The Demon's Daughter

Good Magic and Bad Luck

Madison spent the next three days hiding in her room and sneaking out for food at random hours of the day. Lily, the nymph in charge of running the house and kitchen, knew it was because some of the boys were back for a few days. Once they left, Madison came out of hiding and took up residence in the kitchen with the nymphs and the training area with the wolves again. No one commented on what had happened her first day back on the bandage she wore on her hand to cover the burn. It was an unspoken rule that no one commented on Madison’s injuries.

                As Christmas approached Belinda and Leo Beck returned for an evening with their daughter. Well, Leo returned to see his wife, and Belinda returned to replenish her stock of herbs and potions. Still, they agreed to sit down for dinner with Madison that evening and for a moment Madison could imagine her parents actually cared.

                “I hear you’re doing well with your studies,” Belinda commented as the trio ate dinner. “Your report came the other day. Did you look at it?”

                “I didn’t,” Madison admitted.

                “All A’s,” Belinda stated. “As we expected. Isn’t that wonderful, dear?”

                “Of course,” Leo agreed.

                “Thank you,” Madison said stiffly. “I was wondering if you found out anything about the demon who attacked me earlier in the year.”

                “No,” Leo replied shortly.

                “Are you happy with the way Cillian handled the situation?” Madison asked.

                “You’re alive, aren’t you?” Leo retorted. “The wolf did what he’s paid to.”

                “He’s an odd wolf,” Madison remarked. “Why couldn’t you send Rob or Blake? I’ve known them for years.”

                “Madison, enough questions,” Leo ordered.

                “Yes, father,” Madison said automatically. She turned to her mother. “You’re looking very young, mom.”

                Belinda smiled. “Virgin blood,” she said. “Hard to come by, but worth it. I have to keep up with your father, after all.”

                Sorry I commented, Madison thought in disgust. She hid her discomfort behind a smile. The dinner couldn’t end quick enough. Madison always thought family gatherings would be different, but she was let down each time. Instead of going to her room after the meal, however, Madison wandered into the servants’ wing and found Rob, Blake, and a few of the omegas watching television in their sitting room. Without an invitation, she flopped down on the couch next to Rob.

                “Dinner went well, I take it,” he remarked.

                “Why can’t I have a normal family?” Madison asked.

                “Your dad’s a demon and your mom’s a witch. Take your pick,” Rob answered.

                “I feel like even supernaturals can have normal families though. You guys are normal,” Madison said.

                “We’ll adopt you,” Rob said. “Honorary pack member. Got it, pack.”

                “Got it, alpha,” the others responded automatically.

                Madison laughed and shook her head. She closed her eyes and figured she’d rest down here for a little bit before going to bed. She didn’t mean to fall asleep, but she awoke to voices whispering at the door. She recognized one as Rob’s and the other as Lily’s.

                “You have to stop letting her stay down her,” Lily said angrily.

                “Aw, come on, Lily. It’s harmless,” Rob replied.

                “If her parents find out—”

                “Do you think they really care?” Rob retorted. “Maddy needs someone to care about her, and we might be the only ones. Why shouldn’t she be around us?”

                Lily sighed impatiently. “Rob, be careful. You can’t afford to get attached to her.”

                Madison kept her eyes closed and drifted back to sleep. She couldn’t get close to anyone. That was the curse of being a human in this world. She needed to think of some way to thank Rob for sticking up for her though. She knew deep down that the only way to do that was to free him and the pack though.

                The next morning, Madison awoke in her own room. She knew Rob or one of the others had moved her during the night. She showered and got dressed slowly while formulating her plan. Lily served her breakfast in the kitchen and told her that her parents had left for work already. Perfect, Madison thought. She quickly ate her pancakes and hurried out of the room.

                Madison’s mother kept a store of magical potions and amulets in her chambers. While she generally kept the chamber sealed, the enchantment only applied to magical creatures since Madison was the only human who would ever be in the house. Madison had never shown interest in magic before, so it didn’t seem necessary to bar her entry into such a room. Now, however, Madison did have an interest in magic. She carefully entered the room and scanned the shelves and cabinets along the walls.

