Chapter 33 - I Think I'm Gonna Propose
9:20pm - Bo's Place
"I think I'm gonna propose," Bo said, after she finally paused the movie she and Kenzi were watching.
Hearing that, Kenzi frowned and slowly turned to face her best friend. At first she was just trying to figure out whether Bo was serious. After staring at Bo for a few seconds and realizing that her best friend wasn't chuckling or giving her a teasing look at all, Kenzi gasped with her eyes wide open. She desperately wanted to say something, but forgot that she still had a mouthful of food. She ended up choking and coughing hard while running to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
"Next time you tell me such big news, try not to kill me!" Kenzi exclaimed after she eventually caught her breath. Before Bo could say anything, she continued, "you're gonna propose? To Detective Bitchiness? When? Where? How? Where's the ring? You do have a ring, right? Let me see the ring!"
"Gee, Kenz, calm down. I haven't bought one yet," Bo replied.
"Well you gotta have a ring!"
"I am gonna, when I come up with a plan."
"Plan's good. Plan's great," Kenzi said. "So how are you gonna do it?"
"God, I have no idea, Kenzi," Bo replied. "I think I'm gonna go talk to Trick first."
"Why? You need his permission?"
"No, well, yeah, I do need to tell him before I propose. But my point is, I don't know anything about proposing to a Valkyrie. I mean, what if I'm supposed to do it in a certain way, like they have a ritual or something like that?"
"What... like you can't marry her unless you defeat her in a sword fight or something?"
Bo paused and thought about the possibility of her defeating Tamsin in a fair sword fight. Then she huffed and said, "let's hope not."
- Meanwhile at the Dal -
Tamsin had been enjoying her cold beer and a pool game with Dyson, when she suddenly put down her cue stick and said, "I think I'm gonna propose."
"Oh?" Dyson asked with his eyebrows raised. "When?"
"Shit, I don't know... soon?" Tamsin murmured.
Dyson nodded. He laid his cue against the wall, before he asked, "you think she's gonna say yes?"
"Oh, bitch's gonna say yes," Tamsin smirked. "She knows too damn well that I won't take no for an answer."
"Good to know," Dyson said. "So, are you gonna do it the normal way, or the Valkyrie way?"
Tamsin paused there. She raised her bottle, but realized that it was already empty. Lowering her hand, she tapped the bottom of the bottle on the table for a while, before she said, "I don't know, Dyson. I haven't decided yet. I mean… the normal way works. It works for everybody else, and I don't see a problem with it-"
"-but, the Valkyrie way is how it supposed to be when a Valkyrie proposes."
"Yeah, 'cause when a Valkyrie commits, it's truly a commitment for life, and the Valkyrie's way makes sure of it," Tamsin said.
"You don't think Bo wants a commitment for life? Or, you don't think she can?" Dyson asked.
"No, it's just... I don't want her to feel cornered like she has no choice but to accept it so she won't break my heart or something," Tamsin replied. "You know her, Dyson. She'd try everything she could to make things work, then when things go south, she'll think it's her fault, and it'll tear her apart."
"Right... but, why would you think things would go south someday?" Dyson said.
Tamsin stayed quiet for a while, before she said, "Either way, I need a damn ring. Do you know a good jeweler in town? The kind that has decent collections but won't rip an arm and a leg off you?"
"No. Really, no," Dyson said. Then he suggested, "Why don't you go talk to Trick? Maybe he has a friend or two who has the right ring for you."
Tamsin nodded. She was about to say something else, but was interrupted by her phone and Dyson's phone, that started beeping simultaneously.
"I guess our night off is over, partner," Tamsin said after reading the text.
"Yep, and you probably should call Bo and tell her that her mother's been arrested and charged with murder."
11:55pm - Police Station
"Hello dear," Aife greeted Bo when she saw the younger Fae walk into the interrogation room. Although cuffed to the table, she still managed to stay calm and confident. "Are you here to interrogate me, or to rescue me?"
