The Devil Inside

CHAPTER 22

My suspicion that I wouldn’t like Adam’s plan was spot-on. Go figure. However, since I couldn’t come up with a better one…

That afternoon, I had the unique pleasure of going shopping with a police escort. Adam, of course. Hoping that none of the bad guys would see us together, he drove me to New Jersey for this little expedition instead of taking me to any of the Philadelphia spots. He stole glances out of the rearview mirror every five seconds while we drove, but he said he didn’t see any signs of pursuit.

Our first stop was at a dive of a salon, where I let a gum-cracking teenager with hair like roadkill bleach my hair a very white blond. She did the same to my eyebrows, then moussed my hair into sticky spikes. I looked wretched, but I also hardly looked like myself, which was the idea.

Next, we went to a dive of a clothing shop that specialized in biker-slut couture. Adam browbeat me into buying a black vinyl miniskirt, a black leather bustier that laced up the front and didn’t close all the way, and black vinyl thigh-high boots with stiletto heels. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

When I emerged from the dressing room to purchase my costume-I refused to think of these as clothes-I saw that Adam had added a pair of black leather wrist cuffs dotted with silver studs and a black leather dog collar with similar decoration.

I started shaking my head violently, but he tore the clothes out of my hands, piled them on the counter, and handed the amused salesclerk his credit card.

“If we’re going to do this, love, we’re going to do it right.”

I imagined wearing that outfit out in public and considered the possibility that I might just prefer to die.

Our last stop was a shop that specialized in theater makeup, where we bought pancake makeup, obnoxious black lipstick, and obnoxious black eyeliner.

Well, okay, the eyeliner wasn’t that obnoxious. It was just that I knew how much of it he was going to make me wear.

Late in the afternoon, Dominic called Adam’s cell to let him know the expected videotape had arrived at my office. Delivered by messenger service, of course, so we couldn’t track it to its source. I asked what was on the tape, but all Adam would tell me was that Dom said it was “what you’d expect.” Maybe I was better off not knowing.

I called Andrew from a pay phone, seething with hatred. We began negotiations for Brian’s release, discussing where we would do the trade, but my temper got the better of me again and he hung up on me. It was just as well-we needed to stall a bit anyway, because I wasn’t about to turn myself in.

We met Dominic for dinner at what I would swear was a Family-owned Italian restaurant, then we rented a cheesy motel room. Adam didn’t want any chance that the bad guys would see me within three feet of him with my new do, and he wanted to make sure we weren’t followed when we showed up at the club.

On the theory that it would be easier to disappear into the crowd if the club was as crowded as possible, we decided to show up around midnight. At ten-thirty, we started getting me into costume.

Yes, it was a team effort. Not that I needed help getting into my clothes, what there was of them, but I definitely needed help with the makeup. I tried not to laugh hysterically while Dominic covered my all-too-recognizable tattoo with that thick, pore-clogging pancake makeup.

Adam sent me back to the bathroom three times to put on more eyeliner and lipstick, until I looked like a biker slut in clown makeup. Then Dominic took his turn in that bathroom. I hadn’t seen what his costume looked like yet, but I figured it couldn’t possibly be as hideous as mine.

Adam gave me a definite once-over when Dom disappeared into the bathroom. His grin was lascivious in the extreme and made me want to lace the bustier tighter. But I’d already laced it as tight as it would go if I still wanted to breathe. There was at least a one-inch gap between my breasts, and the tight lacing meant lots of cleavage.

Adam licked his lips. “Such a shame you insisted on buying panties,” he said. “It would have been so much fun imagining you in that outfit without them.”

I gaped at him. The look in his eyes was pure lust, and unless he’d shoved a cucumber down the front of his pants while I wasn’t looking, it was genuine.

I cast a furious look at the bathroom door, but Adam just laughed.

“Don’t worry, love. While I can’t help admiring the view, this,” he said as he ran his hand down the bulge, “is all for Dom.”

My face flamed, amusing him even more. I wondered if maybe I should try to revive the awkwardness of this morning. I think I liked it better than when he felt comfortable with me.

At that moment, the bathroom door opened.

Dominic wasn’t as tricked out as me, but he definitely didn’t look himself. He’d slicked back his unruly hair with something that gave it a greasy shine, and he’d changed into a black mesh T-shirt and obscenely tight black leather pants. He also wore cuffs and collar, similar to mine.

“ What’s all for me?” he asked, eyebrows raised, but he must have picked up on the particular flavor of tension in the room because his eyes zeroed in on Adam’s groin. I didn’t think the color that rose to his cheeks was entirely embarrassment. “Oh,” he mumbled.

His pants were easily tight enough to show he appreciated Adam’s appreciation. I wanted out of the room more than I could say.

