10. No one is Without Sin
Zach
P eaceful sleep had escaped me for as long as I could remember, until she started coming to me in my dreams. Now that the succubus was physically here, and no longer in my head, a deep, dreamless sleep was just as tempting as what she offered me in my dreams.
I had to keep reminding myself that it was all an illusion, something she conjured up to lull me into a sense of complacency.
The fatigue, the long days, and the endless fighting against the hellions, that was where God needed my focus.
He needed us, needed me, to serve and protect our settlement.
Whether this succubus was put in my path as a test from Him or the devil, I would not succumb to her.
She was a distraction, a Jezebel. Us three ran ourselves ragged so our flock wouldn’t have to. But what a test of human spirit this little succubus was.
I had been tested in such a way once before, and nearly did succumb. Such a mistake wouldn’t happen twice.
The memory blanketed me in shame, the humiliation of being escorted out of Sunday school by my Bishop was just as palpable now as it was then. I was so absorbed in my own weakness that I almost missed the sound of the cottage door opening and closing gently, like someone was sneaking out.
I held my breath, not daring to make a sound as I listened, but heard nothing. Pushing myself up in bed, I pulled aside the curtain just in time to see Stavros turn out of sight behind the church.
Letting the curtain fall back into place, I frowned to myself. What would he be doing in the church in the middle of the night?
No, he wouldn’t.
Actually, yes, he would.
“Fucking Stav,” I cursed, flopping back down onto the mattress.
The older priest—if I could still call him that—both infuriated and fascinated me.
He took me under his wing when I first came to Bethel, and kindly integrated me into the routine he and Kais had set into place.
Stav had a lot of worldly wisdom that I admired, but he also conducted himself so immaturely around the opposite sex.
It was like his brain turned off the moment an attractive woman was nearby.
And having the succubus around just seemed to amplify his empty-headedness.
He humored me whenever I tried to gently steer him toward a more righteous path where his body was concerned.
Purity was a mindset first, a behavior second.
He could always return to it, no matter how many women he’d lain with in his past, as long as he got his head on straight.
I knew from his confessions that he felt guilty enough, but he couldn’t seem to follow through with the behavior.
None of us were without sin. Women just happened to be his.
You’re not so different.
The voice whispering at the back of my mind had me sitting straight up in bed again. I threw back the covers with a curse, finding my pants and a hoodie in the dark, like an act of defiance. My sins were not the same. I didn’t disrespect my body or others by sleeping around.
Maybe my weakness was similar, but I strived to do better. I was remorseful. I would forever be in a state of repentance for my past actions and thoughts. And then this damned succubus had to appear and make me feel so fucking good.
I hated how she made me want to give in so easily, to throw away everything I stood for in the blink of an eye. But God wouldn’t stress the importance of faith, the necessity of resisting temptation, if it didn’t test a man to his very limits.
I would prove myself worthy, like I strived to do every day.
I would not give in, nor would I condone it by my fellow priests.
Stavros might be pissed at me for a while, but he had to understand that it was for his own good.
If I could prevent his soul from going to the same place she came from, that alone would be worth it.
Slipping quietly from my room, I grabbed my most reliable demon blade—a hefty machete I affectionately named Joan, and doused it with holy water.
Joan was anointed with holy water and the smoke from a devotional candle to Joan of Arc before every battle, and she’d never failed me when it came to slaying hordes of demons.
The blade might not affect the succubus, but if she let any demonkind slip past our crucifix gate, I’d be ready.
Deyva. Her name is Deyva .
Right, we were on a first-name basis with the succubus now. And just as our luck would have it, she had a damn pretty name too.
Grabbing my keys on the way out, I slipped out the front door as quietly as I could manage.
The night air was cool and refreshing in the midst of all the hellfire we’d been fighting lately.
I crossed the lawn in the same direction Stavros went, my sneakers collecting glittery dew from the blades of grass.
I tried the first back door—locked, of course. Looking through the keys on my keyring, I realized I didn’t have a copy to the back door, fuck! Kais was going to have the locksmith make me one, but I had yet to receive it.
With that option gone, I walked around the side of the building toward the front. Flickering light from the inside made the stained-glass windows glow, the colored panes almost looked like they were moving with the sway and flicker.
