v2 CHAPTER ONE: (18+) In which a road trip resumes, with a different passenger than expected.

The blue economy van buzzed down the parkway, going a little faster than necessary, but not fast enough to attract attention. At least, Father John Hayes hoped his speeding wouldn’t draw notice from the highway patrol; it was early in the morning, but they’d still passed the occasional car. His sense of urgency kept pushing him to floor the gas pedal, and every time he got that urge, he had to take a calming breath.

The girl in the back clearly needed medical care, and soon. Una had called her “Sherill,” and she seemed to be a supernatural being, with those ears and horns. Falling debris had struck her unconscious, and she’d only woken after a few hours, still disoriented. I’d bet anything one leg has a fracture, he thought. But we can hardly call an ambulance and explain how this happened… our best bet is to find the right hospital.

Balancing speed and unwanted attention was distracting enough, but John felt even more preoccupied by the other passengers in the van. His mind couldn’t make sense of the situation: he’d violated his vow of celibacy yet again, this time with a gorgeous blonde model. They’d spent hours fucking out in the woods. Now that same model sat next to him, propping one of her lusciously long legs on the dashboard and one out the window, wearing nothing but a lacy black thong. Maria Johanssen had an exhausted but happy look on her face as she sprawled in the passenger seat, the nipples on her full breasts hard in the air of early morning.

“Hey, uh… Maria?” said John. “Have you considered… putting some clothes on yet?” He followed his request with a nervous cough.

Maria looked up from the book she had brought along to read: Sacred Seduction by Kitty Cavalier. She smiled at him and reached over to put her hand on his thigh. “But I like this outfit.” Her eyes flicked downwards to John’s lap, and then back up again. “You seem to like it too, Father?”

John swallowed. Once more, he tried to process the events of the last 24 hours: I drove up here looking for Micki. My demon lover. The gorgeous, amazing woman who used to be Father Michael Belmont, my superior and mentor at St. Andrew’s Church. A succubus possessed him and slowly transformed him into Micki. And now… what is she to me? A friend, a girlfriend… a naughty secret on the down low?

When the two of them hooked up, following weeks of simmering tension, his relationship to their Church and his vows became almost as complicated as Micki’s. At least he wasn’t a clergyman turned succubus—but he was coupling with one on the regular. Then the Curia for Supernatural Warfare—some rogue wing of the Vatican—had kidnapped Micki, presumably to deprogram and exorcise her. Susan Miller, the scholarly lay assistant from their parish who’d become Micki’s other lover, had called him in to help.

Helping was what John did. Leaping at a chance to find his missing partner, he’d jumped in the church’s van and raced uptown to pick up Susan, along with two other acquaintances from this strange circle. All of them were in the van now: the formidable freelance demon hunter Cassandra, who seemed extremely interested in Susan… and Maria. She too was a former man, apparently transformed by Micki’s growing powers. It was all… a lot.

The four of them hadn’t made a spectacular cavalry, John had to admit. With Susan’s knowhow, they’d tracked down the Vatican’s black site in the Catskill mountains where the Curia’s team held Micki. They’d stumbled through the woods until a knife-wielding nun confronted them. That strange, smiling woman… could she truly be a woman of the cloth?

John winced. Whoever that woman was, she’d slashed Susan’s neck, and John had feared the worst—but golden light had burst out of Susan Miller’s wound, healing her. More magic, he thought. It became a fact of life a dozen years ago, when the big portals opened around the world, starting in New York City. But most ordinary folk? They haven’t adjusted to having spells, and demons, and who knows what else running amok. I know I haven’t.

Finally, they’d found Micki, although she’d become far more demonic than when she and John first became involved. Back then, she’d sported horns, strange eyes, and an unquenchable libido. Now the newly complete succubus also had deep red skin, hooves, and wings that could burst from her shoulders on command. And she was calling herself “Una,” for reasons unknown to John. To release her from the crumbling compound, they’d had to re-energize her with sexual power. He hadn’t given it more than a few second thoughts and had “helped out” once more… by doing the dirty deed with Maria, who enthusiastically reciprocated.

