Текст книги "Prince of Demons"

Автор книги: Nora Ash

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He was silent for a long moment. Then, finally, with a pull of his mouth, he nodded. “Fine. If that is your wish, then you shall have your bargain. I will not harm you, and I will save your brother. In return, you will submit yourself to whatever I require without a fight.”

It sounded better than any deal she could have hoped for, but the dark look in those void-like eyes made her shudder. He looked… angry.

Not that his mood mattered. He would save Larry, and all she had to give up in return was her resistance to a fate she wouldn’t be able to escape, regardless.

Gathering her leftover scraps of strength, she returned his dark gaze. “Then I, Georgia Moore, agree to your bargain, Prince of Demons.”

8

Kesh

The sun had crested the horizon when he drove them through the city in the quiet hours. Soon, the streets would once again be busy with humans going about their daily drum, oblivious to the creatures who ruled at night. This was the only time the city knew true quiet, once the drunks and thugs had gone home, and the ordinary citizens were only just starting to wake.

It was also the best time to avoid drawing attention from his own kind—something he desired even more than usual, considering the passenger he was carrying on the back of his bike.

In times of peace, he could accept that Breeders were a boon to their kind. Since their own females refused to give them sons, they needed the human women capable of bearing them heirs. But in times of war, the sweetly scented little cunts were nothing but distractions. One word of an unmated Breeder in his territory, and every one of his otherwise loyal warriors would be too busy proving himself the best choice to court her to protect his domain against their enemies.

Behind him, the girl pressed in against his back, and he cursed himself for not taking the time to source a car for the ride to the hospital where her sick brother waited for death.

As much as Kesh loathed her kind for how they fucked with otherwise dependable men’s minds, he wasn’t immune to her enchantments. The soft press of her body against his back had his cock at half-mast, his blood thrumming with eagerness to remove the clothes separating her soft skin from his.

How fucking undignified.

At least she wasn’t crying anymore. The sense of pure panic that had gripped him by the throat at the sound and smell of her tears was still fresh in his recollection, his muscles still wound too tight from the complete clarity that if she didn’t stop crying, he would die. Simply… cease to exist.

This insignificant human who’d been dumped on his doorstep—a female he had no desire to keep for any longer than he absolutely had to, let alone know—had almost dismantled him. In those moments her sobs had echoed through his throne room and straight into his gut, she’d held his entire, immortal existence by the throat.

And the second she’d realized as much? She’d used it to get her way.

Kesh bared his teeth, his cock softening partly in the presence of his anger. He knew what conniving bitches Breeders could be—though he was pretty sure they weren’t even cognizant about their influence most of the time.

Georgia, though. Georgia had seen the weakness she’d stirred, and she’d struck.

A bargain. It was not a surprise—desperate humans had called upon his kind since the dawn of time, pouring out their deepest desires as if they’d summoned nothing more than a benevolent djinn. He had granted several such wishes in his lifetime. And he had collected his payment once it was done.

Not one of the miserable cretins had found their bargain worth it, in the end.

He hadn’t made Georgia sign a contract—it would only complicate matters for whichever sorry fuck ended up claiming her, and he’d rather not have any evidence. He may not have forced her into a bargain, but he doubted his temperamental sister-in-law—his new queen—would approve, should she ever find out.

Besides, the only thing he needed from her was compliance for as long as she was under his care. This way, he wouldn’t need to pamper and cajole the little bitch. He’d simply demand she submit to getting ringed, branded, and given away to some sorry fuck who would only be too happy to be enslaved by her cunt for the rest of eternity.

With a little luck, she’d be out of his hair by the end of the week.

Sure, it wasn’t entirely in the spirit of the law that obligated lords to gentle new Breeders, but not losing his brother the entire East Coast ranked infinitely higher on his list of priorities than easing a Breeder into her new life. Especially a Breeder who was clearly not above purposely manipulating him with her cursed pheromones.

