Succubi Are Forever (4 page)

And she’d founded the Vagina Sisterhood. Lovely. I stabbed at a piece of chicken on my plate. She was from Greece, then. Were we in Greece? Where the hell were we? Could I find out?

“Wow, this fish is terrific,” I said between mouthfuls. “Is this a Swiss recipe? Maybe… German? Is there any schnitzel on the table?” Germany was right next to Switzerland, right? Maybe they’d smuggled us over the border while we slept.

Phryne gave me a coy smile, as if amused by my obviousness. “It’s sea bass. I had it flown to New York.” She stressed the city name, as if reassuring me.

Or threatening me.

So we were in New York? I took another forkful of the potato soufflé, pretending to savor it even as my stomach churned. So not only had they smuggled us over the border, but they’d smuggled us over an entire ocean. Was Zane still in Europe? Had they left him behind? Panic began to flutter in my breast. A vampire needed to drink blood daily. What if he had to drink from a stranger while I wasn’t at his side? My hand trembled on the fork.

“New York, huh?” I repeated. “How… interesting.”

Phryne tilted her wineglass as if studying it. She gave me another slow smile. “I enjoy visiting from time to time. I don’t tell little Delilah about it, though. She doesn’t enjoy my presence on this side of the pond.”

No, I could imagine that Dee wouldn’t. She envisioned herself as the head honcho of the US. “Is Dee here?”

“She is not invited,” Phryne said smoothly, her expression unchanging.

Okay. If this was some sort of succubus slumber party, I didn’t get why Delilah wasn’t invited. Something else had to be at work. I gestured at the unused place setting at the end of the table. “That her spot?”

“That is Sophie’s spot,” Phryne said easily.

“Sophie?”

“Sophonisba,” she said, as if that answered everything.

“Ah,” I said, and took another piece of chicken, though I hadn’t even eaten the first one. So there was another succubus somewhere around here? “And where’s she at? Powder break?”

Phyrne suddenly smiled. “She will be along shortly, I imagine. Our Sophie is a good woman, even if her manners are a little less than we’d hope. She has a good heart and is eager to participate in your liberation.”

“My… liberation?”

“Why, from your masters.” Phryne’s smile was brilliant. “The vampire’s been neutralized, so it’s simply a matter of tracking down the Serim one in order to obtain your true freedom.”

Tracking down Noah? Neutralized Zane…?

My entire throat went dry. “My… master? You have him? He’s here?”

She gave me a sympathetic nod and continued to rub my hand, those catlike eyes focused on my face. “Do not worry, little sister. The situation is under control.”

My heart hammered wildly in my breast. “I—I don’t understand.”

“We know that if he commands you, you must obey. And we know a vampire’s strengths and weaknesses, having intimate experience with them ourselves. As I said, he has been effectively neutralized,” she said, stating that horrible word again. “He won’t threaten you anymore. You are safe here with your sisters.”

“Where is he?” I whispered, my mind full of horrible thoughts.

Phryne leaned back and tossed her napkin down on her plate, as if the very mention of a vampire made her lose her appetite. “I understand that your mind is focused, Jackie, but trust us when we say that you’re safe. Sophie’s likely handling him at the moment. She has interest in how this will be resolved, but I don’t see a happy way out. It is a delicate situation.”

And she gave a ladylike grimace.

My heart pounded at her frown. “Can I see him?”

She gave me a puzzled look. “Why? You are safe. Trust me, no one will let him harm you.” The sympathetic look crossed her face again and she clasped my cold hand. “He’s bound hand and foot. His wings are staked. The room is covered with the appropriate wards, so he cannot escape even if he tried. And he’s gagged, so he cannot command you. You are safe, sister. Safe.”

“But…”

“Jackie is thrilled that you guys have saved her,” Remy said loudly. “Just thrilled. Aren’tcha, Jackie?”

I shook my head. “But—”

“Thrilled,” Remy repeated.

But Phryne cast a sympathetic look at me. “It must be hard for you to grasp, I know. For so long, we are kept under the boot of our masters. It’s a good thing for you that he got so careless with you—forcing you to go and steal priceless items in the midst of a crowd.” She tsked, looking disgusted at the thought. “Abusive wretch. No doubt he forced you to feed him on a regular basis as well.”