                As a girl, Madison would come into this room when she was injured, and her mother would give her a potion or a balm to heal her. She never asked how she got the wounds, knowing that more often than not her sons had inflicted them. Instead, she fixed them and sent Madison on her way. Before sending Madison away for school, Belinda had put a series of charms on her to make sure she was safe from what she referred to as “human vices.” Madison had never asked about them since she had been only twelve at the time. This was the only time she had been in the room on her own though.

                There had to be something in here that would give her the magic needed to unlock the collars. Any magic at all is all she needed really. If she was right, all she needed was to have magic and be a Beck. She was already a Beck, so now she needed the magic part. She searched the shelves and found a few interesting potions, a few disgusting ones, a bunch of healing balms, and finally an amulet that seemed like it might work. She pocketed the amulet and went in search of Rob and the others. She found them out in the garden, surveying the grounds.

                “Anything interesting?” she asked.

                “No demons, no trolls, nothing,” Rob answered.

                “I think I found a way to get those collars off,” Madison said, jumping right to the chase.

                “We talked about this. Magic could kill you,” Rob replied.

                “Yes, it could,” Madison agreed. “Or, it might not.”

                “You’re crazy if you think I’m going to let you even try it,” Rob growled.

                “Rob, please,” Madison said. “I have one chance to do something good for someone else. I want to help you and the pack. Please, let me try.”

                “I can’t let you put yourself in danger like that,” Rob replied. “None of us would want that.”

                “I’m in danger every time I come home,” Madison argued. “My brothers are going to kill me some day, and you and the others can’t fight them back because you can’t shift. If you really cared, you’d let me try this.”

                Rob sighed in frustration. Of course he wanted to be free from this damned collar. The second he was he’d get his pack far from this house and these demons and he’d advise Madison to get far away as well. “If you die—”

                “Pray I go to heaven or unfortunately I’ll still have to see my brothers,” Madison joked.

                “I’ll be following right after you,” Rob said seriously. He looked at the charm in Madison’s hand. “How sure are you about this?”

                “I’d give it about a 66% chance of going right,” Madison replied.

                “I’m not sure if that’s bravery, stupidity, or sheer optimism,” Rob commented. “Either way, I suppose we should get this over with.” As he was speaking, the rest of the pack began to materialize, suggesting he had been mind-linking them during the conversation. “Maddy’s going to try to free us from these things,” he said to them, touching the collar around his neck.

                “You need magic for that,” Blake said.

                “And I have some,” Madison replied, holding up the amulet.

                “How does it work?” Jacob asked.

                “My mother works in blood magic,” Madison explained. “Anyone have a knife?”

                One of the men handed her a blade the length of her forearm.

                “Jesus, I just needed a small one, not something I can cut my hand off with,” Madison said sarcastically. The men chuckled, but it was only to hide their uneasiness about the situation. Madison carefully pricked her finger with the knife and drew just enough blood out of the cut to add a few drops to the amulet.

                “Now what?” Rob asked.

                “Now, I’m going to focus on every positive emotion I have for you and hope that it generates some connection to the blood magic,” Madison said. “If this works, and the thing unlocks, don’t kill me, okay?”

                “I’d at least wait until you freed the rest of the pack,” Rob teased.

                Madison laughed under her breath. She was going to miss this banter if this spell worked. She closed her eyes and focused on every memory she had of Rob. She saw him teaching her how to ride a bike when she was six. He was bandaging her knee when she was only four years old and her brother had shoved her down on the cobblestones. He taught her how to swim in the creek in the woods, but she had to promise to never tell her parents. It had been a secret. Rob had been more a father to her than Madison’s own father had ever been. He had been there to watch her practice violin, when she learned to read, he taught her to drive. Tears came to Madison’s eyes as she thought of everything this man had done for her over the last seventeen years. It wasn’t fair that he had been chained up for all of them, unable to do what his instincts told him to.