“Morgan,” Adam said, and there was a hint of sharpness to his voice that made me look up. “You’re going to have to at least pretend you’re comfortable with us. The Seven Deadlies is not the place for prudishness, especially not when you’re supposed to be our third.”

God, please kill me now.

I’d been mentally shielding myself all day, trying not to think about this wonderful plan of ours. But I couldn’t do it forever.

As plans go, it wasn’t much. Not knowing how many people-and demons-were guarding Brian, and not knowing what condition he would be in, there wasn’t a whole lot of advance planning we could do. All we knew for sure was that we had to find our way into that basement. Considering what went on down there, there was only one way to manage it.

My acting skills are lousy, and if I actually had to participate in any S&M sex games, I’d never be able to do it. So Adam had come up with a story for me. I was Adam’s new human plaything-in-training because Dominic without his demon just wasn’t satisfying enough. But I was being punished, so for tonight, I would be allowed to observe, but not participate.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Dominic said with a nervous smile, “I’m not what you’d call comfortable with this, either. Saul had no qualms about performing in public. I do.”

“Oh,” I said, feeling vaguely ashamed of myself for not thinking about that. I’d seen evidence before that Dominic wasn’t an exhibitionist. “I’m really sorry-”

“It’ll be okay,” Adam interrupted, closing the distance between himself and Dominic and putting both hands on his lover’s shoulders. “I’ll make you comfortable.” His hands slid up Dominic’s neck until they cupped his face and pulled his head down for a kiss.

My first instinct was to look away, but I fought it. They’d warned me what I might see at the club once we got into the basement, and if I couldn’t handle watching a couple of guys kiss, I was in deep shit.

It didn’t take long for Dom to get over his bashfulness. He abandoned himself to that kiss like there was no one else in the room, pressing his body tight against Adam’s and making contented sounds in the back of his throat.

When Adam’s hands slid down Dom’s back until they cupped his ass, I honestly wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. A part of me certainly wanted to look away, but I couldn’t deny that another part-perhaps even a larger part-was wildly turned on by the sight. They were just so damn sexy, both of them. My inner slut would have loved to slip in between them right now, absorb the incredible sexual energy they exuded. I wanted to slide my hands over Dominic’s ass, just like Adam did, and feel Adam’s impressive erection digging into my belly. Or maybe even other places…

I shook my head to clear it, and the lust level lowered enough to let me tear my eyes away. However, my pulse still hammered in my throat, and I doubted I would ever get those images out of my brain.

I cleared my throat loudly. “Okay, boys, I got the point. Now could we just get on with it?”

They both laughed.

“I’d love to get on with it,” Adam said suggestively.

Like a fool, I let my gaze slide over to them again, only to see that Adam’s hand had moved. Now it wasn’t Dom’s ass he was stroking. Dom’s eyes were closed, his mouth slightly open, his head thrown back in pleasure. As far as I could tell, he’d forgotten I was in the room. Or he just didn’t care anymore.

I mustered my mental forces. “Look, the man I love may be getting tortured right this moment. Do you think you could forego the incredible pleasure of making me uncomfortable so we can rescue him?”

Adam sighed dramatically but let his hand fall away. Dominic opened his eyes and visibly swallowed a protest.

“All right,” Adam said. “You have a point.” He gave Dominic’s hand a quick squeeze, then stepped away to put on his shoulder holster. Unlike Dominic and me, he wasn’t wearing a costume. Since he was required to carry his sidearm at all times, he said he’d always found it easier just to dress like a normal person and wear a jacket to hide the weapon when he went to The Seven Deadlies.

I thanked God for small mercies. Adam was dangerously sexy in his street clothes. I’d hate to see what he’d look like in some kind of bad-boy costume.

Just before we ventured out of the room, Dominic handed me a cell phone.

“Here,” he said. “In case we get separated.”

“We won’t!” Adam said, and it was clearly an order.

“We won’t,” I agreed. But I took the cell phone anyway, sticking it into a convenient pocket at the top of one thigh-high boot, and Adam didn’t object.

We arrived at the club shortly after midnight. The nearest parking was two blocks away. I felt like everyone on the street was staring at me as we walked those endless two blocks. It was all in my mind, of course-I probably didn’t look all that outlandish in a South Street — after—midnight context.

I practiced taking slow, deep breaths, and reminded myself that Brian’s life might well depend on me keeping calm and collected.

From the outside, The Seven Deadlies didn’t look like anything special. The neon sign above its doorway was actually rather understated, and the facade was for the most part unadorned. I guess I’d expected the place to scream out its nature from miles away, though Adam and Dominic had reminded me repeatedly that it was both more and less than an S&M club.

At a ticket booth right inside the front door, Adam and Dominic showed their membership cards and claimed me as a guest. Adam generously paid my admission, and a relatively demure-looking young woman stamped the backs of our hands.

