Demons
Does the word bring terror to mind? For some it does. True believers of Christ and Satan fear that if their soul is tainted, if they commit any sort of sin, Satan will send his demon’s to possess them and in doing so, be sent to hell. It’s terrifying to think you could be possessed by an evil spirit, that a foreign being is able to take your body over and do unspeakable things but, even more terrifying is the thought that one might spend eternities burning in hell for your sin. It is also believed that to rid a body of the evil inside is to exorcise it by bringing in a priest who can supposedly convince the evil presence to leave the body. But what if there are demons out in the world who aren’t evil, who walk amongst us, living normal lives. Do you think that’s possible?

In my Demon series, I’ve created a family of demons who want a normal life, who want to be rid of Satan. In Book one, Awaken the Demon, Draco Starr is a demon who has spent the better part of his life obeying his master, Satan. Having been released from Hell to collect souls for the devil, Draco did his duty, but after decades, he feels like something is missing in his life. He’s created a company and has massed millions of dollars yet something is still empty inside. When he learns of a child born from a Demon and human, he sets out to find her. Though mating with a human is taboo, Draco disobeys his master and pursues Missy Green. What he discovers is a love so strong that he is willing to sacrifice it all just to have her.

Draco, a once evil force in the world collecting souls, causing pain to others is now a mild man caught in love. But after several years together, both Draco and Missy discover they want more. They want a child.

Enter Aurora Starr.

Offer the Demon is book two and begins just after Aurora turns twenty-one. Because her mother was part human, her parents had to barter with Satan in order to have a child. Draco and Missy strike a deal with Satan and are granted a child. Only stipulation. She must gather souls when she turns twenty-one.

Aurora hates being a demon. Hates having been sheltered all her life. She wants more. She wants to live like the humans do. Only problem is, Satan won’t let her. Aurora is a stubborn woman and won’t take no for an answer and despite the wrath of Satan when she disobeys, she pursues a man who has caught her eye and she’s willing to sacrifice it all just to keep him.

Do I believe that every person, no matter how evil they are, can be redeemed? No. There are some souls that are so tainted they can’t be cleansed. Do I believe that Satan or demons have control over them? No. But it sure is fun to write about it, to imagine a world with demons roaming in search of lives to corrupt. That is the beauty of fiction.

What do you believe? I would love to hear what you have to say. One lucky commenter will win a free ecopy of Offer the Demon. Please leave your email address in your comment.

Blurb:
Twenty-one years ago a bargain was made for her existence. Twenty-one years ago was the beginning of the end.

Born to serve Satan, Aurora Starr wishes she could lead a normal life. Being a demon, that’s not so easy to do. By night she takes the lives of those Satan chooses. Despite her hatred for her job, she knows she must continue. All she wants is to live like a normal human.

Enter Scott Monroe.

Tall, blond, and gorgeous, he is more than Aurora can resist. Knowing that mating with a human is taboo, Aurora throws caution to the wind and begins seeing Scott. But when Satan makes her choose between her family or the man she loves, Aurora has had enough.

Excerpt:
“What are you?”

She sat back on the coffee table and began to explain. “My father is the direct descendant of Satan. He was born full demon. My mother was conceived by a demon and a witch. She is also part human. I’m a little of both.”

“Oh yeah, yeah, I see it now.” He laughed, uncontrollably.

“Oops, I forgot to tell you about the euphoria. You’ll feel a little high for a bit. Ever smoked weed?”

“No, no I haven’t, but I might consider it after this.” Bent over at the waist, he couldn’t stop laughing.

“No, you won’t. See, it’s almost over. I like your laugh, by the way. Very sexy.”

“This is crazy.” Pulling himself from the chair, he stood. His knees wobbled and he fell back down.

“Careful, you don’t have your sea legs yet.”

He ran a hand over his face. “I’m dreaming, hallucinating. None of this is real. It’s some insane nightmare or illusion.”

“I’m real, Scott. You aren’t dreaming, or hallucinating, and I am no illusion.” Taking his hand in hers, she pulled him closer and sank her lips into his. She took the kiss slow, making sure he could feel her, taste her, and know she wasn’t a figment of his imagination. “See, real.”

