Straight By The Rules

I compromised by renting the top floor of a subdivided mansion on the east side of the city. Although I counted six otherworldly doorways in the building, only two opened up inside my flat. The first stood in the middle of the living room wall, and I had barricaded it with the most immense flat-screen television I could buy. The TV wouldn’t stop a rampaging berserker, but it might stop other unwanted pests. The second doorway was in my bedroom. This one I vowed to use only for emergencies since I didn’t want anyone catching me appearing or disappearing into thin air.

After leaving William on the mountaintop, I avoided the convenient doorway in my bedroom. Instead, I used the one that opened up in the cramped, dreary basement next to the washing machine and dryer we shared with our downstairs neighbor.

The dryer finished tumbling the moment I stepped into the human world. I put the still-warm clothes into a basket and headed up the two flights of stairs to my apartment, which, once again, had become very crowded. Although my daughter was out of the country, Tommy, my niece Ariel, and my stepsister Jasmine now lived with me as well.

Tommy, propped up by several pillows, lay on the couch and stared listlessly at the TV. When I walked in, he eyed me warily. It was an unspoken agreement that we were never alone in the flat together. Because I had once seduced him in order to make Helen happy, Tommy had a reason to be cautious. And although I vowed never to do such a thing to him again, I couldn’t say the same for my succubus. To her, seduction was as natural as eating and breathing were to me.

To my relief, Jas walked into the room. When my dad had married Jasmine’s mother, they’d produced a perfectly gorgeous daughter. My stepsister had inherited the best parts from each of her parents: caramel-colored skin, hair like black silk, and exotic eyes from our father, and high cheekbones, long legs, and a perfect figure from her mother. All her life, Jas had acted like a spoiled beauty queen, but since Tommy’s accident, she’d become responsible. In fact, she took such good care of him that I didn’t need to do anything. Which was exactly how she wanted it.

“Time for your walk,” she told Tommy cheerfully.

“Not now,” he said. “I’m exhausted.”

“Dr. Cantor said you should get some exercise every day. It will help you heal.”

“I’m healing as quickly as I can, believe me.”

“I know you are, babe.” She leaned over the couch to kiss him on the lips, but he turned his head so that she got his cheek instead. Jas hid her disappointment by becoming brisk. “Let’s go. You need to get some sun. You look like a ghost. Doesn’t he, Lilith?”

Maybe a tall ghost with a football player’s build, a bald head, a dozen tattoos, and a line of metal studs in his forehead. But Jas was right; Tommy did look thin and pale. Not surprising considering that berserker demon Helen had sent after me had killed him instead. In fact, if I hadn’t rescued him, Tommy would still be in Hell’s waiting room.

“I’ll go for a walk later, Jas. I promise,” Tommy said. Even though he’d returned to the land of the living, his injuries had been severe. In the past three weeks, he’d undergone two surgeries to repair the damage. Most days, he lay on the couch, too sore to do anything but draw tattoo designs in his sketchpad.

“Well, let’s at least change your dressing,” she said.

Tommy sat up carefully, cringing at the pain. “I can do this myself, you know.”

“I don’t mind.”

She lifted his T-shirt, exposing his belly. When she tried to lift it higher, he clamped the material tightly against his chest. Since he’d last lived with us, Tommy had become very modest. Carefully, Jas removed the stained dressing, revealing a badly mangled tattoo and healing sutures. A little something to remember the berserker by.

I set down the laundry basket and began clearing Jasmine’s latest drugstore purchases from the cluttered coffee table. When I picked up a bag of cotton balls that had fallen to the floor, I noticed a strange bubble of energy beside the couch. Like the doorways leading into Hell, the energy had an otherworldly shine. Curious, I poked a finger into it, feeling the same, subtle shift that I did whenever I crossed Hell’s threshold. This thing was a micro-door. Something so small that only a mouse-sized demon could have crawled through. Wondering if I could plug it, I shoved several cotton balls inside, but they disappeared as if the little door was a mouth, eager for whatever I fed it.

“What are you doing?” Jas asked, interrupting my exploring.

“Nothing.” I got to my feet and dusted my knees. I’d keep my eye on that hole. Even a doorway that small worried me.