Georgia shifted behind him, her arms tightening around his waist for added security, and he swallowed a curse at the stutter in his chest as his dick surged with renewed want.

It was only pheromones. Chemicals and instincts. She was nothing but an irritating distraction from his duties, and soon, she’d be someone else’s problem.

Oh, how he couldn’t fucking wait.

The hospital was mostly quiet—as quiet as such a hub of human suffering ever got. A few scrubs-clad people gave him apprehensive looks as the Breeder led him through antiseptic-smelling hallways. As a lord, there was only so much Kesh could do to blend in with humans. He could take on the appearance of a mortal, sure, but his nearly eight-foot demonic frame couldn’t entirely fit into normal human proportions, and there were places he stuck out like a beacon. The quiet of a hospital at dawn was definitely one of them, and the caregivers’ natural urges to protect their patience flared at the sight of him.

However, Georgia’s presence seemed to stop any protests at his presence. Possibly because, while he clearly did not belong there, she looked exactly like someone who did: small, weak, disheveled, and distressed.

“When did you last sleep?” he asked, the lines on her pale face drawing his attention.

“I…” She frowned, glancing at him before quickly turning her attention straight ahead again. She did that a lot—tried not to look at him. “Yesterday. I think. Time’s… a little blurry. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I’ll sleep once Larry’s better.”

He grunted. He shouldn’t let her sleep until she’d been securely processed, now that their bargain meant he didn’t have to spend time gentling her first.

But… She looked so damned weak. Like she was teetering on the edge, only pure desperation still keeping her upright.

Had she eaten? He’d spent enough time around humans to know they needed to feed frequently.

“It’s here.” Georgia interrupted his spiraling thoughts as she stopped in front of a closed door. She drew in a slow breath before she pushed the door open.

The room housed three sleeping humans—one female and two males, one of whom was occupying the hospital bed. The other man and woman sat on each their side of the bed, sound asleep in uncomfortable-looking chairs. The brimstone touch of demonic magic hovered over the cloying scent of lingering death.

“The demon you were with was here?” he asked, keeping his voice low. It wasn’t particularly strong magic—unsurprisingly. The goon who’d brought her to him wouldn’t have had the power to do anything for a sick human. He was surprised he’d even tried.

“He said he wasn’t strong enough.” Her gaze didn’t leave the male on the bed. “Please tell me you are. If he dies, I… Please.”

Kesh shuddered at the whispered plea. It slid like a silky caress up his spine and into his chest, squeezing his lungs with the urge to soothe. To take away the pain so clear in her hoarse voice.

Her fucking pheromones again.

Kesh bared his teeth in a silent growl, taking a moment to force his brain back into control before he crossed the room and stopped by the bed.

The young man’s breathing was shallow and uneven. It wouldn’t be long before death claimed him.

Kesh placed a hand on his chest and, grunting with the effort, shoved his dark magic into the boy.

Strictly speaking, demonic magic wasn’t particularly useful for healing—but as with all things in life, with enough power, most problems could be forced into submission. Including this kid’s illness.

Cancerous cells had spread through his system like a network of underground fungi, and the damage was vast and went deep. Stronger than he’d ever seen before.

No wonder the third-rank demon who’d exploited her desperation hadn’t been able to help.

Kesh gritted his teeth as he forced his power through the boy’s spine, tensing his muscles to overload his magic enough to catch a spark. The flesh below his palm was like a dry sponge, sucking up every drop of power he poured in, and it took a long time before a flicker of energy moved along his backbone.

Slowly, so, so slowly, his magic chased away the shadow of death. In response, the young man’s breathing turned deeper.

More and more power syphoned from Kesh’s body to the boy’s, driving back the disease with sheer force, until finally, there was not so much as the shadow of a tumor left.

Breathing in harsh pants, Kesh stepped away from the bed, propping himself up against the wall with a shaky hand. Shit. He hadn’t anticipated how much of his energy it would take to cure the little prick.