Unbidden, a memory of Maria surged to the forefront of John’s thoughts: how she’d squeezed his shaft with her hot pussy as he drove into her over and over. He felt blood rush over to his face and couldn’t help but glance over at the long-legged girl. She was reading a book in her underwear, crammed into the front seat of a van, as if it were the most ordinary activity in the world.

Just as with Micki, when his former mentor had become an attractive woman, he felt like every second he spent around Maria made him want her more. He’d never thought of himself as a “multiple partners” kind of guy, even before taking his vow of celibacy. And now he was panting after two transformed women, one of them practically naked next to him.

John’s cock twitched in his pants, and he cleared his throat. “My preferences don’t particularly matter, Miss Johanssen. Just, you know… it might help to have some appropriate attire. Just in case.”

“Really? You don’t think I’m sexy like this?” She reached out with one bare foot towards his lap, and he took one hand off the wheel so that he could nudge her foot away.

John stared out the windshield; there were other cars passing them on the highway. They could go faster, but more people meant some might look in the window. “Maria… you’re certainly sexy. No argument from me there. But we’re getting closer to the main highway, and although it’s early, we could pass a police or highway patrol vehicle any time now. I really don’t want to get pulled over, for Sherill’s sake.”

“Oh shoot,” said Maria. “I see. Of course.” She folded her legs back up in the seat and leaned forward to put her knees on the dashboard. “I guess I can put a shirt on?”

Susan, in the back seat, yawned and stretched. “Party time’s over already? We have to put on clothes?” Cassandra had her head in Susan’s lap, nuzzling her crotch sleepily.

John grunted, signaling and changing lanes on the highway. “You’re all acting like we spent the night partying carefree instead of fleeing from demons and… you know. Having group sex.”

Susan, who was at least wearing a bra, leaned forward over the seats to put a hand on John’s tight shoulder. “I know this all must seem pretty strange, Father. I think we’re all feeling… some after-effects of the ritual. A kind of… afterglow. I remember it was a bit like this after we fought a demon in the old church too, right? Because we energized Yael.”

John thought back, remembering it all too well. He’d confirmed, in that moment, that the ancient succubus Yael had possessed Father Michael and was changing him into a demon. He’d found himself sucked in, unable to control his impulse to take part in a dark sex ritual… by bringing himself to climax all over Susan and Michael.

Susan kept talking. “…so it’s probably understandable if we act strange for a while? A little euphoric.”

Maria chimed in, “Yes! It’s not every day you become demon worshippers in a sex cult! All to charge up a friend who’s become an incredibly awesome succubus!”

John gave her another sidelong glance, keeping his eyes on the road. “Hilarious. Joining a ‘sex cult’ presents a bit of a problem for me, as a Catholic priest with a parish to tend to.”

“We’ll figure it all out,” said Susan with a confident air. “Oooh, I had better check on Sherill and make sure she’s not falling asleep again. Hopefully she’s able to talk by now… but how far are we from civilization?” She climbed backwards towards the rear of the van, where the injured girl was lying on a long seat.

“Figuring out starts right here,” said John, pulling into a rest stop off the highway. “I have to go to the bathroom, and we’ve got to get some water for Sherill, and either directions or a phone charger.” Something about magical energies unleashed at the Vatican compound had fried their electronics; Susan’s phone was the only exception, but had run out of batteries. (“You guys don’t have arcane shielding,” she’d said matter-of-factly.)

“All three of you… do me a favor and get dressed.” John stalked off towards the main building of the rest stop. When he returned with supplies, Susan met him partway, wearing flip-flop sandals and a large gray hoodie that hung over her bare legs like a dress.

“You doing all right, Father?” She took a plastic bag from him and fished out the phone charger.

