Home for Horny Monsters - Book 4

Samhain

Mike sat with Naia on the edge of the fountain, their arms wrapped around each other. He took in her scent, which was reminiscent of rain and the forest floor. When she finally released him, she had a scowl fixed on her face.

"You had better come back alive," she told him. "Or I will be very cross with you."

"Don't worry. I'm going to be very careful. If things start to go south before I get there, I'll come back and try again next year." Truthfully, he hoped that wasn't the case. How many years had Cecilia been stuck in the faerie realm already? Every morning leading up to today had filled him with the anxiety of knowing that an hour to him could be months to her. Was she still okay? Would she be happy to see him?

He had started having dreams about her when Lily wasn't inside his head. Cecilia would try to warn him away, and he would chase her until his dream filled with mist and he became lost. No amount of Dreamscape trickery allowed him to part the veil and find her, which made him wonder if it was a variation on the anxiety dreams.

When he stood, he looked up at the roof. Though he didn't see her, he could feel Kisa's presence up there, almost like an itch that couldn't be scratched. Ever since the incident at the centaur camp, he could feel her no matter where she was, and she claimed a similar experience. Luckily, the centaurs had provided her with some herbal tea which acted as birth control. He had been very happy to see her drink it down without any hesitation.

Lily had suggested that Kisa get spayed, which prompted Kisa to try and take a chunk out of the succubus.

Ratu had examined both Mike and Kisa and said that their magic was now linked in a similar manner to the way a witch would bond with a familiar, but nobody knew what that now meant for the two of them. She also announced that it was likely that Kisa would go into heat on every full moon from now on, unless she sequestered herself away from the sight of it. Kisa's protest at this announcement was mellow by her standards, and he wondered if perhaps she didn't mind. She had definitely softened in her approach to him, and he had spotted her lurking around more often.

The others bade him farewell as he picked up the backpack he had prepared for this trip. When he made it down the hill to the gate, Beth was waiting to see him off.

"Good luck," she told him. "Sorry I couldn't find out more about the geas, or your contract with the queen."

He smiled. "Learning about Samhain was more than enough. I'm leaving you in charge. Make sure Tink brushes her teeth, and no parties. It is Halloween, after all."

She laughed. "Do you suppose we should let her go trick or treating? She could pass for a kid in a costume."

"If you can get her to actually wear underwear, then maybe." He looked up the hill at Tink, who was busy with a giant spool of electrical cable. She was almost done rewiring the house, but the large industrial spool of wire she had ordered by accident had been way more than she needed. She was using it as a spare table now, and he couldn't help noticing that she kept it pretty far from the edge of the roof. "But I did see the giant bag of candy hidden in the back of the pantry. I assume you bought it?"

Beth smiled. "Like you said, It is Halloween. I don't expect anyone to come to the door, but you never know. When I was a kid, this neighborhood always had the best candy, and some years, a few kids would be brave enough to ring the bell. Maybe this year, someone will answer."

Mike nodded, wondering if Beth would wear a costume. Would it be something cute? Maybe something simple, like cat ears and a tail? Would that piss Kisa off?

"Guess I'm headed out." He didn't know whether to hug her or shake her hand, and the moment was quickly becoming awkward. She seemed so distant recently, and that insecure part of him kept crying out that she saw him as a failure.