Betting On His Demon (7 page)

Olivier laughed.  “The human win?  That’s not possible, so why bother asking?”

“His contract, it will convert to me.”

“And here I expected you to say his freedom,” Olivier said slowly, his nose wrinkling.  “Yet you ask for control over the human.  My, cousin, there is a dark side to you after all.” 

Carr nodded.  “I only want it to protect him from any other demon.  If I have his contract, no one else can control him.  I won’t make him my slave.”

“You always were too much of a goodie two-shoes, Carreau.  I really don’t know what your problem is.”

“Do we have a deal?” Carr asked, ignoring the bait his cousin always tried to leave him.

Olivier lifted a hand to Carr’s proffered one.

Before Carr shook it, he added a caveat.  “We do need to agree on ground rules for this event.”

“Ground rules?  More of your precious rules, which you can’t follow yourself?” Olivier sighed.  “What is it you want, Carr?”

“No mind reading of the human while he’s playing,” Carr said firmly.

Olivier frowned and crossed his arms over his chest.  “You wound me, cousin.  As if I would cheat while playing the human.”

Carr tilted his head and stared at Olivier.

“Fine.  I might have cheated, but only to make it more interesting.”

Carr shook his head.  His cousin was mad, and a warmonger, but for some reason, Carr enjoyed their time together.  “You will play the game fair and square.  You won’t cheat in any way.”

Olivier sighed.  “Fine.  Fair and square.  I’ll still win.”

Carr lifted his hand.  Olivier shook it firmly.  Carr teleported back to his room and woke Julian.  “Come, you have the game of your life to play.”

Julian rubbed at the sleep in his eyes.  “What?”

“You’re playing Olivier for your freedom.  There’s no time to lose.”

Carr teleported them back, fully clothing Julian before returning.

Olivier immediately began divvying up the cards, never speaking to Julian or Carr.  As calm as Olivier attempted to act, anger simmered under the surface. 

Once Julian had his hand, Carr looked over his shoulder and pointed at certain cards.

“Carreau, just what are you doing?”

Carr smiled.  “Helping Julian.”

“That’s cheating.  The human must forfeit.  I win,” Olivier said much too happily.

“Wait!”  Carr smiled, giving his cousin one of the smirking glances he’d always been on the receiving end of.  “The ground rules were for
you
to not cheat.  I never said I wouldn’t.  And you also didn’t explicitly say I couldn’t help Julian, either.  So … we play.”

Olivier’s mouth popped open for a half a second before he recaptured his cool demeanor and settled back into his chair.  “Well played, cousin.  I didn’t think you had it in you.”

Carr tried to hide his laugh.  Olivier’s words had been spat out between clenched teeth.  It made Carr happy to ruffle his cousin’s feathers.  That happened far too infrequently, but Carr also needed to be careful.  Olivier was a wily creature, without a doubt.

They played another hand, the pot rising.  Julian was an adept player, winning a few hands on his own.  When the human’s pot had grown large, he became a little more comfortable and relaxed, which wasn’t a good thing.  Ego brought down many a man. 

Julian pushed half his pot into the center of the table.  “I raise … a million.”

Olivier’s eyebrows rose as he looked over the pot and then his cards.  “I call, human.”

Olivier placed his cards on the table and Carr sucked in a breath.  A royal flush.  The hand was too good, and then something hit Carr.  Julian had four of a kind.  Four kings.

“You’ve cheated, Olivier,” Carr said.  “We win.”

Olivier sat up in his chair and leaned across the table, piling the chips closer to him.  “I had a rule to break, cousin.  I believe I still have one left since all I can smell on the human is you.”

Carr gritted his teeth.  He glanced at Julian’s meager pile.  They weren’t completely out of the game.  They’d have to be careful and play their hands carefully. 

“Carr?” Julian whispered, fear in his voice.

“We’re not beat yet.  Keep playing the best you can.  I’ll be right back.”

