Courts and Cabals Read online

  Last but not least was an old polaroid picture. It was taken before my mom had me. She was happy and smiling with a group of friends during a night out on the town. Most people wouldn’t have thought she was my mom. She had tanned skin, dark hair, and was short with a heart-shaped face and kind eyes. I had light skin, blonde hair, and had much more rigid features. The one thing I did get from her was the striking blue color of my iris. Although, mine was the color of the artic sea, while hers looked like the water off a Caribbean beach. I assumed I got my language skills from her. Being born in Quebec, she was fluent in French and English. Maybe that rubbed off on me in the womb. Other than those few things, my mother didn’t leave a lasting impression. As shitty as that was to think, my own inability to remember was proof of her fleeting impression on the world.

  With a manly grunt of not wanting to deal with my emotions, I shoved everything back in the box and check my phone. It was time for dinner. Then study time, and finally lights out.

  “Then we get to start it all over again. Yippie!” I sighed and collapsed on my bed suddenly very very tired.

  Chapter 4

  My life was mundane and repetitive at St. Vincent’s. I’d wake up with just enough time to make it to the dining hall for breakfast, then classes, eat lunch, more classes, and then head to the bleachers. I didn’t always run my less-than-legal operations down there. Too much of a good thing was bad for your health, and in this case, bad for my attendance at St. Vincent’s. Mr. Miller already had a hard-on for me, but I knew his schedule well enough to avoid him. Still, there was a supply and demand nature to the services I provided, so Thursday saw me back beneath the bleachers.

  Brad’s hacktivists were taking the day off, but he sat on the gravel beside me typing away. Today, it was just homework. Jerome’s business never took a day off. Kids always wanted something to relax, especially with midterms and the weekend on the way. Jerome moved like a blur, taking money with one hand and delivering the product in the other. It was impressive, and he’d had plenty of practice.

  Last but not least, Makaylah, who looked like she’d swallowed something sour. To be honest, she looked that way most of the time; apparently, constantly fighting for justice gave you resting bitch face. Today’s issue was that she’d been denied something she deemed vital to her existence. Was it vital to her existence . . . probably not? But it was vital to something she felt strongly about, which of course equated to her existence. I didn’t know if it was vampires, women, or SJWs, but I just didn’t get it.

  She was in a funk, and it was putting me in a funk. I was about to call her on it when a wave of cold air swept under the bleachers. Since it was sixty degrees today, that didn’t bode well.

  “Shit,” I gulped as a regal girl swept between the pylons followed by her entourage.

  I knew Aveena Foxbelle by reputation only. She didn’t venture down here to slum it with the likes of me. I had two classes with her, but she was always surrounded by the cream of the crop. That’s what happened when you were noble Fae. A flawless face, high cheek bones, perfect body, cold silver eyes, and ears that came to a sharp point beneath sun-blonde hair; not to mention the power she wielded. She was a prime example of a species not of this realm.

  That was another thing the Revelation taught us mere humans: there were more realms than ours out there, and one of the closest was the Faerie Realm. I wasn’t sure what to think about that place. I’d sure as shit never been, and was never going to go. Some people said it was candy land with gumdrop mountains and sugar waterfalls. Others said it was a land of constant warfare, between vying courts, for power and the favor of their eternal queen: an immortal goddess who made Machiavelli look like an inept toddler. Looking at Aveena, I’d put my money on the latter.

  All you had to do was look in her steely eyes to see she was dangerous. It wasn’t “I’m a killer” dangerous, but it was definitely a “don’t fuck with me dangerous”. All Fae were dangerous. They literally had the ability to create something out of nothing. That wasn’t quite true, although their magic seemed to do just that. Apparently, they used their magical energy to create constructs of their will that were called glamour. This could be anything from a chopstick to a sword; or they could glamour themselves to create disguises or distractions. Whatever they chose to do, they were definitely one of the most formidable supernatural species.