"Depends on what you've really done, mother," Bo replied as she sat down on the other side of the table.
"I've done nothing, other than having too much fun with my male harem these days," Aife shrugged.
"Right, let's talk about this too much fun, shall we?" Tamsin said with a smirk on her face, as she walked into the interrogation room with a case file folder in her hand. "Four deaths in your mansion, all young, healthy males. By too much fun, did you mean you accidentally sucked them dry?"
Aife stared at Tamsin for a few seconds, before she huffed and turned to Bo. "I don't like this one," she said. "Too much attitude."
Bo rolled her eyes. "We are not here to talk about who I date, mom," she said. "You need to tell us exactly what happened to them, unless you want to end up in jail. I don't think they will serve you young, hot guys on a daily basis in there."
"Well, here's my answer," Aife replied as she leaned towards the table. "I don't know what happened, and I certainly did not kill them."
"We'll need a little more than that," Tamsin said. "They all died in your mansion, with evidence of being fed off by a Succubus. You didn't call the police, nor did you alert any of their family members... until a servant of yours found the bodies and called 911 in terror. It'll be quite hard to convince the jury that you didn't do it, with just that ' "you certainly did not kill them" ' testimony."
"Listen, blondie," Aife hissed as she stared into Tamsin's eyes. "It's true that I've killed plenty before. I've assassinated the Dark elders, and I've slaughtered enemies during the Great Fae war. But, as a Succubus, over a hundred years old, I know damn well how to feed off someone without killing him. Besides, if I did kill them, I sure as hell would have taken care of their bodies without anyone noticing."
"Then why didn't you call the police? Too afraid that they'd pin it on you?"
"Oh, please, like I'd be afraid of a pair of little handcuffs," Aife said, shaking her head while pulling the handcuffs lightly. "I didn't even know they were dead! I have like over a hundred guys in my mansion. All can come and go of their own will. I don't keep leashes on them, well, at least not every one of them."
Knowing the conversation was going nowhere, Bo sighed. She paused there, wondering if she should ask about her brother first. Eventually she said, "alright, maybe you can answer another question for me."
"Better not be about something boring."
"I want to know everything about my brother," Bo demanded, her eyes staring at Aife's. She noticed that when her mother heard her words, her body went rigid, and the look on her face suddenly became serious. She waited for Aife to tell her something, or to refuse to give her anything, but the elder Fae did neither. She sat there, holding her hands together while biting her bottom lip for a long time. Then she opened her arms a little as she leaned back into the chair. "Clear me," she said, "then I'll tell you everything I know about your brother."
2:00am - Tamsin's Truck
"I don't think she did it," Bo said as she buckled up. "She had no reason to."
"It's not her," Tamsin replied. "No way she would have killed them without dumping the bodies somewhere. She's not that stupid. Plus, the autopsy doesn't quite add up for a Succubus feeding accident."
"You mean the unexplained suffocation for all victims?"
"Well, overfed by a sex demon can cause suffocation, when the Chi is drawn out too fast, but an experienced Succubus like your mother... I doubt she'd make such a rookie mistake," Tamsin said, frowning. "Also, the look on their faces… was peaceful, rather than a look of ecstasy. Ecstasy is what you usually see on a victim killed by a Succubus."
"Yeah, but according to the coroner's report, they did have sex with her before death," Bo said. "We'll need some hard evidence to prove that she's not the killer."
"Let's go talk to her boy toys first," Tamsin said. "Maybe one of them has seen or heard something."
5:20pm - Aife's Mansion
When Bo and Tamsin entered the mansion gate on the poolside, they saw dozens of good looking guys having fun there, with gourmet food and drinks everywhere. Some of them looked at Tamsin and Bo curiously, and a few of them showed a little animosity, but most of them didn't act like they cared at all.
"Wow, this must be paradise for you, huh?" Tamsin said as she smiled teasingly at Bo.
