Chapter Three
chapter three
VERNIMER
I spirit myself across the plane of Xendail to Earth, landing in a dark alley filled with trash cans and used needles. This is not a good place for humans to be. So why did my consciousness send me here when I heard that voice in my mind again? No humans are here, let alone my mate. There are?—
“Help!’ the voice cries, and it’s in both my head and my ears. “Please, someone!”
“Shut the fuck up!” Another voice mingles with my mate’s, the threat heavy in his tone.
A growl escapes my throat, and I’m moving before I give my body the command. The car the voices are coming from is rocking, a mighty struggle taking place inside. I can sense the emotions of my mate, and he is frightened.
I snatch the door open and pull the rotund man out, his bulk not registering as I toss him against the wall. He loses consciousness, so I don’t have to pay attention to him as I lean into the car, holding my hand out for my mate. He flips over, eyes peeled wide as he pulls his jacket down over his exposed body .
When I landed on this plane, my body shifted from demon to human, so all he sees is a tanned man with gray eyes and blond hair pulled back into a bun. I’m not sure he can handle me in my demon form—seven feet tall, curling horns and dark but blazing gray eyes. He’d run for the hills.
He still looks like he may bolt, but I put him at ease by saying, “I heard your plea. Let me help you.”
The man I tossed out of the car comes to and tries to get to his feet, but I turn around and kick him in the gut. He wheezes, bending over and holding his belly. Again, I turn back to the car, where my mate is putting on a pair of tiny shorts. I frown. It’s far too cold for this to be his only attire. His embarrassed gaze meets mine, and my hearts go out to him. No one should be made to feel bad about how they dress.
“It’s okay, little one. I’m here to help.”
Nodding, he places a shaky hand in mine. “I just wanna go home.”
“I’ll take you there.”
He slides out of the car and stands beside me. With a gasp, he yells, “Watch out!” just as the man I kicked in the gut comes at me with a sharp knife. I raise my arm to block the blow, and the knife embeds itself into my now-human flesh.
With a roar, I grab the man by the throat and say a string of words in Xendailish, willing my demon hands and claws to make an appearance. My demon hand encircles the whole of his meaty throat. He beats at my arm with wide, scared eyes, but that doesn’t sway me. He tried to hurt my mate, and if I were a real human, he would have hurt me as well. Now, he dies.
I close my hand around his throat, digging my claws into the soft flesh of his neck. He lets out a small scream before I yank my hand to the side, breaking his neck and separating his head from his shoulders.
Panting, I stand over his body, barely containing the roar threatening to loose from my throat because of my fresh kill. The only thing that stops me is the whine behind me.
I shake my hand to rid it of blood, then rub it on the dark pants I have on before I turn to my mate. He’s cowering by the car, looking down at the body at me feet. I’m glad he did not run when he saw what I did.
“Are you alright, little one?”
He swallows hard, his eyes not leaving the body. “You killed him.”
“Yes. He was hurting you. And you asked for help.”
His eyes flick up to mine. “You killed him … for me?”
“Of course,” I say, a note of incredulity in my tone. Why does he think I’m here? “You called. I came.”
His eyebrows scrunch up in an adorable way. “I called?”
I nod, then drop to my haunches in front of him. “Yes. I heard your plea to save you from your life. I am here.”
My mate’s mouth drops open in shock. “I never said that. Not out loud.”
“I am aware. What is your name, little one?”
“Lucas,” he mumbles, teeth chattering as he comes down from the adrenaline of his ordeal. “Lucas Miller. What’s yours?”
“Vernimer.” He raises an eyebrow, but before he can ask about my different sounding name, I say, “Come, Lucas,” loving the taste of his name on my tongue. “We must leave. I will have some of my servants clean the body and the car.” I send a mental command to Prexel and a few other servants to have them cross over to this plane.
Not all demons from Xendail can cross over the barrier on command. As a demon from the fourth dimension, I can move freely. When humans want to sell their souls to a demon, they call us forth, and we need to be able to transport at will to collect the souls when the time comes. That came in handy so I could retrieve my mate. A demon from the third dimension would not be able to leave as freely.
