works as an independent computer geek. I don’t know exactly what she does, but she must be good at it because she makes a decent amount of money and gets to be picky about her clients and her hours.

Exactly ten minutes later, Jess is standing in my living room peering down the hall where my bedroom is located. “I’m surprised Toddy McHotty isn’t here.”

Tears form in my eyes as she walks over to give me a hug before sitting next to me on the couch. “What did he do? I’ll kick his ass, demon or not,” she threatens.

I laugh at the image of my best friend trying to beat up a seven-foot demon. “It’s not Zarreth. He’s great. Amazing, really.”

The stupid grin on my face disappears as I prepare myself to tell my best friend I’m a demon. “I have something crazy to tell you and you won’t believe me.”

I tell her everything. I tell her about Ronin and the succubi with red skin. I tell her about meeting Dante and him not knowing anything about my brother. And I finally tell her my real dad was a demon, and I may be a secret weapon who could destroy the world.

I stay quiet while she processes everything. I shouldn’t be nervous. Jess is more than a sister, and she’s always accepted me. “Say something.”

“So, this Ronin.” She looks at me seriously. “Is he hot?”

I pick up a couch pillow, throwing it at her. “This is serious, Jess.”

She catches the pillow and sets it on her lap. “I know. I just…I don’t know what to say. I can’t imagine how scared you must be, but you know you’re still you, right? You’ll always be the sweet, funny, stubborn, pain in the ass you’ve always been. That’s not gonna change.”

Her words wrap around me like a hug. For the first time since discovering I’m part demon, I feel a flicker of hope. Maybe I can still be the girl who makes stupid jokes and dances in the rain. Maybe I can find a way to navigate this new reality without losing who I am. I can do this with Jess by my side.

I scoot closer, wrapping my arms around her. I can’t imagine my life without my best friend. “I love you, Jess.”

She squeezes me back. “I love you too. We’re in this together. No matter what happens, you won’t be alone.”

We pull apart from the embrace as I wipe my eyes. I take a cleansing breath, a small weight lifting from my shoulders. “I could really go for some weed right about now.”

She laughs. “See, I told you you’re the same person, you little pothead—it just so happens I have some with me.”

Dashing from the room, she returns holding a joint. Just looking at it relaxes me a little.

Jess sits cross-legged on the couch and hits the joint before passing it to me. “Now tell me about you and Zarreth? Is he a good kisser? Have you done it yet? Does he have spikes on his dick or anything cool like that?”

This little bit of normalcy is exactly what I need. We spend the rest of the afternoon smoking weed and gossiping about Zarreth and Brent. She tells me she wouldn’t mind hooking up with Brent when he comes around, but she isn’t going to wait for him. She says she’s in her hoe-era and can’t be tied down.

Zarreth returns to find us sprawled on the couch eating potato chips, singing Doing Time by Sublime.

We notice him at the same time and say, “The Toddinaterrrr,” dragging out his nickname before giggling uncontrollably.

We finally pull ourselves together long enough to notice a tall blonde standing next to Zarreth. His hair is peeking out from under his hat, his eyes a startling shade of blue. He flashes us a great smile. If I didn’t know he was a demon, I would think he belonged on a surfboard.

“Who’s the surfer?” Jess points to Ronin, her eyes roaming over his toned body.

Ronin walks over to Jess as he grabs her hand, bringing it to his lips. “You can call me Ronin.”

“Yeah, because that’s your name, dumbass,” Zarreth tells him.

Jess scoots over, patting the couch cushion between us. “You can call me Jessica.”

Ronin squeezes his massive body between ours and sits. I don’t know why I find it so funny, but I laugh until I snort.

Zarreth walks over to me and bends down, brushing his lips against mine. “It’s nice to see you laughing,” he says before sitting in the recliner next to the couch.

“I think my brain is broken. I tend to laugh during stressful situations. It’s either that or have a nervous breakdown,” I say.

Jess speaks up. “Alright, I’m just going to ask because Frankie never will. What’s going to happen to her?”

