Ruby Shadows (16 page)

“
Could you really, uh, flay the flesh from their bones if you
wanted to?” I asked him, trying to read the look in those ruby red
eyes. “I mean, don’t you need a whip for that?”

“
I
could do it with a single word of power which I will not utter
here,” he remarked. “It might cause you discomfort even if it was
not directed at you and I would not wish to do that.”

“
Thanks so much,” I said dryly. “But it’s discomforting enough
to know I’m with someone who can strip people’s flesh from their
bones just by saying the right thing. Or the wrong thing, I
guess.”

“
You should feel reassured, Gwendolyn,” he murmured, pulling me
back against him. “That you are with someone who can protect
you.”

I
straightened my spine, refusing to melt against him but I had to
admit he was right. He’d
certainly protected me when the demon had grabbed me
in the crowd. I’d felt myself sliding from the horse’s back and had
seen the gleaming eyes and sharp teeth of the demon who wanted me
all in one frantic instant. Then Laish had kicked the creature in
the face and pulled me back to safety.

If
I had been
with a
lesser demon, would they have been able to save me? I thought not.
Maybe it was good I’d gotten the CEO when I cast my spell rather
than the guy who worked in the mail room, although it was
irritating that he still wouldn’t admit outright to me who and what
he was.

Kurex
clopped
towards the vast black marble desk that ran the length of one whole
wall. It was so long I couldn’t see either end of it—we appeared to
be headed to somewhere in the middle. The ceiling was far above us,
when I looked up I could barely see it. A gleaming crystal
chandelier a big as small house hung suspended above us and cast
its cold, silvery light over the lobby. Here and there, small
groupings of furniture were scattered, mostly upholstered in red
and black leather.

Several of the chairs held
well-dressed demons or other creatures who were
drinking and talking quietly—just as if they were businessmen
discussing deals. Well, maybe they were. Only they were more likely
to be selling and buying souls than stocks and bonds. I shivered.
Several of them glanced at us as we rode the huge horse through the
vast black lobby but none seemed to think us worth a second
look.

“
Wow, it’s huge in here,” I remarked
softly. “I mean, the outside is really big
but the inside—”

“
Is infinite,” Laish murmured in my ear, finishing my thought.
“Literally. There are said to be an infinite number of rooms within
these walls—enough for all who have the means to stay
here.”

“
Guess they don’t have to invest in a ‘no vacancy’ sign then,”
I said. Not that I could see a place like this having a blinking
neon sign anywhere on the premises. The Hotel Infernal was hands
down the most imposing and expensive hotel I’d ever been in and
that included the Safety Harbor Spa and Resort where my friend,
Amanda had married her fiancée who was a very well to do cardiac
surgeon.

When we reached the marble
desk a demon with pale blue skin looked up and nodded
at us. He had elegant spiral horns like an antelope’s on either
side of his head.

“
Good evening, Sir, Maaadam,” he murmured in a low, polite
voice that was only slightly spoiled by sounding like a goat’s
bleat. “How may I aaaccommodate you today?”

“
We’ll need your finest suite for the night,” Laish said
crisply. “And I do mean the finest—one here on the first floor will
do.”

The pale blue
antelope demon gave him a haughty look.

“
The first floor suites aaare reserved for the lords of the
realm—the Great Demons. Only a Prince of Night and Shadow may
reserve one. I caaannot—”

“
Did the doormen not tell you who I am?” Laish’s voice was
silky smooth and very,
very
dangerous. “If you have doubts as to my right to take a first
floor suite, please call your master, Druaga.”

“
Aaas you wish, Sir. But I warn you—if you do not have the
proper staaatus to disturb him, my maaaster will be most
displeased.”

“
Just call him,” Laish said. “Now.”

The demonic desk
clerk picked up a big, old fashioned looking phone and put the
heavy black receiver to his ear. It reminded me of Gram’s old house
phone—the one I finally convinced her to replace because it had a
rotary dial.

The demon spoke
softly into the receiver and then nodded once before replacing
it.

“
My maaaster is on his way, Sir.”

“
Very good.” Laish nodded.

I
sat quietly in front of him, wondering what was going to happen
next. Was he
really
one of
the Great Demons—the seven lords of Hell that answered only to
Lucifer himself? If so, I was so completely outmatched that my own
magical talents must seem laughable to him. I wondered why he
hadn’t told me at once—and why he hadn’t blasted me when I had
mouthed off to him on numerous occasions. After all, anyone who can
flay demons alive with a single word would have no problem
punishing a mouthy witch.

After a long moment in which the demonic desk clerk pretended
to be busy with paperwork while watching us from the corner of his
yellow eye, a huge creature in a mustard colored hounds-tooth suit
suddenly appeared in front of us. I say
creature
because though he had the body of a man, he certainly
wasn’t human.

The head of a wild boar with long, curving tusks poked out of
the neck of his immaculate white collar. The tusks were capped in
gold but what really caught my attention was the eyes—they,
at least, were human. Or
sentient anyway—they weren’t animal eyes, is what I’m trying to
say. Seeing those normal-looking brown eyes in an animal’s face
seemed weird and wrong.

Even wronger was the fact that his immaculately cut suit had
an opening in the crotch where his fly should have been.
When my gaze finally
drifted down from his bizarre face, I had to bite back a gasp.
Massive genitals dangled outside the hounds-tooth suit, swinging
when the creature moved. Ugh!

