Succubus Heat CHAPTER 3

I neither packed nor c everyed Dante when I got home. I was exhausted. Talking to Seth had been too depressing. I lived too tightlipped to the bookstore, I decided. What had once been convenient now felt oppressive. A few blocks simply wasnt enough distance between Seth and me. I kind of wished Emerald city had another branch somew here(predicate) that I could work. In lieu of that, peradventure I was the wholeness who needed to find a new residence. My lease here was ending soon, and until now, Id never considered eitherthing except renewing. Moving was a startling-and weirdly appealing-thought, and I pondered it as I drifted off to sleep that night, my cat Aubrey snuggled against my legs.The next morning, I had to scramble to pack my things. Jerome hadnt smashn me any specific time to be in Vancouver, only soon. I decided not to test the exact terms of that. Packing didnt take long, fortunately. I could shape-shift any clothing I treasured, plainly I had some favorites I preferred to honourable take with me. It was another inert human habit. There were also cosmetics and other toi permitries I wanted with me I wantd to do my bashledge hair and makeup if I had the time.I was gushy my third cup of coffee in the kitchen when I felt the tingle of immortal signatures calculate in my living room. Only a higher immortal, same a demon or angel, could directly teleport in, and I immediately recognized these two. Grace and Mei.They were Jeromes lieutenant dem adeptsses. Heaven ran its agenda in a individually which way way, precisely ours was c arefully organized. Territory was parceled out to archdemons, who in turn controlled a network of subordinate demons and lesser immortals like me and my friends succubi, vampires, and imps. Jerome handled the big issues in the area, went to meetings with the demons who were above him, and was in charge of discipline. Grace and Mei handled the minutiae and paperwork and also kept an warmheartedness on th e utter or so reaches of Jeromes territory, areas he was too busy for and uninterested in. His full jurisdiction very stretched along the coast of western Washington, though his base of operation was the Seattle metropolitan area. That was also where most of his staff was located. He only kept an occasional eye on the outskirts and left it to Grace and Mei to keep him apprised of what occurred there.For whatever reason, the demonesses always wore matching clothing. Today they sported black pantsuits, tailored to a perfect fit. Grace was platinum-blonde and Mei black-haired, but their hairstyles were also similar bluntly cut at the chin. Both wore brick-red lipstick.Good morning, Georgina, said Grace.Were here with last-minute instructions, said Mei.Oh, okay. I was relieved. Id been cowardly Jerome had sent them to find out why I hadnt already crossed the Canadian border. You guys want some coffee?I offered them something every time they were here, and every time, they refused. S o, I was a bit astonished when Grace asked, What kind?UmStarbucks. Their house b impart.No, replied Grace and Mei in unison.I shrugged and sat low on the couch. Aubrey had been fabrication there a minute ago but was nowhere in sight now. She hated these two. Mostly they creeped me out. Okay, I asked. Whats the scoop?They remained standing. Mei crossed her arms. Jerome wants you to hear the situation with Cedric. The two of them ask had adisagreement over territorial lines.This perked my interest. Ah. Its him, then. Wed heard Jerome had something going on with another demon.The two of them had been eyeing each others areas, explained Grace. In the hopes of expanding their own boundaries into one large Pacific Northwest She paused thoughtfully.empire? I suggested. She shrugged by way of agreement.Something like that, said Mei. But take downtually, they put the dispute aside and gave up, each settling for their authoritative territories. Thats why Jerome is lending you to Cedric, as a sign of good will.I was too intrigued to retort well-nigh the degradation of Jerome lending me to anyone. Jerome doesnt do things out of good will, I pointed out, recalling his snide remark about altruism last night. Theres more going on.Grace nodded. Indeed. Jerome suspects that Cedric actually hasnt given up the vie and is still plotting against him. Jerome wants you to spy and report suffer.Oh, I didnt like that. Not at all.He wants me to spy on another demon? An arch demon? Do you know what kind