  Beyond what every Fae could do, I knew there were two primary factions: the Seelie and Unseelie. Those were human terms for them. If the Fae had their own distinctions, they didn’t share them. Each faction had their own culture, traditions, and societal norms, but the real difference that matter to me was how they treated others. Seelie tended to be amiable, or at least tolerant of others. More tolerant of people like shifters and other magic users, but they seemed to accept humans were part of the equation. The Unseelie . . . not so much. They tolerated shifters and other magic users, while seeing humans as humans would see bugs. At best, not worthy of their attention, and at worst, something to be squished if they became to irritating. Aveena was Unseelie.

  “Mortal,” her gaze fell on me, and I felt the same cold chill as before, but this time deeper. It was in my muscles, bones; I could even feel it in my fucking teeth.

  “Yes, Lady Foxbelle,” I bowed deeply to her, and would have considered full prostration if she’d make the cold go away.

  Brad got up from where he sat and quickly moved away. Jerome was far enough away that he could stay put and be out of her eyesight. Makaylah sunk back into the shadows. Unseelie looked at vampires worse than humans. They saw them as lepers. Makaylah even being in the noble Fae’s presence could lead to violence.

  “I hear you can acquire things . . .” she didn’t say any more, and I didn’t need her to.

  I’d worked hard to earn the reputation of someone who delivered on unusual requests. Usually, it was test answers, a pack of smokes, a case of beer, a bag of blood for non-vegetarian vamps; but sometimes, people wanted something weird. With a school full of pubescent supernatural creatures, there was bound to be something weird.

  “Yes, My Lady,” I kept my back stooped in the bow. “What do you require?” With a snap of her fingers one of the underlings stepped forward. I noticed him from chemistry, and he practically drooled when he looked at Aveena. He was a changeling; a half-Fae.

  For the most part, Fae stayed in the Faerie Realm. They kept up diplomatic relations with the US, and a few European nations, where they maintained portals to their realm. That was another ability that made Fae so powerful. They could move from one place to another in seconds, when it usually took hours or days. Most people called it teleportation. Scientist said they made Einstein-Rosen bridges with their power, but those more magically-literate said the Fae moved through some dead-space between our realm and theirs. It took a lot of power, and I mean a lot. The portals were maintained for normal travel and trade because the talent seemed limited to the noble bloodlines; and even there, it wasn’t as sure thing. To me, it was basically teleportation, and I had no idea if the young Fae in front of me could do it.

  “Since she’s making me run her errands, probably not,” I filed the tidbit away for future reference. “That, or she considers this whole thing beneath her,” which explained why she was coming to me.

  Blood was big with Fae; especially noble blood. The changelings following behind Aveena were more like loyal dogs than people to her. I honestly felt sorry for what’s-his-face. It wasn’t his fault some horny Fae-dude slipped through interdimensional immigration and knocked up his mom before vanishing back to Faeville. Growing up without a dad, not to mention being a different species than mom, must have sucked. To make matters worse, he was now bound by blood to serve the noble family whose bloodline his father served; unless his father was noble himself, then he probably had to serve some king or queen.

  “And it’s always the dads,” I gave a mental shake of my head, because it was always male Fae who knocked up human women, not the other way around. My
feelings on the subject weren’t entirely unbiased. The changelings and me had dirtbag dads in common.

  The chemistry class guy – I couldn’t remember his name for the life of me – served House Foxbelle, and would serve them until he died several centuries from now. Fae were truly immortal unless killed, and it was hard to kill them. Changelings got a reduced version of their Fae parent’s ability, and longevity; but that was a shitty prize compared to a life of literal servitude.

  “Sucks to be them,” I accepted the piece of paper.

  “Have it ready for me in twenty-four hours . . . or else.”

  “And there’s the not-so-subtle threat of the Unseelie,” I averted my eyes. If Fae could read minds, she’d see I was giving her a big mental finger.

  “Or else what?” Everything was already silent with Aveena there, so everyone heard the slight hiss the Fae made when she turned to confront the person who’d insulted her.

  I couldn’t see who it was because Aveena was blocking me, but my body told me soon enough. I popped a half-chub and suddenly my mouth was very dry. Lilith swung seductively from pylon to pylon like some stripper as she came closer.