                The amulet in her hand burned hot, but Madison ignored the pain as she opened her eyes and glared at the silver collar on Rob’s neck. She lifted her free hand and touched the collar, turning it to dust. The men gasped in shock.

                “You did it!” Rob said, scooping Madison up into a hug. The gesture made Madison drop the amulet, and it was only then that she noticed the pain. Her hand felt as if it were on fire. “Are you okay?”

                “I’m fine,” Madison lied. “Let’s get the rest of these off.” She turned to Blake. She did the same thing for each man, focusing on her relationship with them and channeling that emotion into the amulet until it allowed her to dissolve the collars. With each one, however, the pain grew stronger and stronger. She felt as if the very life was being sucked out of her through the burning hole in her hand. Madison refused to stop until every collar was gone though. She owed it to the pack.

                When she was finally done, Madison collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily. The omegas had already turned into their wolf forms, unable to contain themselves after such a long imprisonment. Blake and Rob, however, were still in their human forms.

                “Maddy, are you okay?” Blake said, helping Madison to a nearby seat.

                “I’m fine,” Madison replied, dropping the amulet to the ground where it shattered, sending crystal fragments and blood over the stones.

                “You’re clearly not,” Rob retorted. “You should have stopped.”

                “And let down my honorary pack?” Madison said with a small laugh. She looked up at Rob and smiled. “You were more a dad to me than my own father, Rob. You and your pack deserve to be free.”

                “So do you,” Rob replied. “Promise me you’ll get out of this place, Maddy.”

                Madison nodded. “I’ll see you on the outside someday. Now go before someone sees you.”

                Rob stood up and took a few steps back before shifting. He was a large wolf, although not as big as Cillian. His fur was a tan color, and his eyes were the typical red of an alpha. Madison smiled slightly at the sight of her oldest friend now in his true form. He approached her slowly, nudging her arm with his head. He didn’t seem to know his own strength though because Madison would have fallen backwards off the bench if Blake hadn’t been standing behind her.

                “He wants to see your hand,” Blake said.

                Madison cautiously held out her injured hand to Rob. Without warning, the wolf licked the wound. In shock, Madison pulled her hand back.

                Blake chuckled. “It’s all right,” he said, grabbing her arm gently. “Werewolves lick wounds to heal them. He’s trying to help.”

                “I’m not quite sure how I feel about that,” Madison muttered.

                Blake laughed again. “Honorary pack member, remember?” he reminded her. “Alpha says let him help.”

                “Does it even work with humans or is it just gross though?” Madison asked, looking at Rob.

                “He says either way you’ll deal,” Blake answered.

                Madison sighed and held her hand out again. She tried to ignore the awkwardness of this wolf, who she knew very well was actually a man, licking the blood from her hand. She had to admit the pain did seem to lessen.

                “Thank you,” Madison said when Rob finished. “I’m going to miss you.”

                The wolf came forward and put his large head on Madison’s shoulder. Madison put her arms around the wolf and hugged it. “Be safe,” she whispered. She let go of him and watched as he joined the rest of the pack.

                Blake took a few steps toward the pack. “Get as far away from this place as you can, Maddy. You deserve better,” he said before shifting into a dark brown wolf.

                Madison sat outside for a while watching the woods. The wolves were gone, and Madison hoped they were a long way away and somewhere safe. They deserved that after all these years. The Black Moon Pack had been employed by her family for longer than Madison had been alive, and now they were free and could go back to their rightful land. Merry Christmas, Madison thought as she made her way back inside.

                The house was in total chaos the next day as everyone found out about the pack’s disappearance. Madison stayed in her room and ignored it all. No one would suspect her. She didn’t have magic. How could she have helped them? She might have been the only person who had wanted to, but she was also the last person who could have. All the same, the commotion brought Madison’s parents and all her brothers home. Due to entire family being home, an elaborate dinner was planned, and Madison was required to be present.

