“I’m not sure if I get it,” Selene said as she spread a blanket across the lush green grass, so that they were half in shade and half in sun. “Wanting to be like that.”
“It’s her choice, nothing to be ashamed of,” Amelia said, bringing out the pasta salad, an assortment of summer sausage, bell peppers, olives, cherry tomatoes, onions and pepper jack cheese mixed in with Italian dressing. “I think the bimbo thing is kind of cute. I think it would be healthy to try that out.”
“Would you ever want to?”
“Could be fun.”
“Interesting. But it’s my sister I’m worried about.”
Selene ignored the pasta salad and started digging into the potato salad, eating it right out of the tin.
“Selene! We were supposed to share that.”
“Oh, you want a bite?”
“Never mind.”
“Does that bother you,” Selene said lying back in Amelia’s lap.
“A little, yes.”
“You never complained about it before.” An evil glint shone in her eye. “Afterall we’ve swapped more than just saliva.”
“Have we,” Amelia said before digging into the cooler and feeding the succubus a grape.
“You were saying about your sister?” Amelia said.
“We’re really going to talk about my sister…right now.”
“You brought it up,” Amelia said.
Selene sighed. “I suppose I did. I just don’t like that Bea is in her clutches.”
“In her clutches?”
“My sister collects souls. She doesn’t limit herself to just one.”
“Neither do you,” Amelia said gently.
“It’s different. I don’t linger.”
Linger.
“Sam said something different,” Amelia half-teased, half looking for answers.
“I get attached, okay, but I leave my snacks behind, that’s the difference.”
“That actually sounds worse, Selene,” and it confirmed her fears. “All of this was just about the sex. You’re what, just going to drop me after you’ve had your fill?”
“That’s a morbid way of putting it.”
“Is it?” She couldn’t keep the hurt out of her voice.
“Oh I…” Selene leaned up, wiping the tears from her face. “I’m not going anywhere anytime.”
“But you will.”
“Amelia, I’m a succubus.” Selene was scrunching up her face.
“But you will.”
Selene paused in thought. Her hand still on Amelia’s cheek. “It’s not just about the sex,” she whispered, pulling down Amelia towards her. For a second Amelia forgot they were in public, that Selene would leave eventually, that Selene was using her for what? Nourishment. Her lips hovering above Selene’s, her breathing flushed and then the damn succubus put a grape in her mouth, rubbed her fingers in her hair and lay next to her. She massaged her shoulders, as Amelia listened to the cooing of mourning doves.
Selene sighed. “Before Sam visited us, I said that I do not date snacks—”
“Aren’t I more than just a snack?” Amelia said. “Doesn’t it mean something that I didn’t end up forgetting you? And what if I’m okay with it, you helping, sleeping with other people, as long as you…maybe it’s selfish, come back to me?”
“Because I can tell that it would bother you. It bothered all the others,” Selene said quietly more to herself than meaning to say aloud.
“But it doesn’t, Selene. I want to…continue to date you.”
“Continue?” the succubus’s words were small in her ear.
“Isn’t this a date? Selene.”
Amelia held her hand bringing out the freshly arranged flowers she had tucked away in her canvas bag alongside a white wine bottle of Chenin Blanc.
“Amelia, that’s not…”
“You’re not going to have one drink with me?”
Selene frowned. “Amelia, there’s still something I need to mention. It wouldn’t be right. I should have said something sooner, but I was afraid. Terrified. There’s a reason why I cannot fall in love with mortals.”
“Fall in love.”
“Amelia, this is very serious.” The succubus adjusted her glasses, her eyes burning. “You might not want to date me after I mention this.”
“I’m here,” Amelia held Selene. “I’m listening.”
“Okay.
Selene took a deep breath. “Have you ever heard of Infatuation?”
***
Selene sat alone, wearing a red dress, holding pink carnations. She tapped her foot, staring at the door. She had chosen a booth at the bar they had met at. Amelia hadn’t said much of anything after she had mentioned why it was impossible to date mortals. She said it didn’t bother her, but her eyes said differently. Like all the others. But Amelia would show tonight. She would obviously need some time to think about it, but. I should have told her sooner. Her phone buzzed. No new text messages. They had planned to meet fifteen minutes ago. Selene looked at the last text message she had sent Amelia. Still no response.
***
Amelia shook her head, trying to gain focus. Trying to regain her footing. She couldn’t move. Selene. “Another one of your jokes, Selene?” She struggled to speak, but she was gagged. Oh hells. Selene, this isn’t funny. She couldn’t move her arms either. Were they? Were they tied down? Was this because Selene was angry? Angry at her for being able to come up with the right words after she mentioned Infatuation or whatever it was that she had mentioned. “As a succubus my pheromones make it so my victims will do anything for me. And sometimes fall for me.” Amelia wished she had said something, would have told her that she was scared, but it didn’t ultimately matter or that they could try whatever it was that they had until the honeymoon phase ended. But there were nagging thoughts as well that she tried to push down. What if her feelings were not her own? What if that’s why she wanted to dismiss all the red flags, and even possibly think about pursuing an open or polyamorous relationship with the succubus. She still didn’t really know her, but that’s why you dated people. And now she was left in the dark, scrambling, not knowing why she couldn’t move. This is too harsh Selene.
And then the thought shook her. What if this wasn’t Selene. What if this was one of her sisters? Or Sam? No. Sam would never do this to me.
Okay, focus.
Selene will know where I am, right? She tried to center herself, tried not to panic. Tried not to think that she’d be absent from work tomorrow. Fuck. At this point. They might fire her. Dumbass, your life may be on the line. Deep breaths. Okay, so the room was warm. It smelled floral, overly so, it made her dizzy. But not like it was a scent that was overcompensating. The ground was soft. Was she on a mattress? She wished Selene were here.
