CHAPTER 18

He had seemed so helpless in that moment, but had accepted her without any fear. It had been that way with all the Caretakers, an immediate kinship that they felt with the monsters of the house. But Mike had been different. He had been just as enamored of her as she had been with him, and she couldn't wait to feel his soft flesh against her fingertips.

She imagined that humans felt the same way about plush dolls as she did about them. They were so fragile and cute, she simply couldn't help it. This was a feeling that the others of her Clan had never shared, which was the main reason she was even here.

Pierre was the other.

Moving along the edge of the church steeple, she paused when she saw the gargoyle that had been built on the corner. It was like a devil, with large horns and fangs. The stone was new, maybe only a decade old.

Had it really been so long since she was here last? Time was an interesting construct for her. Her kind were capable of being still for months or even years if they wanted. It was like hibernation, and they would only awaken if threatened. The last time she had come here was after a fight with Emily, but she couldn't remember what the argument had been about.

At the time, she had been contemplating leaving the house because of something Emily had done. Still angry after arguing with her, Abella had come here to blow off some steam, ultimately deciding that the house was still her safest bet for survival.

She crouched along the edge, her eyes and ears on the people down below. A pair of women walked along the sidewalk, laughing at each other while they held hands. When she closed her eyes, the images came unbidden.

The French city of Marseille was sprawled out beneath her. The faint light of distant torches twinkled like fireflies, but her attention was squarely focused on the couple walking on the path beneath her.

They had met earlier, a nobleman and a young woman who lived down near the docks. If not for the class disparity, she wouldn't have paid them much attention, but the way he had spoken to her was far too familiar.

The man left after a brief discussion about the baked goods being sold in a nearby cart, but the woman took her sweet time picking out bread before leaving. Abella had waited, and been amply rewarded when the commoner met the noble in an alley next to a cobbler's shop. The two had embraced like lost lovers, only to be chased away by a stumbling drunk.

It had been easy to follow them. The night was dark, and there weren't many people out. Abella had moved along the building tops, making sure to keep the couple in view. The man led the woman to an isolated garden where they found a stone bench to sit on.

Abella gripped the edge of the roof she was on in anticipation, her fingers crushing the brick into powder that scattered on the breeze. The man sat on the edge of the bench and the woman on his lap with her back to him. He playfully grabbed her breasts through the thick fabric of her dress while licking her neck.

"C'mon, c'mon," Abella muttered, then licked her lips. It was very rare to get the opportunity to watch humans fuck, and it was usually through a window, or the view blocked by awnings. The woman was grinding her ass on the man's lap, and she could hear both their hearts thumping from where she sat.

The man ran his fingers through the woman's hair. Abella mimicked the move with her own hands, wondering how it felt to him. Her hair, being made of stone, was stiff and fairly unyielding. She had touched human hair before, but only on corpses. Humans were very squishy by nature, but their hair fascinated her most of all. What would it feel like to run her fingers through the thick locks of a woman? Or even a man?

Shivering in delight, her tail moved of its own accord and thumped on the stone of the building. Down below, the woman paused for a moment, her wide eyes scanning the area.

"Did you hear something?" she asked in French.

"I only have ears for you," he replied, then spun her around in his lap. He undid the laces of her dress to free her breasts and nibbled the pale flesh around her nipples. "Let me taste you," he muttered.

She acquiesced, her head tilting back. This gave Abella a phenomenal view, and she brought her tail around to put her foot on the tip. The last thing she wanted was to get so excited that she scared them off.

The woman was making noises that reminded Abella of a cat. They were gasps of joy and pleasure. Abella squeezed her own breasts out of curiosity, then frowned. It definitely didn't feel as good for her as it did the woman below.

The man was now fumbling with his belt, and the woman was doing something beneath her skirt. Clothing fascinated her, and she watched as the two of them shifted about for a moment before coming to a halt. They both let out moans of pleasure.

"Holy shit," she muttered. He was definitely inside her now, and the woman had arched her back. This wasn't just some chance meeting for either of them. Was she a servant of his? Or perhaps a secret mistress? Abella could see the ring on the man's finger. Marriage customs among humans were very quaint, but not always honored.