Page 54 of My Monster’s Keeper

Bonus Scene- Hartley

T he huge red creature stands up and tips over, falling into the rubbish bins. I hold my gun trained on it, my eyes wide and disbelieving. It mutters and lets out an almost comical whine as it shakes a dirty diaper off its arm.

My ex-wife said I worked too much. I’m starting to think she was right. Clearly, all the late nights have gotten to me, and I’m having some kind of psychotic break.

It happens to cops, I’ve heard. We see too much. We live a hard and fast life and burn the candle at both ends.

I’m almost forty-four years old, and all I’ve got left to my name is a piece of paper with my divorce, a rental property with mice, a reputation that hasn’t driven me up the ladder, and a lifetime of regrets.

The red thing hisses and yowls as he drops to his knees, gripping his head. He’s in pain. I don’t know why I care, but I do.

He has horns.

What if this psychotic break is actually a person under this mask of illusion? If I shot him, I might end not just my career but my life. Three meals in jail. Tempting.

“Hey!” I shout.

It lifts its head, humanoid with huge red eyes, ringed with obsidian.

His cheek-bones are prominent, his lips plush.

He’s got what appears to be a mane of black hair that falls down to his ass.

And when he gets to his feet, snorting smoke out of his nose, he’s easily over eight feet tall of pure muscle.

My mouth dries up. I have never ever seen anything as starkly male and as hot as this creature is. What is it? Desperation isn’t a good look on anyone, but I’m not surprised I’ve sunk this.

“Hey, are you all right? ”

The thing closes its eyes, and I feel somewhat distraught that he’s not looking at me anymore.

“I am fine. If you could just tell me where I am?” His voice is deep, like gravel, holding power in every note. I shudder as his eyes drag down my body and back up. He sees me, I think with a touch of panic.

“Effusion City.”

“Planet?”

I scowl. This is going hand-in-hand with my delusions. Fine, I’ll play. “Earth.”

“Earth?” the creature breathes. “That’s not possible. No one should be able to get here.”

He’s not talking to me, but when he suddenly advances towards me, I stumble back, lifting the gun.

He doesn’t even pay it notice as he crosses to the squad car and leans on it.

The car shrieks in protest, bowing under his weight, but I’m looking at his naked chest, the veins that pulse slightly around the bulging muscles.

One of the tires explodes.

I gasp and shove my gun in its holster, rushing to the tyre.

“What did you do?” I shout and shove at the car, frustrated. “I’m going to get docked for this. Again. I can barely afford rent without you fucking up my paycheck.”

It’s not rational, but this month, this year has been too much. If this is my psychotic break, I want to yell about all the things that are ruining every shred of peaceful sleep I get.

“Do you make it a habit to go around yelling at beings, pink one?”

“Pink one?” My eyebrows snap down, and I whirl on him. Poking a finger into his chest. God, he’s hard.

The horns come down as he looks at my finger on his chest. I turn my head, studying the hard horn in front of me. I want to touch it.

I lick my lips, nervous and unsure now that I’m surrounded by this giant, red creature.

All of a sudden, I’m picked up and pressed against his chest, my face level with his.

“Human?”

“My name is Hartley. Tobias Hartley.” I swallow hard. “Put me down.”

The creature stares into my eyes, a tiny frown marring his alien features.

“I don’t think I can do that. Hart. I like it.”

“What are you?” I whisper.

“I am a devil or demon if you will,” he croons back .

And before I can say anything else, we disappear in an explosion of crimson smoke.

***

When I wake up, I’m lying on my couch in my apartment. There’s a broken spring digging into my ribs, and I’m not wearing my uniform. In fact, I’m stripped down to my boxers. I peek around but can’t see him.

Is he gone? Why am I so disappointed?

“Do you have food, human?”

I nearly jump out of my skin, whirling to find him looming in the dark of the kitchen.

“Hartley!” I snap and rush to the fridge, slamming it shut.

“My name is Hartley, not human. Not pink thing.” I register what I’m looking at and feel my head spin.

He’s taller than me but only by a few inches.

He’s human, very attractively human, with black hair, who looks about my age, but his eyes are still red. Freakily, eerily red.

When I was a teenager, I had feelings for a couple of guys, but nothing since I met my ex-wife. I’m feeling all those feelings. It's an instant and undeniable attraction.

I stumble back, needing to get away from the sulphur and sin scent of him.

“What are you?” I whisper.

