10. Not Only Love HurtsCreedMara

10

NOT ONLY LOVE HURTS

M onster or not. Angry or not. After that first kill, I cried like a weak human child. At the time I felt invincible and justified in the man's death, but after that is when the kindness Sasha had shown me tried to pull me back to the light and the creature I used to be.

For days I wept for the life I took. For the heart inside I thought had died with Sasha. It's beating, though not responsible for my continuation of life, echoed in my head, taunting me with its constant noise. Growing louder in my ears until the lack of noise in the man's chest deafened me to any sound or lack thereof.

If I still had the ability to pray, I just might have. But I lost that privilege long ago. I believe that was the exact moment I felt there was no redemption left for me. How could anyone forgive my actions, let alone my creator, my father? It's time to shut it all off and focus on what the powerless humans can not fix. From here on out, I will be the judge and the executioner. It will be me who'll hold the sinners accountable for their actions. And the restitution will never add up to enough for the people they have harmed.

When I wasn't working, I would go home and curl up on my makeshift bed and get lost in my head. That's when the first of them showed up. She crept from the shadows of the room. Coming towards me slowly like a timid child. A doll-like figure, something you'd picture a little girl holding. But dolls, they are not. When the creature got closer to me, I noticed her joints were visible bone, and she wore a porcelain mask, but when she lifted her skeletal fingers to remove it, only a disfigured skull lay beneath.

I was not frightened of her, but I was curious to find a creation of Hell hiding in my house. "Does your Lord know you are here?" I asked, voice raw.

"We have no master," she replied in a cherub's voice. "But we would like to serve you, Mistress."

"I have no need for servants." I sat up. My feet resting on the floor, a measurement of how small she was. Her head reached my knees and her body was just a few inches wider than one of my legs. "I feel you are wasting your time here."

"We are drawn here to you." She looked up at me, the mask back over her face. Orange eyes glowing back at me, burning into my own. "We will stay. Keep you company. Watch your home. Keep you safe."

She backed away without allowing me to reply. Her small form disappeared back into the dark, but that wasn't the last time I saw her, or the others. If I didn't see them, I could sense them. They were always around. And it made me feel safe, and I never felt alone.

My head clears the surface of the water, and I take a deep breath in. I've allowed the bath to get cold as the memories of my first kill crept up and stole my time. Lifting my body with my grip on the edges of the bathtub, I stand and step from the porcelain vessel. With only a hand towel under my feet, clear drops run off my skin and make small splashes on the faded vinyl floor. I stand across from the shattered bathroom vanity mirror and see glimpses of milky skin. The candles I lit before entering my warm retreat are at the end of their wicks and the glow reflects off my skin making me look ghostly.

You would think this was a haunted house, but it is not. There are no spirits here, just a lost angel thriving in the empty darkness of a hollowed out home. I dwell here and nothing else. This place is my sanctuary. The one place I don't have to pretend I am human. I can be who I want to be, without looking over my shoulder to see if something inhuman is creeping from my skin.

I've had the last couple of nights off from the club and I feel antsy. I need to get out and do something. I've delayed my feeding long enough and my demon is getting restless with its hunger. Maybe I will hunt. A little game of cat and mouse might calm my nerves and allow me to actually sleep through the night so I am well rested for my shift tomorrow. Granted, angels and demons don't need to sleep. It is not a requirement for our bodies to recharge, but I find it's the only time my mind finds rest. The silence is needed once in a while so I can function and keep my darker side hidden.

Throwing on one of my tight-fitting gowns, a see-through black romper with gold embroidery and black shorts, I sit on my bed to put on a pair of black, skinny strapped high heels. No makeup is needed, but I add golden hoops to my ears and a long gold chain that falls between my cleavage. The low v-cut of the front allows my breasts to show the perfect amount to entice men and plant a seed for them to approach me. I braid my hair loosely, letting it sway behind me while red strands partially obscure my face.Walking out the door, I smile with anticipation for a good feeding on the low-lit streets of Philly.

