His lips tightened angrily. Why wouldn't she go out with him? Just because she saw him peeking in her window one night. He raked a frustrated hand through his greasy, matted hair. That was a sign of devotion! Why couldn't she see that? The restraining order was completely unnecessary. He would never hurt her.

Unless, he thought, she wanted me to. He pictured her naked body, tied to a bed, her white skin pale and vulnerable, waiting for the Lash of his belt, writhing with desire. The idea made him hard inside his grimy jeans, dirtied from hours spent tracing ancient sigils on the floor.

Well, she would learn her mistake soon enough, Pete thought. As soon as he had completed the ritual which would bring the spirit of passion into the circle, Katrina would be unable to resist him. The succubus would enter her mind, overwhelming her weak and feeble defenses. When she woke, she would see her master standing above her. They would be together, as God had meant for them to be.

He opened a leather-bound book and leafed through the brittle pages of the grimoire. It had taken him weeks to find and verify its authenticity, and even longer to wrest it away from its reluctant seller, despite his willingness to pay any price and the speed the internet gave to such transactions these days. He studied the detailed illustrations and compared them to the designs which he had so painstakingly inscribed into the floor of the warehouse. He nodded, satisfied. ALL was in order.

He drew a sharp knife and nicked the skin at his wrist. Blood dripped into the circle. In response, a low, moaning wind stirred the dank air of the warehouse, scattering leaves, dust and bits of shredded plastic.

He walked counter-clockwise around the perimeter of the circle, chanting in the dim Light.

“Althea,” he intoned in Latin.

“First daughter of Lilith, who was the first wife of Adam. Lilith, who spurned God's will. Lilith, who would not submit to Adam's authority and mated with demons. May your daughter heed my call. Althea. Hear me. Obey me. Come to me."

He could feel the power gathering. The hair on his arms stood up, and the flames of the candles flared. Inside the circle, Katrina stirred uneasily, struggling towards sluggish consciousness.

“Inhabit my beloved," he continued, his clumsy tongue fighting the unfamiliar Language.

“Turn her heart towards me. Let us be one.”

He completed the first circuit, and switched to Greek. Then to Farsi,

Hebrew, and on the fifth and final journey around the circle, Aramaic.

Above him, dust and litter spiraled in a vortex. The flames of the candles surged upwards, bright as spotlights.

“Be us now whole!" he screamed in English, caught up in ecstatic fervor. He smote his hands together, and the sound echoed through the building. "Be us now one!"

Two things happened simultaneously. The doors of the building burst open, letting in the pale May twilight. Large men in dark blue uniforms were outlined in the light.

"Freeze!" one shouted.

“Hands in the air!"

At the same time a presence struck his mind. He flinched and sank to his knees, cradling his head, which suddenly seemed swollen and full, too small to contain the two souls within it. Undeniably, overwhelmingly female in tone, the new spirit filled his being with a bright radiance which made him want to cower and beg forgiveness.

And it was pissed.