He leaned back, licked his lips. “How is this possible?”

She needed a smoke, desperately, and since she didn’t have any on her, her only recourse was to conjure one up. “Sorry, but I need this.” Snapping her fingers, the cigarette appeared in her fingers, smoldering.

“Oh Jesus, Jesus.” He laid his head on the back of the chair and closed his eyes.

“I’m sorry, really I am. Let me try to answer your question.” She stood, because walking helped her concentrate, helped with the nervousness she was feeling.

“There are all manner of things that people choose not to believe. That they ignore. Witches, demons, vampires—all walk the earth.”

“I’m trying to picture Glinda the Good Witch, but I keep seeing the bad one, you know, the Wicked Witch of the East, or was it West?” He shook his head. “Okay, let’s see, witches, demons, and vampires. Are we talking vampires as in I want to suck your blood?”

She smiled as she blew a cloud of smoke in the air. He did a great Slavic impression of Count Dracula. “Yes, well, not in the way people have portrayed them, but close enough.

You would be surprised how many walk amongst us, holding down normal jobs, living normal lives.”

“Oh yeah, sure. The woman at the grocery store, she’s got these fangs. I should have guessed.” He snickered lightly, shaking his head. “Is that what you are?”

He wasn’t really grasping it all, but she kept going on the off chance it would register soon. “No, though we do need blood to survive, as well as some raw meat. It’s been a long time since my kind has preyed on innocent humans for food.”
His eyes went wide. All the blood in his body seemed to drain from his face. “Oh God, do you have any idea how that sounds?”

“Sorry, I know it’s hard for you to grasp all of this and try to understand it all.”

“No, no, you don’t. You have no idea.”

She waved her smoke away. “I think I do, somewhat. See, I didn’t learn what I really was until I was six,” she began. “As a child, I was secluded from everyone, everything on the outside world, and kept in my home. My parents were afraid they would take me out and I would do something to give them away. You know, conjure up a toy they wouldn’t buy me, make someone do something, change things, cause a minor storm with my tantrums, and so on. When I turned six, and I made Hunter disappear, they sat me down and explained what was happening to me.”

She could still remember it all, the terror the disbelief. “They explained to me that because I was demon, I couldn’t attend normal schools, I couldn’t go out, and I couldn’t have friends unless they were people that knew of our kind. The older I got, the harder it was for me to keep to myself, but that’s neither here nor there. I’m veering off the topic.”

She took a deep breath. “The fact is when my parents first told me what I was, it terrified me. I couldn’t look in a mirror for fear of what I might see. And I didn’t believe them, not completely, until I experimented. It hit me like a brick to the stomach. Once I got over my terror, I learned to accept it.” And detest it with every breath.

He rubbed his fingers along his temples.

“Okay, okay, tell me again. What are you, and your parents?”

She sighed. “Demons. My father was born in Hell. He is the great-great-grandson of
Satan. My mother is part witch: half demon, half human.”
He ran a hand through his hair, staring at her. “Satan, as in the big ugly red guy with horns and a tail?”

She nearly laughed. He had no idea how wrong he was. “That’s only a depiction of what people have decided he looks like. Believe me when I say they are so far off. He isn’t red, and he doesn’t have horns and a tail. He is so much worse.”

“Okay, let me see if I’m getting this.” He stood now, his legs a little more stable. “Your father is a demon, a descendant of Satan, the big bad?”

“Yes.”

“Your mother is a witch? Part demon, part human?”

“Yes, she didn’t learn what she was until she was my age. It’s a long story. I won’t get into that right now.”

“Thank you. I’m not sure how much data this fuzzy brain can handle right now. Okay, dad’s full-fledged demon, mom is demon-witch-human, and that would make you…?”

He turned to her, his blue eyes a little glassy.

“Three-quarters demon, one-quarter human/witch.” She saw his mind working. “I wanted to tell you, Scott, but it was forbidden. Being together is forbidden. That was why I had to stop seeing you. It’s forbidden for a demon to mate with a human.”

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Offer the Demon available at Decadent Publishing. www.decadentpublishing.com
Shiela’s website: www.shielasbooks.ca