"Then you and I have a very different definition of paradise," Bo replied, smiling back. She stood there for a while, looking at the beautiful mansion, the perfect landscape, and all the other expensive things in there, before she said, "how the hell could she afford all these things?"
"You tell me, Miss I-make-people-do-shit-by-touching-them," Tamsin said in a chuckle.
"Yeah, I don't think that's how I should use my superpower," Bo said. "Let's start asking questions, see if anyone here has heard or seen anything."
5:55pm - The Kitchen
"I think she just lost control and killed them accidentally, ya know," a girl who worked in the kitchen told Bo and Tamsin. "She has orgies in the living room like every night. She probably overdid it a little and…."
"You think she did it?" Bo asked.
The girl shrugged before she carried a basket of vegetables to the other side of the kitchen and came back. "Well, you know, she's a sex demon. It's what they do. They like to have fun. Then they have too much fun and end up sucking someone dry." She paused for a second or two, before she glanced at Bo with a smile and said, "no offense, cutie."
"None taken," Bo rolled her eyes.
"Anyway, if you are asking for my opinion, I think she did," the girl said. "Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I have a lot of work to do here."
6:20pm - The Pool Side
"It's definitely one of us," one of Aife's boys said after he heard Bo and Tamsin's questions. "Well, by us I mean me excluded," he quickly added.
"Why would you think that?"
"Oh, please. Everyone here wants to be picked for the orgy in the living room, and only so many can actually get access to it. Jealousy can make you do stuff."
"Are you jealous?" Bo asked.
"Me? Nah. I'm one of her favorites," the guy waved his hand like what Bo had said was ridiculous. "Ask around, if you don't believe me. I get picked every night."
"Can you point out the jealous ones to us then?" Tamsin asked.
"Oh, there are just too many. I'd say most of them are jealous."
"Great," Bo murmured.
"So," the guy said after he downed a drink. "Is she gonna be out soon?"
"We don't know yet. There may not be any fun activities with her for a while."
The guy shrugged. Then he turned to Bo and gave her a wink. "Well, for me, it doesn't have to be with her."
"I am so flattered, but I don't share food with my mother," Bo replied.
6:40pm - The Garden
"It's a ghost," the gray haired gardener whispered to Bo and Tamsin after he put down his pruning shears.
"A ghost?" Bo asked, her eyebrows raised.
"Yes, hundreds of years ago there was this witch, who got burnt alive here. Right before she died, she placed a curse on this whole place-"
"Wait... I thought you said it was a ghost," Tamsin interrupted him.
"Yes, the ghost of the dead witch!"
"Emmm… pretty sure you said she cursed the whole place, not that she haunts the whole place," Bo corrected him.
"Yes! She cursed the whole place!"
"So, which one is it? A ghost? Or a curse?" Tamsin asked impatiently.
"The ghost of a witch who cursed this place! Are you two listening to me at all?" the gardener yelled at them angrily. Then he shook his head, grunting something as he walked away, losing his patience and not wanting to deal with them anymore.
8:50pm - Outside the Mansion
"Alright, let's see what we've got," Bo said as she walked out from her mother's mansion with Tamsin after they finished questioning the people inside. "A lot of them think that my mother did it. Then a bunch of them think that one of her boy toys got mad jealous and killed them. Then there were theories of a ghost/curse, government clean up job because those four dudes knew too much, an epidemic outbreak, an invisible assassin-"
"-and don't forget that guy who swore it was the aliens who did it, 'cause he thinks that the living room is the exact spot where the alien ships pick up the souls of the chosen ones," Tamsin added.
"Oh, and that lady who claimed the deaths were results of the unbalanced Yin and Yang Chi in the living room, and quote unquote, it's not where you should have sex, and that's why the unbalanced Chi is extremely harmful."
"Wonder how much extremely harmful Chi is flowing around in your place right now," Tamsin said with a chuckle.