There was a good-sized crowd waiting to get into the depths of the club, and we had to wait in line to go through the doorway. I took the time to look around me and was surprised by what I saw. There were a number of other people dressed, shall we say, exotically, but there were also a large number of relatively normal-looking folks. The age varied from just barely legal to forties, maybe even fifties, with a high concentration of twenty- somethings. I’d estimate about half the crowd was drop-dead gorgeous, and I wondered how many of them were demons. I decided I didn’t want to know.

We had to pass between a pair of bouncers to enter the main room of the club. They hardly spared me a glance as I stepped by them, but they both moved to block Adam’s way.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to check your weapon,” one of them said.

I drifted a little farther away from the door, well out of Adam’s reach. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that if the staff confiscated Adam’s gun, he’d try to abort our mission. I wasn’t about to let that happen.

He reached for his back pocket, then flashed his badge. The bouncer didn’t budge. Adam rolled his eyes.

“You’ve never had a problem with it before,” he said. I think he was trying to sound calm and reasonable, but the distinct edge in his voice ruined the effect.

“We’ve had a policy change.”

“I’m required to carry my sidearm even when I’m off duty!” Adam said, his posture radiating menace.

The bouncer didn’t look intimidated. I wondered if that made him brave, or brain-dead. “Then I suggest you find a club that will let you keep it. This isn’t the place.”

The crowd behind Adam was getting irritated with him, but he ignored them. “Let me speak to Shae.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but I’m going to have to ask you to either check your gun or step aside.”

Adam looked like he was one step short of killing someone. He tried to glare me into coming back through the doorway, but I didn’t think he was surprised it didn’t work.

With a snarl, he ejected the clip from his gun and shoved it at the poor flunky. The flunky gave him a ticket and a dirty look in return.

I think he seriously considered grabbing me and dragging me out kicking and screaming. I also think he realized it wouldn’t work. It would be kind of awkward and unconvincing to pretend he was arresting me when he’d escorted me in, and he didn’t seem inclined to make a scene.

He shook a finger in my face. “You stick to me like glue, understand?”

“Sure.”

He glowered at me a little more; then Dominic put a hand on his shoulder and the tension eased out of him.

“Let’s go get a drink, shall we?” Dominic suggested.

I wanted to get on with it immediately, but Adam said we needed to blend in with the crowd.

When we pushed through the door to the main body of the club, I had to stop for a moment to adjust to the assault on my senses.

I’d heard the dull thump of music before we stepped in, but that hadn’t prepared me for this wall of noise. I’d done plenty of club-hopping in my early twenties, but not so much lately. I’d forgotten how deafening these places could be. Worse, the so-called music had a heavy techno beat with a droning, repetitive melody and no vocals.

The place was dark as a pit, with multicolored strobe lights providing intermittent illumination. People packed a minuscule dance floor, bodies jerking to the rhythm of the music. The floor was so crowded, it was hard to tell who was dancing with whom, and bodies rubbed together with careless abandon. A sign over the dance floor said Purgatory, which I thought an apt description.

The second floor of the club featured a balcony that circled the dance floor. The balcony was crowded with people, some leaning against the railing to watch the action below, some waiting in front of a series of closed, numbered doors like you’d find in a hotel. A sign over the stairway leading up to the balcony declared Heaven.

The strangest thing of all was the pair of tables set up one on each side of the entrance. One table held headbands with cheesy devil horns on them, and the other held headbands with cheesy angel halos. Many of the milling crowd wore one or the other.

“I told you this wasn’t just an S&M club,” Adam said, practically shouting into my ear to be heard over the music. “If you’re here looking for a partner for some vanilla sex, you wear a halo. When you find a partner, you go to Heaven.” He pointed to the balcony. “And you rent a room. If you’re looking for something more exotic, you wear the horns, and when you find a partner, you go to Hell.”

My gaze followed his pointing finger until I found the sign saying Hell. It loomed over a heavy wooden door that looked just how you’d expect the mouth of Hell to look.

I swallowed hard. “And that’s where we’re going.”

His answer was a curt nod.

We fought our way through the crowd toward the bar, Adam forging a path while Dominic and I struggled along in his wake. We hovered like vultures until a table opened up, then dove for the high stools. I wasn’t sure if I could sit on one without flashing, but figured it was dark enough that no one would have much of a view even if I did. Adam sent Dominic to the bar for drinks, laughing when I ordered my trademark piña colada. At least he didn’t insist I order something more in keeping with my costume. I was nervous enough I wasn’t sure I’d be able to keep any alcohol down.

Dom returned with the drinks and pulled his stool over very close to Adam, their knees touching under the table. I immediately felt like the third wheel, which I supposed was okay since that was my role for the evening.