                “Azrael, welcome home,” Madison said as she took a seat next to her oldest brother.

                “I’d say the same, but you’ve been home for a few weeks now,” Azrael replied. “Did you talk to the wolves?”

                “I always do,” Madison pointed out. “Before you ask, I have no idea about their disappearance.”

                “I wasn’t going to ask,” Azrael retorted. “You need magic to free the wolves. You don’t have that.”

                “Thanks for the reminder,” Madison muttered. “Evras is home,” she remarked.

                “Hm,” Azrael intoned.

                “Cian, Zagan, and Aron are together as always too,” Madison observed. She could almost hear Azrael sighing although he wasn’t. He had little patience for his younger brothers. “Where are Valin and Kilvon?”

                “They are searching the woods,” Azrael replied.

As he spoke, their father entered with the Valin and Kilvon. Both demons were of large build, muscular instead of slender like most demons. Valin took a seat on the other side of Madison but said nothing to her. He usually didn’t. While both brothers occasionally took part in torturing Madison, for the past few years they seemed more apt to ignore her presence instead. Madison figured they had grown out of it. Cian, Zagan, and Aron were the youngest and hadn’t. Evras was all around different. If he had his way, he would dissect Madison and treat her as a science experiment, but since he couldn’t do that he simply left her alone.

“How nice to have the family together, even if it is under such circumstances,” Belinda said as the meal commenced.

“Killing wolves is as good an excuse as any,” Valin replied.

“You have to find them first,” Madison pointed out.

Valin glared at his sister and raised his fork to stab her but his arm stopped midair.

“Azrael,” Leo warned. “Valin, your sister’s human,” he added as if Valin had forgotten. “Madison, don’t speak.”

Valin went back to eating and Madison looked over and gave Azrael a small smile of thanks. He didn’t have to stop their brother from stabbing her, but she was thankful that he had.

“If they’re not in the woods nearby, it suggests they escaped yesterday,” Azrael said. “We should expand the search.”

Leo nodded thoughtfully. “In the meantime, we need new security,” he remarked. “Valin, Kilvon, Zagan, and Aron, you’ll stay on here. Cian, The Commission won’t spare you for long enough. Evras—”

“I’m not leaving my lab,” Evras finished for him.

“Yes,” Leo said, waving his hand dismissively.

“I can stay for a week, father,” Cian remarked. “Our sister should have all the protection possible, right?” He looked at Madison and smirked.

“Father, perhaps Maddy can come to Boston with me,” Azrael suggested. “I can’t stay, but running our human businesses is something she can certainly get an idea of for when she finishes school.”

The other brothers laughed.

“Why?” Cian asked. “It’s not like she’s going to help. She’s a human.”

“Yeah, she can work for one of them, but she’s not a leader,” Kilvon added.

“I’m sitting right here,” Madison snapped.

“Madison, I said enough,” Leo ordered.

Stop making him angry, Azrael said in her head.

Madison glared at her brother. Get out of my head, she thought fiercely.

“No one is going anywhere,” Leo stated. “This is our home, and we’ll defend it as such.”

The men nodded.

Madison knew her life in this house would only get worse now that her brothers were going to be staying here. She’d have to find better places to hide throughout the day or she’d be subjected to their torture. She’d have to thank Azrael for trying to get her out of this place. He really was a decent brother, and he would have even been a decent person if he didn’t enjoy torturing people as much as the next demon. Madison liked to think Azrael had a soft spot for her, but really she imagined it was a duty to his family that kept him on her side most of the time. It was the same reason why her father, as cruel as he could be to her, wouldn’t allow her to die at the hands of anyone. He may not like her, but she was family.

The next day found the house oddly quiet. Madison assumed Evras had left after dinner. He rarely enjoyed being home, preferring his lab and his experiments over the family. Azrael had probably left as well. He was busy and barely had enough time to make it in the first place let alone loiter around the place. Madison had thought her parents might stay a little longer with the holidays approaching, but the empty dining room suggested that wasn’t happening.