Bo giggled as she gave the Valkyrie a light kiss. Then she said, "so, do you think any of the theories may actually be worth checking out?"
"Nope," Tamsin replied. "We've already know it's not your mother. A jealous boy toy would have killed your mom's favorite, not some dudes she can't even remember. Not a ghost since I haven't sensed anything. A curse would have killed a lot more. Do you even need me to comment on the others?"
"Then I guess we are back to square one," Bo grunted.
10:20pm - Bo's Place
"Maybe we should stop focusing on who, and start thinking about why," Bo said after she finished reading the case files for the third time. "Why these four? Why not the others? And why suddenly stop the killing?"
"Well as far as I can tell, other than participating in your mother's late night orgy, they had no connections to each other," Tamsin said, shrugging. "And, I think it's time for my little slave to bring me some ice cream," she added, winking at Bo.
"Since when are you allowed to have slaves?" Bo asked in a chuckle, before she got up and went to the kitchen.
"Since I started banging you?" Tamsin said playfully. She followed Bo to the kitchen and slammed her to the fridge door.
"I thought we were in the middle of solving a serious crime, and you wanted some ice cream for your five minute break," Bo said as she grabbed the blonde's waist.
"I think we should test the unbalanced Chi theory, and see if-" Tamsin whispered, her lips lightly touching Bo's ear, "-it is extremely harmful to have sex here."
Bo swallowed hard when those soft lips touched her neck. She closed her eyes and gasped, throwing her head back. It was then something suddenly occurred to her. "Wait, the orgy..." she murmured, stopping Tamsin from moving further down.
"If you wanted an orgy you should have said so when we were at your mother's mansion," Tamsin teased.
"No," Bo said. "The orgy. All four victims were chosen for the orgy right before they died, and no one has died since my mother got arrested. Maybe it really has something to do with the orgy?"
"Because of the unbalanced Yin and Yang Chi?" Tamsin frowned. "But, why those four? Why not the others? And... I think your mother has been having orgies there for a few months now, why hasn't anyone else died before this?"
Bo paused for a few seconds, biting her bottom lip. "The place. The living room!" she exclaimed. "That alien guy said that no one died before because the orgy used to be in the tent in the backyard, and it wasn't the targeted spot."
"So... now my little slave is buying the alien theory?" Tamsin asked, unable to hold back her chuckles.
Bo rolled her eyes. "My point is, maybe it's a matter of where. Maybe there's something wrong with the living room," she said.
"Well, let's go check it out then," Tamsin replied. She pinned Bo back to the fridge door, and tucked her hands under her tanktop. "I'm gonna have my ice cream first though," she said, "on you."
2:00am - Aife's Mansion
When Bo and Tamsin arrived at Aife's mansion, a small group of people were having a party at the poolside. They waved at Bo, inviting her over, but she refused.
"Gee, don't these people have any loyalty at all?" Bo complained.
"You do realize that you are asking for loyalty from the harem of a Succubus, right?" Tamsin smirked.
"Succubi can be very loyal, and so can her harem," Bo retorted, her index finger pressing on Tamsin's chest.
Tamsin smiled as she raised Bo's hand and kissed her fingers. She gazed into Bo's eyes under the bright moonlight, unconsciously caressing the brunette's ring finger. She kissed it, before she said, "now, the living room."
2:15am - The Living Room
Bo found that the light switch in the living room wasn't working when she entered, so she turned on the flashlight on her cellphone. The first thing she saw was someone lying on the floor right next to the support post, with another person sitting ontop of him. The person on top turned to Bo angrily, visibly upset at being disturbed.
"Oh my God, we are so sorry," Bo said and turned off the flashlight. She grabbed Tamsin's hand in the darkness and turned around, heading towards the door.
Just when they were about to walk out of the room, the person who was lying on the floor let out a choked groan. At first, Bo thought it was just a groan of pleasure, but when the word choke popped into her head, she immediately recalled that all four victims were suffocated to death. She turned around and looked at the two people again, and realized that the woman was sitting on the guy's chest, and that the guy was struggling while letting out muffled grunts.