of trouble I could set forth in if Cedric finds out?Neither demoness said anything. It was no concern of theirs if I got smote. Considering Jeromes current attitude toward me, it believably wasnt much of a concern for him either, aside from having to send a requisition to Personnel for a new succubus.So, continued Mei, youll have two agendas. You need to let Jerome know what Cedrics doing. And, you need to infiltrate Cedrics problem cult and keep them in line-although, if you m ake things a little uncomfortable for Cedric along the way, Jerome wont mind.Right. The Canadian ogreists. What on primer coat are they doing thats such a big deal? Putting 666 on the back ends of hockey jerseys?My joke had no effect on either demoness. Someday, I thought, Id contain one of them to crack a smile. Theyre attracting attention, enough that Cedrics superiors are embarrassed. Theyd prefer this cult conduct its evil in more subtle ways.Last I knew, veritable Satanists arent actually evil per se, I mused. The rep aside, most Satanists were more into simply acknowledging chaos and humanitys wild, base nature. Most arent actually out conducting bloody rituals or spray-painting pentagrams on walls.Actually, said Mei, this group is spray-painting pentagrams on walls.Oh, I said. Thats lame.They think theyre evil began Grace.but theyre not, finished Mei. They need to be reined in.Okay, sure. No problem. Influencing wannabe Satanists was a piece of surface compared to spyi ng on a demon. I glanced at the time. Anything else? I should probably head out.Yes, said Mei. Jerome wants you to check in on Tawny.Seriously? I groaned. He hates me.The demonesses neither confirmed nor denied this statement.See you around, Georgina, said Grace.Well check in, said Mei.They vanished.With a heavy heart, I finished my packing and told Aubrey good-bye. Then I lugged my suitcase dismantle to my Passat, off to play Mata Hari. I honourable hoped my end would be disclose than hers.Once you clear Everett, a naval city just north of Seattle, the contract up to Canada is bewitching easy. The speed limit goes up, and the most exciting attractions along the way are casinos and outlet malls. About a half-hour from the border, I reached Bellingham, the current residence of Tawny Johnson.Tawny was a succubus, a very new succubus. Technically, I was her mentor, but her assignment in Bellingham mercifully limited our interactions. Shed come to Seattle back in December and had g otten involved with an imp named Niphon whod been trying to make my life more of a living hell than it already was. Hed roped her into his plans, and as angry as Id been about it, I knew the fault was his more than hers. She hadnt really known what she was doing and had been convinced he could help fast-track her career. Nonetheless, shed gotten in enough trouble that Jerome had sent her out of the city. It was better than being sent back to Hell, so really, the arrangement suited all of us just fine.I gave her a call, and we met up at a caf? just off I-5. Tawny was easy to spot when she entered the place. Despite the fact that Tawny had been kind of a con artist when she was a mortal-a profession youd think would lend itself well to succubus work-she was actually pretty horrible at seduction. Oh, she could still come guys to sleep with her, but it was more thanks to her availability rather than any particular wiles on her part. In particular, she was convinced that the most alluri ng form she could take was that of a six-foot blonde with breasts that would have given a human a back injury. Tawny also had a penchant for spandex and metallic fabrics that I frame disturbing but that delighted Hugh and the vampires to no end. I made a mental note to tell them about the chartreuse hot pants she wore today.Georgina she exclaimed, dancing over to my table on gold stilettos. Im so happy to beguile you. She held out her arms, like maybe I was supposed to stand and hug her, but I remained sitting. Taking the pinpoint, she sat down as well. What are you doing here?Im going to Vancouver, I said, wrapping my hands around my white chocolate mocha. Jerome wanted me to stop by and see how things were going.Her eyes lit up. Great Ive been spending a lot of time over at Western. She leaned forward and spoke in a sage voice. You know, if youre ever having trouble getting someone into bed, you should go check out college guys. Theyre so easy.Thanks for the tip, I said dryly. Ill keep it in mind.She pursed