I went into the kitchen to throw away the trash, and Jas followed me to pour Tommy a glass of water. My eleven-year-old niece, Ariel, sat the table creating a triple-decker, peanut butter sandwich. She offered a smile that contrasted with her dyed black hair and ghoulish makeup. Now that it was summer, I’d tried to get her to wear something other than her black T-shirt and jeans, but she refused. She clung to her Gothic persona the way other kids clung to their teddy bears.

“I have a favor to ask you,” I said to Jasmine. “I’d like the apartment to myself tomorrow night.”

“Why?”

I had to broach this carefully. I didn’t want Jas jumping to conclusions. “I’ve invited someone over for dinner.”

“It’s not Corrine from downstairs is it?” Ariel asked. “Because I don’t like her. She wears too much perfume and is always trying to get me to wear pink.” She took an enormous bite of her sandwich.

“No, it’s not Corrine. His name is William.”

Jasmine’s eyes lit up. “Lilith! Are you serious? You actually have a date?!” She and Ariel high-fived one another. “What’s he like? Where does he work? Is he cute? How long have you been seeing him?”

I cringed under Jasmine’s rapid-fire questions. This was exactly what I’d wanted to avoid. “We’re not exactly seeing each other,” I said. “It’s more like we’re good friends.”

“Friends with benefits?” my niece asked around a mouthful of sandwich.

“Ari!” I said, shocked. “No, definitely not. We’re just friends.” Although, that wasn’t quite the right term for a man who made my stomach flutter pleasantly every time I thought of him. “We want to take things slow.” Or, rather, I did. If only to prove to myself that William cared enough about me to wait.

“Well, I’m glad for you,” Jasmine said. “You deserve to be happy.”

She was right; I did deserve it. After I’d walked into my bathroom and found the model/actress who my ex-husband was banging taking a bath in my bathtub, my life had fallen apart. It was about time that I had a little happiness. And William certainly made me happy.

The alarm clock on Jasmine’s cell phone rang. She went back into the living room. “Time for your meds,” she told Tommy brightly. Now that Jas had made it her mission to take care of him, she lived by her alarm clock. In fact, his meals, appointments, and medications were so strictly scheduled it sometimes seemed like he was in prison. “Then after your meds, we’ll go on a walk.”

“Not today, Jas,” Tommy pleaded. “I’m not up for it.”

“He looks exhausted,” I said. “Let him take a nap.”

Ariel wandered in, a book under her arm. “I wanted to read to him.” Although she was eleven, Ari read at a third-grade level. Over the summer, Tommy had challenged her to improve, and to please him, she’d been painfully working her way through The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It could take her almost an hour to finish three pages, yet somehow, Tommy always listened to her without becoming impatient or falling asleep.

“You can read to him later.” Jasmine sat on the arm of the couch and kneaded his shoulders. “And he doesn’t need another nap. He needs exercise. Dr. Cantor said…”

I groaned. “Enough with Dr. Cantor, already!”

“You aren’t the boss of him.” Jasmine glared at me. “I said I’d take care of him, and I’m doing that.”

“He’s a grown man and not a little kid,” I said. “Let the poor guy rest if he’s tired.”

“I’ll read him to sleep,” Ari offered.

Jasmine marched over to me. “Listen! I’m only doing what the doctor told me to do, and you’re not helping. You’ve even been giving him coffee, haven’t you? Coffee, Lil? Really?”

“He asked for it so I made him a cup.”

“You shouldn’t have given in. This is for his own good!”

“Stop smothering him!”

“I’m not smothering him!”

“Ladies!” Tommy had gotten to his feet and stood next to the couch, leaning on it for support. We all fell silent. “Look, I can’t take all of this attention anymore. I’m starting to feel like your pet boy.”

I wanted to argue that he wasn’t our pet, but thinking about how we fed and watered and coddled Drinking Tea, my cat, made me realize we’d been treating Tommy exactly the same way.

Jasmine, chagrined, carefully put her arms around his waist. “I only want you to get better.”

“I know. And you’ve been doing a really good job of taking care of me, but I need some space. That’s why I’m moving in with Neil for a while. He’s picking me up tonight.”

I’d met Tommy’s best friend Neil a few times at the hospital. He owned a tattoo and piercing parlor called Midtown Ink.

“You can’t stay there!” Jasmine protested. “Where are you going to sleep?”

Neil was married and had three kids. His family lived in a tiny, two-bedroom house near Midtown.

“There’s a couch in Neil’s office. I can crash there,” Tommy said.

“You’ve only been out of the hospital for a few weeks,” Jasmine argued.