"Damn lock," I mutter to myself. "You piece of shit. I guess this is the downfall of living in an abandoned house. Everything sticks, creeks or is falling apart. Having enough of the stubborn rusted metal, I grip it with my fingers and squeeze until I hear it pop. "Well, that works. I'll just have to get a new one tomorrow when I go to the store for my weekly staples."

I push the door open, and it groans in reply. The sad thing is when I close it, it refuses to latch, and I let out an aggravated sigh. I'm too tired to deal with it now, and I can't help but appreciate the fact that this door is in the back of the house, where no one can see that there is an intruder. Dragging my sore, tired muscles up the stairs, I sigh and once again regret my choice to have chosen this life. It was so much better when all I felt was happiness and love from everyone I knew. Now I'm trapped in a reality where you have to be fake in order for people to like you. It's so much work and it's more tiring than dancing on stage all night. At least with my job, once the music starts, I can just lose myself in the beat and pretend I'm back in a time where lies didn't exist, and I didn't have to work so damn hard to survive.

Reaching the closest room to the stairs, I sit down on my makeshift bed and close my eyes. If only I hadn't been so gullible all those years ago. I blame the humans. If they hadn't sinned, we wouldn't know what free will was and perhaps I wouldn't have strayed.

I wince as the emptiness in my chest sends a shooting pain into my gut. I double over as the back stairs come alive. Someone is here. and they don't care if I know that. The house creaks and groans with the newcomer. No, there's more than one. Their footsteps echo throughout the barren house and I shut off the human side of me in preparation for what is to come.

I can feel the change. The hunger spreads and I find myself standing. If they plan on robbing this place I'm gonna defend it. This place is the only thing I have. It might be a shit hole, but it's my shit hole and they weren't invited. A thought enters my brain. I think I'll give them the option to play, but I won't make it easy.

I back away from the bed. Tiptoeing, I make my way to the connected bathroom. Slowly closing the door so it doesn't make a sound. I turn to grab the sink and the reflection in the mirror stops me. My eyes are rimmed in red, but that's not all. There's a piece of paper hanging on the glass.

Why the fuck is there a note on my mirror? Who could've put it there? How did they get in?

Pulling the black as night folded piece of paper from the mirror I make my way into the bathtub and grab the lighter from my back pocket. Making sure I'm behind the dark sheet I use for a curtain, I flick the lighter and read the words as the vibrant letters seem to leap off the page.

Ha, that's funny. This Guild wants me to do what I've already been doing, but on their terms forever. Why would I join a group and have rules and does this mean I can only kill who they choose? Fuck it, I don't have time for this.

The bedroom door bangs against the wall and I stand in the shower at the sound of voices in the other room.

"You swear she came in here?" A familiar voice seeps through the crack in the bathroom door. Dexter.

"Ya, man. You saw her truck on the street in front," the other man says. And of course it can't be anyone but his faithful sidekick, Marcus.

"She's gotta be here somewhere," Dexter tries to whisper, but the banging of the door would have gotten anyone's attention. "You look downstairs, and I'll look around up here."

"How do I get to the main floor? There wasn't a doorway when we entered below." Marcus questions.

"There's gotta be a stairwell up here that attaches to the main floor. Start looking," Dexter demands.

All I hear is a grunt and then heavy footsteps walking away, down the hall. He will find a stairwell that goes downstairs, but he won't get very far. The stairs were caved in after the landing, so unless he's part monkey, Marcus won't make it all the way down.

Dexter follows behind him, but he must be in the 2nd bedroom further down the hall, because I hear Marcus's faint swearing and another set of footsteps jogging further away from me. I use the weapons I have and begin to undress, hiding the invitation under the pile of my abandoned clothes. Sure, this is an abandoned building, but I have my ways of getting what I want. I turn the shower nozzle and hot water sprays my body. If they want a piece of me, I'll give them a piece, just one that I decide to share.

