Succubus Dreams Page 0,72

the other side of the living room, the little girl sat on the floor beside an end table with sharp corners, a small hand pressed to her forehead. Tears streamed down her checks as she wailed.

In a flash, my dream-self was on her knees and had wrapped the little girl up in a tight embrace. I could feel what the other Georgina felt, and I nearly wept as well over the feel of that soft, warm body in my arms. My dream-self rocked the girl, murmuring soothing, nonsensical words as she brushed her lips against the silken hair. Eventually, the girl's sobs stopped, and she rested her head against my dream-self's chest, content to simply be loved and rocked.

I opened my eyes and stared at Seth's plain white ceiling. He lay beside me, curled up near my body and still smelling like the massage oil. Even awake, the dream's images were still strong and so real. I knew exactly how my daughter's hair had felt, the way she smelled, the rhythm of her heart. My own heart pined so much for her that I could almost ignore the fact that last night's energy was now gone.

This was turning into a real problem.

I sat up, gently pushing Seth off of me. But as I tried to figure out what to do about this latest dream, a strange thought kept pressing into the back of my head.

Erik. I couldn't stop thinking about Erik. It was nothing in particular, either. No specific problem. But, whenever I tried to think about something else - my job, the energy loss, Seth - it was Erik's face that appeared in my head. I didn't understand it, but it worried me.

Seth's arms reached for me as I slipped out of bed, but I skillfully avoided them. Grabbing my cell phone out of my purse, I headed off toward the living room. No one answered when I dialed Arcana, Ltd. It was almost ten...usually he was open by then. I called information in search of Erik's home number, but it appeared to be unlisted.

A sense of dread was building in me. Desperate, I dialed Dante's store.

"Dante, I think something's happened to Erik, but I don't have his home number and - "

"Whoa, whoa, succubus. Slow down. Start from the beginning."

Backing up, I explained how I'd dreamed again and woken up obsessed with Erik.

"Maybe it's nothing, but after the drowning thing...I don't know. Do you have his home number?"

"Yeah," Dante said after several moments. "I do. I'll...I'll check on him for you and give you a call back."

"Thanks, Dante. I mean it."

I disconnected as a sleepy Seth stepped out of the bedroom. "Who's Dante? Was that a collect call to the Inferno?"

"They won't accept the charges," I murmured, still troubled. Seth's face turned serious.

"What's wrong?"

I hesitated, not because I was afraid to tell him about Dante but because I didn't know if I wanted him caught up in all of this.

"It involves immortal intrigue," I warned. "And the higher workings of the universe."

"I live for those things," he said wryly, settling into an armchair. "Tell me."

So, I did. He knew about my first energy loss but not the rest. I didn't tell him about the content of the dreams, merely that they drained me of energy. I also explained about the self-fulfilling prophecies and how I'd woken up damp one morning and thinking about Erik today. When I finished, I stared at the cell phone accusingly.

"Damn it. Why isn't he calling?"

"Why do you always tell me this at the last minute?" asked Seth. "It's been giving you trouble for a while. I thought it had been a one-time thing."

"I didn't want to bother you. And I know how funny you are about immortal stuff."

"Things that affect you - that may be harming you - don't bother me. I mean, well, they do, but that's not the point. This all goes back to commun - "

The phone rang.

"Dante?" I asked eagerly. I hadn't even bothered to check the number.

But it was him. His voice sounded grim.

"You need to come over here. To Erik's."

"The store?"

"No, his house. It's close to my place here."

"What's going on?"

"Just come over."

Dante rattled off an address and directions. With quick shape-shifting, I was dressed and ready to bolt out the door in an instant. Seth told me to wait, and in less than a minute - not as good as me, though still good - he was ready too.

I'd never thought much about Erik having a