“We should probably blend in, so security doesn’t kick us out,” she looks around before pointing, “Oh! There. Let’s go buy some chips.”
Waiting in line, I tell her, “Bel, we cannot spend any more of your money on this. Just let me… take them. No one would notice. I’ll simply pull them through the aether from there to my pocket.”
“No, we can’t do that. It wo-”
“Oh, darn. It looks like I’ve already managed it. Oops. Let’s go,” I wrap an arm around Bel’s waist and pull her towards some of the machines. Sitting down and settling her onto my lap, I request, “Okay, Little Dove, teach me.”
* * *
A few hours and who knows how many lost tokens later, we’ve perused the entire casino floor, and I’m about ready to retire so I can clean this city off of me when someone bellows, “Holy shit, look who’s topside!”
I turn toward the sound, looking for the familiar voice, when he shouts again, “Caspian, get the hell over here.”Fritz.Bel looks at me and raises her brows in a silent question before looking at the man— demon calling for me. I nod and pull her towards him with me.
“Hello, Fritz. It’s been a long while.” I tell him. Nearly 400 years, if memory serves. “This is Belissenda. She’s my…”
“Your sacrifice.” He supplies.What the fu—“I can sense that she’s ahostiafrom here, and there’s no other way for you to be back.”
“Uhh hi,” Bel gives him the tiniest wave, pulling herself deeper into my embrace, “Just Bel is fine.”
Fritz’s grin turns licentious, and he pulls out a chair next to him. “Just Bel, it is. Come sit down, both of you. I would love nothing more than to spend time with an old friend and his new friend.” She glances nervously between the two of us before turning to me for direction.
I whisper into her ear, “He’s incredibly powerful but utterly harmless. He’s just a relentless flirt. Sit.”
Strangely enough, she picks the seat that would put her between us rather than putting me closer to him. She looks at me again and then back at Fritz. He doesn’t tear his eyes off her, clearly as captivated by her stunning features as I am. A slimy sensation begins in my stomach, begging me to tear out his eyes so that, for at least a while, they can’t consume what is mine.
Another part of me is relishing in his relentless perusal of my girl. I respect Fritz. I would even say we were dear friends when we knew each other. He and I gave in to the temptation of each other more than once over the years and seeing him crave her the way I do has my mind wandering places I would have thought implausible not five minutes ago.
I watch as Bel quickly appraises him right back. His wild hair is much different than how I remember it. The style is similar to mine, but no amount of product could tame those dark curls, one always flopping right into his face, his eyes so dark brown they’re black in this light, his build slightly smaller than mine, more angular and agile.
A mischievous grin graces her beautiful face as she looks at me, “So you two know each other.” She states.
That sly bastard slings an arm around her, pulling her close, and starts, “We do. But I’m more interested in knowingyou,Sweetness.” And God’s damn him, Bel’s grin transforms into that shy, coquettish smirk that plays with my heartstrings and my cock in equal measure. Emboldened, he continues, “What has brought you to my table?”
Only then do I notice that he is in the seat generally reserved for staff. It seems Bel realizes it then, too. “You’re the dealer?” she asks.
He smiles, still barely giving me a glance. I can’t say I blame him, as Bel is a magnetic force, “I am, and you two seem to be the only ones at my table. How fortuitous.” The space around us is devoid of life, as if no one dared to enter his circle before he allowed them.
Laughing, I tell him, “I seem to have forgotten just how powerful you are.” I scoot myself closer to Bel and lean in, “Fritz is what we call anExhaurié.He feeds off the energy of those around him, so a place like this is perfect for him.”
“Wait. You don’t all eat people?” She asks in disbelief.
Fritz laughs, and his eyes meet mine, “You were unfortunate enough to see him in action, were you?” At the disgusted look in her eyes, he continues without humor, “No, only demons of Cas’s order.Devoré’s.There are alsoBiberé, but those bloodsuckers are a whole other nightmare, and hopefully, you’ll never have to deal with one.”
“Oh. How do you… do what you do?” She asks, looking back at him.They look so good together.Between his fingers gently toying with her hair and her eyeing him with wicked curiosity, I can’t help the depraved turn my thoughts take.
Suddenly, the table is filled with mortals slapping down their chips again, and the change in volume level has me momentarily distracted. When I look back at Bel and Fritz, I see he’s whispering something in her ear that I didn’t quite catch in time, and she giggles in response.
Before he can get any closer to bedding her, something I’m admittedlyveryinterested in seeing, I interrupt, “Actually, Fritz. We are here because of a dire matter. Things we cannot exactly discuss with the present company.”
“Ah, yes. Unfortunately, I have to work for the rest of the night. Blah, so boring. But needs must,” he shrugs. “Where are you staying?” He’s dealing cards and playing with the rest of the mortals while talking to us like he’s done this a million times. Then again, he probably has.
Bel looks to me again for guidance, and holy Gods, do I love that she trusts and defers to me. At my encouraging nod, she answers, “We got a little hotel room off the strip.”
“Ew,” Fritz emits a high-pitched whistle that has me cringing from the sound, and a round, short, red-faced man comes lumbering up to us. “This is Norman. Norman, please show Caspian and Belissenda to my suite. Give them a parking permit, and tickets to whatever show they want to see. Oh! And they’re welcome to my VIP pass to the club should they decide to use it. And give them whatever else they ask for. They’re my guests.”
“Oh, my God. No, absolutely not. We’re fine. You don’t need to do any of that for us,” Bel gushes nervously.
“Bel, Sweets. It costs me nothing and helps us to find each other again easier,” he explains while continuing his game without having to give it any attention. “I have a three bedroom suite so you will both have ample private space. I simply work late and cannot imagine you want to be traveling here again in the middle of the night.”