My stomach dropped with dread. Was she burning things in the chapel, any of the statuettes or books? Stavros wouldn’t let her vandalize anything, would he? Not unless he was fully under her spell.
I hurried my footsteps into a run, now no longer caring to be quiet. My shoes clamored up the slippery front steps of the chapel until I inserted the rusted key into the ancient lock and turned it. “God, give me strength for what I must do.”
With the brief prayer whispered on my lips, I pushed the heavy door and at first, found nothing amiss.
All the candles on the top shelf of the main altar had been lit. As the only light source, they bathed the entire chapel in a warm, humble glow that reminded me of the monastery I visited in Belgium years ago as an acolyte.
Sudden movement at the altar pulled my gaze there, away from the majesty of the chapel itself, to the sight of Stavros scrambling off the altar and to the pulpit floor as he struggled to get his pants on.
“What the FUCK?” I bellowed, my voice reaching the rafters.
Oh and she was there too, darting off to hide behind one of the podiums as she quickly covered herself with a shirt—another borrowed one from Stavros, I couldn’t help but notice.
My mind reeled. I expected to catch them in intimate conversation, maybe some flirtatious touching, but not in the middle of the act .
“Zach, it’s okay.” Stav’s speech came out a strange cadence, his words almost slurred, as if drunk. He had just barely managed to get his pants on over his dick, but seemed to struggle to stand.
“No, it’s fucking not!” It wasn’t like me to swear so much, but every ounce of faith and respect I once held for Stavros was snuffed out like the flames from those candles.
“How could you? How—” My fingers speared through my hair, tugging at my scalp at the sheer stupidity.
“I mean, look at you! What has she done?”
“I’m okay. It’ll wear off.”
His bare chest, slick with sweat, heaved with ragged breaths like he’d just been mid-thrust. Or had just come, Christ almighty…
In my rage, I fixated on how the candlelight danced over his olive skin, shadows and highlights carving out broad, sinewy muscles like a statue.
“She’s been feeding from you,” I realized, fresh anger boiling up inside. “She’s been using you, like a parasite.”
“It’s not like that,” Stavros insisted, finally clamoring to his feet. “I offered myself to her.”
“Why?” I cried, incredulous that he would do such a thing.
“So she wouldn’t prey on you, or anyone else in Bethel.”
My jaw hung open and my gaze slid to her, Deyva . She claimed she wasn’t a demon, but this was obvious proof otherwise.
“You deceitful bitch,” I hissed.
“Zach!” Stavros shouted, stepping forward, swaying a little before straightening firmly.
Deyva slid out from behind the podium slowly, the shirt buttoned just barely enough to cover her, leaving a tantalizing v leading between her breasts that peeked open as she moved.
“Zach, I just got a little carried away this time, but I promise—”
“Like a promise from the likes of you means anything,” I snapped. “We only have your word on anything you’ve fed us and at the first opportunity you manipulated Stavros into—”
“Zach, she did not manipulate me. I’m a grown man, I can decide who I want to sleep with,” Stavros growled.
His hand shot back behind him, reaching for Deyva, and I watched with a combination of disgust and jealousy as her hand raised and linked with his, her lips pressing flat as she stared back at me.
“What the fuck is going on here?”
Stavros groaned as I spun and found Kais dressed in his tactical gear and collar, a crossbow in one hand.
“None of anyone else’s business,” Stavros barked.
“She’s feeding on him! She lied to us!” I shouted, gesturing at the pair.
Kais looked between the three of his, eyes narrowed and face flat for a moment before huffing and rolling his eyes. “I fucking knew you were in too good of a mood lately,” he said to Stavros.
“I made a choice, on my own,” Stavros said firmly.
“You’re honestly surprised?” Kais asked me, head tilting.
“Yeah!” No. “I mean, aren’t you concerned?”
Kais frowned and looked at Deyva next. “Is this something you’re going to cultivate with others? Is he enough to sustain you?”
“No, and yes,” Deyva said, glancing briefly at Stavros before adding. “I can cut back too.”
“Dey,” Stavros murmured, leaning toward her with a heavy lidded gaze.
“What if it’s like, addictive ?” I asked, arms flapping uselessly at my side. Was Kais really just going to...go along with this? We’d just let this creature devour our friend?