Chapter 14 #2
“Wait…I thought portals were only in certain places and only went directly to The Shade?” This is a rule I was adamant I had cemented into my brain as fact, and these demons have made me question it all, yet again.
“That’s right. But there’s always an exception to every rule.
In this case, Dei Samhain allowed us to summon a direct portal so that we could keep up the ruse of living here and still keep your apartment intact.
He monitors it, and misuse will result in immediate soul removal, so it is a privilege.
” Not-me seems to be a lot more talkative than not-Danika.
“Always an exception?” Because that sounds great, but it can’t be right…
“We’re demons. You think we’re all good at sticking to the rules, Satapti?” Opening the door at the top of the stairs into the apartment, Hack stands aside and lets me in first.
“I suppose not.” I don’t think I’ll ever get my head around any of this magical supernatural stuff. It’s exciting and scary and amazing and scary and wondrous and yep…scary again.
Nothing has changed. Well, everything has changed, but the apartment still looks exactly the same as it did before the attack. The couch isn’t covered in black oozy mess, there are no holes in the walls, our coffee table is in one piece, and the door isn’t falling off the hinges.
“We’ll leave you to it, Liege Hack.” Not-me does the thing where she bows her head respectfully, then her whole body blurs into a mist that isn’t a mist…I can’t explain it. She’s there, but she isn’t…then she is again, but it’s definitely a demon standing in her place.
The same thing happens with not-Danika and I’m trying not to stare, unsure of the rudeness protocols of seeing someone transform, but I’m a sucker for curiosity so I watch the whole thing.
Now, the two demons readying themselves to walk into my bathroom are completely different than the human versions they presented as before.
Not-me—Bluebell—is quite literally blue, like the kind of deep blue you’d use when coloring in a night sky that fades into black.
She’s only around four-feet high, with bright-purple spike-like horns all over her head in place of hair.
Her large eyes, with no white at all, are the same purple as her horny spikes, and there are two slits in place of where her nose would be.
The calf-length skirt of mine that she’s wearing now falls to the floor, so I can’t see her legs, and her arms and body are covered by the sweater. Her hands, though, have elongated fingers with sharp claws that would pass for false nails in the real world.
Not-Danika—Agatha—is similar in looks, but her skin is a more vibrant shade of blue.
It’s still what I’d consider a dark blue, but in comparison to Bluebell, she’s practically glowing.
She’s also about a foot taller than her friend and her spikey horns are more of a burgundy-red—to match her eyes.
That must be where the pinkish tinge comes from when she’s in Danika’s form.
Their transformation takes a few seconds, and once it’s complete, Agatha links her arm through Bluebell’s and they give me a wave as they walk into the bathroom.
“That was…something.” I turn to Hack, my eyes wide, as if my brain’s about to explode.
His wide smile calms my racing mind in an instant and I lean into him.
“Do you think I’ll ever run this shop again?” I speak into his hard chest and his solid arms hold me close.
“Maybe not in the same way you once did. You can open a whole chain of them if you want. Even in The Shade, near the marketplace. You could sell a lot more potions and witchy items than you’re allowed on Earth.” Each of his words vibrates against my ear and I could just listen to him talk all day.
“I need a job to earn money to open a whole chain, but yeah, it’s something Danika and I talked about. Like one of those future dreams that never really come true.” I huff a laugh.
“Satapti.” Hack grips my head between his palms and pulls away from his chest to stare me in the eyes.
“You’re richer than every anthros on this planet.
You never need a job to earn money again.
I only run my fight clubs because when you live for over two-thousand years, it’s nice to have a hobby.
” He chuckles and shrugs, but my brows furrow and I free myself from his hold on my face.
“How?” I want to elaborate, but there are so many questions; beginning with that one word that I want to ask, but I can’t quite bring myself to form the proper sentences.
Busying myself, I walk into the kitchen area and begin the process of making myself a coffee. I know I could try and use magic to help, and I probably should because goddess knows I need the practice, but I want to use my hands.
