Page 27 of Hellish Witch (Playing with Demons #3)
Chapter 26
T he world dissolved in a fizz of inexplicable sensation. Every part of me disintegrated, nothing but ash for a disorienting second before I was slapped back together and spat out.
I stumbled out of the portal, gasping for air.
Tiny needles stung my skin, and my limbs failed to respond for a few sluggish beats while my body remembered how to be a functioning whole.
Pain throbbed through my side and down my back. Warmth pulsed through my middle, contrasting the icy breeze whipping my hair into a frenzy around my face.
Sounds and scents overwhelmed me: the honking of cars, the acrid burn of exhaust smoke, and the tang of old piss. A colourless moon hung heavy in the night sky, devoid of stars and suffocated by clouds.
The human realm was just as intense as I remembered.
I reached over my shoulder, gripped the first arrow’s shaft, and pulled .
Agony sucked at my shoulder blade as I wrenched the metal tip out, causing more damage than when it had gone in. I screamed against clenched fangs, ignoring the wet heat rushing down my back, sticking my top to my skin.
My ragged panting layered the night, and I dropped the arrow, its clatter on the paving stones echoing around the alley.
I reached for the second with a shaky hand, this time closer to my spine. The angle meant I couldn’t pull it out straight.
This would not be fun.
I sucked in a breath and yanked before I lost the nerve.
Another rush of wetness preceded agony, like being jabbed with a hot poker.
I would know.
“Dragon dicks!” I snarled, throwing down the second arrow, drenched in my blood.
My back ached as fiercely as my scratched ribs, peeking through my ripped top. Magic tingled the wounds, repairing the damage in a soothing wave.
Heat pulsed through my insides, warming me with an uncomfortable sensation like heartburn that had spread beyond my stomach.
For a second, I eyed the two arrows on the dirty paving slabs, debating taking them with me, but carrying them unsheathed was a recipe for getting myself stabbed again. My poisoned blades would have to be enough.
Guilt bit at me as I felt my energy drain into healing the damage to my back and side. I’d left Cookie and those shadow-walkers to fight off an orc horde while I fled to safety. But my presence would have only put them in more danger.
I hoped my familiar was okay though.
A sense of wonder filtered through the heavy shame.
A real life mage’s familiar .
My familiar.
An animal to help strengthen and channel my magic. To guide me in times of need through our mental bond.
And she was a psychotic, cookie-stealing hellcat.
I couldn’t have wished for a better gift though. Given the few-hour time difference between England of the human realm and the Hybrid Kingdom of Hell, it was probably still my birthday here.
I shook my head. I’d never thought such a blessing could be possible. Not for me.
It explained why she’d been able to heal herself. Or maybe why I could. Zoella and Alpha controlled a gorgeous lilac hell-fire, a power they shared.
Could all hellcats heal? I wouldn’t put it past the rare felines to have the ability to help others and turn their snooty whiskers up at the idea.
If I wanted to see that crazy death kitty again, I had to get myself fixed and back to Hell. I couldn’t sense her presence down any mental connection, so apparently, whatever magic was involved didn’t span realms. The thought left me feeling hollow, lonely despite only just discovering the bond.
I set off towards the mouth of the alley, boots splashing through puddles from a recent rainfall.
Warmth simmered in my middle as I walked, helping to stave off the chill of the human realm.
The sensation was oddly distracting, combining with the exhaustion from all the running and fighting and healing to sap my focus when I should be on high alert.
The portal topside was almost as dangerous as back in Hell. Most demons who lived here knew where it was, and some were enterprising enough to take advantage of those coming through.
But luck must be on my side for once, because nobody assaulted me as I stumbled down the lane, pushing my body towards the flickering neon sign on the far side of the street. Some mage had been paid handsomely to craft a magic signal only demons could see.
It guided those fresh from Hell towards its unassuming doors. Behind them lurked a den of demonic sin—a nightclub.
Because the first thing most of us needed when we crossed was a stiff drink.
And a good feed.
What I needed was information.
And if most of the demons topside got their glamour from the coven I sought, they’d know exactly where I needed to go.
More warmth pulsed through my body until sweat beaded my brow. I drew a deep breath, filling my lungs with cool air, but it did nothing to ease the growing heat low in my middle.
I felt every brush of fabric against my skin as I moved, my own clothes irritating me with their teasing caresses. Wetness gathered between my thighs, the material of my panties rubbing maddeningly against me with every stumbling step I took.
I didn’t know what was happening to me, but I shoved down the strange feelings and focused on getting help.
Though, the kind of help I wanted right now didn’t involve talking.
My thoughts swirled back to Killian. To the feel of his hands on my body.
His lips on my skin.
His forked tongue lashing my clit.
I moaned, swiping the moisture dewing my forehead as I hit the wider road, hurrying across it to the next dark alley, beneath the glowing sign. The brick walls blurred slightly, but before I knew it, I was standing outside an unassuming steel door, struggling to catch my breath like I’d been chased by hungry bone-kin. Again.
Banging on the metal, I braced to pretend everything was fine. Just a regular demon-witch on a night out. No big deal.
Not burning up from a hunger hot enough to liquefy my bones.
The door opened a crack, revealing a surly pain demon with crimson skin, just a shade brighter than my hair, and black horns twice the length of my stubby ones.
I pasted on the brightest smile I could manage. “Hello, good sir!”
I even gave him a little wave.
Totally.
Normal.
He grimaced, pinching his wide nose like he smelled something awful. “Errr, you’re leaking pheromones everywhere, succubus. What are you doing?” His voice came out comically nasal, but the heat unfurling through my body made it hard to focus on anything.
I kept on waving. “Um…clubbing?”
Even through the haze of lust, his words made sense. Most sexual demons could release pheromones to heighten desire. They didn’t create it, only encouraged what was already there. Usually, most could only affect a handful of demons close by, and it faded quickly.
Some powerful demons could turn a nun’s convent into an orgy though.
I’d never been able to release even a whiff of the stuff.
Now was a terrible time to find out there was another power I couldn’t control.
He eyed me in stony silence, the hard-man effect ruined by the way his clawed fingers pinched his nostrils.
After a long second, a honking titter left his lips. “Sure. Whatever. Fuck rooms are up the stairs at the back, succubus.”
At least he hadn’t sneered at me for being a hybrid.
Keeping his nose blocked, he stepped aside and waved me through the doorway. I caught sight of the bulge of his crotch, a hard length outlined beneath his jeans.
I swallowed, the furnace inside my middle burning hotter, even though logically I knew I wasn’t into the guy.
“Thanks,” I murmured, my voice coming out low and husky.
I fought to back away from him, a haze of lusty thoughts assaulting my mind. A whimper left my lips as I staggered back before I could do anything I’d regret.
I hurried off, barely noticing the cloakroom piled high with coats and bags as I passed. It held packs even bigger than the one I’d lost.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only person fresh from the portal.
I stepped through the dark atrium and into the club proper. A wall of bassy music hit me the second I pushed opened the studded double doors.
What looked like a hundred demons and humans writhed on a sunken dance floor, bathed in flares of strobe lighting and colourful smoke. The sinuous movement of their bodies called to me, reeling me in harder than standing right next to a portal.
Saliva pooled in my mouth at the thought of feeding on all of them.
This was a terrible idea.