My servants appear at the end of the alley, and they change forms before they approach. They keep a safe distance as I hold out a hand to Lucas, giving him the option to come with me or not.
I sigh in relief when he takes it. “Are you really going to take me home?”
“Do you want me to take you home?”
He gazes at me with watery green eyes. They reflect equal parts fright and relief. “No.”
Lucas’s teeth chatter again, but not because of adrenaline. It’s freezing out here, and he barely has on clothes. The thin jacket he’s wearing offers nothing by way of warmth.
“Come. I will take you somewhere safe.”
“I need to check on … someone.”
“Let’s warm you, then we can discuss anything you’d like.” He nods, and I lead him away from the scene of my crime.
We walk down the street for a block. When we turn onto the next street, it’s as if we entered an entirely new world. Tall buildings shoot up into the sky like steel gods, looking down on the lowly peasants that serve them. Lucas tries to hide behind my body, ducking his head when a man that passes us on the street gives him a derisive look. I close my eyes and burrow into his head, squeezing off a vein in his brain. The man drops to the ground dead as blood leaks from his nose. I put an arm around Lucas’s shoulders to block the sight from him .
After we walk another five minutes, I spot an upscale hotel that’s lit up with red and green lights and has four Christmas trees in the lobby. Huh, the human holidays. “What day is it?” I ask Lucas.
“December twenty third.”
It’s been a while since I was on this plane for a holiday season. They don’t move me like they do humans, namely because it’s not something we celebrate on Xendail.
We approach the desk, and I ring the bell for service. A brunette woman approaches, a professional smile on her face. It’s to her credit that her smile doesn’t drop when her eyes land on Lucas. She won’t end up like the guy on the street who I’m sure someone has found by now. Her name tag reads Lauren.
“Welcome to the Astoria Suites. What can do for you this evening?”
“I’d like your finest room, please, Lauren.”
“Certainly, sir,” she says, typing on the computer in front of me.
“That’s not necessary,” Lucas says as he tugs on my sleeve. “Just somewhere warm is fine.”
Turning to him, I take his face in my hands. “We will have the finest room, and you will get some rest. Do you understand?”
His bottom lip trembles, but he gives in, whispering, “Thank you.”
I nod and face Lauren.
She smiles again. “We have the presidential suite. How many nights?”
“Three.” I’m not sure how long we’ll be here, but that’s enough days for Lucas to rest and regroup.
Lauren types a few more keys. “That’ll be nine thousand two hundred and fifty-four dollars.”
Lucas starts to protest, but I hold my hand up to stop him. I pull out the wallet that comes with this body and slide the black card over to Lauren. Money is no object to me on this plane.
After she runs the card, Lauren hands me two key cards and directs us to the elevator to take us to the top floor.
Once inside the room, I snap my fingers, and clothes appear on the bed for Lucas. “Take a shower, little one. Then you can relax.”
I look down at him, and his eyes are wide, looking at where the clothes appeared from thin air. It takes a moment to remember that clothes don’t just appear like that here on Earth.
Lucas steps away from me to pick up the clothes, eyes locked on mine as he brings them to his chest. “How did you do that?”
“Are you sure you want to talk about that now? You have been through enough tonight.”
“I’m sure. How?”
“I am able to do a lot. Here on Earth, demons can do many things. Summon anything.” I snap, and a burger and a bottle of water pops up on the table beside him. Lucas jumps with a small yelp. “Some can teleport.” I close my eyes and appear behind him. He turns around with his hand over his mouth. “We have many … what do you humans call them? Party tricks.”
Lucas stares at me for many long moments, face inscrutable. Finally, he says, “A demon? How did you find me?”
“You asked for me. As my mate, your pleas reached my ears.”
“I’m your mate?” Lucas sways on his feet, like he’s absorbing too much information and can’t handle it.