“I’m worried about Micki,” he admitted, scratching his head and feeling eager to get back on the road.

“Una,” she corrected him. “We didn’t really have time to talk, but it sounds like the two of them have merged somehow, Yael and Micki becoming a new… something?”

John shook his head. “She sounded the same to me, even though she looks different. Who’s in control? Do we have to do something, exorcise Yael?” For weeks, Micki had struggled with the ancient succubus over who’d get to remain in their shared body.

“I don’t think so,” said Susan, tapping her lower lip. “My hunch is that something different is going on. She’s not showing up on my scanner as either Yael or Micki. Which means I don’t know how to find her. She flew off towards the mountains, and that enormous demon followed her, but…” Susan trailed off, looking gloomy and running a hand through her long black locks.

“First things first,” said John, reaching for his pastoral instinct to reassure and comfort. “We get the girl to the hospital. Micki, or Una… hopefully she’s got the energy to outrun that beast.”

Susan nodded. “Sherril’s stable and responsive, but disoriented… I think it’s a mild or moderate concussion? Obviously, it’d be better if a doctor looked at her, but I don’t want to leave her just anywhere.” They reached the van and Susan climbed in the passenger side door, moving to plug the phone charger into the van’s old-fashioned cigarette lighter.

John stepped up into the driver’s seat again and glanced in the back of the vehicle. Cassandra had dressed in her baggy gray fatigues, looking more like her usual sullen self and staring out the window. Maria had put on a tight white t-shirt, the words “New Jersey Catholic Day Camp” stretching across her bust.

He sighed as pulled back onto the highway. “Okay, fine. At least we won’t get pulled over, even though we look like I’m driving you all to a reform school for wayward girls. Maria, did you find that t-shirt under a seat or something?”

Maria laughed without answering his question, then leaned out the window, cupping both hands in front of her mouth. “Sex cultists in a church van!” she yelled before whooping. Even Cassandra smirked, but John just shook his head.

Susan was all business, bunching herself up in the passenger seat and tapping on her phone, her bare legs sticking out of the hoodie. John glanced over. “I’m driving south. But what’s our next destination, Miss Miller?”

“We’re a few hours out of Manhattan still, given the traffic will get heavier the closer we get. Priority is to get Sherill to a care facility, and it must be one that’s friendly to paranormals. She’s been through a lot.”

Susan paused, her finger hovered above the screen for a second before she hit a button. “There’s a decent pick, looking at online comments… just about an hour away. Just keep heading towards the city, John. After we find a decent doctor to look at Sherill, we could all use some rest… but where should we regroup later? Is St. Andrew’s still under quarantine, Father?”

“Yes—it’s not due to reopen for another two weeks.” John rubbed his jaw and pondered. “And I can’t say idea if what just happened at that compound will have ramifications on that. In the meantime, we could all meet up at the rectory, since I have the key… even stay there, if we’re discreet.” He cast an eye back at Maria. “If it’s even possible for us to be discreet?”

“Oh, John! Does that mean we can’t have sex in the churchyard?” said Maria, her lips pursed in a mock pout.

Susan broke in before the blasphemous humor could continue. “Checking feeds and airspace monitors for any sighting of Una, but nothing so far. She flew off towards the Adirondacks, and I can’t think of how to get in touch.” Susan bit her lip and looked back at Cassandra. The demon hunter met her gaze with an equally intense stare.

“That huge, demonic thing. What did he say when he burst out of the building? Nezz?”

“Yes. An archdemon.” Cassandra was laconic as ever; it was the first thing she’d said in over an hour.

“I’ve seen the name mentioned in books,” said Susan, growing still. “The archdemon of control, supposedly… but no one has reported a manifestation of Nezz in hundreds of years.”

Cassandra nodded. “Not since the Thirty Year’s War, according to my family’s records.”

