Daniel's Night Out
Daniel wasn’t normally one to be caught self-conscious, but sitting alone at a table for two in the middle of a busy restaurant left him uneasy. It felt like going onstage solo with nothing but his drum kit to hide behind.
As had become habit of late, he found himself staring at his phone, scrolling social media. It didn’t take long for Morgan’s name to appear in his feed, accompanied by a video of a local band she had seen live last night. His thumb hovered over her profile picture, desperate to press it, go to his contacts, and call her, just to see how she was doing.
She won’t want to talk to me. Not after how things ended.
A call interrupted his thoughts, and his heart skipped a beat as he thought maybe she was reaching out to him. But he settled as he saw Dmitri’s name light up the screen.
“Hello?”
“Daniel,” said a Russian-accented voice on the other end. “I may need your help. Are you busy?”
“Out on a date… kind of.” He put a hand over the phone as a waiter approached his table for the third time. “I’ll just give it a few more minutes, I swear.” The waiter nodded, saying nothing but looking mildly annoyed.
“A date, eh?” said Dmitri. “Finally moving on from what-her-name?”
“Morgan… yeah. Trying to.”
A door opening nearby drew Daniel’s attention, and that was when he saw her. Tall, fair-skinned, jet-black hair. Her eyes were icy blue, her lips ruby red, and she wore a long black dress that hugged her every curve. Good-looking as they were, her profile pictures hadn’t done her any justice whatsoever.
“Gotta go.” He hung up the phone and stood from his seat.
“Daniel?” she greeted him. He wanted to speak, but was dumbstruck, suddenly wondering if he was under-dressed in his blue jeans and black blazer.
“Yeah. Lili?” He pushed through the awkwardness enough to shake her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“You too. You’re even cuter in person.”
“Thanks. So are you.” Daniel blushed, and Lili smiled in turn. “Please, take a seat.”
Undoubtedly noticing his date had finally arrived, the waiter returned to Daniel’s table, and he ordered their drinks.
*
The dinner went by faster than Daniel expected, mostly with Lili asking him about his music career, though she wasn’t very forthcoming about her own background. Regardless, one conversation led to the next, and he soon found himself riding the elevator up to her apartment.
“I have to admit,” he said as she unlocked the door and the two of them entered, “this isn’t something I do all the time.”
“Really, mister rock star? Not even with groupies?”
“They usually throw themselves at the singer and guitarists.”
“Leaving you and the bass player all by your lonesome?”
“Heh, usually. But not always. Matt has a steady girlfriend.”
“Not you?”
“No… Not anymore.”
“Her loss. I like drummers. They always have the best… rhythm.”
Daniel’s heartbeat tripled as Lili pulled him in for a kiss. The taste of her lipstick and the scent of her perfume overwhelmed him, and he offered no resistance as she led him to the living room; he wasn’t even sure he could, given her remarkable grip on his wrist. She pushed him down onto the couch, and in a flash of motion her dress was gone. She stood in front of him in only her lingerie, dimly lit by the streetlights outside like a noir femme fatale.
“Right here?” asked an astonished Daniel as she mounted his lap.
“It’s as good a spot as any.” She kissed him again. She started to unbutton his shirt, when suddenly there was a click as the apartment door unlocked and opened again. A man walked in, dressed in business-casual wear, a tired look on his face.
“Hey babe.” The man’s voice was low, flat, and lethargic as he flicked on a light and took off his jacket.
Lili didn’t respond, too busy planting kisses on Daniel’s neck. Pleasant as the feeling should have been, he was too distracted, his gaze fixed on the newcomer. Daniel expected a death-glare, or even a look of embarrassment or defeat, anything at all to show what Lili’s apparent boyfriend thought of the situation. But there was nothing.
“Work was good.” The man loosened his tie.
“Great,” said Lili as she reached for Daniel’s belt.
“They’re having a little party for Hannah’s engagement. They were asking if you-”
“We’ll talk later!” Lili snapped, and Daniel saw a wicked gleam in her eye. “I’m busy.”
“Okay.” He flicked off the light and disappeared down the hallway.
“Now, where were we?” said Lili as she pawed Daniel’s groin.
“I, uh...” Daniel stammered. “I’m not sure this is a great idea.”
“Aw, what’s wrong? It’s not like we have an audience.”
“We kinda do, though. Are you sure he’s okay with this?”
“You didn’t hear him complain, did you?”
“No, but-”
“Babe,” the boyfriend’s voice called from down the hall. “Have you seen my-”
“I said I’m busy!” Lili shouted, her voice more ferocious than Daniel could have guessed her capable of.
“I know, but it’s important! I need it for work.”