I
tried not to look but it was kind of like a train wreck—hard to
look away. Could anyone actually be
that
big? He looked like he might give Kurex a run for his
money—it was offensive to see something that huge on a human form.
Then again, it was offensive for him to have it all out in the open
like that—even though it kind of made sense. It was obvious why
he’d had to have his pants tailored with a hole in them—there was
no way his equipment would fit in a normal pair of
trousers.

“
Who dares disturb me?” the boar-headed demon with the mammoth
dick growled, looking up at Laish. “How dare you demand a first
floor suite?”

“
It’s me, Druaga,” Laish said mildly. “Laish.”

“
My Lord Laish?” The boar-headed demon looked at him
uncertainly. “I was going to punish my underling…” He motioned at
the antelope-demon who was now cowering against the counter, his
earlier superiority forgotten. “But how could anyone recognize you
in that form?”

“
I
am traveling incognito with my new concubine,” Laish explained, as
he had before. “We require accommodations for the night, as I was
explaining to your desk clerk here.”

“
Ah yes of course, your
concubine.”

The boar-headed
demon turned his attention to me—in more than one way. As those
disturbingly human eyes crawled their way over my body, the massive
shaft between his legs began to swell. Ugh! I wished I was wearing
a parka instead of the thin, red silk dress Laish had made me put
on.

“
Such a lovely little thing,” Druaga muttered, a bit of drool
escaping his tusked mouth. “Tell me, Laish, have you had her long?
Is she
properly
broken in?”

“
Tha
t is none
of your concern.” Laish tightened his arm around my waist
possessively. “We simply want a room for the night. Will you
accommodate us or not?”

“
Yes, yes—of course! Of course, my Lord.” Druaga bowed
obsequiously but his eyes never left me and I couldn’t help
noticing his trouser snake didn’t go down either. Double ugh! “In
fact, you must have supper with me tonight in my own private
quarters,” he conti
nued in his deep, hoarse voice as he handed Laish a broad,
leather-bound book and a feathery black quill pen.

“
That will not be necessary,” Laish said firmly as he signed
the book with a flourish and handed it back. “We appreciate your
offer but my concubine has a rather delicate system and particular
dietary requirements. She has therefore brought her own nourishment
with her.”

“
Very well.” Druaga looked pissed off—at least I
thought
he did, it was hard to
tell because of the boar’s head—but he only nodded. “Nairn,” he
snapped at the antelope-horned demon who had been crouching quietly
as far from his master as he could get during the entire encounter.
“Give Lord Laish suite 104. It has an excellent view of our
gardens,” he continued, turning back to us. “As well as a very
comfortable bed. You should be
very
happy there.” He leered at me and his massive shaft twitched,
making me want to gag.

“
Thank you.” Laish nodded and reached down for the golden door
key which the antelope
-horned demon was holding out in one trembling hand. Clearly
he still expected some kind of punishment for not recognizing Laish
and treating him as he ought to.

“
I’ll send someone to tend your steed,” Druaga
promised.

“
Thank you but I will tend to him myself,”
Laish said. “Do you still have
stables located in the lower level?”

“
Indeed we do. But maybe you’d reconsider my offer of
dinner?”

“
You’re most kind,” Laish said firmly. “But we couldn’t
possibly. My concubine is tired after a long day of riding. We must
bid you goodnight.”

“
At least let me send a selection of delicacies to your lady.”
Druaga leered at me hopefully. “No matter what
he
r tastes I am
certain we can, ah,
accommodate
her.” Okay, I was seriously going to be sick if he kept
looking at me like that.

“
If you want to send some food somewhere, why not give some to
the kids who live outside your hotel?” I said, speaking up for the
first time. “They look like they’re starving.”

Druaga raised his
hairy eyebrows.

“
Kids? You mean children?”

I felt Laish stiffen
behind me and he let out a hiss of annoyance.

“
They are merely devilkins. Pay no attention—my concubine is
innocent and has no idea what she is talking about.”

It was my turn to
stiffen with annoyance. I opened my mouth to say something but
Laish put a large hand on my thigh and squeezed warningly. Clearly
he thought I had said enough already. Reluctantly, I closed my
mouth again, promising myself I’d give him a piece of my mind when
we got to the room.

“
If you wish me to send food to the devilkins, my lady, it can
be managed,” Druaga said, smirking at me. “Of course, there would
be an, ahem,
extra
charge.”

“
No!” Laish said sharply. “Thank you but we do
not
wish to incur any extra charges for
food, drink, or any other delicacies or specialties of the
hotel.”

“
We can speak of it more over dinner in my private apartments,”
the demon suggested.

“
Again, I
must
decline.
The room for the night is all we require.”

“
Very well.” The demonic hotel manager—or was he the
owner?—looked a little disgruntled but there didn’t seem to be
anything else he could do or say. Apparently he couldn’t
make
Laish accept his offer of dinner. For
which I was
very
glad.
The way those small, piggy eyes of his had been crawling over my
breasts while his huge hose-beast of a cock twitched and drooled
between his thighs had me wanting to take a very long, very
hot
shower.

“
Wow, he
really
wanted
us to come to dinner,” I remarked under my breath as Laish steered
Kurex away from the long desk and towards the end of the
lobby.

“
B
ecause he
wishes us to incur a soul debt.” Laish sounded very
displeased.

“
What? But you don’t
have
a soul,” I protested.

“
No, but
you
do. A
fact which I am afraid your naïve statement that he should send
food to the devilkins has exposed. No one but an untried human
would have thought of such a thing.”

“
You mean no one without compassion,” I said hotly. “Those kids
are
starving,
Laish—you could see it in their eyes! I know you’re a demon
and all that but do you have to be so hard hearted?”