chapter 5

Penny recoiled with a start. She stared at the High Inquisitor in disbelief, looking for signs of falsehood in his face. There was a noise in her ears, maybe her hearing was deceiving her? Maybe she was still asleep and imagining it?

"They say that fallen angels are like poison. I will take this poison and make my antidote out of it. I will feed my passion with you, and it will subside. I will take you as a trophy that ceases to be interesting as soon as it is in my hands. If you refuse, I'll feed you to demons or leave you to vampires. If you try to escape, I'll punish you," the High Inquisitor said, making no attempt to touch Penny again. "Nod if you understand.

"Name," Penny said hoarsely, staring into the High Inquisitor's face. "I need a name.

"Isn't it enough for you?" The High Inquisitor snapped at her again. "Isn't it enough for you?!" Not only did you do to me, do you want more?

"It won't work otherwise," Penny said quietly, looking up into his eyes. "Otherwise, I won't be able to help you." To get rid of ailments and delusions. To make you forget about me.

The High Inquisitor was silent, breathing heavily. At last he straightened up and stepped back.

"Ethan."

Lowering his eyes, he hurriedly tugged at the sleeve of his jacket, but it was too late: Penny could already see the blood-soaked bandage on his wrist. My heart skipped a beat. Vampire! After all, he was able to bite the High Inquisitor! Penny looked up at him.

"It's in your interest to make me strong again," he said. "I'm weak now because of you. Because of the filth that you carry within you, with which you poison me. Spare me this. Stop it.

The High Inquisitor turned on his heels and walked out of the infirmary, and Penny stared after him for a long time.

***

Right away

Of course, Penny lied about the name. She did not cast any charms, she herself was charmed. But it was pleasant to think of the High Inquisitor as Ethan, to keep that name on his tongue like a sweet secret.

Ethan touched her below, stared at her without looking up, and then suddenly rushed at Penny, covered her with his body. He squeezed his head with both hands and kissed him - he just bit into his mouth, imperiously and rudely, crushing his lips, chattering his teeth and sliding his tongue inside.

Penny whimpered at the heaviness, at the pain with which her skin responded to the touch of her rough camping uniform, belt and holster. She pressed even tighter, hugging Ethan back. She can do anything today, she can do anything today. Tomorrow she will be kicked out of this tent, but today she can do it.

"I've wanted you for so long," Ethan muttered as if in delirium, holding Penny close to him, lifting her over her sleeping bag and stroking her ass. "I wanted to. A receptacle of vice. Angel. Damned.

She wanted to say, "My name is Penny," but then Ethan's fingers slid down, touched her between her legs, where she felt embarrassed and wet, and Penny screamed, clutching at his shoulders harder. She was led, pain, shame, pleasure and greed mixed under the skin into an explosive cocktail, she wanted to snatch this night and this intimacy for herself to the maximum. Penny looked up, met the drunken blue eyes, and kissed Ethan. The High Inquisitor, who gave his blood to the vampire to save the fallen angel Penny.

For a second, Ethan seemed confused, his lips were soft, delicious, warm, and Penny kissed them, begging him to open up. And then Ethan grabbed her by the back of the head and slammed her back into her sleeping bag, kissing her as if he wanted to kill her. It slid down to the neck, to the pit between the collarbones, and to the nipples, leaving painful bites in its path, which made Penny's toes tighten and everything inside shivered with sweet spasms.

Probably, it was a sin. I guess what was happening now, what Penny was doing herself and what she was allowing to be done to herself, was proof that she had been banished from heaven for a reason. Penny didn't care.

Ethan kissed her stomach and was now biting the tense muscles under her skin, stroking her between her legs, forcing them to shamelessly spread them apart, asking for more. He whispered something, and as she listened, Penny could make out the words about banishing the filth.

Penny lifted her hips, just so she wouldn't hear anything more about how this was nothing more than a ritual to evict the evil spirits from their bodies and minds.

He growled, rose to his knees and reached for his belt, unfastened the buckle with a clink, and squeezed his fly.

Realizing what was about to happen, Penny froze in fright.

— No, I don't. Wait! She knelt down and looked Ethan in the eye. "You need to undress." Otherwise, it won't work.

"What?" Ethan's hand rested on Penny's neck. "Are you still going to command me?!"

Penny was silent, and so was Ethan. He was breathing heavily, but finally let go of her. He dropped his hands at the seams.