“Come now, darling, is it really so bad? How would a sensitive little thing like you survive torture, if just a little rope makes you whimper?”
“I didn’t — whimper —” I huffed, my chest straining against the ropes and against gravity itself to draw in a breath. “I growled. There’s — there’s a difference —”
Like a perverted, raven-haired bird, Callum bent his body to the side, turning his head upside down as he looked at me. It was a mockery of my current position: reddened face dangling toward the floor, my body trussed up in ropes as I hung, mid-air. One leg was extended up behind me, the other bent so my foot rested close to my opposite knee. My arms were bound together behind my back, and even my hair had been pulled into a ponytail and tied.
“You’re right; there is a difference,” Callum said sagely. “The difference being that growling at your torturer is very naughty.” He straightened up, clicking his tongue in disapproval as he snapped his fingers to the music. We were in the piano room, the fire keeping my naked body warm as Frank Sinatra crooned from the record player and the piano magically played along.
Callum caressed his hand down my extended leg until he reached the curve of my buttocks. He patted my cheek like one would affectionately pat a horse, before he whipped his palm down with a sharp, stinging smack.
Sucking in my breath, I hissed, “I can’t solve your puzzle if you keep distracting me!”
He circled me, clawed feet falling heavily with every step. “Yes, darling, that’s what we dirty demons do. We distract, we redirect, we trick, lie, and corrupt. And I’m afraid that if you don’t solve the puzzle, you’re doomed to hang here forever. Although that certainly isn’t a problem for me.” His claws scratched along my thigh, and he kissed the reddened marks they left behind. “You look beautiful in my ropes.”
God, how I longed to dissolve into submission, to beg him for pleasure, to whimper with abandon. Instead, I grit my teeth and tried to concentrate on the wretched puzzle he’d placed beneath me: a silver ball within an enclosed box, holding a maze of tunnels I couldn’t see. I had to sense the maze within, focusing my magic to guide the ball through to the end.
But focus was nearly impossible when Callum kept touching me.
“I’ve never encountered a temptation as delicious as you,” he said. His nose brushed against my thigh as he inhaled softly, slowly. His hands slid between my bound legs. Every inch of me trembled with tension as the ball rolled aimlessly within the puzzle box. “You smell like heaven.”
“Callum —!” My words dissolved with a strangled sound as his forked tongue lapped over my clit. The ball thumped uselessly within the puzzle box as my brain dissolved, pleasure rendering me incapable of guiding it any further.
“Mm, you’re failing your task, witch.” His words were groaned between my legs. “I’ll have to punish you for that.”
Holding my breath, I waited for what he would do, but nothing happened. He’d suddenly gone completely still.
“Don’t stop,” I gasped desperately. “Please, Callum!”
But he darted toward the door. Swinging slightly from the ropes, I tried to look at him upside down. “W-what are you doing?”
He waited at the door, as still as a statue as he listened. “I heard something,” he said.
In the space of a few seconds, the ropes dissolved from my body, Callum caught me before I could hit the ground and turned me right side up, setting me on my feet. Then he was at the door again, head cocked to listen, nostrils flaring as he sniffed.
Dizzied by the sudden movements and still reeling from all the sensations, I immediately sunk into a chair. “What did you hear?”
He held up his finger, and my heart clenched. That look on his face was all too familiar; there was danger nearby. My hands tightened on the arms of the chair, magic rushing through my limbs and immediately bolstering my attention, bringing the world back into focus.
“Who’s out there, Callum?” I whispered.
“A demon,” he said, his voice soft. He turned his head, his black eyes pinning me in a heavy stare. “Stay here. Wait for me.”
He slipped out the door, shutting it quietly behind him. The music kept playing, the piano softening as my worry grew. Callum could handle himself against any adversary; I’d seen him take down Juniper’s demon easily. But it had also been a demon — Lucifer — who had separated the two of us, who had been strong enough to take Callum away from me and hold him captive.
What if Lucifer had returned? What if something had pissed him off again and he was here to take Callum?
Springing to my feet, I hurriedly dressed myself. Sybil’s grimoire was on a small table nearby; I always kept it close at hand. Slipping it into my pocket, I rushed to the door. For a moment, only the house’s usual soft creaks could be heard. But then —
Crack!
The floors shook with the force of the sound, a rush of adrenaline sending me sprinting down the hall. My magic wasn’t perfect by any means, but I could summon enough power to cause damage and I wasn’t about to allow Callum to be taken from me again.
The very thought filled me with fury as another massive crash shook the house. Doors flew open before me, sparks flying wildly from my fingertips. Pausing to take a deep breath and gather myself, I teleported to the top of the stairway above the foyer.
The entryway was in complete disarray. The tiles and columns were cracked, paintings fallen from the walls, tables and chairs overturned.
