Chapter Sixteen

Hellman's is the demon's favorite mayo.

Looking expectantly around, Delta appeared a little disappointed at the small group"s lack of reaction. "Look, I still actually think it may have come straight from your father. We've just never been offered an opportunity to study half-demons. So, maybe it could be from your mother's side and it never activated, or perhaps unknown daddy's mother or father had some demon blood, but to be honest, it doesn't matter where it came from. I think when Ravyn gave you her blood . . ."

"My demonic blood," Ravyn spat out the words flatly, harshly, as if the idea that she'd infected a child with demon powers could destroy her. "My demonic blood awoke the genes that might have simply lain dormant and been passed down and slowly diluted out of existence. My existence and my blood have put her in danger."

"Well, yes. That's not quite how I would have phrased it, but yes, essentially that's what happened. But it's also what saved Eva's life." Clearly, Delta was uncomfortable attempting to comfort people.

"Ray, Ray," Oliver said the intimate sounding nickname softly, causing Eva"s stomach to twist in pain at the tone.

"Ravyn, no matter what it did, you did it with the purest of intentions. You saved my life." Eva squeezed away from Oliver to lean forward and grasp Ravyn's hand. "I owe you my life."

"Assuming that your succubus powers didn't start to come in until you entered puberty, your grandmother would have made more attempts to hide what you were and possibly suppress your more succubus-like qualities."

Thoughtfully, Eva considered, "Gram did have a nasty concoction that I had to drink weekly after I started my period. I began having nightmares, and Gram acted as if it were a part of puberty. She always told me that it helped with cramps, hormones, Mother Nature, you know, but honestly, I just drank it. I didn't care, and I wouldn't win an argument with her, and we just do what our adults ask of us. The nightmares went away, and life went on. But after she passed, there was no one to make it, and my period wasn't really that bad, so I never really thought about figuring out what she'd made me. But," she pondered, "it would actually make sense, because it was after Gram's death that I started dreaming about Fala Ishto and her life."

"As well as her death," Ravyn added, still holding herself rigid with what felt like guilt as they unraveled the past.

"Right!" Delta's voice rose in excitement. "If you were suppressed, so was the thread. It was there all along, but just unable to be explored and traveled. In your dreams, you were more open and susceptible to exploring the realm. But were you feeding from her? A succubus needs to feed, and Ravyn should have noticed some energy loss, unless her being a vampire somehow counteracts it all." She paused to consider the possibilities. "What we're seeing is unprecedented. I wouldn't even know what to reference to see if this is the norm or an entirely new event. Demons aren't exactly forthcoming on this plane."

"Even when I fed Eva on the trip here, I never noticed any diminishing strength, and she was definitely being powered by me," Oliver interjected.

"Interesting." Delta ran her finger down the page, scanning the handwritten words in the old tome. "Sex! I mean, assuming you've had sex and all that . . ." She blushed as Eva nodded slowly. "That's like prime feeding or energy gathering for a succubus demon."

"Dear Lord, this could explain so many awkward encounters . . ." Eva trailed off, not wanting to offer up too much in the way of explanation. She chose her words carefully, popping a gust of air out of her mouth, completely aware that Oliver had gone tense. "Yeah, awkward would definitely be the word I would use." Mentally, she added, and unsatisfying.

For Eva, sex often ended unsatisfactorily when the man she was with claimed exhaustion and fell asleep immediately after the deed. No cuddles or little kisses, no lingering caresses. Nope, they acted as if they'd run a marathon: rolled over, held her if she were lucky, and were snoring within minutes.

Meanwhile, Eva lay there irritated, lacking, and wondering why there couldn't be more, but powered up enough to run her own marathon. Definitely orgasms were possible—she'd practiced that one enough on her own—but the partners she picked seemed to skip that part for her. Sneaking out past sleeping men had become her standard operating procedure, despite the fact they never woke up after the deed. And when they did awaken hours and hours later, they would call begging for more, for another chance, giving excuses. They never understood what happened: too much to drink, too tired, overworked. Please, please.

Ugh.

"And unsatisfying for me," Eva ended the carefully worded explanation of her dolefully inadequate sex life. "Still, I kept trying, and I'm not going to lie; one-night stands are much less headache than dating." Covering her face with her hands, she let out an embarrassed laugh. "Gosh, I'm pathetic, and now you all officially know more about me than anyone else alive."