“Right ba—”

Carr disappeared, knowing he still had a couple of aces in his back pocket.  He just hoped he could maneuver everything into place in time.

****

Julian felt the bottom drop out from under him.  Carr had abandoned him in his greatest time of need.  If he didn’t win this game, he was in trouble.  There would more than likely be no more chances for him to wiggle out from Olivier’s thumb.

“No, human, you won’t.  Let’s play, shall we?”

Olivier dealt the cards before leaning back in his seat to peruse his hand.  A smile came to the demon’s lips, and it made the sense of impending doom hit Julian twice as hard.  It was over.  He’d lost.  And Carr knew it, which is why he’d run.

Long minutes passed as they made their wagers and collected new cards.  Finally, Olivier made a bet, raising the pot to the limits of what Julian had.  Backed into a corner, Julian had no choice but to put up or shut up.  He pushed the last bits of his once massive mountain of chips into the center of the table before dropping his cards on the table.

Olivier chuckled and laid his cards down.  Another royal flush—the demon had apparently cheated again.  All was lost.  Julian looked over his shoulder.  Carr was nowhere to be found.  Lost and alone.  Had he really expected more?

“Carreau!” the scream bellowed from Olivier’s lips.  The cry excruciatingly loud, Julian lifted his hands to his ears and they still felt as if they’d ruptured.  Pain sliced through his head as he rested his head on the table.  He felt blood dripping from his nose as he thought his head would implode.

Was this how the end came?

****

Carr came as soon as he heard the violent bellow.  He materialized into the room and saw Julian covering his ears.  Appearing to be in pain, the human laid against the felt limply.  No matter, he’d soon be fine, once Carr played his last hand.

“I’ve won, cousin.  Now you must relinquish the underworld to me.”

Carr nodded.  “So it seems.  How does it feel after such a long tournament to have finally found success?”

Olivier frowned, appearing unsure.  “To be honest, it feels wonderful, Carreau.  It truly has been a challenge, hasn’t it?  But don’t worry, there will be a new place for you within my kingdom.”

“How charitable of you, cousin.”  Carr walked over to Julian and brushed a gentle hand over his head.  “I’ll be taking Julian now.  Your contract is voided.”

“Voided?  I won, Carr.  Take your hands off him.”

Carr flung a copy of the contract on the center of the table.  “You promised him he’d win the next nine tournaments.  You won, he lost.  Therefore, you reneged on his contract, making it void.”

Olivier sputtered.  “Well, this wasn’t truly a tournament, not what he’d asked to win at all.”

“But when I just asked you how you felt to win our tournament, you conceded it felt good.  It acknowledged it was a tournament.  And in that answer, you destroyed the contract.”

The paper burst into flames, reducing to ash in a matter of seconds.

Olivier scowled a moment before his face once again became a placid mask.  “A technicality, well played, cousin.  I have to say you’ve been much shrewder since finding your mate.  I should’ve known you’d play dirty when it came to him.  But it matters little.  Take the human.  I will still rule the underworld.”

“I don’t think so …” a deep voice rattled on from across the room.  A figure moved out of the darker fringes of the room and walked toward Olivier.

Olivier’s eyes narrowed as he watched the figure.  Once he realized who it was, his eyes grew large.  He spun to look at Carr.  “What have you done?”

“Olivier!  I am returned.  Why don’t you come give your father a kiss?”

Carr smiled at the male and bent at the waist to bow to the demon.  “Amon.  It is so good to see you.”

“Nephew, I was so happy you came to me for help.” Amon nodded at Carr.  He then spun to look at Olivier.  “I needed to know my son reached far above himself and needed to be put back in place.”

“Father!”

“The war you wage amounts to end of days and that time is not upon us yet.  You will cede your power to me.  Now.  Before I must do something I don’t wish to.”  Amon began to pool power into his palms, the blue light reflecting off the walls and illuminating the room.

“This must be done, Father.  We either allow war or the horde will rise.”

“No, not yet.  Kneel, Olivier.”

Olivier stood scowling at his father.  “Never!”

