Devil's Soul

Chapter 45 (sometimes impulsive decisions work out for the best)

I had never actually been clubbing. I'd been to bars and parties, but had somehow evaded the glorious world of clubbing. It turned out to be just as glamourous as I'd imagined it: drunken people trying to pass jumping and grinding for dancing. The main difference between this and a frat party was that spilt beer on clothing was a slightly more expensive mistake.

I did have a dress for the occasion, believe it or not. I'd had a naïve moment, a few years back, where I saw a skin tight black dress at the store and thought I would probably need a black dress for something in the future. I think the reason I'd been attracted to it was because it managed to make my B cups look a little bit bigger. Well, the dress was finally serving its long awaited purpose, and I felt very self-conscious about my semi-revealed chest. Gotta love impulse buys.

I'd arrived alone, and now I was standing in line, craning my neck as I tried to locate familiar faces. I recognized a few people from the cult standing in line ahead of me. We were separated by a circle of overly excited girls that looked about the right age to be taking their new fakes for a test drive. They were about to be disappointed, as the clubs in Boston could usually spot fakes from a mile away. Or so I'd gathered from the frequent complaints of my high school peers. The younger members of the cult wouldn't be bothering with fake ID's tonight, as Remy's Whisper was a much more effective way of getting the boys past the bouncer.

I didn't attempt to maneuver around the girls, as I had no desire to socialize with the cult members ahead of them. Instead, I pretended to take interest in my phone until I heard Abhinav shout my name. I looked up and scanned the people milling the streets until I spotted Abhinav and Chung. I smiled and waved them over to my spot in the line.

"I heard you were in need of a ninja!" Chung announced, striking a ninja-like pose.

"And a magician," Abhinav added, pulling a rose from what seemed like air. He did have a few good tricks he could do. Escaping from handcuffs just wasn't one of them.

I clapped. "Wow, how many times did you guys rehearse that?" I asked, letting exaggerated awe fill my voice.

Abhinav brushed imaginary lint from his surprisingly nice shirt. "Just ten or twenty," he said.

I laughed, glad to have my friends back. I barely got to see them these days. Chung was looking pretty spiffy too. He had even gelled his hair. "Geez, why do you guys look so nice tonight? Planning on meeting some ladies?"

"We won't have time for that," Chung said, looking all business. "We'll be too busy fighting demons."

I had explained to them the situation that Remy and I had found ourselves in, as well as the plan we had to draw the demon out tonight. They'd been more than eager to come and help out. "I told you guys that nothing may even happen. You should enjoy yourselves."

Abhinav gave me a salute. "Roger that." He re-concealed the rose and approached the girls in front of us. They partially opened their circle to give him skeptical looks. "Would you ladies like to see a magic trick?" he asked.

They reluctantly agreed with bright smiles. He pulled the rose out of air and gave it to the girl closest to him. She accepted it, and the girls cooed obligated admirations over his trick. He then proceeded to whip out another rose, followed by another, until he had handed one to each of the five girls in the group. By now they were giggling in delight. One even leaned in and touched his shoulder as she laughed.

I had to make an effort to keep my jaw from hitting the ground. Where had he been keeping all those?! And how did he know he would need five roses?

"Do you think Abhinav sold his soul in exchange for real magic?" Chung asked, clearly just as dumbfounded as me.

"I don't know, but I'm tempted to check," I replied. I successfully resisted the urge until a second girl began to cling to Abhinav. There had to be something magical about his charm because he was not a natural lady killer. I stole a glance with my demon eyes.

"What's the verdict?" Chung asked.

"Not good," I said. "It looks like Abhinav has left us behind to join a whole new league of awesome, and he didn't cheat to get there."

"He will be missed," Chung sniffed.

I nodded solemnly.

The line finally seemed to be moving, so we soon made it passed the bouncer, into the dark and crowded room. The bouncer had informed us that the main floor was the bar scene and the dance floor was upstairs. Both seemed equally rowdy to me, but there was a greater number of attempts at dancing on the top floor.

"Remember the plan!" I shouted to Chung, since Abhinav had disappeared with the circle of girls, who either had really good fakes or were actually old enough to be here.

"What?!" Chung shouted, leaning toward me so he could hear better.

I waved him off. He would remember without being told. I maneuvered away from him without further explanation. Remy, Chung, Abhinav, and I had divvied up the cult members among us. We were each responsible for keeping an eye on four cult members; Remy and I were sharing Clarence, as we suspected the cult leader would be the most likely target.

Only two of my charges seemed to be here, and both were lurking on the dance floor upstairs. I was scanning the crowd to see if I had overlooked the others, when Remy latched onto my upper arm, appearing from somewhere behind me. "Why is Desmond here?" she demanded into my ear.

"He's here?" I asked, scanning the room of writhing bodies. I wasn't exactly playing dumb. While I did invite him, I didn't think he had arrived yet.

"He's outside, causing trouble, as usual," she grumbled. Then she grabbed my shoulders and turned me so that I was receiving the full power of her gaze. "Look me in the eye and tell me you didn't invite him."

I looked into her eyes. Then I lost my nerve and looked at her feet. I gathered my courage and looked at her square in the face. "I uh didn't invite him?" I offered.

She groaned and released me, mumbling something as she turned away. Her words were lost in the loud music.

"What?!" I shouted.

She turned around to face me. "I thought we decided to keep this a secret from him!"

"Well, I haven't told him anything. He just thinks we're having a night out."

"How am I supposed to explain this, if he sees me?" she asked, gesturing toward her exposed tattoo. Her pixie hair suited her well, but this occasion had me wishing she kept it longer.

"Just don't let him see you," I suggested.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm going to find my boys," she said, before disappearing into the mass.

The third of my boys arrived, leaving Clarence as the only absent one. Maybe he was hanging around the bar downstairs.

I was thinking about making a quick trip downstairs to check, when an arm snaked its way around my waist. I jumped, but before I could make any attack or escape attempts, the breath from Desmond's voice tickled my ear. "What's a prized bird like you doing on the edge of the dance floor alone?" he asked. His voice was low and husky, but I heard him loud and clear, as if the music had suddenly stopped. I was all too conscious of the contact his body was making against my back. He wasn't pressed against me. The contact was gentle and slight, but it was enough to create dangerous electricity.

I tilted my head back so I could see him. "I was waiting for you," I murmured, before I realized what words were coming out of my mouth. As soon as they were out, though, I felt a distinct lack of mortification, which is what I would have expected to feel in such a situation. Instead, I just felt the electricity and a desire to immerse myself in it. I leaned into him, closing the tiny gaps between us so that our bodies fit together perfectly. And he leaned down, closing the final gap, which was between our lips.