“You made some good investments in your time. Plus, when I was able, I liquidated your assets upon your deaths and kept everything in separate accounts for you. There’s an old castle in Scotland, in the UK, that you own.
And a winery in France too. I have a mixture of lackeys and anthros running the place, but you have a steady income.
” He says it all so matter of factly, like he’s not practically handing me the keys to the kingdom.
“So I’m rich? Stupidly stinkin’ rich?” The coffee is now brewing and it smells divine, but it’s not a deterrent from this conversation. As usual these days, my emotions are running haywire and I’m a mixture of all the things.
Gobsmacked being one of them.
I think I’m more surprised over my newfound wealth than I was to find out about the supernatural world. Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but it’s fucking close!
“You are, Satapti.” Hack leans back against the wall beside my bedroom door, watching me with amusement dancing in his green eyes.
“Okay.” I nod, taking it all in my stride as I finish fixing my coffee.
Still nodding, like one of those bobbleheads, I take a sip, burn my mouth, and pretend that didn’t just happen before heading toward my bedroom. “Hmm.” The nodding doesn’t seem to want to stop, and now I’m pursing my lips, too. “Okay.”
I spot my cellphone on the bedside table, as if it’s been waiting for me to come and claim it, and yeah, I could’ve taken Pierce up on his offer of a spelled cell-phone, and I will, but this one has all my memories stored. All the pictures of me and Danika that I’ve taken.
“Am I rich enough to buy my own cellphone company?” I don’t want to, but the thought just occurred to me.
Hack chuckles. “Yes. You could buy them all, if you wanted, and still be richer than every anthros on the planet.”
Holy fuckballs almighty.
“Richer than like…Scrooge McDuck?” My references for rich people are minimal, but old cartoons were a favorite of Danika’s, so of course DuckTales comes to mind.
More chuckling. “Yes.”
“Well okay then. This is a new feeling. It’s like relief and guilt, but also freedom. Does that make sense?” I pick up my cellphone and look around for my charger because it’s not turning on, so it’s dead. Not surprising.
“It does.” Being super helpful, he enters the bedroom and starts helping me search. It’s obvious what I’m looking for, and he knows me almost better than he knows himself.
The next few seconds happen in slow motion.
I see him heading toward the small cupboard on the other side of the bed, then he bends down to open it and a wave of dildos comes crashing out.
Closing my eyes and taking a deep, humiliated breath, I head around to his side of the bed and look up at him through my lashes with what I’m hoping is a cute smile.
“That’s my dildo cupboard. The charger won’t be in there.” I shrug, giving all the explanation I think he needs.
“Do you mean this charger won’t be in there?” He holds up the very thing I’ve been looking for, and it came from…yep…the dildo cupboard.
“Smartass.” I poke my tongue out and take the offering, but he doesn’t let go. Instead, he pulls me into him and leans his head down, almost level with mine.
“Next time you poke that pink little tongue out, I’m going to bite it.”
I’m nothing if I’m not pushing my boundaries, so I grin, lifting myself up onto my tiptoes, and lick his lips.
His low growl is drowned out by a loud crash coming from the living room and my heart sinks.
Not again.
“Stay here.” Hack’s voice is firm and he doesn’t wait to see that I’m clearly not following his instruction as he rushes from the room.
I grab the first thing I can find to use as a weapon. Yes, it’s one of my giant dildos.
Poking my head out of the door, my eyes widen in shock because Agatha and Bluebell are back, and this time they have a tiny version of themselves wrapped up in a bundle between them.
Bluebell is limping, her skirt torn to pieces, revealing a knee-length tail with a spiked ball on the end, and Agatha has a large slash across her face, and one of her spiked horns looks like it has been hacked off, leaving a bloody mess in its place.
“What the fuck happened?” Hack’s tone is demanding, yet there’s a softness to it.
“The rebellion, Liege. They’re starting to come for lackeys and their families. They attacked our home in Kohrye, nearly killed our baby.” Agatha is now the talkative one while Bluebell shivers beside her, clutching tightly onto the demon child in her arms and staring into space.
“Just what we need when we’re trying to find the vampyre Dei’s sister. A rebellion.”