Succubus Dreams Page 0,50

"How do you stay in business?"

"Beats me. I don't suppose you're here to give me the best night of my life? You missed your El Gaucho chance, though."

"I'm here because I had another dream."

"You're using me, succubus." He sighed and sat down at the chintzy table. "Okay. Give it to me."

Settling down across from him, I recapped the latest dream events.

"Not really much in the way of new developments," he pointed out afterward. "You got, like, thirty more seconds of plot."

"Does it mean anything?"

"Hell if I know."

I narrowed my eyes. "You are the worst dream interpreter ever."

"Nah." He rested his chin in his hand, elbow propped on the table. His expression was typically lazy. "I'm a very good interpreter. There's nothing to interpret in your dream, though, unless it's just your subconscious lamenting your infertility. Which is likely. It also suggests you have bad taste in music. Is 'Sweet Home Alabama' really playing each time?"

Now I sighed.

"The dreams clearly aren't prophetic either since we know it's impossible for you to have a kid." He drummed his fingers on the table, face thoughtful. "You sure you might not adopt or something?"

"She was mine," I said firmly. "My own flesh and blood. I could feel it."

"Okay. Far be it from me to argue delusional maternal instincts. But like I said, it doesn't really matter. The content, I mean. What matters here, I guess, is the energy loss."

I could have hugged him. "Finally, someone fucking thinks that's important."

"It's a pattern now. Can't really blame it on anomaly anymore."

"So what's it mean?"

"You sure you want the opinion of the worst dream interpreter ever?"

"Good grief! Get on with it."

"If you were human, I'd say without a doubt that you were being preyed on."

I flinched. "What? What do you mean?"

He reached across the table and caught my hand, flipping it over absentmindedly while he thought. I was too caught on the word preyed to care about him touching me. Little Kayla's words popped into my head.

They're monsters. They swoop in the air and go in people's dreams.

"You and I both know there are plenty of supernatural beings walking the world. Some walk the dreamworld and don't really have humans' best intentions at heart. Not that you do either. And honestly, some aren't too different from you. They crave human life and energy, and they can suck it out of dreams."

"But they can't do that to me?"

"Mmm." He let go of my hand. "I don't see how. You don't make your own energy. You steal it too. But who knows?"

I shivered. The idea of some creature - some parasitic creature - latching on and sucking out my life made me ill. I was fully aware of the hypocrisy, however, seeing as I did the exact same thing all the time.

"So...what kind of creature might be capable of doing that?"

"Dunno. Not my specialty."

"But you're a dream expert! Shouldn't you know about dream...creatures?"

"Supernatural creatures are Erik's thing, not mine. You should ask him."

"You're the worst dream interpreter ever."

"So I hear." His earlier seriousness flitted away. "So...are we going to have sex now?"

I stood up. "No! Of course not."

Dante threw his hands up. "What more do you want? I actually gave you useful information this time. And it's not like you couldn't use the fix - small or no."

"It's more than that," I said. Suddenly, I hesitated. "I...I know you now."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"If you were some anonymous guy, there might be a chance. But now you're like a..." Friend wasn't quite the word I was looking for. "...an acquaintance."

He appeared genuinely baffled for once. It was almost amusing. "I'm really not following this, succubus."

"I've got a boyfriend, remember? When I have anonymous, casual sex, it's not really cheating. But if I do it with someone..."

"...you like?" Was it my imagination, or was there something hopeful in his eyes when he asked that?

"No, I don't think I like you. But I don't exactly dislike you either. The point is, you aren't anonymous. It would be cheating."

He stared at me for several moments, and whatever glimmer of hope I thought I'd seen was definitely gone. "No wonder succubi are so good at passing as human women. You've certainly got the head games and complete lack of rationality down."

"I've got to go."

"You always have to go. Where to now? Some anonymous guy?"

I rose. "No, I'm going to find Erik and see if he can actually give me useful information."

"I did give you useful information!"

"Debatable."

"Well, let me lock up, and we'll see