Demon Q Page 19

  Her own energy had returned, and the guile was back in her eyes.

  He smiled and froze as he registered a presence next to him too late.

  Sharp claws stabbed his side. He punched out before he turned to look. The demon puffed back into smoke and Quution’s arm flung all the way out and hit the wall. Pain burned through his hand, but he dropped to a fighting stance, his focus attuned to the base of his bubble. The smoke demon could exploit any opening.

  He wasn’t worried about Xan taking care of the other two. The immediate threat against making everyone safe in the underworld was the smoke demon.

  A faint sizzling of energy in front of him tickled his skin. He lashed out with his claws before the smoke demon reformed. He broke skin, and one of his claws jabbed the demon’s eye.

  A strangled cry scarred his eardrums and the smoke demon staggered back into the electrical field. Quution focused his energy on the areas the demon touched.

  He remained fully formed, jerking, as jolts of electricity zapped his body. When his eyelids finally drifted shut, Quution eased up. The demon hit the floor in a lump, unconscious.

  Dropping the field, he prepped for another attack, but Xan had the situation dealt with. The other two demons were dragging themselves away, scratched and bleeding.

  “Oh, don’t forget your friend. Spaeth’s hunting for all of you.”

  The two scrambled to haul their unconscious pal with them. Xan watched them until they disappeared around the corner. Quution couldn’t take his eyes off the magnificent female. Less than a day ago, she’d been despondent and watching cable TV reruns. Yet here she was now, back to save his ass.

  She met his admiring gaze. “I gave them the impression Spaeth was working with you on all this, and he would find their mates and slaughter them for hurting you.” She shrugged. “Not ideal, but it’ll wear off and they’ll realize I fooled them.”

  “Spaeth would hunt their mates just for fun,” Quution agreed. He wanted to ask why she’d returned, but it didn’t seem right as he stood over all the material that could cause her worst fears to come to fruition.

  “You’re right,” she said.

  This was Xan, right? And not Xera messing with him? Xan was his greatest weakness, after all. “About?”

  She pointed to the pile at his feet. “I think I might’ve gotten Marcus thrown in jail because I went for a jog past Brooklyn’s place and found two demons stalking her. They broke in, and I stopped them, with help from her and a frying pan. Four humans’ lives damaged in under five minutes.”

  He bowed his head. “I’m sorry.”

  “For what? I’ve wasted days. It’s time to hunt my sister down and stop her.” Xan’s hard edge was belied by her throat working up and down. “Where are you going?”

  “To the cell I was raised in. I don’t have everything I need for the realm wards.”

  She nodded. “Lead the way.”

  He didn’t question his good fortune, picking up his items instead. The rest of the journey only took fifteen more minutes, a mile of passages, and a slide down a narrow tunnel.

  He lit a torch to illuminate the area and set his things down. He wasn’t going into the cell. He couldn’t do it. But the antechamber was enough.

  “So what do you need to finish this?”

  “A piece of you and Spaeth.” He opened the box that contained hair from him and Melody, fur from two other demons. A couple of scales, an egg from Mantis, bits of busted horns and claws from three demons, a vile of acid spit, and two vials of blood. “These are parts of every other Circle member except you two.”

  “Got an empty vial?” she asked.

  He plucked one out of his coat pocket and handed it to her. Her movements were efficient and her face determined as she pricked a finger and let a drop fall into the vial. Capping it, she handed it back. He set the bottle in the box and slid it into the cell. He wouldn’t go inside, but his stuff could.

  “Spaeth’s going to be tricky,” she said. “But he spits when he talks so getting his spit might be the easiest. We can work together. I’m sure Xera’s with him.”

  Quution closed the distance between them. It was too nice to be close to her again, the real her. “Xan, I…”

  “Shh. It sucks, but it has to be done. I’ve seen just a little of the damage they want to do.” Sadness filled her eyes. He didn’t know if she was mourning the family she’d thought she had, the trouble Marcus and Brooklyn were in, or that she had to fight her sister, but he wanted to make her feel better.