There wasn’t a whole lot of chatter-the music was too loud for it-and I tried to concentrate on my drink as Adam and Dom got progressively…cozier. It seemed Dominic had forgotten his discomfort with public displays of affection. Good thing for him, seeing as Adam’s tongue was down his throat most of the time. If only I felt more comfortable with it, this wouldn’t be quite so hellish. I battled to seem nonchalant and sucked down my drink in big swallows, hoping the alcohol would soothe my nerves.

Dominic was practically on Adam’s lap when an unfamiliar woman appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

She was tall, maybe even taller than me, and her skin was that deep ebony hue you associate with people from the heart of Africa. Close-cropped hair showed off the artistically perfect shape of her skull, and she had the longest, most elegant neck I’d ever seen. She looked Adam and Dom up and down with an almost proprietary expression, then looked at me and raised an eyebrow.

I didn’t know what to say or do, so I settled for giving Adam a nudge with my elbow to let him know we were no longer alone.

He came up for air, his eyes dark as sin. He blinked a couple of times, as if he’d forgotten where he was; then his eyes focused on our visitor.

“ Shae!” he said, sounding delighted. “Long time no see!”

She threw back her head and laughed like he’d said something really funny. I didn’t get the joke.

“I hear you were giving my people a hard time, you naughty boy,” she said. Her voice was as dark as her skin, and something about it chilled me. Or maybe it wasn’t her voice. Maybe it was that predatory glint in her eye.

I reminded myself that she was an illegal demon, and that made it easier to understand my quick and comprehensive dislike of her.

Adam grinned. “You could get me in trouble, Shae. It’s against regulations for me to go unarmed.”

She grinned back. “I promise not to tell on you.” Her gaze moved to Dom. “I hear you’ve had a spot of trouble.”

He nodded, but didn’t elaborate. I got the distinct feeling he wasn’t terribly fond of Shae, though he hadn’t given me that vibe when Adam had talked about her earlier.

Shae’s eyes found their way back to me, and she raked me with a head-to-toe examination that felt invasive and not at all friendly. “And who might this lovely creature be?”

Adam’s hand closed possessively around my wrist. For the moment, I didn’t feel inclined to object. He smiled at Shae.

“She’s my new pet-in-training,” he said, his fingers tightening on my wrist in warning. Guess he knew I’d be tempted to object to that. Honestly, he didn’t need the warning. I objected, but this was the role I’d agreed to play, and if it was what I needed to do to save Brian, then so be it.

Shae stuck out her lower lip. “But, Adam, you’ve been shamefully neglecting the poor creature. I’ve had my eye on you for a while.”

He let go of my wrist. “That’s because she’s being punished. She needs to learn to control her temper around her betters.”

I lowered my gaze, hoping I looked ashamed of my disgraceful behavior while I clamped my jaws together and fought the urge to retort.

“But you brought her out on the town anyway.”

I could almost hear Adam shrug. “What better punishment than to be forced to see what she’s missing?”

“My, aren’t you the cruel one.”

“Always.”

“So you’re planning to visit Hell tonight?”

My insides clenched, but I managed not to gasp or cringe. I was trying to take everything one step at a time, but my mind kept racing ahead of me, wondering what I would see down there, wondering if my rescue attempt was doomed before it began, wondering if I was going to get myself and Lugh killed before the night was over.

Thank God I wasn’t expected to talk.

“Naturally,” Adam answered.

Shae made a sound I might almost have described as a purr. “I’ve missed you. You always put on such a good show.”

My stomach turned, and I couldn’t help raising my gaze. Adam looked completely at ease trading quips with Shae, and she showed every evidence of enjoying it, too. Dom, on the other hand, sat rigidly straight on his stool, and his jaws visibly worked.

No, he definitely didn’t like Shae. And he was not happy with where this conversation was leading.

Adam sighed dramatically. “I’m afraid my showmanship days are over.” He reached over and put a hand on Dominic’s knee. “He’s too fragile for the dramatic.”

Shae’s eyes were razor sharp. “And yet you’re bringing him to Hell.” There was a challenge of some sort in her voice, though I didn’t understand it.

“Testing the waters,” Adam said. “You have a wider selection of toys. Mine are all for rougher games than Dom is up to handling these days. I figured I’d take some for a test-drive.”

Shae’s eyes seemed to gleam in the darkness. Maybe that was her demon shining through, or maybe it was my imagination. “Oh, I think this is going to be an excellent show. I think it’ll be so good I’ll take you down there myself. On the house.”

Adam met her gleaming eyes with a gleam of his own. “You are the most generous of hostesses.”

While they congratulated each other with unpleasant smiles, Dom’s face went white, his shoulders so tense I wanted to massage them. But he didn’t protest when Adam threw an arm around his shoulder and dragged him down off the stool. Guilt gnawed at my stomach. I hated that I was putting Dominic through this. I wished I’d realized in advance how uncomfortable this plan made him, but I’d been too absorbed in my own problems to notice.

The three of us followed Shae through the crowd toward the back of the club, where the door to Hell awaited us.