There's a scraping sound against the side of the porcelain tub, and I look to see Smoke, one of the little shadow creatures, pulling my clothes over the side of the tub, claws puncturing through the paper proposal. It takes me only a second to realize he can predict my plans and is hiding them so I look more like I was taking a shower. But then a question comes to me, and I quickly whisper it aloud, "Smoke, did you see who left the piece of paper?"

"No, Mistress. No one delivered it. It merely appeared," he replies before disappearing.

I hear shuffling feet and switch my thoughts back to the men in my home. I smile. Sometimes my beauty comes in handy, otherwise it's just a curse. One that became more potent when I fell. When my spirit died and Samael made me his whore. That's the moment of my death. When I became Mara, one of Hell's Succubi. This hunger is my curse, and this curse is my life. It is all I am, and all I will ever be.

Within seconds, the bathroom door is the next thing to crash against the wall. I continue to drag my hands down my body even after the old sheet is ripped from the make shift rod. I don't look at the men surprised, only confident.

"Hey, boys." I smile. "Are you here to get cleaned up?"

"I think we should get ourselves dirty first," Marcus looks me up and down and a child-like smile forms on his lips. My compulsion has already hit him, and he is definitely feeling the lust.

"Very dirty," Dexter mumbles as he grabs the crotch of his jeans and fists the bulge.

"Take off your clothes and join me then, boys. We can do both." I wink.

They don't hesitate, they immediately begin to pull off their clothing. Marcus gets his pants stuck around his feet and almost takes himself out as he falls to the floor, but he ungraciously gets them off of himself and jumps to his feet with a dopey smile. Dexter, on the other hand, is as smooth as a Casanova. Peeling off his shirt and slowly sliding his pants down his legs. Once they are down to their boxers, they both smirk at me and I brace myself. This will be their last and final fuck, and I won't take it easy on them. There is no way I'm gonna let them go down with a smile on their faces.

"Come on in, boys." I crook my finger and invite them in. Marcus comes in behind me and Dexter, naturally, the front, but before I know it, he grabs the back of my neck and pushes my face into the broken shower tiles.

"I'm gonna make you pay for today. You bitch," he snarls in my ear. "I'm gonna make it painful, and you're gonna beg for more."

"Sounds good to me. Let's start this shit," I tease back as I lick the blood from the corner of my mouth. Smiling at Dexter with blood staining my teeth, I revel in the thoughts of how I will end this fucker.

"Um, Dex," Marcus hesitates. "I don't wanna be that rough with her."

"Shut the fuck up, Marcus," Dexter growls. "I'll destroy her, so you can go first. Let me help you out." Dexter surprises me by kicking my feet apart and flattening my front against the wall so Marcus can take me from behind.

"Make sure you get me ready, Marcus. You don't want to hurt me now," I taunt. He's a softy. He only acts this way because no one else, but Dex, will give him the time of day. It's the natural way of bully and bullied. One leads, the other follows.

"Of course not." I feel pressure along my back as he leans into whisper in my ear. Hesitant fingers land on my clit, and they are definitely not used to pleasing a woman. He's rough and pushes too hard. I try to rotate my hips so that I can get away from the grinding down of my pelvic bone. But he doesn't get the hint.

"Oh, for fuck sakes," Dexter says. "Move over, I'll prep the bitch for you." Dexter pushes Marcus out of the shower and takes his spot. Roughly, he grips one hip and places a rough finger on my clit and begins to swirl his finger around. It doesn't take long for me to begin mumbling, so he takes that as a sign to shove two fingers from his other hand in my pussy. He's not kind and quickly begins to pound me, but I love it and begin to moan out my satisfaction with his handling of me.

"Dexter, you need to stop," Marcus says. "I wanna fuck her pretty pussy before you stretch it out."

Dexter smiles and I can feel it as he is breathing heavily into my ear. He removes his fingers and backs away. But Marcus quickly takes his place. Without warning, he shoves his cock into my pussy, and I catch my breath. He's not big, but he's not average, and his movements are unpracticed. I do my best not to laugh, instead I cover up my disappointment with lies and I moan like I'm enjoying his attention.