  He ran his knuckles along her cheek. She threw her arms around his neck and planted her mouth on his. He staggered back until his back hit the stone slats of the cell.

  Her tongue was in his mouth and she lifted her legs and wrapped them around his waist.

  If this was how she wanted to feel better, he was on board.

  He kissed her like the starving male he was. Hungry for a soft touch—or rough in the right circumstances. He was ravenous for someone of his own. A partner, a lover, a friend. Xan filled all those roles and she’d just fought by his side. And he planned on leaving her.

  Gripping her ass cheeks and careful of his claws, he turned and tread forward until her back touched the slats. He barely noticed that she was kissing him around his fake fangs. All he cared about was not hurting her.

  As if she sensed that he couldn’t untie his pants without shanking her or impaling his dick with his stupid claws, she wormed a hand between them.

  Her hand went straight for his cock. His pelvis jacked forward like it had a mind of its own and one goal—to get closer to her. She let go only to yank the tie at his waist. His pants hit the floor and she circled his erection with her hot hand.

  She released his mouth, her other arm anchored around his neck, and rocked up until the head of his shaft rubbed along her slit.

  All he could do was groan.

  “It’s been too long,” she whispered.

  He agreed. It’d only been a few days since he’d been with her, but he could spend the rest of his days loving her over and over again. Her juices coated him, but he didn’t push her. She would set the pace.

  And she chose excruciatingly slow.

  She shifted until he was pressing inside of her, but she didn’t drop down until he was buried to the hilt. She took him one inch at a time and let him watch the desire, the yearning, the craving.

  They were both seeking solace in the other. Proof that what they had could transcend spells and wards and realms. Reassurance that this wouldn’t be their last time.

  He trembled as he held himself still. Finally, he was buried completely inside her, connected.

  “Xan—”

  She pressed a finger to his lips that smelled of ripe sex, causing his fangs to throb. He sucked her finger into his mouth and twirled his tongue around the tip.

  Her pupils flared, making her eyes fathomless. He could get lost in them forever. But his time here was limited. His plans were about more than what he wanted.

  Xan arched her back as much as she could, pinned between him and the wall. He thrust up as she crashed back down. Over and over, they slammed into each other, seeking release, clinging to the other.

  He slid in and out, her walls gripping him, her core blazing hot. His energy trickled out, crackling over her skin like tiny fireworks. Her lips parted and her legs tightened.

  “Qu—” A moan rolled out and her eyes squeezed shut. She shattered in his arms and it was glorious, the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

  His climax claimed him instantly. He couldn’t hold her shuddering in his arms from pleasure he’d given her and not get pushed past his peak.

  He buried his head in the crook of her neck. Releasing inside of her was an experience he’d cherish forever. Every second he got to spend with her was a treasure, the reading lessons, the first hallucination, even the times when she needled him for information.

  He’d take all of those memories to the other side with him.

  Xan
tried to disguise the trembling in her hand as she sorted through scrolls. Quution was bent over them, pointing out various details to Stryke. Her male was as calm and practical as he always was. Meanwhile, she fought down a constant titter over their mad coupling. Her body wanted to melt into a puddle while her mind wanted to break down and cry over the depth of their connection.

  It couldn’t be their last time. It just couldn’t. She’d reconciled herself to him leaving when she’d had the chance to be reunited with her family. But now she would be alone once this was over.

  Melody had arrived in the underworld a few minutes ago, like an obnoxious ray of sunshine. Her bright hair reflected the torchlight, and the flowery vines she’d covered herself in bloomed with pale pink petals. It was like death by happiness. But Xan was warming up to her. She’d tried not to. Melody would be in her own realm when Quution finished the job. It was no use getting friendly with the female when she’d be just another person to mourn the loss of soon.

  Xan’s future was dark. But she was willing to make the sacrifice. She could spend her days alone, hiding in the honeycomb of the underworld.

