Page 55 of Sleep With Us

Sebastien clambered to his feet, righting his clothes and hair. Flustered, he glared at me, then noticed we were all lit up on the stage. “Don’t listen to the stupid little human,” he barked at the crowd. “I’m your fucking boss. I fucking own all of you. Get back to work. And you? You worthless cunt.” He thrust a finger at Zee’s face. “Go to my room and get on your knees, where you belong. If you think for a single fucking second I’m ever letting you go, you’re in for a whole world of hurt. I’m going to fuck your every hole, and some new ones.”

Zee’s tail thrashed, and the veins in his wings began to burn purple, but his face remained calm, almost intrigued. “Oh baby, keep talking, you’re making me hard.”

Sebastien’s wings ruffled. “What?”

“Yeah, you know?” Zee picked up Sebastien’s tie and smoothed his hand up and down it. “We should definitely get a room. A special room, just for you. With whips and chains. Maybe some knives? You enjoy knife play, don’t you Seb?”

Sebastien’s white lashes fluttered. His smile, like his tail, twitched, unsure if it should stay or go.

“Club’s closed,” Zee announced, smoothing down Seb’s tie. “Anyone who doesn’t work here leaves now.”

“The fuck!” Sebastien screeched, beginning to sense how the club’s ambience had turned against him. “Don’t listen to Zodiac, he’s just some piece of ass. I sign your checks. I pay you. I made all of you. You owe me, you bunch of fucking hoes. None of this works without me.”

The staff of demons began to usher the customers toward the exits.

Sebastien whirled and flung a finger at me. “You little bitch. I’ll just amend the contract, like it says. Fido needs the money. I’ll pay. And every single one of you who defies me now will feel my fucking wrath tenfold. I’ll fuck the lot of you into the ground! And you, Adam Vex. You I’m going to eat, starting with your cock.”

I slow blinked, like I’d learned from Reynard. “Okay, but you should know, General Copernicus is dead, so I guess all you just said won’t ever be happening.” I batted his pointed finger away. “You don’t see it yet, but you’re about to have a really bad rest of your life.”

Sebastien spluttered a laugh. He looked around him, searching for a way out, but all he saw was how the crowd had thinned, leaving just a whole bunch of angry demons.

Every lash of his whip. Every time he’d held them down, leaving bruises on their wrists. Every single shameful thing he’d made them do, for four years . . . It was all about to come back and bite him. Hard.

“W-wait!” Sebastien spluttered. “Alright, I see you cumbuckets are upset.” He pushed out his hands, as though to hold them back, even though nobody had moved in. “Let’s talk?”

Zee pulled up to my side. “I’m feeling pretty good,” he said, calling back to his earlier performance. “How do you feel, Adam?”

“I’m feeling really good too,” I agreed.

We all knew who wasn’t feeling good. Sebastian’s wings sagged and his tail flopped.

A few growls and hisses simmered from the staff. Someone flicked on the music, and blasted the “Feeling Good” instrumental track from the speakers all over again. Hungry violence shone in Zee’s eyes. He wrapped his fingers around his neck chains, and tore them off, then laid his predatory glare on Sebastien.

A thrilling shiver trickled down my spine.

“Fuck!” Sebastien spun on his heel, shoved me into Zee’s arms, and bolted.

He might have made it, if we hadn’t suspected he’d try to run and brought a backup plan.

Reynard blurred onto the stage and thrust out an arm, clotheslining Sebastien in the throat. Down Sebastien went for a second time. He screamed a high-pitched cry and bucked, until Reynard stood on his neck, choking off the noise.

Sebastien stopped thrashing.

“That’s for choking Adam,” Reynard snarled, leaning on his knee, making Sebastien gurgle. “For ruining my cabinet, and for mistreating Zodiac, whom I have recently begun to experience a complicated array of emotions for. I suggest, demon, during what happens next, you shouldn’t fight. It will be over more quickly that way.” He straightened, lifted his foot of Sebastien’s neck, and adjusted his sleeves.

“Daddy Vampire is fucking hot when he gets his dom on,” Zee remarked from the corner of his mouth.

Reynard really kinda was.

“Please?” Sebastien whimpered. He rolled onto his front and scanned the faces of his ex-staff. They’d all closed in, and although they were wearing candy-colored, skimpy outfits lined with feathers and fluff, each of them in another life, was more than capable of chopping Sebastien into sushi. And now they were free to do exactly that. “I’m a victim too!”

“Don’t go easy on him,” I told Zee.

Zee chuckled. “Kitten, there’s no chance of that.”

I hopped off the stage, joining Reynard, and together we walked from the main room, through the club corridors, and out the main door. In a rare, quiet moment in Demontown, a bloodcurdling scream rose up, then was silenced by Razorsedge’s heavy door swinging shut.

We climbed into the waiting car, and left the demons to their justice.