Chapter 5:
Lancelin’s P.O.V
I sprang out of my seat as soon as the elevator doors shut behind Ms. Johnson and headed for the trash can. Frowning, I debated what to do as I looked at the discarded Starbuck’s cup and my hands. The entire building was regularly cleaned and disinfected by the clean-up crew early every morning, before office hours started but I was still uncomfortable picking up the cup with my bare hands.
Ultimately, my curiosity got the best of me and I pulled out a glove from one of the drawers of a cupboard and fetched out the cup. Opening the lib, I found the thick milky beverage staring back at me mockingly as the scent of vanilla tickled my nostrils. So I shut the lid back on the cup and discarded it back into the trash can, along with my used glove.
If there was one thing I hated most in this world, it was being proven wrong. And thanks to Ms. Johnson, I had just been proven wrong and on top of that, she had just saved me a lot of research time and dug out some top secrets from the Ace Media archives. I had a feeling that Acelin had played a big role in this whole situation, but I wasn’t about to go accusing him or even asking him questions because the more I let him into my life, the more controlling he got.
I walked over to my desk and picked up my cell phone. I had a feeling Ms. Johnson had gone to use the restroom downstairs, not knowing that there was a separate women’s restroom on this floor itself, reserved for my guests as well as Secretaries. The receptionist downstairs answered almost immediately.
“Tanya, provide Ms. Johnson with a layout of the building and also hand her the files that were left by the previous secretary. Tell her I’ll need them all on my table by tonight.”
“Yes, Sir.” Tanya’s response was curt as I hung up the call and went to stare out the window at the busy New York streets below.
The hustle and bustle of the humans, the cars that drove by, barely keeping up with the speed limit…it all served as a reminder that human lives were too short compared with the immortals. Time was precious as life ticked away with every passing second while I stood watching over their fleeting luminescence.
What also had me disturbed was the way that I had reacted to Sanaya Johnson. I’d lived for over five centuries and yet, no one has ever evoked such emotions inside me, not even the woman who had been my first lover. I did not play games with my human secretaries, I didn’t want to prove them wrong or watch them squirm. Yet, the minute I had laid eyes on Sanaya, my good sense seemed to have deserted me.
I had hated seeing the impassive look on her face as she asked me all sorts of questions about my meals. I had hated the polite smiles she had given me even when I had tested her patience. And most of all, I had hated how much I had desired her even when I had several top models and actresses at my disposal.
Love was not a common concept in the world of the Incubi. Yes, there were several in the immortal world that loved true and loved forever. The vampires had couples that lasted millennia. The Lycans and the Were’s mated for life. The Aqua’s and the Mystic were a mystery to almost everyone in the immortal world and they were so secretive a bunch that only a few immortals knew about their powers and their homes, let alone their mating rituals. And the Incubi…we are physical creatures.
Some of us develop a connection with the people we feed from, but most of us just treat the humans as feeds, as nutrition. Since the Incubi are a lot less in numbers than the humans, there is sufficient feed available for every one of us.
Attachments would lead to commitments. Commitment between an Incubus and a human would always result in heartbreak. Because there was only so many times that an Incubi could feed from a human without draining so much of their life force that they become prone to major illnesses. Humans needed faithfulness to validate a relationship, physical relationship was only limited to one partner at a time, but Incubi did not live according to that rule.
We were physical creatures. Sex and pleasure were so intertwined with our life that it was difficult to think about my life without it. Which is why I mostly associated with women who were looking for a fun time only and they knew that this relationship was purely physical and would never take any other turn. But Sanaya was different. She was the kind of woman that a man thought of when he wanted to settle down. The kind of woman who you dreamed of having rug rats with.
So, when I saw her coming back into my office with a bunch of files in her hand, I had to remind myself that she was just another human, just another secretary…just another Scribt. Five years in ReefWood, that was all the time she will have. For a human, five years might be a long time, but for me, these five years will pass by in a blink of an eye and then, she’ll be out of my office and out of my life for good.
There was no need getting frustrated over a little human woman, no matter how much my body desired her.
“Ms. Johnson,” I called out to her as I rolled down the sleeves of my shirt and pulled on my jacket. “Dial Martin and tell him to prepare the car.”
“Yes, Sir.” Sanaya gave me a small bow and picked up the receiver of the phone on her table.
“And tell him to inform the security at Ms. Durev’s house that I’ll be paying her a visit.” I added as I buttoned up the jacket and checked my reflection.
“Would you like me to give her a call personally, Sir?” Sanaya asked; no tremors in her voice.
“No.” I told her curtly. “I’ll call her once I’m in my car.”
With that, I turned and headed towards the elevator. The doors shut to Sanaya bowing low with a polite smile on her face.
“Have a good day, Sir.”
I didn’t know why that bothered me more that it should have.