“What pretty teeth you have, hellion —”
My breath caught at the sight of Callum’s claws tearing into Leon’s face. Blood was splattered across the floor, the walls, even the columns. The two demons were locked together, muscles rigid and trembling, Leon’s bloody teeth bared in a pained snarl.
“Callum, stop!”
They froze. Callum didn’t turn, refusing to give Leon even an inch of room to move. But Leon turned his golden eyes toward me, and his snarl became a grin.
“Hello again, Everly.”
My first thought was that Leon had been sent after me by my father. But the furious demon swiftly put those fears to rest. He’d come of his own accord, seeking only his sigil from within the grimoire.
His one remaining vulnerability, still tying him to the human world.
But the last time he’d seen me, the grimoire hadn’t been in my possession; it had been in Raelynn’s.
He’d spent time with her. He admitted as much. He even dared to admit he had feelings for her. It eased some of my fears, because my father would be hesitant to take Rae if he had Leon to contend with.
His sigil was no use to me. Enslaving other lives for my own power was repulsive; it would make me no better than my father, no better than every cruel generation that came before me.
“I’m willing to give you your sigil, Leon,” I said. Callum stood protectively behind me, allowing me to take the lead but not taking his eyes off the other demon for even a moment. “But you need to promise me something.”
“Demons don’t make promises,” Leon said quickly. He raised an eyebrow suggestively. “Unless you’re trying to make a deal?”
The growl Callum gave in response made adrenaline shoot through my limbs. Reaching back, I immediately grasped his arm, pulling myself closer to his side and focusing my intentions toward him. I’m yours and you know it. Body and soul, my demon. Don’t be afraid.
The tension eased out of him.
“I need you to keep Raelynn alive,” I said, speaking to Leon but stroking my hand over Callum’s chest to reassure him. “Time is running out. The Deep One is restless, and my father knows it. If he gets Raelynn, then I…I might not be able to kill the God.”
A boisterous laugh escaped from Leon. “You — what? You’re trying to kill the God? You can’t be —”
“She means it. I’ve been alive long enough to see gods die, hellion,” Callum said, his voice harsh. “They’re not above death.”
Leon was still staring at me as if I’d declared I was going to fly to the moon and live there.
Taking the grimoire from my pocket, I flipped through the pages, searching for his sigil as I said, “I’m going to put an end to all this. The Deep One never should have been awoken, and It never should be freed.”
At last, I flipped to the page with his mark upon it. Sybil had called him “The Killer”; a demon who was known to destroy every summoner who’d ever attempted to enslave him.
Until Morpheus Leighman. Until generations of my family kept him bound in servitude, unable to leave, unable to fight back.
Carefully, I tore out the page and held it up.
There was more I wanted to say before he took his name and ran. “You say you think you love her, but it’s clear that you do. It was clear the moment Kent told you to take her.”
Leon looked away, but there was a softness in him I hadn’t seen before, a crack in his viciousness.
“I’ll do what I can,” he finally said. “But I’m not a guard dog.”
“You don’t hide your feelings for the human woman very well,” Callum drawled. He sighed as he turned to me, as if the entire situation was now horrendously boring and he couldn’t bother to look at Leon for another second. Nuzzling close to my side, arms wrapping possessively around me, he lowered his voice and said, “He’ll protect her. Send him off. I want to continue our game.”
Our game. I’d nearly forgotten what we were up to right before Leon made his unannounced entrance. Hurriedly, I held out the torn page in offering, and Leon snatched it from my hands as if he thought I’d take it back at any second.
For a long moment, he simply stared at it, clawed fingers tightening on the page. How much of his life had he lived in constant fear of being summoned up until now?
Without another word, he folded the paper and tucked it into his pocket. He turned away, strode to the front door, and slipped outside.
“He’s obsessed with that woman,” Callum said, and I looked up at him in surprise. “Your father isn’t going to have any easy time getting to his sacrifice with that young demon in his way.”
He cracked his neck, rubbing his cheek where only minutes again, Leon had sliced him open. The wound was completely healed now with only a faint red mark remaining.
“Haven’t had a fight that good in a while,” he said. “Got me worked up.”
Suddenly, he lifted me off my feet and slung me over his shoulder, heading for the stairs as I shrieked in surprise.
“I need to build a wall around this place,” he huffed. When he raised his voice, the house itself shook, and I laughed. “No more goddamn intruders while I’m fucking my witch!”
He was vibrating with unspent energy. We didn’t even reach the bedroom before he was tearing my clothes off again. He slammed me against the wall at the top of the stairs, ripping so ravenously through my clothing that he left scratches across my chest.
“That hellion dared suggest making a deal with you…” He snarled, and gripped my hair to pull my head back as he kissed me. His forked tongue probed deep into my mouth and my knees went weak.
He drew back, mere centimeters from me. “My bloodlust isn’t quenched yet darling. I want him to hear you scream my name as he flees this place. I want him to have no doubt of exactly…who…you…belong to.”