“I wished it didn’t have to be this way,” Amon said with a sigh.  He shot the power out and struck Olivier in the chest.  One moment Olivier was there, and another, he was gone. 

Carr watched Amon carefully, wondering what would happen next.  He’d opened a potential can of worms in awakening the king, but it had felt like the right place to turn.  “Where is he?”

“Banished in Akasha.  That should keep him bound well enough.”  Amon turned to leave.

“And what happens now?” Carr asked carefully.

Amon twisted to look at Carr.  “I trust I can give leadership of this realm back to you now that he’s taken care of?”

Carr released a breath.  “Yes, Your Highness.”

Amon nodded and walked away from Carr.

Carr felt a rippling of power come over him.  His authority over the realm was returned.  Amon disappeared, and the room was quiet.  Carr rushed to Julian, who’d kept his head down through the entire situation.  The human was apparently hurt in some way.  He lifted the man into his arms and teleported back to his rooms, fear still gripping his chest.

****

Julian opened his eyes, unsure of where he was.  The last time he’d been cognizant, he’d been in pain from Olivier’s howl.  He’d felt his head explode, his ears bleeding.  Now, he was in a bed.

Carr’s bed.

Julian lifted a hand to his nose and felt no blood.  How did he get here?  What had happened?  Had the war begun?

There was no sign of Carr, so Julian carefully rose from the bed and put two wobbly feet on the thickly carpeted floor.  He stood, his knees shaking slightly before he got control of himself.  He walked to the bathroom and peered inside.  No Carr.  He then opened another door to find a closet full of the same white suits Carr had worn since Julian had met him.  There was only one other door, and he crossed the bedroom to reach it.

Seconds before he grasped the knob, the door flung open.  Carr stood in the doorway, naked and large.  His thick cock stood out proudly from his pelvis, and his eyes and horns were richly black. 

Julian felt lust rush through him at the sight, but he had questions.  If the world was at war, how could they play?

“Carr?  Carr?  What’s happened?”

Carr pushed into the room and shut the door behind him.  “Mate, get in bed.”

The guttural noises Julian heard weren’t what he was used to hearing.  Fear hit him for a moment as he backed away slightly.  “Carr?”

Carr frowned.  “Mate, claim, now.”

This wasn’t his demon.  This was some beastly male standing in his place.

Carr inched closer and grasped the side of Julian’s head and pulled him nearer.  “Can’t fight need.  Must have you.”

Julian was about to argue again but was halted by a single act.  Carr spread his thumb across Julian’s lower lip and smiled.  Was his Carreau in there somewhere?  “Won’t hurt.  Need.”

Julian nodded and leaned in to kiss Carr’s lips.  Even though he’d never seen his demon in such a state, there was something calling out to him that told him Carr needed this.  Julian backed onto the bed and climbed in the middle.  “Come to me, demon.”

Carr shivered as he stood at the foot.  “Can’t be gentle.”

“Lube.”

Carr snapped his shaking fingers, and a bottle appeared on the bed beside Julian.  Julian lifted the lube and smeared some on his ass before leaning forward to grasp Carr’s cock and drag the demon into bed.  Loading up his palm, he wrapped his fist around as much of the girth as he could and coated Carr’s shaft with the lubricant.  Once done, Julian rubbed his hands up Carr’s massive chest.  “Do your worst, demon.”

Carr pushed him onto his back and lifted his legs into the air, driving into Julian in one thick, brutal thrust.  Julian cried out, the pain coursing through his body before the sensation ebbed to one of pleasure.  Sweat beaded on the demon’s brow, his body shaking, as it appeared he waited for Julian to relax after the arduous entry.

Julian moved against Carr, silently letting the male know it was okay to continue.  Carr understood and began to pump his dick deep into Julian’s body, setting a punishing pace.  Julian cried out, loving each one of the rough thrusts of Carr’s body inside him.  He closed his eyes, reveling in the sensations as he was split in two by his massive demon.