  “And she’s not even trying,” I bit my cheek to the point of drawing blood as the succubus sauntered to stand in front of Aveena, tossed her raven-black hair over one shoulder, and gave her a cocky smile. The only sign Aveena was affected by Lilith’s ability was a slight reddening of her pale cheeks.

  “What do you want, whore?” Aveena spat out, and I could see her start to glow as she prepared to unleash her glamour.

  “Nothing,” Lilith shrugged. “I’m here to purchase services from Mr. Dupree just like you.”

  I gulped, undid the necktie that was part of our school uniform, and tried to work some air across my chest and back. It wasn’t working.

  “He will be handling my business before yours,” Aveena replied, holding her ground.

  “Ladies,” I stepped forward because I clearly had a death wish. “I will be able to meet both of your needs . . . I mean orders.”

  Aveena’s eyes burned like brimstone as she turned to regard me, while Lilith raised an eyebrow and gave me a playful smile. The half-chub became a raging hard-on that strained against my pants. Without another word, Aveena stomped off. Her eyes did the talking.

  “Twenty-four hours,” I reminded myself as I shook my head to clear the confusion Lilith was causing.

  The succubus watched Aveena’s retreating back before turning her gaze on me. The power of the gaze made my knees week. Aveena didn’t fuck with Lilith because there was a question mark who would come out on top in a fight. Both were young, headstrong, and without the wisdom or power to really kill each other; but getting your ass kicked by another supernatural in high school was as good as death.

  “Cameron Dupree,” the words slipped out of her lips and hit me like a police taser. I felt more alive than ever, and my heart beat out of control. “Can I get the answers to Tuesday’s Biology quiz?” she asked.

  As far as I could remember, and my memory was a little foggy as she stood so close to me, this was Lilith’s first time coming to me. She might fuck people for power, but I heard she was a straight A student and did all her homework. This was a first.

  “Of course,” I coughed out of my too-dry throat. I tried to work around some saliva as I dug in my bag for the answer key. “Here you go,” my voice didn’t squeak that much when I handed over what she wanted.

  Her finger grazed mine, and I nearly came in my pants. She saw my reaction and chuckled. It sounded like summer bells, and warmth returned to the bleachers after Aveena’s cold entrance. “What do I owe you?” she asked, and it sounded like blasphemy to my ears.

  “Na . . . nothing,” I stammered. It was normally fifty bucks for a quiz, but how could I ask for money from her? “Just tell your friends.” The marketing would be priceless.

  “Hmmm,” she studied me closely. “I heard you wanted me to bob on your nob.”

  The sentence was delivered without any of the previous mirth, and I blushed so scarlet, you’d have thought I’d been out in the summer sun for hours. “I . . . um . . .” I didn’t know how to respond.

  “I’m hungry, so we’ll barter for the quiz. Be at my room at six o’clock sharp. Any later and I get it for free.”

  I didn’t even think about haggling. “Six o’clock . . . yes ma’am . . . I mean Lilith . . . I mean . . .” she was already walking away; her ass swaying and everyone’s eyes watching her strut.

  “Lucky bastard,” Jerome came over and patted me on the back. That made me fall on my ass. I was still a little shaky from Aveena’s intimidation on top of Lilith’s sheer presence. “She’s going to suck your dick so hard. If you video tape it, and last more than thirty seconds, I’ll give you five hundred bucks.”

  “Fuck off,” I gathered myself.

  I know my best friend wouldn’t hesitate to sell it to everyone in school. He was nothing if not an entrepreneur. While I wasn’t ashamed, I was endowed above average for the human male, tonight was just for me.

  “The first of many,” I told myself optimistically. If she became a repeat customer than I could get a hummer on the regular, “and maybe even get laid.” I cut my thought process off there. Thinking about it anymore was dangerous.

  Afterall, they were called succubae for a reason. They could literally suck the life out of you through your dick. I could think of worse ways to die, but dead was dead, and I had a lot more to give before I bought the farm.