"Tit for tat, little one." Ravyn reminded her that all of her own life and vulnerabilities had been laid open for Eva as well as anyone who read her novels.

"Oh, my!" Eva's eyes widened. "I'm so sorry. I guess I didn't really say that. Everything is just out there. If I'd known you were a real person, I would have never—"

"Honestly, not everything." Waving her hand, Ravyn reminded her, "I waited three novels to even consider who you might be."

"Did you ever enter anyone's dreams or memories?" Delta asked curiously. "Like the men you were with? Or . . . laying it all out there, did the men survive the encounter with you unharmed?"

"My God, I didn't kill anyone!" Not that some of them didn't deserve it for the mediocre encounters and days of harassment for a repeat. "And their dreams? I doubt it, but I'm not sure how I would even know."

"Maybe being only part succubus means that entering dreams isn't necessary," Oliver offered. "Or perhaps she does, in fact, feed from Ravyn through their link and doesn't need nourishment that way. But honestly, I don't know that any of that matters. Eva clearly isn't harming anyone. Any demonic qualities that might call for her to be put down don't apply here."

"Whoa, put down? Was that a possibility?" Gram really had been wise to put all the protections on her and the house if that was the conclusion others would jump to. Not a single part of Eva felt demonic or dangerous; it was crazy to think that others might want her dead just for existing. Sliding into one person"s dreams and years of overly obsessed sex partners hardly seemed a crime worthy of death.

"Well, yes and no. Typically, the paranormal community looks down on demons running amok and causing problems. A little mischief is okay, but most don't stop at that. And to be honest, like Delta said, we don't have a lot of knowledge about half-demons. As much as they come to Earth, they don't often leave a lot of evidence. Dammit! I wish Malth were here. If anyone could be considered a half-demon expert, it would be him. And I have no idea where he's currently holed up."

"Well, what about you and Ravyn? Aren't vampires ‘demonic'?" She added air quotes in case her sarcastic tone wasn't obvious to the others.

"The paranormal community has elected representatives and leaders that we call the Faction. The Faction is fairly young, but attempts are being made to give us rules to live by and standards to follow, an accord if you will. Since the faction signed the accord, we—all of us, including vampires—have rules of conduct to follow. Do no harm isn't necessarily a rule; it's more like, if you do harm, stay under the radar. Demons aren't a part of the accord and so we, as a community, police them as necessary."

"Oh, wow, Oliver, I'm thinking you missed your calling with that answer. Are you sure you're not in politics instead of security?" When Oliver remained silent, Eva thumped her own head. "You're involved in the politics and policing, aren't you? Of course you are."

"People, focus," Delta ordered. "Eva, I think your grandmother put the spells and protections on you to hide you from our kind, the supernatural. But you're safe with us. She may have been worried about demons searching you out, but honestly, I don't think they would be concerned enough with you.

"I don't have Malthazar's apparent expertise," she added sarcastically, "but I can research and read a book. You're part human and part lower demon. And that lower demon part might have only been noticeable due to Ravyn's blood activating it. You're not a threat to them, and you're not of use to them. And in a pinch, due to Ravyn's blood, she could lay a claim on you that they couldn't supersede. So, what I'm saying, is I think you're safe. Safe at least from us, and whatever your granny feared." Hesitating, she continued, "I think whoever sent the hellhounds after you did so because of your connection to Ravyn and for no other reason.

"In my professional opinion, we should remove all the layers of magic at least down to Ravyn's thread, and we can examine it closer." Delta closed the book firmly and met the eyes of each of the three sitting across from her. "It's obviously your choice, but that's my suggestion."

Eva felt the confidence rolling off the witch; she felt Ravyn's calmness and Oliver's concern. The mixed-up conglomeration of emotions empowered her as she recognized them for what they were. Perhaps this was what she was missing. Gram had meant well, but until now, Eva had never stayed the night away from her home due to the protective spells in place. Surely, Gram had never planned for Eva to live her entire life in chains. Perhaps she'd planned to remove them as Eva matured and they determined the next course of action. Had Gram known what Eva was? Or did she just have a sense of the danger she might face? Eva would never know, and she would never know what Gram's long-term solution would have been, but she knew what hers had to be. From this day forward, the choices would be hers and hers alone.

Nodding with firm resolution while her skin danced in anticipation, she said, "Let's do this. Let's break these chains."