"Hey!" Bo exclaimed as she pulled her dagger out.
"I'll take care of her, you go take care of him," Tamsin said before she threw herself at the woman.
Bo rushed to the guy, and tried to get him up, but noticed that he was still choking even when the woman was no longer sitting on him. "Hey! Hey, you're safe now. Breathe," she exclaimed as she grabbed the guy's shoulders. She shook him and pat him on his face but the guy wasn't responding at all. He had his eyes closed and his mouth open. Bo could see his eyeballs rapidly moving from left to right under his eyelids, like he was in a dream and unable to wake up.
"He's not waking up!" Bo yelled in panic after she tried everything but failed.
"Well, try harder!" Tamsin yelled back as she fought the old lady.
"It's like he's dreaming or something and he can't get out of it!" Bo exclaimed as she slapped the guy's face hard.
"He's dreaming? Dreaming and suffocation, I think it's-" Tamsin stopped when she took a punch on her face. She punched back, and knocked the woman down to the floor.
"It's what?!"
"It's...it's a-" Tamsin said as she twisted the woman's arms behind her back and cuffed her. "Fuck! Forget about the damn name, just wiggle his toes, or bite his thumb!"
"I'm gonna go with toe wiggling!" Bo replied.
Like a magic trick, the guy immediately woke up. He rubbed his eyes and raised himself on his elbows with a confused look on his face. "Did I fall asleep?" he murmured after staring at Bo for a few seconds. "I think I had a dream."
"Yeah, you did, and it's a pretty nasty one."
4:00am - Outside the Mansion
"Bangungot, yes that's it. She's a Bangungot!" Tamsin finally remembered the type of Fae she had just arrested when other police officers arrived. The Bangungot hissed at her in rage before she got dragged into the police car and escorted away.
"As a baby Fae, I'm gonna ask-"
"-what is a Bangungot? Old bitches who sit on you and suffocate you if you sleep anywhere near their post."
"Posts? You mean the support post in the mansion?"
"Yeah. They live in trees, away from us. However if that tree is made into a support post for a house, they move with it, and attack whoever sleeps near it by sitting on the victim's chest till the victim suffocates," Tamsin explained. "They induce dreams too, so the victim won't wake up, unless someone bites his thumb or wiggles his toes."
"Sounds like you have dealt with them before."
"Yeah, I have, a long time ago. Back then they never dumped the bodies though. Had this one left those bodies right next to the post, I'd have figured it out a lot sooner."
"I guess my mother is off the hook then," Bo said. "And, she can have her Succubus heaven back soon."
- Several Days Later in Aife's Mansion -
"I can't believe you don't want to stay here with me for a while," Aife said to Bo as she sipped her drink. Then she flirted with the guy who served her drink, before she continued, "It's fun living here, Bo. They'll do whatever you tell them to do."
"If I wanted that I'd have my own mansion, mother," Bo replied. "I'm happy with what I have right now."
"That Valkyrie of yours? Pfft," Aife scoffed. "If you like Valkyries, just go ahead and have a house full of them. It'll be much more fun! Seriously, when are you gonna learn to be a real Succubus, my dear?"
"I think that ship has sailed when you put me in a basket on the doorstep of a human family," Bo retorted.
"Whatever," Aife waved her hand. She winked at several guys who walked by them, and said, "your life bores me."
"I think it'll bore you more if I tell you that I'm gonna propose to her soon, huh?" Bo said.
Aife rolled her eyes. "Commitments are for losers, Bo," she said. "but, well, it's your choice if you want to have a boring as fuck life."
"Not here to discuss my choice of life with you anyway," Bo shrugged. "So, my brother?"
Aife let out a deep breath, and put down the empty glass in her hand. She paused for a while, before she eventually said, "Do you believe that there are people in this world who are just born evil?"