Phryne had it all wrong. Well, not about the feeding. “He didn’t force me to do anything. It was my idea.”

The catlike eyes narrowed at me. “Oh?”

“Jackie’s constantly trying to think of new things to make her master happy,” Remy chimed in. “Stay one step ahead of him and all that. If he’s happy, then he doesn’t abuse her.”

Phryne’s too-sharp expression relaxed. She nodded. “Clever. And I understand completely.”

I looked down the table at Remy, who had a bright smile frozen to her face. Okay. She didn’t want me talking about my relationship with Zane. For some reason, that would be bad. I’d play along, even though every nerve in my body screamed to go to him. It had been at least a day since we’d been captured. Was he starving for blood even now? Could I ask?

I forced myself to take another bite of food, pretend that I was still enjoying the meal.

“So, what were you after?” Phryne watched me eat, waiting.

My smile became a little more forced. “After?” I asked, feigning ignorance.

“Yes. Your vampire master. What did he seek at the party? It gave us the perfect opportunity to intercept the both of you, but it was a rather foolhardy sort of thing to do. The only thing I can assume is that he wanted that book for some reason. Why is that?”

I couldn’t think of a good excuse. And I sure wasn’t about to tell Phryne about the book. It led to a halo, and I was suspicious of all other immortals. They had a habit of stepping on each other for any kind of advantage. No one could be trusted.

She tilted her head, staring at me. Waiting.

“He didn’t tell me,” I blurted. “He liked to keep me in the dark about his reasons for things. It was one of his little games.” I winced internally, hating that I had to sell my lover down the river for these crazy women. “It was probably just to mess with me. I used to be an archaeologist, after all. I just knew that he wanted it and when I saw it was going to be unveiled, I suggested we go for it.”

“And it was his suggestion that you hide the page in your gown?” Her gaze flicked to my breasts, then back to my face.

I realized then that my chest wasn’t crinkling. Shit. She’d stolen my page. Panic flared through my body and I set down my fork, my stomach churning. We’d worked so hard to get that page—and she’d taken it.

Shit!

We’d just have to get it back somehow. I touched my ear casually, looking for my small radio transmitter. It was gone too. We hadn’t worn our phones in our dresses—too tight. Damn. We had no way of contacting anyone. “Something like that.”

Phryne’s smile didn’t go to her eyes. “Of course.”

She didn’t believe me. Time to divert. I glanced down the table and clenched my hands, feigning confusion and timidity. “I’m sorry. This is all so new to me,” I said, and that was the honest truth.

Across the table, Yue smiled and buttered a slice of bread. “I think you will like our sisterhood, Jackie. Our kind is tormented by those who create us. Our sisterhood works to keep each other free from the tyranny of our masters.”

“A noble cause,” I said, picking up my wineglass and sipping. It was a good idea—as succubi, we were created for our masters to use and abuse. We could turn down no command they gave us, and since we needed a steady diet of sex to survive, well, it didn’t put us in the strongest position to bargain. A sisterhood was a noble cause, all right, with one tiny problem.

I loved my master. I didn’t
want
to be separated from him. I didn’t want to join their sisterhood, though I could imagine why it had appeal.

The average succubus—and incubus—hated their masters. And since we were unable to disobey an order given, it was far too easy to abuse a succubus. We were like oversexed, powerless genies, unable to resist our master’s every command. The power balance was definitely skewed.

I guess I’d been lucky. I had Noah Gideon as my Serim master. And while Noah was bossy and domineering, he was also a good man. He gave his orders because he was trying to protect me; he cared for me.

And I had Zane.

Gorgeous, rakish, dangerous Zane who was never anything but wonderful to me. Who went out of his way to avoid commanding me, because he wanted me to have free will. Who loved me for my smart, bitchy mouth and my nerdy tendencies, and I loved him back. We made a good team, Zane and I, and I never felt as if he were abusing the power dynamic of our relationship.

“This is a really nice place you have,” I said, staring at the paintings on the walls and the expensive furniture.

“Some of us have acquired a fortune over time,” Phryne said, pleasure in her voice.

“But what about…” I hesitated, since it’d seem a crass subject to bring up at dinner. So I pointed at my blue eyes, trying to broach the subject as delicately as I could. “You know.”

“Ah,” Phryne said, and Yue smiled again, giggling as she took a bite of her bread. “That is another thing the sisterhood helps each other with. You need have no worries.”

