Into Temptation (A More Than Men Novella) by Kira Sinclair Page A

Clever, if cruel.
    The first and only dark angel to have been kicked out of Hell. What a way to be remembered.
    Brone laughed, a lonely sound only he could hear. Remembered? No one remembered him. Not anymore.
    And still he came here — or rather, places like here — to watch humans indulge in the sins that would lure them onto the slippery slope of damnation. A little enticement here, a little self-gratification there… These clubs were a breeding ground for demons bent on collecting souls. Humans made it so easy. It was as if they wanted to sell their souls to the devil.
    Perhaps they did. He shrugged. It was no longer his concern. He did enjoy watching the process, though.
    Even now several demons shifted through the crowd. There were thousands of demons scattered across the earth, but they tended to congregate where the easiest souls lurked. He watched three of them now. Maybe that’s why he was here, to be reminded that there was more to the world than sensory overload and satisfaction deprivation. A touch of home even Lucifer hadn’t been able to take away from him.
    They were beautiful, as all angels were. Somewhere along the way a myth had been born that demons sported horns, forked tongues and scaly black skin. Probably some overwhelmed mother intent on keeping her children in bed at night. What most people seemed to forget — or didn’t care to have learned in the first place — was that the majority of demons were fallen angels, cast out of Heaven with Lucifer.
    Perfectly formed, they possessed the same striking features and war-honed bodies as their lighter counterparts. Hell, they even had wings, although instead of solid white his were tipped in a red so dark it resembled spilled blood. That was one way to tell them apart.
    Another was the eyes. Angels of Heaven were all that was good, light and self-sacrificing. Perfect and pure, they were also as deadly as any demon.
    The fallen were everything dark — anger, greed, hedonism and self-satisfaction. It was in the eyes, that glitter of temptation nothing could hide. Humans simply never looked close enough. Or didn’t want to believe what they saw. Either way the result was the same.
    Humans made it easy to read their innermost desires. Once you had that knowledge, providing the bait was easy, the result predictable.
    Brone watched for hours, standing unmoving in the center of the room. It wasn’t like he had anywhere else to be.
    Three demons worked around him, two men and a woman. The woman, flaming red hair a shade straight from hellfire, slunk across the dance floor. Her eyes were half-closed, her mouth half-open, her body simulating sex as she rubbed against anything she came in contact with. Man or woman, it mattered nothing to her. They were all putty in her hands.
    She touched and teased, zeroing in on the minds and thoughts of those at the club looking for an easy, beautiful and quick conquest. She gladly obliged. He counted at least five humans — four men and one woman — she’d begin to collect tonight.
    Sex. It was never the goal but rather a very effective tool. An easy way to control. Once the body was conquered, the mind, will and soul were fairly easy to take.
    She would do well for Lucifer tonight.
    With an apathy born of hundreds of lonely years, Brone turned his attention to another. The male — blond, tall and distinctly resembling the statue of a Greek god — stood in the corner of the room. Dressed from head to toe in black, a dark foil to his light complexion, hair and eyes, he leaned nonchalantly against the wall. Arms crossed beneath his chest and his head dropped back, anyone caring to pay attention would see a man bored with the entire night.
    But as he watched, Brone saw the truth. People slid up to him, handed over money and received whatever their hearts desired — meth, coke, crack, weed, pills, X…anything that would subvert their inhibitions and leave them open with no will of their own.
    Drugs were both an easier