ℤ𝕒𝕟𝕖
I pull up outside of Pike's with Ava in the passenger seat. Kieran was supposed to meet us outside but, as usual, he's not ready on time.
"I'll give him a call," I say to Ava. She nods.
The call rings a few times before going to voicemail. I guess I should've expected that.
"Alright, I'm gonna go get him," I say.
Ava looks great in her costume and I'm second-guessing why I encouraged Kami to invite Kieran to the party.
I give her a quick kiss and jump out of the car.
It must not be too busy as there's no one inside, but it's also a bit early for their usual patrons.
"Kieran!" I call. "We're here to pick you up for Kami's Halloween do. Get your arse out here!"
I wait but I don't get a response.
Damn it, Kieran.
A few shuffling sounds echo from the back kitchen area, so I walk back through the 'Employees Only' door.
As I turn the corner I see Kieran with some woman's legs wrapped around him and his pants around his ankles. The woman is busty with wide hips and shoulder-length brown hair. I see a light white smoke passing from her mouth into his.
"Bloody hell, mate!" I shout, covering my eyes.
"Oh shit!" Kieran says as his date yelps.
I do my best to look at the floor.
"Oh my god!" the woman shouts as they both scramble to re-clothe themselves. Her voice seems somewhat familiar but I can't place it.
"This is... I know this looks bad... Oh my god I'm so embarrassed... Please don't tell Ava about this," the voice says.
I look up at the woman again and recognize a familiar face. It's Shayna—Jen's girlfriend.
Bloody hell.
*****
"Come on Z-Man," Kieran whines as we make our way out into the main bar.
"Jen's girlfriend??" I ask. "Really??"
"Hey, she's a big girl who can make her own decisions."
I'm not ready to weigh the implications of what I just saw between Kieran and Shayna, let alone whether or not I should tell Ava.
"You know what... no... we're not talking about this right now," I say.
"Great. Cool," Kieran says. "Not talking is good."
I hear him shuffling behind me.
"What are you doing?" I ask as I turn around to see him taking off his shirt.
"I'm changing into my costume," he says.
He's wearing bright red suit pants and swings a matching blazer on over his shoulders.
"No shirt?" I ask, immediately wondering why I've bothered. It's Kieran I'm talking to.
"If you've got it, flaunt it," he says with a smirk.
"What are you supposed to be anyway?" I ask.
"One sec," he says. Two horns emerge atop his head.
His real horns are black and curve around his head, but these are red and pointed. I guess he's taking the literal approach tonight.
"Really?" I ask.
"Get it? I'm a demon!" he says with a smirk.
I roll my eyes and gesture to him to move along.
"You're no fun!" he says. "What are you, then? English guy with a stick up his ass?"
I'm currently wearing only part of my costume: a white T-shirt and jeans with the cuffs rolled up over short black boots.
"Well, I figured I'd finish getting ready once we get there. I had a feeling if I didn't leave early some dickhead was going to make us late."
"Awww, you and your pet names are so sweet," he says with a cheeky grin.
We walk over to the driver's side of my Challenger and I let Kieran in the back. Ava is already seated in the passenger seat in her blue-green toga costume.
"Hey Ava," Kieran says. "You're looking... whatever kind of word I can say that won't sic your boyfriend on me."
"Try no words," I say as I push my chair back hard into his knees.
"Hey Kieran," she says. "So you're a..."
"I'm a horny devil, of course," he says with a cheeky tone.
I resist the urge to turn around and smack him on the head.
We drive to Kami's place as Kieran jabbers on as if he completely bypassed the incident in the bar. But really... of course he did. Kieran has never given much thought to things like who he sleeps with and who that might affect.
We pull into the long driveway and it's already lined with cars and people. Kami's place is packed to the roof with purple and orange lights, with orange lanterns lining the entry path. A slew of half-naked men and women are gathered in the entryway.
I grab a tub of hair gel from my car's glove box and slick back my hair in the mirror.
"Is this part of the costume?" Kieran asks.
"Yep," I reply, not giving him the satisfaction of any clue because I know it's driving him mad.
"Dang, should I have gone sexier?" Ava asks. "Everyone looks like they're dressed for a costumed orgy."
"Not unless you wanna give our boy here an aneurism," Kieran says with a pat to my back.
"You're plenty sexy, love," I say, ignoring Kieran's comments.
She looks down at her breasts, grabs them, and does a little shimmy to adjust her cleavage.