Sighing, I take his arm and lead him over to the bed. I rub his back as I say, “Use the shower and get yourself together. We can discuss?—”
“Show me.” His voice is firm and sure, his eyes determined. “Show me that you’re a demon. Right now, you just look like a guy.”
“You will fear me.” With other humans, I don’t care if they’re scared of my form or not. But I don’t want Lucas to flee when he sees what I really look like.
“I saw you kill a man, and I’m still here. You can’t be scarier than that. Please, Vernimer.”
I can’t deny him when he says my name and begs so sweetly.
Standing to my full height, I whisper in Xendailish, calling forth my true form. I hear a gasp, and when I open my eyes, Lucas has his hand at his throat, and his eyes are so wide I fear they’ll pop from his head.
While the shirt I had on is in tatters at my feet, the sweatpants I’m wearing hold, though they’re a little tight. I’m glad, so my cock isn’t out. I’m more endowed than a human, and I don’t want to really scare him.
Silence crackles around us. I let Lucas look his fill, not moving so I won’t startle him. After a few more beats, he approaches me. Lucas can’t be taller than five-five, a full foot and half shorter than me. His soft hand lands on my abs, touching me gently. His fingers dip between the valley of my six-pack. Lucas’s lips part as his hand drifts over my body, touching me everywhere he can.
“You’re red,” he whispers.
“Yes.”
“And big.”
An involuntary chuckles leaves my throat. “Yes.”
“You have horns.”
“I do.”
“Can I touch them? ”
I want nothing more, but my horns are sensitive to my mate. If I let him, I will have him on his back with my cock buried deep inside him. He has been through a trauma tonight. That is the last thing he needs. “Not right now, little one. You need to warm up and get some rest. We can talk more after you’ve slept.”
“I have to go back home. I have to—” Lucas looks around frantically, trying to step around me. I hold him fast, and he sags in my arms. “I gotta go.”
“Why?”
A stuttering breath bursts from his chest. “My…boss…won’t like that I’m out all night.”
“You have a boss who made you work in the cold dressed like that?”
He looks at me with an expression that asks are you thick? It takes a moment for it to click what he’s talking about, and my blood boils at the thought of someone owning Lucas and making him use his body for money I’m sure he can’t use for himself.
I take deep breaths so I don’t lose my shit in front of Lucas. “Tell your boss someone is paying for your services all night.”
Lucas nods, pulls out his phone from the thin jacket and sends off a message. He gets one back immediately, and his bottom lip trembles before he says, “He says I have to bring back a hundred dollars per hour, even the hours we sleep.” He glances up at me, a tear leaking from his right eye. “Thank you, but I’ll just go.”
“You will not. Please, go take a shower. We’ll figure everything else out.”
He tries to argue again, but I give him a pleading look that seems to work. Sighing, Lucas picks up the clothes and heads to the bathroom.
I sit on the bed to wait for him, using that time to get my temper under control. But the only thing I want to do is rip this boss limb from limb for even thinking he has a claim on my mate. For making him do this, even though he’s fucking miserable. I’ll admit that I love when I throw my parties and have sexual activity surrounding me for my viewing pleasure. But everyone who is there consents to it. They aren’t forced like it appears Lucas is.
I’ll have to do something about this boss of his.
Twenty minutes later, Lucas is out of the shower and standing before me, pink from head to toe. His brown, almost black hair is pushed back from his face, showing his youthful features. He can’t be more than twenty-five years old, but from the look in his eyes, he’s had a hard life. No more. Now that I’m around, he will no longer have a rough go. I’ll make sure of that.
While he was in the shower, I retook the human form and summoned a set of pajama pants.
Lucas looks dead on his feet, swaying back and forth.
“Come. Let’s get you to bed,” I say, standing from the bed and leading him to the bed where I have the blanket pulled back. “We can talk in the morning.”
He climbs between the sheets, and I lie down on the other side, leaving a space of about three feet between us.
“Thank you, Vernimer.”
“You’re welcome,” I whisper in the dark, though Lucas has already dropped off to sleep.