her lips and eyed me. Doesnt look like you need it, though, she added wistfully. I could never get a glow like that.Too bad she hadnt seen the glow in full effect yesterday. It would have blown her away. You will, I said. Someday. Some day far, far away. Tawny had miles to go before gaining the subtleties required to land really moral guys.I dont know how you do it. You arent even blond. I mean, maybe a little, but more often than not youre a brunette. I just dont see guys going for that.My hair was long and light brown, lightly highlighted with gold. My eyes were a hazel-green that I also venture didnt fit in with her worldview of what was sexy, at least if her baby blues were any indication. Yeah, well, some people are into kinky bar, I guess.The waiter showed up and took our lunch orders. I made myself comfortable and prepared to do some mentoring.So, I said. You got any questions?Tawny titled her head, long-lashed blue eyes filled with thought . Yeah. Theres something Ive been wondering about.Okay, go for it.These colleges guystheyre kind of, like, fast.Fast?Yeah. You get them into bed, and its over before it begins.Theyre eighteen or twenty. Still pulsing with adolescent hormones. They dont really know what theyre doing yet.Yeah, yeah, I know, she said. Except, when youre going down on them, it takes forever . You know what I mean?I forced a straight face. Its one of the mysteries of the universe, Tawny. You just gotta roll with it.But my mouth gets sore, she whined. Makes my prattle ache the next day Isnt there any way to speed it up?My immortal friends would die if they could hear this conversation. You can try the dont stop trick. Or maybe tell them you want them to come on your face. Thatll get things moving.Ew Thats disgusting.I shrugged. Dont ask the question if you dont want to hear the answer.But how can I even say anything when my mouth is, well, you knowThus went the rest of our lunch conversation, and blow jo bs glum out to be the mildest of topics. Fortunately, no one sat within audition distance. I ate my chicken salad as fast as I could, eager to be on my way. As we were paying the bill, a thought came to me.Hey, Tawny. Youre very much on top of Cedrics turf here. You ever see any signs of him and Jerome fighting?She shook her head. No. Ive never even met Cedric. But theres a vampire here in town whos mentioned them fighting before. He seems to think its a big deal.Everyone seems to, and yetI dont know. I have a weird feeling about all this. Like that someones trying to cover up something.Tawny placed some cash on the table, her clawlike nails lacquered and red. For half a moment, she looked remarkably wise. spinal column when I was doing cons, the best way to pull one past people was to make a big deal about something else. Misdirection.It was quite possibly the most intelligent thing Id ever heard Tawny say. Yeah, but if so, what are we being misdirected from?Hell if I know. Tha ts for smart people like you to figure out. Im just trying to get college guys to speed up their blow jobs.My first minute in Canada, I got pulled over.Right after you go through customs, theres a brusque stretch of the freeway with an incredibly low speed limit. Every time I drive through there, I try to drive that speed. And Im the only one who ever does it. All the locals zip through that area, already driving the speed that the freeway clicks up to about half a mile (or kilometer or whatever) later. Every time, just before I officially hit the higher speed zone, I finally crack and speed up too-and thats always when the cops get me. Ive been pulled over three times.This was my fourth.I handed over my license and other pertinent paperwork to the cop. American, eh? he asked, like it wasnt perfectly obvious.Yes, sir, I said.You know you were speeding, dont you? He mostly sounded curious, not harsh.Was I? I asked blankly, looking at him with doe eyes. I saw the succubus glamour se ize him. But the sign said sixty-five. lxv kilometers per hour, he corrected gently. We use the metric system here.I blinked. Ohhhh. God, I forgot. I feel so stupid.It happens a lot, he said. He handed my stuff back without even running it. Ill tell you what. Ill let you go this time. Just make sure you get the units right, eh? Your speedometers got kilometers per hour underneath the miles per hour.Oh, thats what the little numbers are for, huh-er, eh? I gave him a dazzling smile. Thank you so much.So help me, he tipped his hat. Happy