“Is he…?” Georgia’s voice ripped him from the haze of exhaustion as she cautiously stepped toward the bed as if frightened her mere approach would send the boy to his death. “Did you...?”

“He is healed,” Kesh growled, irritation sparking at the roughened state of his voice. The last thing he needed was the girl to clock on to how weak he was right now. She’d already proven herself exceedingly skilled at manipulation when he’d had more strength to resist.

But Georgia didn’t pay him any notice. Stumbling, she moved to the other side of the bed. “Larry,” she whispered, touching her brother’s pale face with a gentle hand. “Larry, wake up. Show me he’s telling the truth. Please. I need you to wake up.”

The kid’s eyelids fluttered, his lips pulling into a sleepy smile at the sight of her. “Georgie? What time is it?”

She drew in a small breath, her hand against his face shaking as she stroked his cheek. “It’s still early. How are you feeling, Lar?”

“Oh, you know, great,” he said, voice dry as if delivering a well-rehearsed line of sarcasm. Then he frowned, his brows knitting. “Actually, I… I do feel good.”

“How’s the pain?” she asked.

The boy’s frown deepened. “It’s… it’s gone. Did they give me new pain meds?”

The Breeder let out a little sob, her trembling fingers still caressing his face. “No, Lar. You’re cured. You’re gonna be alright.”

“What? How is that even—?” Larry’s voice died when his gaze landed on Kesh. He stared at him for a long while, then returned his focus to his sister. “Georgie… who’s that?”

“He’s no one,” she said, smiling through tears. “No one that matters. All that’s important right now is that you’re okay.”

No one that matters. Only the demon here to take her away as payment for a second lease on this sorry human’s life.

“It’s time to go.” Kesh pushed off the wall and closed the distance to the Breeder, planting a large hand on her shoulder. She jolted at the contact, drawing in a shallow breath.

The boy in the bed jerked at his sister’s reaction, pushing himself up as if he were thinking of coming to her rescue.

She must have thought so too, because she raised her hand to stave him off. “It’s alright, Lar. I need to go.”

“Go where?” Larry asked, his gaze darting back to Kesh. “Georgia, go where?”

“Away. For a little while.” She smiled at him and let her palm fall from his face, catching his hand between hers without disturbing the tubing sticking out of it. “Please, Larry. Don’t worry about me, okay? You have a whole life to live now, and I’ll be alright. All I need is to know that you’re happy and healthy.”

Larry looked at her, his gaze flickering to Kesh for another glance before he returned his focus to his sister once more. “Who is he, Georgia?”

“He’s a friend.” She still smiled, though the scent of her tears was becoming strong enough to put Kesh on edge. Noises from beyond the closed door alerted him that the hospital was waking. He tightened his grip on her shoulder.

“Now, Breeder,” he grunted.

She winced at the unspoken threat in his voice and nodded. “I’m coming. Bye, Lar. Take care of Mom, okay? And tell her not to worry about me. You both deserve to be happy, and I’ll be okay, I promise.”

“Georgia, no.” Larry clamped down on her hand, strength he hadn't possessed in a long time keeping her by his side. “Is he… is he one of… of them? Are they… are they real? Is that why I’m better? What did you do? What did you give him?”

Georgia grimaced, stroking her brother’s arm with her free hand, trying to calm him, but Kesh was out of patience.

He reached down and wrenched the mortal’s hand off her, yanking her back from the bed. When the kid protested and tried to scramble off the bed to come to her aid, Kesh sent him backward with a push of energy.

“Your sister made a bargain to save your miserable life, kid. Don’t waste her sacrifice by trying to play the hero now,” he warned, giving the human a glare so dark it made Larry gasp with terror despite the human disguise he saw. “If you think to come looking for her, know that not only will I undo what I’ve done for you this morning, I will seek out every blood relation you have and break their bodies apart while you gasp for your last breath. The last thing you’ll see before you meet your own death is their intestines pulled from their guts and their bones snapped and sucked for marrow, one by one. While they still scream. Understand?”