  The other female was casting her own curious looks Xan’s way. The few times Xan had interacted with her previously, she’d purposely twanged Melody’s insecurities. If the female held a grudge, Xan would understand, but they were weaknesses that’d had to be addressed at the time. Melody was already nursing a major inferiority complex because she’d been born human and was ruling an underworld full of demons.

  That was going to change, though. Melody would be out of a job soon—if they could track down Spaeth, bottle some spit, and get out alive. And of course, find Xera.

  “If anything happens to me,” Quution was telling Stryke, “it’s all here.”

  A muscle flexed in Stryke’s jaw. “Nothing’s going to happen to you.” He beckoned Xan and Melody over. Choosing a bare spot outside of the cell, he squatted and scratched a sharp nail in the dirt. “Here’s where the Circle meets. I’ve traced Spaeth’s energy signature four corridors down.”

  “Mm.” He’d moved then. His new digs were two corridors over from where Xan had met with him. Coward. “I bet he controls that whole section.”

  Quution leaned over Stryke and gestured to the far corner of his drawing. “Xan’s correct. That was where we found Xera.”

  Xan would find her sister again. Xera was blazing through the Circle, crazing half-breeds and making them attack each other.

  Stryke tapped a finger on the opposite side of Spaeth’s area. “Melody and I come in from the back. You and Xan from the front. And we surround him.”

  “Can’t he just poof away?” Melody asked.

  “Spaeth appears and disappears, but he can’t teleport,” Xan explained. “He just goes incorporeal, and when he does, his radiation goes as well.” Until he took form again and burned everyone around him.

  Creaks of vines and plants came from Melody. She was using her plant power to cover herself in a suit of barky armor.

  Fuck, that was cool.

  Melody’s horns gleamed. A drop of toxin hung off each one. Her sunny packaging hid a poisonous, deadly demon.

  Yeah, they could’ve been good friends.

  “Ready?” Stryke asked.

  “Once Spaeth is defeated, you two get out of the realm. You can’t risk getting caught down here.” Quution left “or I’d never forgive myself” unsaid, but Xan heard the vulnerability in his voice and hated it. Xera could latch on to his fears of getting his friend and his brother trapped in the underworld.

  Stryke left with Melody. Their trip would take them longer, but they weren’t being hunted at the moment and would run into less trouble than she and Quution would.

  Quution shuffled his gaudy boots. “We should leave, too, as we’ll have to duck and cover to avoid conflict.”

  Xan eyed him. False fangs and claws were in place. Ratty clothes. Uneven shoes.

  “Get naked,” she ordered.

  “Uh…We don’t have time to…”

  “No.” She was done with deception. Quution was going to lock the entire underworld in the realm, and every demon down here needed to know exactly who’d done it. She twirled her finger at him. “You need to lose the disguise. A half-breed is putting the realm on lockdown. Let our kind own that shit. Not to mention, it’ll help us get through the corridors. It’s going to take a moment for others to recognize you.”

  Although she didn’t know why. With horns the color of sunset and lilac eyes, he was clearly Quution whether he was outfitted full-blood style or delightfully bare.

  He pondered her words for a few moments. She thought he might reject her idea, but then he tossed his coat off. Next came his baggy undershirt, then the pants she’d dropped not long before. He stepped out of his boots and shoved them aside with his foot. She winced as he yanked the fangs out, then pried each claw off.

  Rolling his neck and flexing his hands, he groaned. “I’m actually a little nervous.”

  Her lips twitched. No demon would be caught dead admitting to a case of the nerves, but Quution wasn’t an average demon. She eyed his full length. Definitely above average.

  “The real demon Q is about to take this place down.” He smiled and she liked seeing his lips unencumbered by his fangs. But the grin faded. “Xan, when we…” His eyes turned tortured, his look haunted.

  She stepped close and draped her hands on his chiseled chest. “I didn’t come back here for you to stall when we need you the most. I can’t afford to think about might-have-beens and lost dreams.” Xera would target them soon enough. “If things were different, you and I would hole up in a chamber and forget the world. I’d make it look like that cabin and we could stare out at a pretend sunset every night. But they’re not different and this needs to be done.”

