Page 11 of Whispers From The Dark

“However much money it takes for me and my little brother to live comfortably in LA for the rest of our long lives, unbothered by anyone who would seek to hurt us. In exchange for one week of access to my body.”

“Five years,” I counter, even knowing it will be torturous if I cannot control her.

“A month.”

“It’s settled then, one year.”

She frowns, pursing her lips, but after a moment she nods. Confident, she seems to think what she’s come up with will protect her.

What she doesn’t know might just kill her.

“Heads or tails, love?”

Petra locks the staff bathroom door and rolls her neck.

“Let’s get this over with,” she says. She’s gone pale, and I wonder if she might vomit.

“You’re sure no one will come in here?” I ask. Joe isn’t quite dead, but he’s certainly not capable of doing much other than sitting on the bathroom floor while Petra finishes her shift. As long as I take possession of her once, I can get back in without issue. Once she’s asleep for the night, I’ll come move Joe’s body to somewhere less conspicuous.

There is a reason I’ve been able to stay in Chicago for over a decade—discretion. Leaving bodies lying around won’t help me maintain the status quo. I’d rather not risk attracting any of those so-called demon hunters. They make a mess every single time, and I am not in the mood.

“Will it hurt?” she asks, staring at her reflection as her hands grip the sink. Since the moment my quarter landed on heads she’s been steeling herself for what is coming.

“You know what? I have no idea. I’ve never asked,” I say, sidling up behind her. She’s much shorter than Joe, and I rest his hands on her shoulders. “No one has thought anything about it before, for what it’s worth.”

Rubbing my thumbs over her shoulder blades, I allow my influence to permeate. Though I prefer lust, pleasure of any sort can be a nice snack for me. Petra tilts her head forward and groans, and when I rub her neck, the sound she makes causes my dick to twitch.

“Have you done this before?”

“I have rubbed many shoulders in my life.”

She laughs, a harried thing, and her eyes meet mine in the mirror. Petra’s smile is so natural, even when she’s about to be possessed by a demon. Perhaps she is suicidal. A psychologist I once possessed had such knowledge. People who want to die are often in a rather good mood once they’ve decided to do it.

“That isn’t what I meant. Have you ever possessed someone without taking control of their body? And how do I know you’ll keep your word?”

“No, I have not, and you don’t.”

“That’s reassuring.”

“How do you think I maintain my lifestyle? If I went around reneging on bargains, no one would seek me out.”

Petra purses her lips before stepping out of my grasp, bending forward to fix her makeup in the mirror. There’s no way I, the Prince of Lust, can resist looking at her round, muscled ass when it’s so close. I stop myself from tracing my hands over her hips, but it’s a task hard-won. Her gaze flicks to me a few times, and I can tell she’s focusing on her breathing. She might appear unaffected, but she’s certainly not.

“Fine. Do it.”

Not wanting a bloody mess, I move the bathroom trash can and sit down in the corner. The floor is filthy, but I don’t think Joe will mind. Once I’m settled, relatively certain this body won’t tip over, I flick my wrist and the trash can slides where I want it. Wedged between a dirty bathroom wall and a devil-blessed trash can, I’m humbled. Petra’s adorable nose wrinkles as she looks down at me, and I’m rewarded by the angle. The tiniest triangle of her hot pink panties is visible, and she crosses her legs when she notices my gaze.

But not before I sense that throb of desire from her soul.

“Brace yourself, love.”

Leaving a body is violent for the host, and this time is no different. Joe seizes as I drift out of him. But like smoke and mist and the slow rot of nature, I slip away. Petra stares, and I’m not sure exactly what she sees. Does she see anything at all? Am I a presence she senses or a vision she would fear? I’ve never cared enough to look through the memories of events I’ve been present for, so I don’t know. She stares, open-mouthed, and doesn’t move a muscle as I fade into her.

5

PETRA

Az leaves his body in a humanoid cloud of smoke. I don’t know what I expected, but it certainly wasn’t that. I freeze, unable to move. The body he’d inhabited slumps over, slamming into the trash can, and the man lets out a soft groan. But I don’t dare take my eyes off the nebulous figure walking toward me.