Floating closer to one of the bunk beds I gently set the horror beast down as well as my can of paint. “Alright, this is how this is gonna work. I don’t know what you are, but I know you’re dangerous and probably hungry, right?”
“Mrrrrm.”
“I don’t know what that means, but I’ll take it as a yes. Long story short, a couple knights pissed me off, and you’re going to help me take revenge. When you see any knight come through that door, I want you to unleash whatever hell you’ve been cooking up. Show no mercy, spare no expense. In exchange, I won’t tell Tweedledee and Tweedledum that you’re not really a cat. Provided you don’t hurt them. Deal?”
I stared into the void patiently. After a moment a voice spoke up.“Deal.”
“Excellent!” I cheered. Wasting no time, I took my paintbrush and wrote ‘THESE KNIGHTS SOME HOES’ in big red letters across the wall.
A creek behind me alerted me to an interloper. I turned to see the two cleaning men from before standing in the doorway staring in awe. As they should. I am amazing. But also, fuck. How dare they interrupt my plans? “Get out,” I said.
Instead of listening, the one in front just stared at me slack-jawed. “Who are you?” he rasped.
“Me? I’m not real, I’m just a figment of your imagination. You should probably leave and go rest. You’re seeing things.”
The other man poked his head out and shouted, “That can’t be right, I see you too!”
“I am a shared delusion.”
The man in front glared. “That doesn’t even make sense.”
Annoyed, my blade glowed orange and hot. “Do you really want to argue this point, or do you want to live to see tomorrow?”
He blinked, then looked around wildly. “Oh gosh! I’ve somehow been struck blind.”
“Yeah, me too!” said the other one. He slapped his friend on the shoulder and pointed behind him. “You know, Sam, we should probably take the rest of the day off. Seeing as we’ve gone blind.”
“Yup, right behind you, Mac,” he said, slamming the door shut.
“That’s the spirit.” I turned back to my art piece, adding tasteful ejaculating dicks around the word “KNIGHT”. When the door creaked open again, I let out a frustrated growl and whipped around. “Dammit, what now?”
The words barely left my being before Rebekah sprang into action. The black mist surrounding her body parted to reveal a boar-like creature with a mouth full of tentacles and fangs stretching along its back. Her maw opened and tentacles lunged at the unsuspecting knight who had walked in. Screaming, the redheaded man was dragged into Rebekah’s waiting mouth. Blood spurted from his head as she clamped down. His legs flailed, but escape was futile.
More knights rushed in to try to pull their friend from the horrific creature. “What the hell is that thing?” one screamed. Rebekah hissed, then threw the body of the guard she had bitten to the floor, turning her attention to the newcomers.
A tall dark-haired knight grabbed a spear from the wall and tried to jab it into her side. “Just get it away from Mark! Dammit, is he even still alive?”
Mark rose from the ground and stumbled up to his struggling companions. “Oh, thank the gods!” a freckled knight yelled. “Mark, are you OK, man?”
Mark groaned in response, then sank his teeth into the cheek of the freckled knight who screamed and backed away. Mark turned to face him, and I gasped when I saw the back of his head. His skull was torn open and half his brain looked like it had been slurped up and eaten. Whatever the fuck that thing was, it sure as hell wasn’t Mark.
The freckled knight jerked where he stood, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. With a gurgling rasp, the man dragged himself into the demon’s waiting jaws.
I watched the fight with growing concern as Mark turned on his friends to help Rebekah. Another knight that Mark had bitten rose with an unearthly groan and took a bite out of another guard. “Um… OK. Not quite what I was expecting.”
Chapter 17
Cherry
Baked cinnamon goodness floated through the air like a siren’s call. Morning sunlight filtered through the windows, casting a warm glow into the kitchen. If I closed my eyes and focused hard enough, I could just picture the apple-embroidered curtains of home.
I scooped a large portion of icing onto my knife and delicately spread it over the cinnamon rolls. They weren’t as fluffy and perfect as when ma made them, but I felt like I got close.
“Oh good, you’re up,” I called, seeing Dante drag himself out of the bedroom.
The dragon-shifter looked half asleep. His pants sagged on his waist, leaving a tantalizing view of the silver hair trailing from his navel before it disappeared down his pants. Immediately, thoughts of last night flooded my mind, making my face heat.
Flaming ghost peppers! I lost my virginity to a dragon-shifter in the middle of a public maze.