“I told you before.”

“Tell me again, who are you? Why are you here? What do you want with me?”

He takes a step, and I step back.

He follows after me, smiling like a predator. “My name is Diablos, and you, Tobias Hartley, are going to help me save this world. It’s going to need us both.”

***

“That’s another one on the list.” Diablos frowns, looking down at the body of the broken woman.

She’d never know that we were so close to finding her, to keeping her safe.

This potential omega.

“We’ve been working together for three months, Diablos, we haven’t found a single one alive. ”

The stress of it is getting to me. The desperate desire to find one of these girls alive, to keep her among the living. To give us a chance. We’re losing this war.

We just need one omega.

“If it’s not my kind, Shadow kin, Fae, or something else, it’s yours killing them. How can so many be after them? How do they even know which ones are starting to emerge?” Diablos growls and rakes a huge hand down his face.

He works as tirelessly as I do. We’re workaholics who don’t let anything come between us and our success. I admire that about him.

Teaching him about this planet was easy. Diablos wanted to learn about it. He loves it here, and I love him in my life. He’s becoming my best friend and most trusted confidant.

I don’t give a damn about the alphas and betas that are coming from the other worlds. What I object to and the only reason I decided to go along with this plan was because the women being murdered are Earth women. Hunted and snuffed out to stop the potential omegas from awakening.

We just need to find one to make it all worth it.

And when Diablos showed me proof. I went to the force I have sworn my life to, only to discover the corruption went all the way to the top. My entire department is in on keeping these bodies hidden.

The betrayal was almost more than I could bear.

“Breathe, Hart.”

God, that nickname, the things it does to me.

I exhale and turn to him, my fingers curling into fists. “I can’t breathe. We have to stop this. We have to find one alive, just one. We can-”

Diablos cups my cheek. I jerk back, but he follows me, staying right with me. He’s going to know, to see through me and this secret crush I’ve been nurturing. I peer up at him, undeniably nervous. Don’t see this, please don’t see it.

“It’s breaking your heart, isn’t it?” Diablos murmurs, and his thumb strokes so gently over my cheek. “I don’t want to see you broken. You are too beautiful to break.”

I want to deny it, but why is it that every human on the planet sees me as hard and cynical, but this demon sees straight through to see how scared and anxious I am.

How much it all hurts.

He sees my loneliness and desperation.

Why is it only him in the whole world who thinks I’m too beautiful to break ?

I stumble back again, warily watching him as he leans in. His eyes are intently focused. He’s going to kiss me. Oh, please, I want it so bad.

“Don’t,” I whisper. A stupid last protest to save us both.

He ignores me, tilting his head and leaning in closer. I catch the smell of blackberries on his breath. I hold perfectly still, my eyes locked with his, the intensity sets my whole body afire.

I love him. I have since I saw him. How foolish of me. How impossible.

Diablos touches his lips to mine. The kiss is soft, sweet, tentative.

It changes everything. All of everything. All my beliefs, everything I thought I knew, all my dreams, hopes, all the regrets fall away.

This is the one.

This is my one.

***

I’m screaming so loud I think I’ve damaged my vocal cords. I try to stay standing, but I can’t, I drop to my knees, slamming my fist into the ground.

We’re bonded, and I can feel him inside me. But it’s not going right, neither of us expected this. I can feel fire racing through my body. Everything is changing. My back blazes and burns.

I scream louder and claw at the wood. I peel open my eyes, stunned by the sight of Diablos frantically fighting the circle to try and get to me.

He’s crying. Big, huge tears rolling down his crimson face. Agony in every expression.

He’s calling my name, sobbing my name, he’s screaming, he’s sorry.

He’s sorry.

He’s pleading.

For me.

I can’t lose him, and he deserves everything. He’s the best demon, and he’s a better person than anyone I’ve ever known. He deserves the happy ever after we planned.

I don’t want to see him hurt.

I stop fighting the burning, closing my eyes and accepting the pain, accepting the changes.

I am going to survive this.

I want to be with him forever .

My life flashes before my eyes, all the highs and lows.

My wedding day. The day she miscarried the child that wasn’t mine.

The hollow, broken house after she left.

All my days as a cop. Getting shot, my award for bravery, the day I realised I’d never make detective.

High school. My parent’s deaths. All the loss and loneliness that brought me to here. To him.

He’s what I’ve been waiting for. He’s the epic love I didn’t think a bastard like me ever deserved.