John glanced across the van to see that Susan was staring out the window, her face tense and drawn. “Cassandra… if I may, you know more about this stuff than the rest of us,” he asked. “You demon hunters, what else do you guys know about Nezz? What happened to him after the war?”

Cassandra took a breath and rolled her neck before speaking again. “Not supposed to share much intel on demons. But I’m already in trouble, getting into all this. Some of my ancestors say they exorcised him. Others claim Nezz got bottled or imprisoned somehow. Seems more likely, now.”

“Imprisoned? By whom?” asked Maria.

“The Church,” replied Cassandra with no change in expression. “The Church is very good at keeping secret… and turning threats into assets.” John’s hands tightened on the wheel.

Susan was silent for a few minutes as they drove south out of the mountains. The mood in the van had grown somber compared to the post-coital haze that had filled it an hour before. “How’s Sherill?” she asked, glancing back at Maria and Cassandra, and towards the younger girl beyond them.

Maria clambered back to check, and they heard quiet voices speaking. A minute later, Maria returned. “Still awake, but barely. Better than earlier, when she was throwing up? And she could follow my finger when I moved it, just like you said.”

“That’s good news. But damn, she looks so young,” said John. “She must be just a teenager?”

Susan shook her head. “I don’t know what Spencer was doing, locking someone like her up. It must have something to do with her powers. I think she must be part baku.”

“Baku?” repeated John. He wasn’t sure he’d heard right.

Cassandra leaned forward. “A dream eater. Go into sleeping thoughts. Powerful ally if you want to mess with enemies’ minds. Like I said…”

“Turning threats into assets,” John growled, his brow furrowing with anger.

“Yes,” agreed Susan. “Sherill might be invaluable, for anyone callous enough to control her.” Susan turned her gaze eastward; the sun was fully above the horizon. She put the butt of her palm on her forehead.

“I almost forgot the last thing Una said—there must be other prisoners there. Sherill’s injured, so she comes first… but John, we’ll need to drive back up as soon as possible to see if there’s anyone else stuck in that facility.”

Cassandra grunted. “Nezz tore up that place. Vatican will get the alert soon… if they haven’t heard already.”

John felt the last tingle of the aroused, satiated feeling evaporate, draining him of both satisfaction and confusion. “Damnit. You saying we might have to go back to that place? With a Vatican security detail on the way. And rescue more teenagers or something?”

Susan looked at him gravely, adjusting her glasses. “She called them test subjects. We can’t just abandon them. There’s gotta be something to do, favors you could call in?”

John rubbed a hand across his short, kinky locks. “Yeah. I guess we can do something. I’ll make some calls as soon as we stop driving. If we claim they’re refugees who’re getting services through the archdiocese’s programs… I guess that could provide enough cover, make it hard for folks from the Vatican to swoop in and grab them. Even if some of them are paranormals like Sherill. All God’s creatures can be redeemed, after all.”

“Spoken like an up-and-coming politician of the Church,” said Susan. “We should probably get our own stories straight too—we can’t all claim to be volunteering for the parish. At this rate, I don’t know if Monsignor Albert, as protective as he’s been, would even let me keep volunteering.”

John nodded, then reached over and squeezed her hand. “We’ll make it work. You just keep an eye out for Micki. Or Una. Whatever she’s calling herself now.”

Susan gave him a wan smile. “In the meantime… if we’re going to return to that horrible place, I think we ought to rest and regroup after we take care of Sherill. Cassandra, you’ve worked for these people. Would they be able to respond… today?”

The rangy demon hunter thought about it for a moment, then shook her head. “Other than Spencer’s people… the Church’s special forces for this kind of thing are the Swiss Guard. They deploy fast and international, but out of Rome, not this continent.”

Susan Miller took a deep breath. “All right then, we have little time, but enough to try and find Una before we dig ourselves in deep again. This might sound weird, but I think I know a place we can use as our local headquarters, at least overnight. That is… long as you’re all fine with meeting my parents?”