Neither of the two siblings said a word, but the sharp stench of fear hit his nostrils with all the confirmation he needed to know that his warning had been heard.

Without another look back to the bed, he pulled Georgia from her brother’s grasp and out the door. Leaving her family behind for good.

9

Georgia

The demon didn’t take them back to the refurbished casino where she'd first met him. Instead, he drove the roaring motorcycle through the early morning traffic toward a part of town she’d never been to before—a choice she’d made entirely on purpose.

Broken down old buildings shielded them from the pale sun’s first rays, the stench of decay clinging to her skin when the prince kicked the bike to a stop.

Georgia released his waist the second it was safe to do so. As thankful as she’d been that he’d healed Larry, his growled threat as he pulled her from the room still echoed in her mind as a sharp reminder of what, exactly, her brother’s savior was.

She cast a nervous look around at the bleak location. A figure sat huddled by a scratched doorway on their left, but otherwise there was no sign of life. “Where are we?”

The demon grunted but didn’t answer, swinging off the bike and pulling her with him in the process. With a firm grasp on her arm, he started walking toward the door.

“W-what are you going to do with me?” she asked, fear prickling at her spine. The last time a demon had dragged her to a deserted-looking building, it’d been with the purpose of forcing her into prostitution. While Irral’s comments had made it seem like this demon prince wouldn’t want the same fate for her, she wasn’t stupid. They called her a Breeder—there were only so many ways this could end up for her.

Once more, the giant monster by her side didn’t answer her question, and she tried her best to not panic as he dragged her down a dingy hallway to a dimly lit staircase. She’d agreed to this, and he’d held up his end of the bargain. Larry was well. He’d have a good life.

Whatever the prince had planned for her, hopefully it would be marginally better than what her fate would have been if Jimmy the Pimp had been the one to fulfill her contract.

The staircase was littered with old fast-food wrappers, syringes, and all manner of dirt and grime of questionable origin. Blood and excrement smeared the walls, making Georgia gag as they climbed the stairs.

At the top, the demon turned left and opened a door to a restroom in an even worse state than the stairwell. He pulled her inside, and she had to clasp a hand to her mouth and nose to avoid dry-heaving at the stench.

On the filthy floor lay two sleeping people. Or perhaps they were passed out. A syringe stuck out between the guy’s toes, and what looked like a crack pipe dangled from the woman’s fingers. She was smiling, though the only sign that she was still alive was the faint up and down movements of her chest.

Georgia’s stomach clenched tight at the sight of them. Whatever had happened to these two that the only place they could find happiness was in this hellhole, she wished with all she was that she could take it away. Help them somehow.

The demon closed the door shut behind them and finally released his grip on her arm, turning to the man on the floor. With a snarl of disgust on his terrifying features, he plucked the syringe from the man's foot and lifted him up by the scruff of his neck, dangling him in front of his face. Eying him as if he were a piece of meat.

Sick dread rose as bile in Georgia’s throat. They weren’t here to help these two, that much was obvious.

“What are you going to do to him?” she croaked. “Please, don’t… don’t hurt him.”

The monster didn’t so much as turn to look at her. With his free hand, he grabbed the man’s head and squeezed.

The crack as his skull broke sent Georgia forward with a lurch, bile spilling from her lips as she coughed and gagged. It was a mercy, really, because she didn’t see what he did with the freed brain matter after that. The comments about Lewin’s dietary habits were too fresh in her mind for even an ounce of morbid curiosity to make it through the horror.

She dry-heaved until the body of the now dead man, with scars so deep they’d driven him to this place, landed on the floor in front of her with a thunk. Through streams of tears, she saw the demon step over his limp corpse, moving toward the still comatose woman.

It was only the sickening knowledge of what he intended to do next that gave her the strength to stagger forward and throw herself over the woman’s prone body.

