CH 28 - Out of the Frying Pan

The great hall had been transformed for the celebration into a paradise for hedonists. Half of the immense chambered had been cordoned off with portable walls. The chair on the platform had been replaced by a plush, backless couch, raised on one end, and sitting on a thick carpet. More couches, carpets, and a mountain of scattered pillows lay about the massive room. Every chandelier held new candles shedding a halo of golden light.

Half naked bodies lounged around the room in a loose circle, each to their own comfort but close enough to chat. Three were demons, two females, and one male with the usual variety of color and demonic features but no wings. He recalled that the Baroness had also not been winged and wondered if they possessed some ability to retract them as Beauty did with her claws. All three were, of course, beautiful, but only the male bore the mark on his cheek of being Harem. The females bore no face tattoos at all. Guests of the Baroness perhaps?

Five humans were also present. Two were the man and woman who had been guarding the Baroness earlier. The other two unknowns to Logan was also a man and woman, equaling as attractive and marked as Harem. The last was de Sade who smiled at him in a way that made Logan want to reach for a weapon.

If I still had one, he thought with regret.

“Ah, the guest of honor had finally arrived,” de Sade stood and offered a graceful bow. “And just in time,” he added as a bell rang and everyone stood.

Baroness Graveek strolled in through a door at the back of the hall. She wore a black, translucent drape from her shoulders that floated around her legs. The same diaphanous material billowed around her arms from wrist to shoulders. Thigh-high, black leather stiletto boots sheathed her long legs. A black leather corset magnified the deep hourglass of hips and waist. Her hair fell in soft waves around her shoulders. Silver jewelry glittered on ears and black clawed fingers. Two magnificent, plum-colored breasts and her sex brushed with midnight pubes were on full display. Every graceful movement of her perfect body silently screamed danger and sexuality in equal measure.

She stepped in front of the couch and her eyes swept across each person in the room, settling on Logan. A wicked smile played at the corners of her full lips as she seemed to look through him.

“My pets ... let us play.”

She clapped her hands together once and the hall came alive with movement and music. On an overhead balcony, three servants began to fill the room with the soft melody of drums and flutes. Two males and two females, dressed only in translucent veils, moved to the center of the room and began to dance in a very suggestive way, caressing each other and themselves in graceful, slow motion. Servants dressed in silver chains and flowing scraps of white cloth, male and female and each more beautiful than the one before, spread out through the hall in pairs. One carried a silver tray heaped with delicate bowls of food or polished cups of drink. The other trailed behind carrying ... a bucket.

Logan settled onto an empty couch and cautiously accepted a drink that tasted like some kind of dark, smoky wine yet burned going down like whiskey. He made a mental note to consume very little of the strong drink. Soon enough the mystery of the buckets was revealed. He watched the demons in the room sample the many delicacies on offer. The “wine” they drank with great enthusiasm. The food, however, was another matter. He watched them chew, savor the taste, then spit the remains into a nearby bucket.

For enjoyment, he realized. Not for sustenance. I wonder where the wine goes? He had never known Beauty to need to eat food nor rid herself of bodily waste. Like her, their hunger could only be satisfied with the sexual life force of human souls. A chill of foreboding crawled over his skin at the thought.

A movement drew his attention. He looked up. People and demons were beginning to gather into smaller groups, many gravitating to the pillows around the Baroness. Two of the human women were approaching him. They were wearing smiles and not much more.

“Hi, I’m Anna,” offered a statuesque brunette as she draped herself on the couch beside him. She had been the woman standing guard earlier. Her dusky complexion hinted at a Hispanic or Mediterranean heritage.

“My name is Lily,” murmured a striking redhead with hazel eyes and pale, lightly freckled skin. She settled in at his other hip.

“You have been the topic of much debate today,” Lily smiled.

“I have, huh?” Logan smirked and leaned back to keep them both in his peripheral vision. “Why’s that?”

“Well, for one we get too few visitors this far from the city,” Anna laughed. “New blood is always welcome.”

“Especially when they are so handsome,” Lily purred and brushed a finger down his naked bicep.

Uh oh, Logan thought.

A high squeal of surprise saved him from a reply. They all looked over to see the four-eyed demon laughing and pawing at the servant girl now draped across his lap, even as she struggled to keep the platter in her hand from tipping over onto the floor. Another served rushed over and smoothly took the platter away just as she was pulled down into his arms.

Lily rolled her eyes. “Tycus is such a brute!” she giggled. Logan could feel her gaze traveling slowly over his shoulders and chest. “Not that I don’t appreciate an energetic male.”

Anna settled in closer on his other side. He was now sandwiched between the two gorgeous women and his body began to react in the normal fashion. Anna’s dark eyes noticed. Her eyebrows rose in appreciation as her hand slid up the inside of his thigh. “Very energetic, I suspect.”

Logan knew there was no way he could allow this to play out to its inevitable conclusion for fear it would almost certainly reveal his unique nature and blow his cover wide open. Fortunately, this was a possibility they had planned for.

“Ladies, I am honored by your interest but I can’t.”

Anna pulled back and looked at him. “If you prefer men...”

“No,” Logan quickly replied. “Not at all. In better circumstances I would savor the both of you like candy,” he replied truthfully. “However, my Master forbids me from any form of physical pleasure until I have successfully returned from a hunt.” Logan shrugged. “He calls it motivation.”

“You are not joking?” Lily asked as both women slid to their feet in a soft jiggle of feminine wonder.

He shook his head. “Unfortunately, no.”

For a moment, both women just looked at him. As one, they turned to walk away, any interest in him utterly vanished. The Baroness looked up at them curiously from where she had one of the servants between her legs tending to her pleasure.