Being tied to a chair gives you time to think. My main thought?
Damn, I got knocked the fuck out.
"Look, I think there's been some kind of misunderstanding here. Last night gets pretty fuzzy after the third drink, you know?"
Amelia tilts her head, those lotus eyes rotating slowly. The motion is hypnotic in a way that makes my stomach clench. "How convenient."
"I remember going to the party with my roommate Zack. We had a few drinks, danced a little. Then someone must have slipped something in my drink because the next thing I know, I'm waking up here." I shrug as much as the restraints allow. "Classic roofie situation. Happens more than you'd think."
She doesn't respond immediately. Instead, she starts walking. Slow, deliberate circles around my chair. Her heels click against the concrete floor in a rhythm that matches my heartbeat. Each step sends a small vibration that resonated in my bones.
Click. Click. Click.
"You know," she says conversationally, "there's this fascinating concept in our world called the Veil. It's the barrier that separates the mundane from the supernatural. Most humans live their entire lives without ever seeing through it."
"Our world?" I force a laugh. "Lady, I think you've been watching too much anime."
Click. Click. Click.
"Shamans are born with the ability to see past the Veil. We protect humanity from things that would drive normal people insane just by existing. Phantoms. Demons. Creatures that feed on human fear and suffering."
My heart rate spikes when she says 'demons,' and I curse my body for betraying me. Her smile widens slightly. She noticed.
"The photo you showed me is obviously doctored," I continue, trying to keep my voice steady. "Lens flare from the security camera, maybe some digital manipulation. I mean, come on. Glowing eyes? That's some serious B-movie nonsense."
She stops directly behind me and I can feel the heat radiating from her body. When she speaks, her breath tickles my ear.
"Tell me about the women."
"What women?"
"Jenna. Mira. Vex."
My jaw twitches involuntarily. Damn it.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Click. Click. Click.
"Succubi are low-level demons," she continues in that same casual tone. "They feed on sexual energy, life force. Usually, they take what they need and leave their victims alive but drained. It's sustainable that way."
I keep my face blank, but inside, memories are clawing their way to the surface. The taste of copper and starlight. The way Jenna crumbled to dust in my hands. The intoxicating rush of power flowing into me.
"But something different happened that night. Something unprecedented." She stops in front of me, those rotating eyes boring into mine. "Instead of being drained, the predator became the prey."
"You're completely insane."
"Your heart rate just jumped twenty beats per minute."
"Because you're talking about murder! Of course I'm freaked out!"
She laughed. "Murder? That implies they were ever truly alive. Think of demons as... sentient tumors. When you cut one out, it doesn't die. It just stops existing."
"Listen, I get it. You're probably some kind of method actor preparing for a role, or maybe you run one of those immersive theater experiences. But I'm just a business major who works at a bookstore."
Amelia reaches into her jacket again. This time, she pulls out a small, ornate knife. The blade gleams silver in the dim light, covered in symbols that seem to writhe when I'm not looking directly at them.
"You're a very good liar, Isaiah," she says, testing the edge with her thumb. A drop of blood wells up, but instead of falling, it hovers in the air like a tiny crimson sphere. "It's an attractive quality. Really. I appreciate a man who can commit to a performance."
The floating blood drop slowly rotates, and I can see my reflection in its surface—distorted, but unmistakably me.
"But the body," she continues, flicking the blood drop away, "the body never lies."
She moves faster than I can track. One moment she's standing three feet away, the next the knife is sliding across my forearm in a shallow cut. Pain blooms along the wound, sharp and immediate.
"What the hell—"
"Shhh." She places a finger against my lips, the same gesture Jenna had used. But where Jenna's touch had been cold, Amelia's burns like a brand. "Let's see what your blood has to say."
The cut wasn't deep, but dark red blood welled instantly, dripping onto the concrete with a soft plink.
Normal. It's normal human blood.
For about five seconds.
Then the drops start to glow.
A soft, pulsing blue light emanates from each droplet, growing brighter with each pulse. The light spreads outward in thin tendrils, like veins of electricity crawling across the floor.
"Fascinating," Amelia murmurs, crouching down to get a closer look. "I've never seen anything quite like this. Your blood is practically singing with demonic energy, but it's pure."
The blue light is spreading faster now, reaching the walls where it interacts with the binding wards. The yellow papers begin to smoke and curl at the edges.
"That's impossible," I whisper, staring at my own glowing blood.
"Finally," Amelia says, standing up with a satisfied smile. "A true statement."
"You want to know what I think happened that night?" Amelia asks, walking back to stand in front of me. "I think three demons tried to feed on what they thought was an easy mark. A lonely virgin college boy with a low self-esteem."
"Hey, my self-esteem is perfectly adequate and I'm a virgin by choice, thank you very much."
She ignores my protest. "But instead of finding prey, they found something else. Something that hadn't been awakened yet. Something that their feeding triggered."
The blue light from my blood has reached the ceiling now, creating a web of pulsing energy that makes the air itself seem to hum. My restraints are starting to feel loose, the metal heating up where it touches my skin.
Amelia leaned in, her face inches from mine, the glowing lotus in her eyes filling my vision. Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, a sound meant only for me.
"I think they found the first incubus in a millennium."