“Lily, is everyone gone?” Madison asked as she entered the kitchen.

“Your parents left this morning, yes. I’m not sure where your brothers are,” Lily replied. Her voice seemed strained and she didn’t turn to face Madison when she spoke.

“Are you okay?” Madison asked.

Lily didn’t respond.

“Lily?” Madison said hesitantly. She walked around the nymph and saw a large jagged cut running down her face. “Oh my gosh. What happened?”

Lily shook her head, tears falling from her eyes.

“Who did this?” Madison demanded.

“I did,” Cian said from the doorway.

Madison whipped around. “Why?” she said angrily.

“I thought she might have known where the wolves went or how they escaped, so I tortured her for a bit. Turns out she really didn’t know,” Cian said with a laugh. “Oh well.” He shrugged.

“You—”

“Oh, careful, little sister,” Cian said with a smirk. “You might be next on the list of those who could have information.”

“You don’t scare me, Cian,” Madison retorted.

Cian laughed. “We’ll see about that.” He grabbed Madison by the hair and pulled her out of the kitchen.

“Let me go, you f*****g asshole,” Madison screamed as Cian threw her to the floor.

“Going to tell mommy and daddy, Maddy?” Zagan taunted.

“Grow up,” Madison snapped, attempting to stand up.

Aron stepped up and kicked her in the stomach, causing Madison to fall back down and curl up into a ball. “Oh, come on, Maddy. Get up,” he said with a laugh.

Madison looked over at Valin and Kilvon who were sitting off to the side watching passively. They weren’t going to help her, but they probably weren’t going to join in just yet either.

“You know what it is,” Cian said, stepping up to Madison. “Maddy needs a bit more incentive.” He grabbed the back of Madison’s shirt and tore it, exposing her back. He took his claws and ran them down her back, causing Madison to call out in pain. “Does that hurt Maddy?”

“You know it does!” Madison shouted.

The men laughed.

“Tell us what it feels like,” Aron said, using one of his nails to make a cut on Madison’s shoulder.

“Please, stop,” Madison said, trying to move away from her brothers.

“Come on, Maddy. We’re just having some fun,” Zagan replied grabbing Madison’s ankle and pulling her back toward him.

“You know what I always wondered,” Valin said, speaking for the first time since Madison had entered the room. “You look like a human and you smell like one, but do you taste like one.” He stood up and started toward Madison.

“No, no,” Madison said, scrambling to get up. “Valin, don’t, please,” Madison begged.

Zagan and Cian grabbed Madison and kept her in place as Valin approached.

“Where do you want?” Cian asked with a smirk.

“Has to be somewhere dad won’t see,” Kilvon pointed out without looking up from the knife he was sharpening.

Valin grabbed Madison by the back of the neck. “You know, I’m going to enjoy this,” he said as he pulled her forward and pinned her face down on the floor. With Valin straddling her neck, Madison could barely breathe let alone move. When he bit into her lower back, however, the scream she let out could be heard by everyone in the room, and probably in the entire mansion.

“So?” Cian asked.

Valin chewed for a moment. “I can confirm our sister’s a virgin,” he said, causing the others to laugh even harder.

Madison tried not to move. Her entire body felt like it was on fire and she just want to die. She hated her brothers. She rarely hated anyone, but she hated them. She wished they would just get it over with and kill her.

“You’re not done, are you, Maddy?” Cian said, walking over and grabbing Madison’s face.

“What do you want?” Madison asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

“I want to know where the wolves are,” Cian answered.

“I let them go,” Madison muttered.

“What?” Cian demanded, jerking her face toward his.

“I let them go,” Madison said clearly.

“And just how did you manage that?” Cian questioned.

“Some good magic,” Madison replied.

Cian threw her to the ground again. “Well now you’re in for some bad luck,” he retorted.