Among Demons : Succubus Divine

Ch. 8 : I Hate the Beach

Every hour that passed after that awkward encounter turned into nothing more than a blur.

I quickly returned to my little cave after greeting the woman I never thought I’d see again, catching a strange look on the Detective’s face before I all but ran out. I had my lunch in my room and continued to comb through information to try and find a better way to track down the mystery woman for the case. Yet no matter how hard I tried to focus on that, my mind quickly shoved pieces of something I had wanted to forget into the center of my head.

So, like any rational and mature adult out there, I snuck out of work a full hour early and raced to my secondary office.

I texted my brother to meet me there since I felt like utter garbage and desperately needed a hug or two before I made myself ill. It was a decent drive towards the edge of the city near a massive cluster of trees that partially covered the dirt road. I had purposefully picked this place because of it’s hidden road to the building, since it would make things annoying if Humans found us and started protesting here like they do at other Demon owned properties. Though the building itself was more like a cabin that some rich family might own if they were the ‘outdoorsy type’. Of course, you’d have to ignore the dozens of Demons that walk around the large clearing and inside the three floors of said cabin.

The only other major difference about this building was that it was run entirely by Demons, as opposed to other businesses that REQUIRED Human presence. It was an annoying clause or agreement that the Human Leaders slipped in so other Humans felt comfortable. That way, if someone went out to eat or shop in a chain business there was at least one other Human on staff to help the customer feel ‘happy’ about contributing to that business. But this building was mine and mine alone. And all of my highly valued employees worked hard on the many different projects for our people, while also keeping track of our dwindling numbers. These employees of mine have also been left in the dark on what the Matron looks like, for their safety and mine. They only know my Alias, which is the public name I use with the Humans as well. The one and only exception is the main person that manages this building, of course.

“Devin!” I was ambushed and had the life almost squeezed out of me by my best friend Nyla the second I stepped inside.

She’s a Fairy Demon that’s gifted with manipulating and feeding on pain, both physical and emotional. I have had the pleasure of knowing his auburn haired woman since high school and grew close after dozens of dangerous, weird and random things happened to us. Not many people can tell that she’s a Fairy either because she is always using contacts to hide the secondary ring of amber in her eyes, leaving only a pretty sky blue. Her gold and pale blue wings are also hidden on her back thanks to her race's natural ability to absorb them into their body. This leaves a tattoo-like replica of their wings on their back that shimmers a bit in the sunlight, kind of like reflective glass.

“This is a surprise.” I tell her, smiling as she guides me into one of the back rooms where we usually relax and talk. “I thought you weren’t coming back for another week or so.”

Nyla Flos comes from a massive family of Fay that’s scattered all over the west side of the United States. And though she’s my second-in-command and in charge of running my secondary office here in Seattle, she sometimes takes time off to visit family for weddings, birthdays or the birth of another relative. It’s always been very important to her to look after her family as best she can, not only because she’s one of the oldest out of all of her cousins, but also because her race is dying out. Her family, along with two others, are the last large groups of Fay still thriving in this Human infested world. All others faded away as the centuries passed, along with many other Demon races.

“My Nana took care of everything much faster than I would’ve.” She explained, plopping down next to me on the large leather couch. “And I’m not due for another visit until my aunty gives birth in six more months, so I just came back.” Her big smile helped ease my earlier chaotic emotions and she quickly picked up on it too, rubbing the back of my hand. “What’s wrong?”

I sighed and stared at our joined hands, noticing the faint amber glow that was coating her fingers, feeding on my distress and helping me relax. Slowly, I told her who I had just run into and my mind pulled me into the memory I had fought to push back, transporting me back seven years, to when I was seventeen.

It was the end of my junior year of high school and I was out on a hunt with my brother. We had been chasing a pair of Demons that had been luring Humans into an ambush and needed them stopped quickly. Especially since the latest target had been the child of a well known and respected firefighter that helped a lot in both Human and Demon communities. So we had spent a fortnight running around hunting them down to help out the Patron that was in power before me.

Nick and I managed to end them quickly and he had taken over transporting the one that survived the fight while I took a minute to recover. I had taken a pretty decent amount of their attacks into my body so Nick could sneak up on them and take them down. It was an uncomfortable, painful and overwhelming thing to take in the power of another Demon race. It could sometimes render one deathly ill or force them into a deep yet tormenting sleep because we aren’t meant to do things like that. It affects our own powers and fights against our inner Demonic core, which fuels us and is basically our Soul. So after our big fight, I was left extremely dizzy and aching all over, kind of like I had been punched in every muscle and burned by steam at the same time.

I vaguely remember stumbling into the sand at the beach and realizing how close we had been to fighting them here instead of in an empty parking lot. I can still feel the ghost throb of my body as I slumped onto the ground and tried to catch my breath, needing to cool my body and relax my muscles. The sound of sand shifting beneath someone's feet came to me out of nowhere and the face of a man appeared in my field of vision. I weakly tried to move away from him, muttering about how he shouldn’t get too close to me. But he sat right beside me and started asking me questions, making my inner Demon hunger rise up and take control.

He should’ve known, all Human’s knew, that it was dangerous to get too close or touch a Demon when they’re visibly wounded. This was because our Demonic core was made up of nothing more than instinctual urges, like feeding, survival and procreation. It always lies dormant within us during everyday moments and runs more like a battery that fuels our bodies and balances our powers and gifts. But when we’re wounded, have gone too long without feeding, or nearing a critical peak of fertility, we lose all control of ourselves and our Demonic Soul takes over, doing, saying and using our powers in all sorts of ways.