“Yes, but I’m going crazy here. No offense, but all of this sacral energy is getting on my nerves. I need some time to rebalance my chakras.”

I didn’t understand the spiritual gibberish, but the bottom line was clear. He was suffering from estrogen overload.

“You hate us,” Ariel said. Tears shimmered in her eyes.

He touched her shoulder. “Of course I don’t.”

Jasmine crossed her arms over her chest. “If you live at Midtown, you’ll be tempted to get another tattoo. I just know it.”

He avoided her eyes. “I won’t.”

“You will! You’ve been drawing in your sketchpad again, and I know what you’re thinking. But you heard what Dr. Cantor said: no more tattoos or piercings until you’re fully healed.” She touched his arm. “Please, you need to get well first.”

“She’s right,” I said. “Let your body heal one thing at a time.”

He held up his hand Boy Scout-style. “I swear to you I won’t get another tattoo until I’m fully healed.”

I wanted to believe him, but even when he crossed his heart with his index finger, his eyes wandered to his sketchpad.

That afternoon, while Tommy napped, and Jasmine and Ariel watched an old horror movie on TV, I retreated into my bedroom. From my nightstand, I took out a small notebook that Grace had given to me at Christmas. On the cover was a picture of a tiny kitten meowing in the face of an immense German shepherd. Written below were the words: “Don’t Let Nobody Stand in Your Way!” An appropriate message since I was using the notebook to map my way out of Hell.

On the first page, I’d written:

My Goals

– Keep Grace safe

– Get out of the damned contract

– Destroy Helen Spry

I had crossed out the first item weeks ago when I’d finally rescued my daughter from Helen’s clutches. However, accomplishing my next two objectives was proving problematic.

Obviously, the third one was ridiculous. Destroy Helen Spry? That was absurd. I barely had enough courage to call the demon-bitch by her first name let alone attack her. She was older than I was. Stronger than I was. More wickedly clever than I ever could be. Plus, she had all the resources of Hell at her fingertips.

As I chewed on my pen, I briefly considered using Helen’s trick and hiring an assassin to take her out. Almost immediately, however, I rejected the idea. In order to find demon assassins, I’d have to confess who the target was, and I couldn’t trust a demon to keep his mouth shut about it. If word spread that I was plotting to have Helen killed, she’d incinerate me where I stood. Sighing, I crossed out ‘Destroy Helen Spry.’

Now, I was left with only one goal, but it was no less outlandish. How on earth could I get out of the contract? The thing was larger than a Detroit metropolitan telephone book, and as far as I could tell, completely ironclad. Although I’d gotten it amended once, I didn’t think I would get a second opportunity to change it.

Defeated once again, I closed the book. I swore to myself that I would not give up until I found a way out. I would free myself and make sure that not another one of Sarah Goodswain’s progeny ended up in Helen’s clutches.

The otherworld doorway next to my bed shivered, and I shoved the little notebook under my pillow. If Helen caught me plotting to destroy her, she’d destroy me. I prayed that whoever was about to come into my room wouldn’t find out what I’d been doing.

Chapter Four

To my relief, it was William who stepped through the doorway. He still wore the tight T-shirt and snug jeans that he’d worn on our trip up the mountain – things that made him ruggedly handsome. A pleasant tingle spread throughout my body. How was it possible that every time I saw him, he grew more attractive?

Seeing me sitting on the bed, he threw me an impish smile. “I’m glad to see you ready and waiting for me.”

“Stop it!” I scolded, my cheeks heating up. I longed to grab his hand and drag him onto the bed with me. Then that tight T-shirt of his would wind up in the corner of the room along with my bra and panties. Someday, I thought, drawing in a deep breath. Someday, I’d have my way with him. But not yet.

He sat on the edge of the bed. The mischievous light in his eyes softened, becoming more affectionate. “I’ve been thinking about what you said on the mountain. I know that you’re worried that I’m treating you like one of my marks, but it isn’t true.” He took my hand and stroked my fingers. “You mean a great deal to me. I’ve told you that before, and I mean it. You’ve found your way into my heart.”

My chest swelled with affection. William was seldom serious, but when he was, it was like I could see a sliver of his soul. I loved that he made himself vulnerable to me. No doubt, I was the only woman in the world who had ever seen this side of him.