She felt sick to her stomach as she bounced up and down, and barely felt the box spring under her.
The sound of a door shutting behind her. Shuffling of clothes. “Are you awake?” A soft voice spoke. “Oh right? I gagged you, one second.”
She didn’t dare move and bit down hard as the person tried to remove her gag.
“You’re going to have to bite a little bit harder if you want to make a dent in me, dear.”
Nyssa? Was that Nyssa?
“But calm yourself, I’m not here to hurt you. Will you let me remove the gag? I thought you humans liked being tied up. Seems my intel was wrong.”
Amelia lashed at the ropes.
“Now no more biting. I’m going to remove the gag. 3-2-1. Maybe another 5-4-3—ah, what the hells.”
The gag was removed.
“Get me the fuck out of here!” Amelia screamed.
Amelia felt a hand around her mouth and nearly yelped. The touch was like ice! “I wouldn’t scream,” the voice said. “My servants will hear you and sometimes they get hungry.”
She squinted.
“Oh right, I blinded you as well. Could be another reason why you’re panicking. Apologies for that. I just couldn’t let my servants see that I was carrying you past them.”
That made no sense.
“You’re making me miss my date! Untie me!”
“I’m going to remove the blindfold. I would still advise keeping your eyes shut.”
The blind fold came off and Amelia found herself looking into the pale-red eyes of a woman with long dark hair and exceptionally pale skin. The woman grimaced and Amelia could fangs, were those fangs? Peaking out beneath her lips. Shit, another succubus? One of Selene’s sisters?
The woman bowed exceptionally low. “I apologize for the mistreatment, my lady.”
“You’re a vampire.”
“Dhampir to be exact. I would assume you have a million questions at this point.” The woman reached out. “My name is Kjula Van Moirte Vas. You can call me Veela for short. Most of my friends do.”
“I’m not your friend.”
Veela exhaled sharply. “I understand why you’re upset but I had to get you in a secluded area. Of a high serving member of the house of Hartoth I am aware of a certain succubus, Selene Aydian Boc, and her sisters Nyssa Aydian Boc, Lila Aydian Boc, and Simone Aydian Boc’s mission to stake their claim on New York City. I noticed most recently that you have been in touch with Selene, as of last week, and I wanted to call upon her services as she is rather ambitious to be encroaching on my territory.”
“Last week? What do you mean last week? I saw her yesterday before you kidnapped me!”
“Well, I had to sedate you to put you out, enough so that my servants couldn’t catch your scent. And of course, I…um don’ freak out… gave you some of my blood so you would be hydrated.”
“Why? Why did you have to go through all of that!”
“Simple. I’m afraid of Selene’s sisters, and Selene herself. I have a bit of anxiety when it comes to succubi. As you know their pheromones make them irresistible.”
“I’m well aware! Why not send a letter or one of your servants you keep mentioning? Or I don’t know ask me! Instead of kidnapping me?”
Veela blinked. “Not to be inconsiderate, my lady. But my servants would have devoured you. And my handwriting is illegible to most.”
“Illegible.”
“Mm. Quite. As for why I didn’t ask you, I was um nervous, due to the anxiety I mentioned earlier.”
“Right, so you know you could have used a computer.”
“Your muse doesn’t know how to use one.”
“My muse. You’re telling me. Selene doesn’t know how to use a computer? Actually, that makes a lot of sense.” Amelia remembered how Selene texted like an old woman.
“Okay, enough. Get me out of here. I have to explain to my girlfr—Selene why I missed the date. No, why she hasn’t seen me in a week! She’s probably freaking out!”
A terrible question gnawed at her. Why didn’t she try and find me by now? Did she move on? No, stop you told her you’re okay with that.
“I can imagine.”
Amelia pressed her fingers into the sides of her forehead. “Okay, what did you need Selene for?”
“I would like to work with her so that my people are taken care of.”
“The Dhampir?”
“My servants are of the more vampiric nature.”
“Ah…”
“Yes. I want them to stop attacking humans. Evolve their tastes if you will.”
“And you expect Selene to do this how?”
The Dhampir blinked.
“The Aydian Boc family is in the upper echelon of savory tastes in all of the hells. Selene, although, semi-you could say-disowned, is one of the heirs to her family’s culinary empire.”
“She was disowned.”
“Mm, yes. I believe if I can get her to steal her family’s cookbook, we can evolve my peoples’ inclinations towards mortal blood and perhaps towards something a little bit healthier.”
Selene was from a family of world class cooks. That couldn’t be possible. In the short time I’d known her Selene couldn’t cook for shit.
“Why Selene though, why not Nyssa or Lila or her other sister.”
Veela gave me a very serious look. “Because the others cause me anxiety.”
“I don’t know what that means but I’ll take your word for it. This book. Is it hard to get a hold of?”
“It’s in hell, so yes.”
“And you’ve never been there or?”
“It is hell, my lady.”
“One more question? It’s rather pressing.”
“Mm.”
“Could you untie me?”
The Dhampir gave a blank look. “Of course.” Her fangs were close to Amelia’s neck as she unfastened the bonds. Without even thinking of it, it didn’t hurt to stand.
“I’m sorry for all of this, my lady.”
“Amelia is fine,” she didn’t want to think about how the Dhampir had probably ruined her date, her relationship, had gotten her fired and had now had her mixed up in some convoluted scheme, but she was gentle and…she sighed probably more pheromones.
She noticed the red mark trailing down her wrist, and a few puncture marks. No swelling.
“Um, Veela. Are your servants aware that I’m awake?”
“They might be. Are you comfortable with fire escapes?”
She was not.