  ***

  I was so nervous I couldn’t eat dinner. I was so nervous I didn’t even acknowledge the deadeye Mr. Miller was giving me. He was undoubtedly plotting my torture during Friday’s detention, but that was tomorrow. I had tonight to look forward to.

  The dining hall was a massive homage to Greek architecture situated at the center of campus. It looked like a mini Parthenon, complete with marble columns. At the moment, those columns were littered with backpacks as everyone dumped them outside before entering the massive, oak, double doors. There were probably a hundred rectangular tables, in neat lines, from wall to wall with a central walking space between them. Everyone in the school had an assigned seat. Each table had a faculty member at the head, with a responsible senior at the foot. The rest of the table was full of students of all different ages, races, creeds, and species. Apparently, it was supposed to provide the traditional family aspect of eating a meal together while incorporating a diverse student body.

  My table didn’t have anyone I liked, and most didn’t like me. The responsible senior was a pretty shifter who considered me one step above the shit she dragged in on her shoe. We had some English teacher at the head who I’d never had a class with, so I didn’t know him, and thankfully, he didn’t know me. The rest were kids compared to my mature self, and after trying to corrupt a few of them, I paid them no attention. Tonight, even less so. My mind was totally on Lilith and my phone’s clock.

  “Thirty minutes.” I ate dinner. “Fifteen minutes.” We were released from dinner for two hours before everyone had to be back in their room for study hall. “Five minutes.” I was walking to Lilith’s dorm on the opposite side of campus. “One minute.” I was outside her door, bouncing up and down on my toes as I waited until exactly six o’clock.

  Outside, thunder rumbled and lightning flashed. “That’s weird,” I pulled up The Weather Channel App and the radar showed nothing. “It must be a passing shower.” I found that the weather in Upstate New York could be unpredictable.

  My phone chimed with the alarm I’d set for six, and I immediately knocked on the door. My knuckles only hit once before it opened to reveal Lilith. In my teenage, male fantasy, she was naked, tits saluting me with the perkiness of youth, before she dropped to her knees and took me fully in her mouth. The thrill of some unassuming freshman catching us added a whole other level of excitement to the fantasy, but this was reality. She was still dressed in her uniform, and she waved me in with her fingers. I followed like I was a
marionette attached to her strings.

  Her room was not what I expected. Humans had been conditioned for millennia to believe creatures like Lilith were evil, demonic, infernal creatures from Hell. None of that was true, but various churches and other moral-spewing organizations had shuffled her kind into that category long ago. She was a defiler of the home, someone who broke up families, or much worse.

  Of course, reading between the lines, I saw a lot of finger pointing and not a lot of accepting responsibility for one’s actions. Sure, succubae were sex incarnate, but people still had to make that choice; and in my experience, a man, or woman, willing to hop into bed with something else was already willing to stray. That just made the succubae a convenient scapegoat when their significant other found out.

  “The devil made me do it,” I scoffed at the age-old defense.

  My human expectations were for the room to be heavily influenced by leather, maybe some whips and chains; with various other sexual instruments. Basically, a Fifty Shades of Gray scenario. That, or something out of a sultan’s harem: lots of pillows, Persian rugs, and see-through drapes. Lilith’s room was neither of those. For someone so extraordinary, her space was completely ordinary.

  The one thing that did surprise me was that she didn’t have a single room. There were only so many singles on campus, and they usually went to seniors. For someone with unique dietary requirements, I thought she’d be a shoe in for the private space. Instead, there were two beds on opposite walls, and what looked like an imaginary line drawn down the center. Half the room was clean and orderly, and the other half looked like a bomb had gone off; books, schools supply, and more than one pair of bra and panties were strewn all over the messy side. I expected to head that way, but was surprised again. Lilith took my hand and led me to the clean half.

  “Sit,” she commanded, and I obeyed.

  I thought she was going to get right down to business, but she went to the chair at her desk and retrieved the answers I’d given to her under the bleachers. She didn’t say anything as she perused them with a critical eye. I just sat there, unsure what to do, and nursing a severe case of blue balls. Being so close to her was like popping a Viagra. I’d never done it, but this was what it had to feel like.