I ran my fingers along his jaw, stroking the sexy bit of stubble that he’d left there. I could take this man to bed for days at a time, feasting on nothing but him. “I’m sorry that I’m so insecure,” I said, “but the way you looked at that hiker – ”

“ – was only part of the job,” he finished. “I seduce women. It’s what Helen forces me to do.”

“And do you like your job?” I asked softly.

“I used to,” he admitted. “In fact, nothing pleased me more. Making conquests was my only goal in life.” He moved closer to me and brushed a lock of my hair away from my face. “But since I’ve met you, things have changed. I only want one woman in my life now.”

If only it was that easy! Even if I trusted him to continue being the human William that I wanted and not the lust-ridden incubus that I hated, there was still the matter of our contracts. Helen had made it very clear that neither of us was to fall in love. If we did, we would suffer the consequences, all of which were all spelled out in fine print. “Have you forgotten our contracts, William?”

“I don’t give a damn about the contracts,” he growled. “I want you, Lil. I’ll deal with Helen in whatever way I need to if it means that I can have you.”

Having him say that boosted my courage. I didn’t think I’d be able to defy Helen on my own, but with William’s help, I might stand a chance. I decided to let him in on my plan. I slipped the little notebook from under my pillow and showed William the page where I’d written my goals.

“You shouldn’t put anything in writing,” he said seriously. “If Helen ever found this, you’d end up in a world of trouble.”

“Writing helps me think,” I said. “It’s like brainstorming.”

“She has spies everywhere.”

Good point. Still, she wouldn’t bother me as long as she thought I was playing by her rules. She had other things to worry about, like her new assistant’s inability to get our assignments right.

I returned the notebook to the drawer in my nightstand. “I just wanted you to know that I’m serious about this.” I stuck out my chin defiantly. “I am going to get out of that contract!”

His luscious lips turned up in a smile. “I’ve heard those same words from the other women in your line, but you’re the only one who made me believe it. You’re a rare woman, Lilith.”

He pulled me to him and dipped his head towards mine. His perfect lips were slightly parted, and I met his kiss eagerly. This was what my body had been craving all along. His touch. His taste. How could I refuse him when I so desperately wanted it?

“Aunt Lilith!” Ariel called from the other room. Footsteps pounded down the hallway. “Aunt Lilith!”

In a heartbeat, William was off of the bed and through the otherworld doorway. Before he disappeared into Hell, he gave me a wink and a smile. “I’ll be back,” he promised.

Neil came over a few hours later to pick up Tommy. Tommy’s friend was small and ratty and wore his dark hair slicked back against his skull like he was auditioning for a role in Grease. He stank of cigarettes. He had less metal and more ink than Tommy. Both of Neil’s arms were covered with so much color that he looked like the Sunday comics. Ariel couldn’t take her eyes off of him.

“Cool tats,” she said, awed. She now had a few of her own. To fill his empty hours, Tommy had begun drawing henna tattoos. He’d made several on Ariel’s face and arms. Her favorite was a cat sitting upright with its tail curled under its chin. “See?” She lifted the sleeves of her T-shirt to show Neil. “Tommy did this.”

Neil flicked his eyes at the tattoos. “Uh, great. Tommy, you ready to go or what?”

Ari grew tearful. “Don’t leave!”

Tommy hugged her. “I’ll miss you, too, but I’ll be at Lilith’s birthday party on Sunday. Isn’t that right, Jasmine?”

Jasmine’s mouth and eyes tightened as she struggled to hold back her tears. “Okay. Sure.”

He brushed his lips against her cheek. “You know I’m not going back to India,” he said. “Only Ferndale, right?”

She nodded then turned to Neil. “Tommy takes his meds every six hours, and he shouldn’t be drinking coffee because it upsets his stomach. Also, he needs his sleep, so none of your all-night Xbox parties. And for God’s sake, don’t let him get another tattoo!”

“I can see why you wanted to leave,” Neil muttered.

Tommy and I hugged so awkwardly that our bodies hardly touched. “Take care of yourself,” I told him.

“You, too, Lilith.”

Neil blinked. “Wait, you’re Lilith? The Lilith?” Suddenly, he was more interested. I was dying to ask what Tommy had been saying about me, but with Jas and Ari in the room, it didn’t seem like a good idea.

Neil picked up Tommy’s battered duffel bag, then with a final look at me, he and Tommy left.

Ariel burst into tears and ran to her room, slamming the door behind her. Jas sniffed a few times and wiped her eyes. Already, the flat seemed too empty.