“No! Don’t!” Her voice was hoarse and harrowed, still raw from throwing up bile and the sheer terror shaking her body. It took all her strength to turn and look up at the frightening monster looming over them. His already horrifying features were pulled into a silent snarl at her interference. Dark liquid glistened on his lips.

“Move, Breeder.” The command was quiet. A dark warning.

“Please. Please don’t hurt her,” Georgia whispered. “Please, oh God, you can’t… please!”

His eyes narrowed. “I can’t?”

She swallowed thickly, realizing the challenge he took from her words. And that she wouldn’t win a battle of wills. Not with this beast. “Please.”

The demon huffed a sigh—an irritated sound, but it gave her a surge of hope. He could have easily removed her and murdered this helpless woman if he wanted to, no matter how much Georgia protested. But so far, he hadn’t.

“Your brother took a lot of my power. I need to refill. If not from this useless pile of flesh, then who, little Breeder?” He stared at her, the darkness of his eyes making her shiver as she clung to the passed-out woman underneath her. “Who would you like me to take the energy I need from? Give me a name. Who deserves to live less than this pitiful stain on humanity?”

Georgia breathed shallowly as the horror curdled in her stomach and turned inward. It hadn’t so much as crossed her mind before—that there would be a cost to what she’d asked of him, beyond their agreement. That his power didn’t come from nothing, that it would need replenishment. And that for a demon, that meant… this.

The challenge in his inhuman black eyes was clear. Someone was going to give him what he needed, and she had gotten in the way of his feeding. He knew she couldn’t name someone to die. He likely read it on her soul as she huddled over this nameless woman whom no one would ever miss, if she just let him take what he wanted.

There was no winning, not with him. She felt it in the pit of her stomach as he stared her down, challenging her to either give up the woman she was currently protecting or naming someone more deserving of dying.

She was the reason he was here. She’d made the bargain with him, she was why he needed to refill.

“Me,” she said softly. “Take your energy from me.”

His brow ridges arched high on his scaly forehead, arms crossing over his massive chest. “You? Are you so much of a martyr that you’ll throw your life away for anyone you stumble across? First your brother, and now this wretch?”

Georgia forced her throat to swallow the lump lodged there. She was gambling with true darkness; she understood that much as she stared into the voids of his eyes. Perhaps it was everything she’d already seen today, perhaps it was sheer exhaustion, or a full psychotic break, but she knew the only way to save this woman was to bank on the fact the prince seemed to want her not-dead. For now.

“You can take energy without killing. Right?” She remembered Jimmy’s words about how demons went about obtaining human life force. How it could be done in so many horrible ways.

And how, for women, there was one universally preferred source.

She forced herself to remain silent as she waited for his answer. Rape at his hands would unquestionably lead to mutilation and death—he was just too big for any other outcome from a violent encounter.

But he wanted her alive. However he went about taking what he needed from her, she’d be better off than the poor woman in here with them. She clung to that thought as she stared up at the huge beast.

The horned monster drew in a deep breath as he stared down at her, seemingly evaluating her offer. Then he nodded once, but the dark look in those void-like eyes had her skin break into goosebumps. “If you are so determined to sacrifice yourself, fine. Stand.”

He watched her impassively as she scrambled to get up from her prone position, arms never leaving his chest. Once she was on her feet, he nodded toward the door. “Move.”

Shakily, she obeyed, feeling his looming presence behind her like a stalking beast as they made their way down the filthy stairs, out the door and all the way to his bike.

Only then did he move from behind her, straddling the vehicle before he turned to look at her over his shoulder. “On.”

“Where are you taking me?” she asked, though she did as she was told, not wanting him to change his mind and return to the building and the unconscious woman in that awful bathroom.

“Home.” Without another word, he kicked the bike into gear, the engine roaring to life between her thighs.

Georgia clung to his leather clad waist as he drove them through the city, the aching pulse in her heart reminding her that she would likely never see anything she could call home ever again.