I looked down the table at Ashara and Nefer, still lovingly feeding each other bits of food. Remy shoveled vegetables and bread into her mouth, eating with an indelicate rapidity that made the others look like cultured goddesses next to her.

“Um,” I said. “So no… men?”

“What Jackie is trying to say is that she likes cock,” Remy said bluntly. “And she’s young enough that she hasn’t become bisexual like the rest of us.”

“Ah,” Phryne said delicately. “That could be a problem. A gender preference definitely makes things difficult, but that is a prudish sentiment you will discard in time.” Her smile widened and she wagged a finger at me. “Or rather, I should say a prudish sentiment you will discard sooner rather than later. You see, no men are allowed here. It is our sanctuary.”

Oh friggin’ lovely. Not that I wanted another man. I wanted Zane. I guess men were all right as long as they were bound and tied and imprisoned, like Phryne had said.

But I figured it’d be a bad call to ask.

“Remy and I are both in need,” I said, trying not to pull away when Phryne began to rub my hand again. I was sure it was just a friendly rub, and not a flirty one.

I hoped.

“It’s cool, kid. Remember that time in Vegas? I can take care of you again, and you can take care of me.” Remy gave me a lewd wink.

Time in Vegas? What the hell was she talking about? But she winked at me again, obviously. “Um, okay. Sounds good. Promise you’ll be gentle?” I took a sip of my wine and played the innocent.

“I’ll use my smallest strap-on,” she said with great seriousness.

I spewed wine all over the table. “Great,” I choked.

“You want to get ahead in this business? Pretend that you love clam.”—
Business Advice: One Porn Star’s Secret to Success,
by Remy Summore

~*~

Remy smiled brightly. “Now that that’s settled, can you show us our rooms so we can get things taken care of?”

“Of course,” Phryne said, and gestured to Yue. “Will you, my sweet?”

“Naturally.” Yue pushed out her chair, stood, and gestured for us to follow her.

Uncertain, I looked at Remy, then back at Phryne.

Phryne gave me an indulgent smile, like a mother hen doting on her children. “Go on. Take care of your needs, little sister. You can rejoin us when your cravings have been sated. We’ll be enjoying a bit of culture in the drawing room after dinner.” She patted my hand, her fingers stroking my skin. “And don’t worry. You’ll get over your shyness soon enough.”

“Thanks,” I said. “See you soon.”

Remy put an arm around my waist as I moved to follow Yue, and this time her friendly moves were a bit too meaningful. I had to fight not to pry her off me. Surely Remy had a plan… but what if she didn’t? She was in need too, her eyes bright blue. And she didn’t care nearly as much about these sorts of things as I did.

Yue led us up a flight of stairs, then a second one. I eyed our surroundings, trying to count how many doors we passed so I could remember in case we had to escape. She continued down a long hallway, through a foyer, then another hallway. Good lord, this place was enormous. And only the succubi lived here? It was a mansion, a dozen times the size of Remy’s house. Remy had nice digs, but Phryne had set herself up in a freaking palace.

Yue glanced back at us as we walked, as if bothered by the silence. “How long have you been a succubus, Jackie?”

“Oh,” I smiled cheerfully. “About a year now.”

“A year in captivity is not so bad, then,” Yue mused. “But don’t worry. You are free now.”

“Yippee. Thanks. You guys are my heroes.”

Remy pinched my arm. Guess that didn’t sound sincere.

Yue didn’t comment on it, though. She continued to glide down the hallway, her footsteps soundless on the carpet. “And do you still have both your masters?”

My hackles raised at that one. Why did she want to know? So they could dispose of the one at hand without offing me? A chill coursed through my body. “Still have both,” I said, and at Yue’s nod of response, added, “At least, I think I do. I haven’t seen Noah since the Serim punishment.”

“That is probably wise,” Yue said thoughtfully. “If they punished him, he is sure to take it out on you.”

I doubted Noah would do that. Well, he might force me to have really dirty sex with him, but that wasn’t exactly a punishment. Just thinking about that made my nipples hard, and I hated myself a little for that involuntary reaction.

I didn’t want Noah. I wanted Zane.

Yue opened one door. “Here is your chamber, Remy. If it doesn’t suit you, let me or Phryne know. We want you to be comfortable.”