to help. Be careful now, and enjoy your stay.I thanked him again and headed off. Its worth noting here that while Ive been pulled over four times in this stretch, Ive also gotten off four times.Canadians. So nice.I made it into downtown Vancouver without however incident and checked into my hotel. It was a boutique one over on Robson Street, and I decided maybe Jerome didnt hate me after all. Or at least, Hells pilgrimage agency didnt hate me. Robson was a fun neighborhood, full of restaurants and shopping. I threw my stuff into my room and then headed off to meet Cedric. He would have sensed me carrefour into his territory, but I wanted it officially noted for the record that I was here so that I didnt get in further trouble with Jerome. unlike Jerome, who was impossible to find sometimes, Cedric actually had a suite of offices over in the Financial District. I kind of liked that. The front desk was staffed by an imp named Kristin. She seemed agreeable enough, just incredibly busy. She told me Id lucked out and that Cedric could fit me in right now. Walking into his office, I found him at his desk, reading something on Wikipedia. He glanced up.Oh. Jeromes succubus. He turned from the monitor and gestured to a chair opposite his desk. Have a seat.I sat down and immediately began assessing the office. Nothing about it screamed evil. It was neat and sleek, with an expansive windowpane full of office buildings beyond him. Silver perpetual motion balls sat on his desk, and one of those framed motivational posters hung on the wall. It had a picture of a struggling pine sapling in front of a larger tree and read, DETERMINATION .Cedric himself didnt look too evil either. He had an average build and pretty blue-gray eyes. He kept his hair shaved army-style, and like Kristin, the biggest vibe I got off him was busy. Inasmuch as one could be busy surfing Wikipedia, that is. I glanced at the screen, curious as to what hed been looking at. Demonic takeovers, perhaps?Oh, that, he said, following my gaze. Just a hobby of mine. Its the entry on marsupials. I just like going in sometimes and putting in incorrect information. Its always fun to see how long it takes them to notice. Theyre better about it than they used to be, but that just makes it more of a challenge. I just wrote about how marsupials are an integral part of the Lutheran Eucharist. He chuckled at his own ingenuity. God, I hated the Reformation.I smiled, not entirely sure what to say.Cedric clasped his hands in front of him, face turning serious. So, lets get down to business. Youre here to spy on me.My mouth opened, but nothing coherent came out right away. UmHe waved his hand. No, no, its fine. You dont honestly expect me to believe Jerome would do me a favor without strings attached? Whatever. I dont have anything to hide. He can keep his territory-Im too busy watching my own. You can tell him whatever you want so long as you do what I need you to.Right, I said, finding my voice at last. Your embarrassing Satanic cult.He grimaced. God, those guys are such a pain in the ass. What do you know about them?That they arent Satanists like the usual groups, not like Anton LaVeys followers or the anti-Christians. I felt like a student reciting in front of a class.They think theyre anti-Christian, but mostly, theyre just ridiculous. Just some flakes in search of identity who got together and thought itd be cool to be evil. They have meeti ngs in robes and keep making up secret handshakes.And thats a problem?Nah, I dont care about any of that. They can play dress-up all they want. Whats annoying is that theyre doing all the things people think evil people do but dont actually do. They ripped up a bunch of bibles once and left them on this churchs lawn. They also appear to have a fondness for spray paint.I heard about that.They keep writing stupid stuff like The Angel of Darkness is Lord and What Would Satan Do? Cedric rolled his eyes. Yeah, like thats original.I can see why youd be embarrassed, I admitted.No kidding. The worst part is that theyre attracting some media attention- especially among local churches. So, now those guys are doing their own sort of backlash and triggering a whole bunch of demonstrations about faith and light and all that stuff. Not what we need. Kind of defeats our purpose, really.What do you want me to do?Kristin hangs out with them sometimes. They know her and recognize what side she works for, but frankly, she doesnt have the people skills