  He didn’t touch her and she didn’t get any closer to him than she already was. One last regretful look and he lifted the shoebox and secured it in the crook of his elbow. They would launch the wards as soon as a piece of Spaeth was in the shoebox.

  “Very well,” he said, his expression resolute. “I am ready.”

  At least one of them was.

  Chapter 23

  Quution struggled not to grab Xan and duck into the next empty chamber. She could create the shared hallucination again and he could pretend to cook for her. He’d even eat candy beetles to keep the ruse going.

  Only it wouldn’t work. They’d eventually be found, hunted and killed.

  He couldn’t quit wondering what would happen to her once the wards were in place. The majority of the demons in the realm didn’t know she was helping him, and once Xera was dealt with, Xan could take care of those who aimed the blame her way.

  All those worries were assuming that they’d succeed. Xera was a fearsome opponent. She didn’t have a single soft spot in her heart and that gave her a dangerous edge.

  But Spaeth was a full-blooded demon. Ruthless, powerful, and deadly. He wasn’t playing around. He wanted Quution gone, and he’d even shown two traits rare in his kind: cunning and patience. He and Xera wouldn’t be taken off guard. They’d be expecting trouble.

  He and Xan kept marching. The few demons they crossed paths with all reacted the same. Their gaze lit on Xan, they snarled, then they prepped to attack Quution. Only then did they do a double take, their eyes widening when energy snapped over Quution and they realized who he really was. Then they tripped over themselves running to tell everyone that Quution was a half-breed like them.

  Walking naked through the underworld had turned out to be his best defense. His real form provided the truth needed to disrupt Xera’s influence over them.

  A wave of dread nearly swept him under. He sucked in a breath and tensed.

  Xan laid a warm hand on his arm. “It’s begun.”

  Xera.

  He and Xan held hands like a junior-high couple. The connection was strong enough to fend off the worst of Xera’s attacks. The demon could only alternate between him and Xan; she couldn�
��t maintain her power with both.

  In his mind, the image of Stryke crumpling to the ground, covered in bubbling sores from Spaeth’s radiation, stopped him in his tracks. “No.” He doubled over, his hands on his knees. Xan was right next to him, but Stryke wasn’t. What if he and Xan didn’t get there in time? What if both Stryke and Melody succumbed to Spaeth? What if—

  “Quution?” Xan rubbed his back. “Whatever you’re thinking, it’s a lie.”

  “Stryke… He’s… He…” Quution squeezed his eyes shut. How could it be a lie? It was so clear. He could even smell skin burning.

  “Was Melody in the vision? Because Xera doesn’t know Melody’s with him and she’s only targeting your fears for your brother.”

  No, Melody wasn’t in the vision. He straightened. Xera didn’t know him well enough to target all those he cared about.

  Xan’s eyes widened and she gripped his arm with both hands.

  “What are you seeing?” Quution asked.

  “You. Same old.” She gritted her teeth and dragged him forward.

  While they couldn’t delay, he suspected Xan wasn’t telling him everything. “It’ll lose its power if you talk to me,” he urged.

  She lifted her chin, her eyes full of resolve. “You left me behind. But I’ve dealt with it. She’s sensing the rawness of my emotion, but not that I’ve come to terms with what you need to do.”

  His chest ached like Xera had flayed him open and clawed out his heart. He was leaving Xan. One way or the other. He could die saving her, and that might mean they lost the battle against Spaeth. But if they won, he’d be sealing himself on the other side.

  This sucked.

  Xan’s claws pinched his skin. Her sister’s attack was getting worse, but since it wasn’t stopping Xan, he’d guess it was Xera who was growing more erratic.

  “Two more lefts and we’ll be back at his chamber,” Quution said. Facts. Facts fight the fears.

  She nodded. “He won’t be there. He’s a coward and he’ll launch a—”