I guess there’s no more living in denial. I look at Zarreth, anxiously waiting for him to answer.

“I’ve never met someone who’s half demon before, but for full blooded demons, it can take years for them to complete the change, coming into their powers. It’s like puberty for humans. It’s different for everyone,” Zarreth says.

The mention of puberty makes me think back to when I would tease Nate every time his voice cracked. Could Nate also be part demon? It would make sense being we share the same blood. “What if Nate is also half-demon? He must have the same abilities I do. What if Aradon has him?”

“I don’t think so.” Zarreth shakes his head. “Your brother is older than you, right? So, you would have at least seen his eyes glow by now if he were part demon.”

Relief floods through me. Nate didn’t show any signs of the change before he went missing. I would have noticed. At least I can find peace in knowing Aradon isn’t interested in him.

“I still don’t understand why Aradon would want me. I’m sure there’s a full-blooded demon out there stronger than I am. I bet there’s one who can even open a jar of pickles without struggling.”

Zarreth looks at Ronin, who answers, “There’s a prophecy from long ago about a half-blooded demon who would possess the power to destroy entire realms. The prophecy has been long forgotten. It was simply turned into a nursery rhyme to make young demons behave. But years ago, Aradon hired a seer who predicted the half-breed would be born in the twenty-first century.”

“But why does Aradon believe I’m the half-breed he wants? Why me?”

Zarreth answers, “Half-blooded demons are very rare. I have never met one before. Also, your eyes glow green when you use your magic. Only the deviants had eyes that glow like yours, and they were extinct years ago.”

“So basically, on top of being a demon, I’m a freak of nature.” I puff out my cheeks as I exhale. “Great.”

“How did they go extinct?” Jess asks.

“Ah, well…” Zarreth stalls.

Ronin interrupts. “They were slaughtered centuries ago because they possessed a death touch, making them extremely dangerous. But the powerful ones could kill using only their mind.”

Oh my God! My mind flashes back to the guy I pushed off me at the bar. I guess I really was the reason his eyes bled. “So, once I finish demon puberty, I’ll be walking around randomly killing everything I touch until I figure out how to control my abilities? This is so fucked up.”

“Maybe it will be like Elixir from the Xavier Institute,” Jess says. “He could also heal things.”

Zarreth chimes in. “I have no idea who you’re talking about, but if Elixir can cure viruses, mend broken bones, boost abilities, or cleanse a body of poisons, then yeah, I guess.”

He moves so he’s kneeling in front of me, taking my hands in his. “Your abilities will be triggered by your emotions. You’re not an evil person. I’ll teach you how to control your magic and you’ll be using it for good in no time.”

“What if Aradon finds me?” I ask.

Standing, Zarreth pulls me into his arms. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“We all got you, Frankie,” Jess says as she hugs me from the other side.

“I got you too, Frankie,” Ronin says. “Zarreth is my closest friend. I would die for him, and I would die for his mate as well.”

I close my eyes, basking in all the love surrounding me. I have no idea how I would manage without my friends.

I spend the rest of the day processing the fact that I’m being hunted by a demon who wants to use me to destroy realms when a thought pops in my head.

“Why did Dante let me walk away? He can see the future, right? He must know what I’m capable of.” I rinse my toothbrush, placing it back in its holder.

Zarreth comes up behind me, nibbling the side of my neck. He grabs both hands and firmly places them on the countertop. We can’t seem to keep our hands off each other.

“No one knows why Dante does what he does.” Lifting the back of my shirt, he grabs my hips and kisses his way down my spine. “He must see something that benefits him by letting you go. I’m sure he didn’t do it out of the goodness of his heart.”

“So, we don’t have to worry about Dante for now, right?” I moan.

“I don’t think he’s an immediate threat, but I wouldn’t write him off. He might not be as evil as Aradon, but he is unpredictable and will stop at nothing to get what he wants.”

“Great,” I say sarcastically.

“Right now, all you have to worry about is watching yourself in the mirror so you can see your eyes glow when you come.” He slides his fingers into my panties, finding my clit.

And like that, all my worries are gone. At least for now.