2. Pike

Chapter 2

Pike

Being a crossroads demon has perks. But the cons far outweigh the pros. It's not like I chose to be a crossroads demon. If I could have picked my demon type, it'd be incubus, because can you imagine fucking for sustenance? Yes, please. But no, I was born and cursed to be bound to a crossroads my entire life and I'm not a fan. Okay, that's not entirely true, but I still hate it.

Cold water hits my chest as I turn on the shower. Luckily, it doesn't take too long to get hot as hellfire.

"This is what I get for helping Van with a bargain." I scrub the blood and guts from my body the best I can. Of course, I enjoyed the bloodbath, but perhaps next time I won't rip people apart and go for a good old-fashioned stabbing instead. Who am I kidding? I love watching a murderer realize I'm going to pull their head off. Mmmmm . Sweet justice.

Dorris, the mother that bargained for the death of her daughter's murderers, offered two dozen homemade cookies every month for the rest of her life as long as she's able. It's outside of the sacrifice requirements, but what crossroads demon can resist that divinity? Not Van and certainly not me. He said I can have five cookies a month and I'll make sure he keeps his word.

The stench of death washes off relatively easily and I stand under the shower spray, savoring the heat. What can it hurt to rub one out while I'm here? It's only been a few hours.

I slide a hand down my stomach. My tail shivers as I do, adding to the experience. My eyes shut and I moan as my cock hardens in my grip.

I'm several strokes in when a shrill whistle I haven't heard in decades echos in my ears. It takes me too long to realize what it is before I open my eyes to find my skin shimmer.

In a blink, I'm not in my shower anymore. No, I'm naked, cock in hand, inside a summoning circle at my crossroads. The crossroads I haven't seen in twenty years, but it's all too familiar. The crisp autumn air hints at burning leaves not too far away. Wind blows dust and I'm already ready to get the hell out of Hex.

"It worked!" A Fae with the prettiest pink hair dances in front of me as if they're playing in a meadow. The flittering of their wings under their shirt and their body language is pure happiness. I hate to be the one to squash it, but no one disturbs my happy shower fun time and gets a welcoming reaction.

"What do you want?" I'm gruffer than I probably should be, but we need to get this bargain done so I can get back to my shower. And if I'm honest with myself, I'm a bit hangry and planned to cook up a steak real soon.

The Fae turns to me and I suck in a breath. Beautiful blue-gray eyes stare up at me before giving me a once over. I follow suit and do the same, taking in their lithe form. The jeans are too big, and the shirt is almost too small and full of holes. And there's magic wrapped around them that's concerning.

The Fae squeaks as their gaze falls to my still hard cock. "I… I didn't think you'd be ready so soon. I thought we'd set a date." They wrap their arms around themselves and hunch over. "I don't know that I'm ready."

"What are you talking about?" I release my cock because why the hell am I holding it?

"My virginity. That's my offer. Is that why you're naked?" The Fae looks away from me and waves towards my cock.

In this day and age, who the fuck tries to sacrifice their virginity? "Sacrifice denied."

"What?! You—You can't deny my offer!" They hug themself harder. "That's all I have."

"But you're Fae. You don't hold virginity on a pedestal like humans do. Unless something's changed?"

They shake their head.

"So you offer me an empty sacrifice? No, you're denied. The sacrifice must hold meaning. It must be something you don't think you can live without." Unless it's homemade food, but I won't tell them that. This is the easiest way to let them down rather than tell them I really can't do much for them because of the magic holding them hostage.

The Fae nods. "I… I understand." They drop to their bottom on the gravel road and pull their knees to them. "You were my only hope of getting home. I wasn't trained on cutting the veils between realms. I was just a simple courtesan-in-training."

"You want to go back to the Fae realm?" To all the boring stuffy courts and procedures. Bleh!

"Yes. That's all I've wanted for a decade. I caught a bit of luck and got away from my captor, but?—"

I sigh as I pinch my nose. "You don't know, do you?"

"Know what?"

"You can't go home. Even if I could accept your virginity, but I can't, you can't go home."

"Why not? Is the Fae realm no more? What's going on? Tell me!" The little Fae pushes to their feet and steps closer with each word until we're toe to toe with my dick pressing against them. They don't seem to notice. I can't help but love their passion.

"Sweetheart, if you don't back off, you might get me too excited and then you'll have to change your shirt."

Oh, the pink their cheeks go as their eyes widen and they back away. "Sorry."

"Name, pronouns," I ask since it looks like we're having a whole ass conversation, anyway.

"You can call me Trick. He him."

I tip my head. "Pike, also he him. Now. You can't go home because you have a soul tether to…"

"What the hell is a soul tether?" He backs all the way out of the circle.

I wave for him to come back. "Sweetheart, I need you closer to examine the tether."

Trick, probably not his true name, steps right back into the summoning circle. Not exactly the smartest move if he was anyone else, but the soul tether disqualifies him from striking a bargain to begin with, at least until it's gone.

"You did a good job creating the circle." I find the tether wrapped around his throat and tug. No reaction.

"I didn't know what I was doing. I didn't even know if Fae words would work." He's being so good for me, not even flinching when my nail accidentally grazes his throat.

"Oh, yes, any language works as long as there's a circle of salt and a drop of blood. Everything else comes in negotiations." My tail has a life of its own and wraps around Trick's waist, pulling him closer still. "Please excuse the wily tail. He gets excited with fresh meat."

Trick nods as he looks away with an even pinker face than before.

"This tether is old and there are several spells woven into it." The placement concerns me. Had I not noticed and accepted his offer, Trick would have been beheaded as soon as we left the human realm. He's far too pretty to lose his head.

"It's probably Drake's doing. He stole me from the Fae realm. For what? Entertainment? He's kept me locked in a cage or the basement of Flutter for a decade. What the hell?—"

I press a finger to his lips. "I see." I pinch a few strands between my thumb and forefinger to test the connection. "The soul tether connects you to this Drake. He'll live as long as you do while this tether is in place. And he's made it so you can't leave Hex." I squint at Drake's handiwork. "You're lucky. Had you gone a mile more down the road, you would have been toast."

"All this time and I still can't go home." He steps away from me and trips on his own feet, but my tail keeps him upright.

"Shhh. I'm intrigued by this entire situation. I can't destroy a soul tether outright, even with the right sacrifice. It's complicated magic. But perhaps we can release you together."

"How?" Trick already sounds defeated and we can't have that.

"There are ways. He'll know the second the tethers break, so we'll need to move slowly and have a plan. This isn't a weekend project, babe." One thread shimmers. I tip my head as I exam it. "But knowledge doesn't come for free, little Fae."

"No, of course not! What is the price? I can't thank you enough."

"A kiss." I can't help it.

"A kiss?" He licks his lips. "I've never kissed anyone before."

"Your first kiss is valuable, then."

"To me it is." His cheeks turn pink again. "It's silly, I know."

He reaches for my naked chest, but I grab his hand and press a kiss to his knuckles. The magic shimmers with another warning. "Take a breath, Trick, and let the magic take you. I'll find you and we can negotiate a proper offering for transport back to the Fae lands at a later time."

Trick's eyes go wide as I unwrap my tail from around him and push him out of the circle. Drake's magic reaches for him like a giant fist squeezing around him. In a blink, he's gone and so am I, but his scream will haunt me until I find him again.

The water of my shower's gone cold and I curse at the temperature change. I don't know what it is about Trick, but I'll do anything to see him free.