Yet, there I was, clearly bruised, struggling to breath, coated in sweat and aching from the pain that rang throughout my bones… and this Human man just sat a mere inch away from me.

I couldn’t stop myself. I couldn’t do anything to hold control over my body. I was only able to watch as I let loose a thick cloud of pheromones and ensnared the man beside me, climbing onto him while pushing him into the sand. I kissed him, caressed him and forced him out of his clothes while my body fed on the s****l pleasure that was climbing between us. My pain dulled as he entered me. Each stroke and kiss soothed my tender bruises. And as I climaxed while I rode him, every tiny stinging wound was healed. My body was even filled to the brim with power after the fight and my head cleared, awakening me completely.

Once it was all said and done, I dressed quietly, watching him as he did the same.

My anger climbed when I saw his smile and a part of me wondered if he knew what race of Demon I was. Each Demon feeds on something different, so he could’ve been the one in terrible pain or even dead if he had approached another wounded Demon like this. But he approached me without hesitation and didn’t even fight against my pheromones at all. And I soon found out how right I was, when a small group of people appeared just over the sandy hill that blocked the rest of the beach.

It was Hannah and a mob of her friends.

She was the same age as Nick and had been one of the few Humans that had been kind to me before she graduated from our same high school. Nick never really liked her stuck up personality but I never really cared much, too absorbed in the fact that she and a few of her friends had been nice to me.

It all came crashing down that night though, because the man that had approached me was her boyfriend. And no matter what I said, he painted a different picture to their entire group, claiming that I had ambushed him with my powers and forced him. It didn’t help that his eyes were still glittering a soft lavender like my secondary ring of color in my own eyes thanks to the pheromones he had inhaled. But I kept insisting and trying to prove myself, feeling so desperate for them to understand me. So panicked and near crying while they all hurled all kinds of names at me.

Nick came and fought for me, believing me right away and almost aiming his weapon at the man in question. We left after a few more insults, with my brother fighting against me while my mind reeled over everything that they called me. Rumors and whispers spread like wildfire and soon multiple schools knew my name and what I looked like. I had to delete all social media and hide for a long while after being jumped four days in a row. And the biggest, most painful thing that came out of it all was the ‘confirmation’ that Incubus/Succubus Demons targeted those in happy relationships. That we thrived off the pain and chaos that happens when a loving relationship is destroyed. And that we were nothing more than s*x-addicted monsters that wanted to rip apart everyones happiness.

This had been something I had tried so hard to disprove about my race and it was being shattered right in front of me. It was what had gotten my father killed after a man that had chased after my mother found out the truth my dad had hidden. It was why there were less than fifty of my race left all across the world, since we end up dead at the hands of a jealous man or woman that believes we stole the heart of their love with our powers. It was also why those of my people still roaming around aren’t too keen on having a relationship. And if they do, it never lasts more than a couple months.

We have forbidden ourselves from keeping and fighting for love because no one ever believed that it was truly ours. Our lives were at stake if we chose to keep someone, primarily a Human, as a lover.

We were thieves, after all.

Love was undeserved and unwilling to stay with us because of what we were.

So why risk death for that love that would most likely doubt us, no matter what we do?

“So, are you admitting that you like the guy?” Nyla asked me, pulling me back from that dark moment in my past.

“I won’t lie and say that I don’t find him attractive at least.” I confessed, smiling when she giggled and smiled. “But he’s got a red thread on him… and now that Hannah’s involved…” I shook my head, frowning a bit. “I don’t want to do anything that will make the dozens of programs and projects under my name lose support. You know that the Human advocacy groups in the city help keep my programs and projects running without much of a fight from their Human leaders. If rumors start up that the main financial backer of those programs is stealing married Human men, our people will be the ones to suffer.”

“But Dev…” Nyle pouted, letting go of my hands now that I felt much better. “You haven’t had a single long relationship since high school… you deserve to be happy and spend your life with someone.” She fidgeted in her seat a bit, peeking up at me a little when I pulled her in for a hug. “I know how much you’ve wanted to have a family of your own.”

“You’re my family.” I told her, poking her side and making her laugh as the doors swung open. “And Nick is my family.” I beamed up at the man in question, my eyes growing wide when I caught sight of the pizza he carried. “And I absolutely love my awesome, super cool, big brother.”

He laughed and shook his head, setting the box down before closing the door.

“I’m beginning to think you only love me cause I feed you.” Nyla laughed and went over to the small counter across the room, pulling out plates for us.

I gasped dramatically, flopping back on the couch while I smiled, saying, “How could you say that?! Oh! My heart! How could my dear brother doubt me!?”

We laughed some more and started digging into our food, slowly slipping into our work roles and passing along information.

Nyla reported about things she heard from Demons outside of my territory and helped me come up with ideas for programs, scholarships and projects that would benefit our people. Nick, however, kept me focused on the murders of the Nymphs and showed me the bits of information he was able to gather. Nyla was surprised that I had taken the job at the precinct, since all Demons knew how little cops and doctors cared for us. But she understood why quickly, seeing and hearing about the current case I was assisting in.

Throughout our time in my secondary office, Nyla appeared like she wanted to say something to me, and I did my best to give her a chance to talk to me. But Nick was blind to it and kept pushing on, bouncing between his work and Nyla’s while I took in their opinions. So, before it got too late and I had to leave, I let my best friend know that I would get time off work soon so we could talk.