Thea was already in the bakery kitchen when I entered through the front door, locking it behind me. Half of the sweets were already ready and in the refrigerator case that was next to the front counter. I walked around the register and front counter, through the double doors, and into where all the magic occurred.
“Good morning Thea!”
She looks up and smiles at me. “Morning sweetie! Are you ready to make that cake for that wonderful man of yours?”
“I am. I can’t believe he’s turning 250… I mean 35,” I hurriedly spat out. My eyes go wide in surprise, cringing at myself for forgetting that it’s not normal, and I probably shouldn’t be giving anything away. My mouth is getting me in trouble again.
A small laugh escapes her. “Oh honey, it’s okay,” she nicely says, not acknowledging what I said. A beat passes by when she speaks again. “I know” is all she says. She knows… as in she knows, she knows? Like he’s not human, and a demon instead? I ruminate on how to handle this while I collect my ingredients and bowl in order to make my cake. I let the silence take over as she is making the eclairs.
I start mixing things as we work in peaceful silence. It was challenging not to blurt out what I was thinking. Therewas too much noise going on in my head right now. We never talked about whether or not anyone knew, or if they did know, was I not supposed to say anything about it? We never talked about how to handle situations like this. I guess I didn’t think about it, since to me, he was just Asmodeus, and I saw him for who he was from the moment I met him. I mean, I obviously knew not to talk about having a demon as a lover to strangers or people I just met, but this was Thea.
“Violet demon?” I blurt out, unable to hold it back anymore. It was becoming irritating, and like a scratch I couldn’t reach. I wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about it, let it go, or relax until I found out. And the stress was the worst thing for the baby. I wanted to do everything right as best as I could.
A loud laugh catches me by surprise. I look up from the bowl to see her smile fill her face, her eyes shiny. “Yes, that,” nodding her head, finishing up the eclairs and putting them into the fridge. That was a load off my shoulders knowing she was informed. I finally relaxed, feeling the tension in my back fade.
“I was unsure. I’m relieved that you know,” I admit to her. I was not the only one who knew this giant, insane secret. I could at least share it with someone now besides my demon himself.
* * *
I grab my finished cake and head out the front door of the bakery. It was a short walk to where my car was parked since the main road had no parking available in front of the stores, allowing for a more walkable city center. I closed the bakery door behind me, not paying attention to anything else besidesmaking sure the cake was okay before I left.
Suddenly, my hackles rise, pure terror and dread run down my spine, gooseflesh coating my arms. I turned around slowly, too afraid of what I would find once I did. The stench of death and hatred radiates in front of me. My eyes go wide, a sharp intake of breath, my lungs freezing.
A giant, black, ghostly hound stands in front of me. It stands tall, its head is at the height of my shoulder. Black wisps feathering out from around the body; Red eyes staring at me; Large, sharp teeth snapping; drops of acid falling to the ground from its mouth. The growls reverberating from the beast pierce me; whimpers leave my lips, my body convulsing, my legs nearly giving out.
I’ve been searching for you for over four years and this is how you behave?!I take a sudden step back, it can talk.
“Wh-wha-what?” my voice trembles. The beast growls again, taking a step closer to me.
You are supposed to be mine, it growls.
“But how? Asmodeus is my fated mate,” I stutter.
How dare you say that name.
That doesn’t matter to us beasts.
I scented you four years ago. You were not there. I went berserk in a fit of rage and killed those people who had your scent.
I hunted for you, followed you here.
My eyes went wide, pure dread coursing through my veins from the statements that were being spewed. I gulped,oh no–no, no, no. This was bad. This was very, very bad. My parents died because ofme.Because for some reason, this beast of death from hell scented me. A sob lodged in my throat. I knew I couldn’t show this beast my tears. I stood frozen in front of the bakery, unable to move or really breathe.
The worst part is, I thought the threat to my life was no longer there since nothing had happened for a few months. Asmodeus was unsure and was worried about my safety. He begged me to let him take me to work, especially since we had our baby to think about, but I told him everything was going to be okay and I would be safe. I should have taken him up on the offer; it wasn’t like his protective instincts weren’t a turn-on or attractive.
Was I going todie?I could feel the malice and intent of death and destruction towards me.
The beast stalked closer to me. I tried moving farther back, trying to create space between us, but suddenly I felt a hard surface against my back. I dropped the cake box from the impact, it landed on the ground, the box breaking open, the cake falling out. This was the worst-case scenario.I was cornered with nowhere to go. I thought about trying to maneuver where I had a chance to open the door and be in safety, but I didn’t want to turn my back away from it; I needed my eyes on it at all times.
Disgusting, I can’t believe you tainted your body in such a way.
I can’t wait until that spawn of yours no longer exists. Contamination of the demon race.
My eyes go wide, the audacity of this beast to say our baby was a contamination. How did they even know?
The beast chuffs,his scent clings to you, I can smell the stench in your womb.
I wrack my brain, trying to think of a way out of this, to protect my baby, but it’s only static. My body moves on instinct, unable to process what’s happening. The beast notices my movements, lets out a deathly growl and then lunges forward. Acting quickly, the only thing I could thinkto do was to protect my baby at this moment, my arms and hands coming across my bump, shielding it as best as possible.