Dexter seems to be studying me, because he knows I'm not satisfied, and he turns me forcefully so I am facing him and his friend has to move quickly in order to stay attached to my cunt.

"Hey, man, that wasn't nice. You could've torn my cock off with that move." I try to hold it back, but a laugh leaves me, and Marcus grabs my hips and stills. "You laughing at me, you whore?" The tone of his voice is cold and I know his next move is not going to be nice. He wants to punish me for hurting his feelings.

Dexter grabs my chin hard and puts his face directly in front of mine. Practically spitting in my face he shouts at me, "You don't like our treatment you slut?"

Just then Marcus holds my hips down and thrusts so hard into me I almost fly up and connect my forehead with Dexter's. "Oh fuck," he groans. "Her pussy is so tight and warm."

"Hey man, I've got an idea," Dexter smiles wickedly as he stares into my eyes. My cheeks are beginning to hurt from his fingers, but I don't move, except for the jerking caused by Marcus's attempts to fuck me like a beast. Not working, by the way. "Let's switch. You take her mouth and I'll take her cunt."

"Really? Dude, her pussy feels so warm," Marcus whines and I can picture his eyes closing as his head falls back. Lost in his pleasure.

"Yes, it's time I destroy this bitch." He lets go of my face violently and I feel the friction burn from his skin on mine. "Besides, her mouth will be nice and warm too."

With a grumble, Marcus removes his unimpressive cock from my pussy and spins me around to face him. I have no time to even look him in the eyes before Dexter grabs the back of my neck and forces me to bend at the waist. Then he thrusts into me, and he is big, and fucking hard. I scream. He laughs and simultaneously he pins my arms to my sides as Marcus grabs the back of my head.

"Open your mouth, Mara, and if you bite me, I'll fucking kill you and we will fuck your dead corpse," he snarls, and I'm almost impressed that it's Marcus commanding me.

I open and he shoves his cock in my mouth and holds me there until I get dizzy and my tensed body relaxes from lack of air. I still refuse to struggle. They are both buried in me now, but they aren't moving and my demon is getting hungrier and hungrier the longer they make me wait. Finally, like it's been choreographed, they both move as they hold me in place. They aren't slowing. Marcus is loud with his pleasure, and Dexter grunts as he ruts into me from behind. My core tightens, and Dexter groans. His cock thickens and my demon is ready to feast. At that moment. Marcus growls and releases his seed in my mouth. I come and pull all I can from his pitiful donation. His knees begin to shake and before his friend can realize I am draining him, Dexter explodes and rolls his torso over my back as he continues to thrust through his orgasm.

I'm living high and bathing in their energy as I suck their souls from their seed. They're both shaking now and Marcus is ready to collapse. Dexter loosens his grip on my arms and they shoot forward to hold onto Marcus's thighs so that he doesn't fall over before I get this little last bit. Dexter begins to groan, but his position is perfect as his life fades away.

I let go of Marcus and he falls over. Dead. Before Dexter knows his fate, I roll my back up and turn around to hold him up so he can see my eyes. They are no longer human, and I want him to look at me in his final minutes and know that he fucked with the wrong she demon. The red of my irises reflects off his pupils and I smile, making sure to show a little fang.

"How do you feel now, Dex?" I question. "Do you feel like you fucked me or do you feel like you got fucked?"

His eyes widen as he sees just who I am. In his final moments he pisses himself and I look down to see that my demon side has made the decision to rip off his dick. He pales and falls to the shower floor. He too is gone, and I am left with a count of meat between my claws. Fuck, now I have a mess to clean up and I need to shower again. Why does this shit keep happening to me? Why can't one of these go more smoothly?

I groan as I push his body onto the bathroom floor and step back into the water. Cooler now, but that doesn't matter. My demon needs a little cooling off now that she is satiated and my body is hot. Once all the gore and cum is rinsed from my skin, I turn the handle and step around Marcus to grab the unaffected shower curtain. Wrapping it around me, I feel a breeze and look back at the doorway, but there's no one there. Funny, I could have sworn something caressed my skin, but no. As I normally do, I am allowing a bit of my anxiety to ruin the moment.