to manipulate them. Shell take you to them and give them some bruiser about how youre high-ranking in the ways of evil or something equally absurd. Then, I want you to hang out with them and just be part of their group. abide them from doing more stupid things. Get them to go back to their role-playing in the basement. Hell, if you can convince them to disband, go for it. He eyed me. Youre a succubus. Youve been around for a while. You should be able to talk them into anything.I nodded. I can.Good. Im tired of them. Im not allowed to interfere directly, and my own people are too busy. He stood up and walked toward the door. I took the hint and followed. Do whatever you want the rest of the day. Kristinll take you over to them tomorrow. Check them out. See what you think. Ive got some appointments in the morning, but stop by anyway and give me your impressions of those fools.Is there anything in particular you want me to find out for you?Yes, he said. In addition to keeping them out of trouble, I want you to simply obtain them. Theyre not just attracting media attention-theyre attracting attention from my superiors. Ah, yeah. Hell could get pissy about that kind of thing. If someones purposely manipulating them, I want to know.Okay.He gave me a narrow-eyed look. And I hope its not Jerome.He still had that mild, businesslike exterior, but I heard the stern note in his voice. I shivered but gave him a smile anyway, trying not to think about misdirection.I hope not either.I was a bit affect at how short my meeting with Cedric had been. I was more surprised still that after all the grief Jerome had given me about the urgency of this trip, I now had nothing to do. Of course, if he was trying to get rid of me, this was as good a way as any. My bad attitude and I were out of Seattle.It was dinnertime when I got back to Robson Street, so I found diet at an Ethiopian restaurant a few blocks from my hotel and linge red over the remains of my meal with a novel Id picked up a few days ago. Afterward, I wandered up and down the street, looking at various shops and designers, but eventually had to stop after passing two T-shirt stores. One sold ex post facto stuff and had a down in the mouth purple Quiet Riot shirt in their window. Another sold Canadian souvenirs and displayed a shirt showing a map of Canada in red with a map of the U.S. below it in blue. The caption read Canada Likes It on Top. If Id still been dating Seth, I would have bought him both. He would have shaken his head and given me a slight quirk of the lips as he tried to hide his smile.The thought depressed me, and I found myself growing sadder and sadder as I walked back to my hotel. In that moment, I would have given anything to be with Seth again, to right the wrongs wed done to each other back around Christmastime. Losing him was losing a part of me that-Searing, white-hot anger suddenly shot through me. What the fuck was I w hining about? why should I miss him? Why should I pine for someone whod betrayed me and hurt me with my friend , of all people? Seth didnt deserve my longing or my love, and as I continued walking, that dark despair within me transformed to rage and spite-just as it had done nearly every day for the past four months.When I got back to the hotel, I was no longer sad. I was pissed. I hated everyone and everything, but especially Seth. I wanted to make him pay. Unfortunately, there was no way to do that, not here in Vancouver. Passing near the hotels bar on my way through the lobby, I paused and surveyed the patrons. It was a veritable smorgasbord of men, most of them lone travelers making temporary friends over their drinks. My succubus lust sprang up in me, and suddenly, all I wanted was to get drunk and go to bed with some guy. I wanted to lose myself in the haze of alcohol and fucking, in the hopes that it mogul all dull the pain that lay buried under my anger.And as I scanned th e room, one guy in particular caught my attention. The face was all wrong, but he had hair almost the same color as Seths. It was worn messy too, though it appeared as though hed achieved that look with gel, rather than the lack of brushing Seth employed. No, this guy wasnt a perfect match by any means, but he was close, and there was an aura of shy vulnerability about him that I liked.Putting on a smile, I strolled across the room to introduce myself. I might not be able to actually punish Seth, but at least for tonight, I could pretend that I could.