Damn.
What were we talking about?
"You gonna be alright there or are we gonna need to get you a change of pants, Z?" Kieran says.
"Oh fuck off, Kieran," I say as I hop out of the car and step around to help Ava out.
I offer her my hand as she steps out in her high-heeled gladiator sandals as I see just how far the slit in this dress climbs up her thigh.
Bloody hell.
Before I get too distracted, I pop the trunk of my car and pull out my leather jacket and slip it on.
"Oh dang!" Kieran says. "Going for the Fifties greaser look, eh?"
Technically these are just my leftover clothes from that era, but I figure better the real thing than all the lame knock-offs I was encountering.
"Wow," Ava says with a bit of a stunned look.
With that reaction, maybe I ought to wear this every day.
"I do love me a bad boy," Kieran says with a wink.
I ignore his comment and take Ava's hand, leading her inside as Kieran follows behind. Several party guests have spilled out into the front patio. One woman is wearing a bondage-esque Catwoman outfit. The man next to her is wearing just a gold thong. A woman in a white bra and panties with angel wings is snogging a man in a Phantom of the Opera mask.
"Have I told you how much I love you for talking Kami into inviting me?" Kieran says as he takes in the scene.
"Don't make me regret it, mate," I say.
We walk through until we find Kami on her open back patio overlooking the pool. She's wearing a tight black leather leotard with a tiny red tutu, fishnet stockings, and black platform stilettos. Her face is painted like a sugar skull and she's wearing a crown of roses. She's stretched out on a long chair, flanked by two attractive men fawning over her. It's a bit on the nose, really.
"Zane! Ava! You made it!" she says, jumping up to give us both a hug. "Look at you, Z! I remember this outfit! Bringing back a classic, I see!"
"And Ava!" she says. "Talk about a classic! I love it!"
"Aww," Kieran says. "No love for your favorite demon?"
"Oh, is Azazel here?" she asks.
Kieran lets out a gasp and put a hand to his chest.
"You wound me!" he says jokingly.
She shoots him a glare but turns her attention back to Ava and me.
"You guys like the decorations? It took like, 12 people to set up all these lights," she says.
"Did you compel 12 people to do your party decorations?" I ask.
"You know, Z," she says, placing one hand on her hip. "There are other ways to get people to do things for you."
I squint my eyes skeptically.
"Money," she says. "I paid them."
"Oh," I say, feeling kind of bad that I assumed otherwise.
"You can make it up to me by grabbing me a drink," she says, gesturing to the poolside bar, complete with a shirtless male bartender with a black bow tie.
"Alright, love," I say, turning to Ava. "Would you like anything, gorgeous?"
"A cider please," she says.
"What about me?" Kieran asks. "Aren't I gorgeous?"
I throw a scowl in his direction.
"I only have two hands, mate," I say.
"Alright, I'll come with," he says. "Besides, there's a cheerleader over there that looks like she could use a little devil in her, if you know what I mean."
"I always know what you mean, mate." I say as we work our way toward the bar. "Always."
We get to the bar and the bartender pours our drinks as Kieran chats up the cheerleader.
I overhear the tail end of a conversation between two men a few feet away from me.
"...shoot my shot with that Greek goddess over there."
My attention instantly focuses on their conversation, and judging by Kieran's wide eyes and the slow smile appearing on his face, he heard it too.
I turn to see the man. He's about six feet tall and wearing an elaborate pirate costume. The man he's talking to is wearing a red smoking jacket and pajama pants.
"Niiiccee," his mate says, looking over at Ava. "Girls with colored hair are always crazy in bed."
I'm going to skin them both alive.
Kieran instantly pops up next to me with a big grin on his face.
"Hey buddy," he says with a pat to my back. "Wanted to get a front-row seat to the carnage."
I ignore his comment and approach the men.
"You're gonna have to set your sights elsewhere, mate," I say.
"Excuse me?" the pirate says with a level of confidence that tells me he has no idea who he's dealing with.
Kieran lets out a hard laugh.
I take a moment to gather my composure. I'm not going to lose my cool at Kami's big party. I can do this.
I grab the man's wrist hard and look him in the eyes.
"You're going to leave her alone," I say.
"Oh yeah?" he asks with a smirk. "How do you figure?"
My expression drops and I squint in confusion as my brain searches for an answer.
Why didn't that work?
In my periphery I see Kieran's eyes widen as he comes to the same conclusion I have: This guy isn't human.