I turn back to face the mess on the floor and sigh. Snapping my fingers, a small creature appears in the linen closet. "What do you need, Mistress?"

"Can you please drag these assholes to hell and feed them to the hounds?" I ask her sweetly. Mist is one of my minions, and my favorite to boot.

"Yes, Mistress, but I'll need help." She bows her head. "Do I have your permission to recruit two more of my comrades to assist?"

"Yes, that's fine. Just let me get out of the building first so they can't go back to Hell gossiping about who they are helping." I look down at her and wait until she raises her head. "Thank you, my friend. You are loyal and sweet."

"Thank you, Mistress. I am grateful to you for your kind treatment," she replies with a light in her eyes. " When you return, it will be like nothing happened here."

I leave the bathroom and quickly put on a pair of jeans and a hoodie. Slipping into a pair of shoes, I grab my purse and keys before I descend the stairs and exit the building.

There's that breeze again. "Who's there?" I ask the purpling sky. Of course there is no answer and I shrug. I hop into the truck and start the engine, pondering what the hell is going on with the mysterious chill I keep feeling. I can't stay here so I turn into the road and head out of town for a joy ride.

CREED

Holy fuck, did I just watch a porn massacre? When they warned me that she was dangerous I guess I didn't believe them. She just ripped that guy's dick off. I'm speechless and a bit turned on. And, okay, I couldn't stop myself from brushing my fingers across her skin. I just had to touch her. She was so tempting, and I was beginning to believe it was her temptation power that was getting to me. I'd have to be more cautious when up close and personal, and put myself in check. I almost gutted those two for the way they treated her and her tight little body. But she handled it well. She was her own weapon. Mara didn't need a man to guard her. She didn't need anyone. How had she not killed Samuel before running is a mystery to me. She seems to hold the power to do so and that wasn't even her full transformation. All that changed were her eyes and fingertips. The rest of her stayed perfectly human.

I'll have to warn the guys. Fill them in on her strength. She is not one we should pretend is frail. Mara is strong enough to kill us all if she chooses. We would all die happy.

MARA

The sunrise is beautiful. Just sitting on the side of the road enjoying the view is magnetic. The sky is on fire as the sun takes over possession of the sky. I wish I could be there. Where the clouds kiss the sun, and the heavens bleed purple and pink and gold. I miss it. The ease of that life. I almost can't remember what happiness is. But I try to hold onto the simple things that once made me smile. The feathers on a warrior angel, how they shimmered and sparkled as they flew. The trees that always bore the sweetest of fruits. The love that surrounded me and I didn't even have to try to make others like me, they just did. I am alone here and I will stay that way until I find my end.

It's a lonely existence. One I'm getting tired of. Although I choose to evade him, Samuel continues to hide from me as well. I don't even know if vengeance will be mine before I fade into nothing. I just want it all to end. It's a punishment. A true exile from my father's arms. I have been disgraced, disowned and forgotten here on this dry planet called Earth. With humans that lie in greed and sin and hate. I want to escape. But my work isn't done. There is too much evil to let thrive. I am going to stop as much as I can before it pollutes the whole planet and no one survives the infection. It should be safe to go back to the building now. I've been gone for almost four hours, and I want to rest. My mind refuses to shut off. I am hoping if I lay down and close my eyes, the quiet of my room will also silence my thoughts.

I open the door and peek my head in, just in case the minions haven't finished. But the space is clear. Mist did a wonderful job cleaning up my mess. No one would have ever guessed a murder occurred here today. I'll have to find her some squirrel or something. I know how she loves Earth meat. I want her to know I really do appreciate her help and hard work. Us girls need to stick together, after all.

My bed looks so inviting. I tear off my shoes and throw them at the door, and in no time I am face down in my pillows and fast asleep. I am lost in dreams of the past and nightmares of a man I haven't seen in almost five hundred years.