Before her boyfriend was even done speaking, Lili sighed, and put a hand on Daniel’s chin. “Give me a sec, sweetie.” There again was that strange gleam in her eye. It made Daniel’s skin crawl, and he felt no small relief when she slid off of his lap and padded down the hallway. But a moment later, a loud crash came from the bedroom, and Daniel nearly jumped from his seat.
Now he knew something wasn’t right. His hand thrust into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Opening his contacts, a single swipe brought him to Dmitri’s name. He sent only one word.
‘Help.’
His phone buzzed with a reply a moment later.
‘Coming.’
Daniel put his phone away and nearly leapt from his skin when he saw Lili suddenly in front of him. He hadn’t heard her footsteps down the hall.
“Now that we’re done with the interruptions...” Lili licked her upper lip.
“Look, Lili, I’m sorry,” said Daniel, standing hastily from the couch. “I’ve had a great time with you, but I’m just not comfortable with this.”
“Come on baby, why get cold feet now? I really need this.”
“Then go get it from your boyfriend!”
“He’s useless in bed. It’s nice he lets me stay here, but my passions demand more than he can deliver.”
“I sorry, but I can’t help you with that, I’m still getting over my ex-”
“I don’t care about her!” Lili stepped forward and grabbed him by the wrist. “I always get what I want!” Even through his shirt, her nails bit his skin. Her teeth gleamed, even in the dim light. Had they always been that sharp?
“Let go of me!” Daniel pushed her away and made for the door, frantically unlocking it and throwing it open before Lili could retaliate. He bolted down the hallway and just about jumped down the stairs, bursting out the emergency exit and ignoring the alarm he set off in the process. He sprinted across the parking lot and into a nearby park, hoping he’d be easy to find in an open area.
Come on Dmitri, where are you?!
Daniel heard a rushing wind behind him, and before he could turn his head, something slammed into his back, throwing him to the ground. He lay in the grass, gasping for air as he felt something wet slide across the nape of his neck. He was then violently rolled over, and his heart leapt up to his throat when he found a stark-naked Lili pinning him to the ground. The pupils of her icy blue eyes had narrowed into cat-like slits, while two backward-curving horns had sprouted from her head, and though her form remained remarkably alluring, it was now shrouded by a pair of leathery wings.
“So,” she rasped, her voice having taken on a demonic undertone as she licked his neck again, “you want to do it outside like wild animals? I knew you had it in you!”
“Get off me!” Daniel shouted, but his struggle was in vain, Lili’s other-worldly strength having totally overtaken him.
“I told you, I always get what I-” Something whistled through the air as Lili taunted him, cutting her short. To Daniel’s bewilderment, an arrow pierced her forehead. She gasped ever-so-quietly, her body going rigid, then, a moment later, collapsed on top of him. He summoned just enough strength to push her off, and looked up at Dmitri approaching, crossbow in hand.
“Have I ever told you how good your timing is?”
Dmitri grinned in response, and reached out a hand, which Daniel accepted.
“You okay? Anything broken? Bleeding?”
“I don’t think so.” Daniel pulled up his sleeve to examine the nail marks on his arm, but luckily the skin hadn’t broken.
Dmitri then bent down to retrieve his arrow. Wrenching it free from Lili’s forehead, its silver broadhead left a wisp of sulphuric smoke in its wake.
“What the fuck was she? A vampire?”
“Succubus. A daughter of Lilith.”
“So I guess he was under a spell. Or something.”
Dmitri gave a curious look, and Daniel explained the oddly passive nature of Lili’s boyfriend.
“Hmm. Slaying her may or may not be enough to break the spell. We will have to watch this place for a while.”
“And if it isn’t enough? Can we do anything for him?”
“We will see.” Dmitri withdrew a snuff box from his satchel, sprinkling its powdered contents across Lili’s form. As the compound made contact, her flesh began to dissolve.
“What did you call that stuff again?”
“Alkahest. Not the true alkahest, mind you, but you see it serves a similar purpose. Now we must go.”
Daniel gave no argument, and promptly followed Dmitri back to his car. The vehicle sped away from the scene, and Daniel was quiet as they drove through the silent city streets.
“Forgive me for sounding judgemental,” said Dmitri after a while. “But it would be best to be more… discerning with women going forward.”
“Oh, fucking sure.” Daniel gestured with his phone. “Just let me edit my bio, ‘no demons’. Right next to, ‘no single mothers’.”
“You repeat yourself.” Dmitri smirked.
Daniel laughed, then sighed. “You’re probably right.” He opened his phone, and hastily deleted the dating app that had got him into this mess in the first place. Then he went to his contacts, scrolled until he found Morgan’s name, and after a moment’s hesitation, hit the call button.