Chapter 6:Sanaya’s P.O.V“Thank you for your co-operation.”I slid the envelop across the table at the woman sitting opposite me. Her glossy black hair was pulled back in a high ponytail and her usual bright makeup was replaced with something natural, to make her blend in the crowd rather than stand out on a TV screen. Jaclyn Stonewater was easily one of the most recognizable faces on TV as one of the top fifteen Hollywood news reporters. She was also considered a style icon by many. But the woman who sat opposite from me today was dressed in grey sweatpants and a black hoodie. Her outfit and makeup a camouflage to blend into the crowd.“You don’t have to pay me,” the senior reporter pushed the envelope back in my direction. “Consider this a favor for Mr. Eustein. I’d like to redeem my price another way.”I eyed the woman and realized that she had always had an
Chapter 7:Lancelin’s P.O.V“A red lipstick from my luxury line deluxe edition?” Amber Rose Verborg, the CEO of one of the famous luxury make-up brands in the UA, Esteem Amber, a part-time supermodel and a Succubus, a female Incubus, raised a perfectly arched eyebrow at me from the opposite side of the table.“Is there a problem?” I asked her, trying to give away anything that would raise unwanted interests in my personal life.“Absolutely not.” Amber Rose smiled widely and tilted her head to the side making her auburn curls brush her exposed shoulders. “However, I will need specifics.”I was currently at the La Donna Deluxe Hotel in Queens, New York, on a dinner date discussing business and family matters. To outsiders, it may look like we were on date but we weren’t actually. Amber Rose was my cousin, my maternal uncle’s daughter and
Chapter 8:Sanaya’s P.O.V“I’m home!” I called out as I shut the front door behind me.“Maa?” I asked out loud when I didn’t hear her reply. “Maa, where are you?”Hanging my keys in the key holder beside the door, I took off my shoes and entered the house. The bright neon green sticky note stuck to the fridge was like a huge pop-up sign that I already knew the contents of, but I ripped it off the fridge and read it anyway.Gone to Mrs. Sharma’s for Maata Ki Chowki. Don’t wait up for me. P.S- Mrs. Sharma’s son, Rahul, he’s also going to be there. I heard he’s a civil engineer. I’ll save you a seat.I sighed and threw the note away in the trash can. Only my mom would make a post script longer than the actual message and advertise her friend’s ‘talented son’ all at once. Her
Chapter 9:Sanaya’s P.O.VMy breath was a bit unsteady as I walked into ReefWood HQ the next morning. I couldn’t tell if it was because I was barely skimming the eight o’ clock mark this morning or because of that blasted dream last night, but my hands were a bit shaky as I pressed the elevator buttons to the sixteenth floor and I was pretty sure that the entire building could hear my heart beat.Incubi could invade dreams. Fuck! How could I have forgotten one of the most crucial powers an Incubus has? It was the first thing that Acelin had warned me about when I was first promoted to the position of a Scribt.“Not all Incubi possess this power,” Acelin said to me, his bright crystalline blue eyes clear as the ocean. “But some of us do and it can be very dangerous for the human. Mostly all high ranking Incubi can invade dreams.”“I understand, Sir.”
Chapter 10:Sanaya’s P.O.V“Sanaya! Hold up!”I paused on my way to the exit and looked back to find Tanya running towards me in her disastrous high heels. I half expected her to slip on the polished marble floor and break a leg or two, but the woman managed to gracefully come to a stop in front of me without breaking a sweat.“Good! I was able to catch you just in time.” She panted with a hand on her chest. “Are you done for the day? Do you wanna hang out?”“Hang out? Where?” I asked her and noticed three other people had come to a stop a few feet away from us.“The Vixen.” Tanya said with a huge smile and turned back and motioned the others to come join us. I immediately recognized Martin from the group. He wasn’t wearing his chauffer’s uniform this evening and instead had a light blue shirt on that complemented his icy blue eyes
Chapter 11:Sanaya’s P.O.V“Yes, she knows, Soph…TinTin.” Martin spoke from the bar. “She’s the Sire’s Scribt.”Everyone seemed to visibly relax and breathe a sigh of relief.“What the others meant by the Supernatural club was that we all know that our CEO is the future Incubus King and we are a part of the supernatural world as well.” Martin explained to me as he came to stand beside me and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. “Well…they are at least. You and I are the only humans.”“Technically, you’re not really human.” Tanya tilted her whiskey glass at Martin before taking a sip.“Technically, you just scared Sanaya to death.” Martin said in a mocking voice, imitating the way Tanya had spoken. Tanya just stuck her tongue out at him.“So…what’s exactly going on in her
Chapter 12:Sanaya’s P.O.V“Sir?” I knocked on the door twice with my knuckles and entered Lancelin’s office only after getting a response from him.“Sir,” I held out the planner for him to take. “The Internal Affairs Department has submitted the result of the polls that the bars recently conducted. They have also placed in several suggestions that the employee’s had made and are now waiting for your approval.”Lancelin took the planner off my hand without even glancing away from the file he was reading and started to scroll through the pages immediately.“Tangshineun nu-guwah yakso-geul jabasseoyo?” (With whom did you make an appointment?) Lancelin asked as he was still scrolling through the planner.“Mswa hamkke. Stonewellui jinsil-ibnida.” (With Ms. Ruth from Stonewell, Sir.) Was my immediate response.Wait. A. Minute.
Chapter 13:Sanaya’s P.O.VLancelin Eustein, the CEO of ReefWood Inc. and the future King of all Incubi in the planet…had a sweet tooth.His basket was filled with Twix bars, Oreos, M&M’s, KitKats and Reese’s as we neared the cash register. I tried to hold in my laugh when laugh when Lancelin peeked into my cart to see what I’d gotten and saw his disappointed frown when he found only cheeses, some Doritos and some hot pockets. There were also some spice roasted hazelnuts and pistachios thrown into the mix, as well as a pack of dried cranberries. They would all pair very well with some Barbera or some Pinot.“I think you forgot the Hershey’s and Snickers, Sir. Should I go grab them for you?” I asked with the most innocent voice I could master.“Not another word, Ms. Johnson. Not another word.” He glared at me from the corner of his eyes.I could