“I promised to take Ariel to the Coney Island for dinner,” I said. “Do you want to come along?”

“I can’t. I have a job interview.”

I hadn’t heard news so shocking since I’d found out that I was to become a succubus. “Are you serious?”

Jas nodded. “It’s only a waitressing gig in Greektown near the casino, but a friend of mine works there, and she says the tips are pretty good.”

“Jas, that’s amazing! What brought this about?” For the past three years, my dad, Jas’s mom, and I had been nagging my stepsister to find a job.

She shrugged and folded the blanket that had been lying on the couch. “I want to get my own place.” She held the folded blanket to her chest. “I was hoping Tommy would move in with me if I did.”

I’d never thought of Jasmine as the type to settle down with a guy. Especially not a guy as decent as Tommy. I hugged her.

When I let go, she slowly sank onto the couch. Worry lines furrowed her forehead. “I don’t know if he’ll do it, though. Move in with me, I mean. I’m not sure if he’s into me.”

I had no doubt that he loved her. “Honey, he crossed three continents to keep you from marrying Karl!”

“True.” She smiled sadly. “But now he’s so distant.”

I didn’t let on that I’d noticed. “He’s still not feeling well,” I said. “Once he’s better, things will change.”

“Maybe.” Jas pressed her face into the folded blanket for a moment. When she resurfaced, she said, “The worst part is that he sends me mixed messages. I mean, he hardly ever holds my hand, and he won’t kiss me, but he spends all this time drawing tattoos on me.”

“He does the same thing for Ariel,” I said.

“No, you don’t understand. This is way different from those cats and stars he puts on her arms. Look.” She turned around and lifted the back of her shirt. Inked in henna between her shoulder blades was an intricate mandala, one of the most beautiful designs I’d ever seen. “He drew it the other night. He lit candles and played this CD of chants that he’d picked up in Tibet. And the way he touched me! There was nothing innocent about it, believe me. I lay there for two hours feeling his hands brushing against my skin. Two hours!” She shook her head. “Do you have any idea how sexy that was?”

I imagined lying on my bed while William lovingly drew patterns on my naked back. I started to feel warm. “Yes, I can imagine.”

She lowered her shirt. “He’s driving me crazy! If he doesn’t do something about it soon, I swear I’ll…” She screamed into the blanket.

While I patted her shoulder and consoled her, I wondered where I could get my hands on a CD of Tibetan chants and some henna paste.

Only the promise of a Coney dog lured Ariel out of her room. We went to East End Coney and sat at our favorite booth by the window overlooking the broad expanse of Lake St. Clair. From here, we could see the yachts and fishing boats traveling the famous, nautical mile.

With Grace gone, Ariel and I were spending a lot more time together. To my delight, Ari had not only warmed up to me, she had also lost her habitual scowl. She’d even started smiling at people.

I’d also found out some surprising things about her. Like the fact that she enjoyed eating French fries with mayonnaise instead of ketchup (something she had learned from one of her mother’s many boyfriends), she loved lions (which was the reason Tommy had started her on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe), and she was surprisingly good at basketball (despite her small stature). I’d signed her up for a three-week basketball camp so that she could make friends before the school year started, and the coach had taken me aside to remark how well Ari could pass and dribble.

Ariel ordered her usual: two chili dogs with no onions, fries, and a Coke. I ordered a gyro and a small Greek salad.

“Where should we go for your birthday?” I asked. My stepdad and I had consecutive birthdays, so every year we shared a party. This year, Ariel would be a part of the tradition as well since she was turning twelve in less than a month. I wanted to throw her a real party since I didn’t think she’d ever had one before. I planned to invite the girls from the basketball camp. “Have you ever been to the zoo? They have lions there.”

Ari seemed less enthusiastic about the party than I thought she’d be. “Yeah, okay.”

“Or we could take everyone to play miniature golf,” I offered.

She shrugged again. The waitress brought over our drinks and Ariel sipped her Coke thoughtfully. “Do you think Tommy would want to date my mother?”

I nearly spilled my iced tea. Ariel’s mother was currently in jail for child endangerment, possession of narcotics, and drunk driving. There was no way in hell I’d introduce her to Tommy. If my sister-in-law saw what a good guy he was, she’d cling to him like a leech. “I think Tommy’s got his eye on Jasmine,” I said.