He paused, staring at the scratches he’d given me. His grin spread, widening as he lowered his head. He licked the blood from my skin, eyes fluttering closed in ecstasy when I groaned.
He seized me again, flying me back to the bedroom so quickly I was dizzied. He pinned me to the floor, one hand around my throat as the other plunged between my legs.
“Callum! Oh my – God – “
“That’s it, darling.” I writhed on his fingers as he pumped them into me, panting with unbridled need. “You’re mine. Mine to use. To fuck. To breed as I wish.”
Tingles exploded over my entire body.
He got up suddenly, but I had no time to move. Ropes coiled around me, binding me tightly and dragging me into the air. I hung upside down, suspended, spinning slowly. With every rotation, Callum was closer, but I never saw him move.
The shadows were elongating, the room darkening. The fire shrunk down to smoldering embers. Callum was wrapped in darkness, a shroud of black mist enveloping him. It reminded me of how he’d looked in the woods when he’d gone after Juniper and Zane.
Finally, he stood next to me. He braced his hand against my leg to stop my spinning, and goosebumps exploded over my skin. There was a dangerous glint in his eyes as he peered down at me.
“I should stop feeding you that wretched tea,” he snarled. He was referring to the birth control mixture I chugged down whenever he came inside me. My stomach was quivering, heat growing inside me. “I want to fuck you full of my seed and knock you up.”
He caressed my belly, tracing the scarred lines of his sigil. For a moment, I dared to imagine myself swollen with child. The scars of our bond would cover my rounded stomach like a ward, allowing there to be no doubt that I was protected. Loved. Wanted.
It was only a fantasy. An impossible one, surely.
Callum stroked his hands along my inner thighs, squeezing my flesh. A throttled sound escaped my throat. The ropes held my legs slightly parted, so I could do nothing as he brought his mouth close to my core. His forked tongue extended, swirling deliciously around my clit until my legs were violently shaking.
“Callum, please! Please, that feels so – so good – I – “
“Are you going to come for me already? Mm, I can’t allow that yet.”
The ropes tugged, repositioning me. My arms were pulled behind my back, my chest drawn up so my stomach faced the floor. Another rope snaked around my head, pressing between my teeth like a gag and pulling my head up.
It was a strenuous position, similar to a hogtie. My legs were still spread, my pussy at the perfect height for him to sink his cock into me if he wished.
His claws traced over my ass. Gently, at first, but then he dug in. His claws pierced me as he held my cheeks apart and plunged his tongue into me. Licking, sucking, and probing until I squealed, struggling helplessly. My teeth were clenched around the rope, my noises muffled.
“Scream for me, darling,” he said, and pressed his tongue deep inside my pussy. My muscles squeezed desperately around him, my abdomen pulsating with pleasure. “Let Leon hear exactly what he interrupted.”
Delicious humiliation washed over me. Not even embarrassment could keep me quiet. I cried his name, almost weeping with the desire to come. But he refused to let me tip over the edge. He would bring me close, then dig in his claws and drag me back.
The room was too dark to see anything more than vague shapes. Even the fire’s embers were gone. The ropes wouldn’t allow me to look back, but I knew that if I did, I would find Callum completely wrapped in darkness, a shadow brought to life.
“Mm, I can taste your fear,” he crooned, claws scratching down my back. “And it so very good.”
My legs were suddenly released, dangling toward the ground while my chest remained entwined in rope. Callum grasped my hips, and the head of his cock pressed between my legs. He rubbed himself teasingly over my clit, the ridges on his shaft making my toes curl with stimulation.
“You’re going to come on my cock,” he said. I cried out as he sheathed himself fully inside, my muscles clenching sporadically with the massive stretch. “You’re going to come – dripping, screaming, and begging for more.”
He drew back and slammed forward, and I saw stars. Saliva had collected around the rope in my mouth, and it dripped down my chin as I groaned. I was so close – so painfully close. The drag and pull of his cock had me gasping and clenching around him.
I tried to speak around the gag, tried to cry his name and tell him I couldn’t hold back anymore, but all that came out were muffled whimpers. Ecstasy filled me, my body throbbing around him as I came. Mind-numbing heat washed over me, sparks flickering around me.
“Only you could take me so perfectly,” he said. Every thrust was punishing, and I was lost in the sensation. Limp and moaning with abandon.
His cock swelled as he came inside me, pumping me full. I could feel the heat of it inside.
He pulled out with a groan. I was limp and trembling as he spread my cheeks, his cum dripping out of me. My thighs were sticky with it.
“That’s beautiful,” he murmured. Shaking, I moaned with overstimulation as he pumped his fingers into me. “So full. Warm and shaking. Just how I like you.”
The ropes vanished slowly, allowing me to fall gently into his arms. He sank with me to the floor, cradling me, massaging me. He kissed my head as my aching body melted into him, whispering the sweetest nothings in my ear as I floated in the afterglow.
