Demon Slave (12 page)

As they entered, Marik noted how quickly
Nadua’s mood changed. A sense of unease floated from her.

“
You fear the caves that
much?”

“
The Cyrellians have many
stories regarding these caves.”

Marik snorted. “Those people sure love their
legends.”

“
What does that
mean?”

“
Well, from what I can
tell, they’ve painted a horrible picture of demons in the minds of
everyone.”

“
That’s because demons
are...” Nadua trailed off, as if suddenly remembering that he was
one.

“
I’m not so bad, am
I?”

Nadua shrugged, a slight curve to her lips.
“I’m holding off on my judgment for now.”

“
I’ll bet the stories have
gotten progressively worse over the years, probably to scare
children into going to bed. Right?”

“
It’s possible.”

“
Then it is possible that
the stories about these caves are overblown, as well. Don’t you
agree?”

“
You’re just trying to make
me feel better about having to sleep here.”

“
Maybe. Is it
working?”

“
A little.”

Suddenly, Nadua jerked her head toward the
trees, as if she caught sight of something. A light breeze carried
the scent to Marik a second later. On instinct, he pulled Nadua
against him and twisted his body to shield her. Pain speared him
when two sharp objects embedded themselves into his back. Cold
objects.

Nadua gasped. “Kaiylemi.”

Was that a person? He didn’t have a chance
to ask. Just as another sharp item found his calf, the Edge took
over. He managed to pull Nadua farther into the cave and set her
behind a large boulder along with their sack of supplies. When she
looked at him, her eyes widened in fear. He nearly growled in
frustration at that, but the urge to protect her swallowed him.

Following the scent, Marik raced into the
forest. He sniffed and realized there was more than one that he
hunted. Three at least.

Something flew toward him and his shoulder
was pushed back as it made contact. Removing the weapon from his
flesh, he tossed it angrily at a thick trunk. It shattered on
impact. A shaft of ice?

There was movement behind the trees. Marik
shot forward, ready to use his claws on those who threatened Nadua.
Whoever it was, they were fast. Dodging through thick trunks, Marik
attempted to gain ground. A couple more ice daggers shot at him,
but this time he knocked them away.

Just ahead he heard a roar followed by a
yelp, and then silence. Marik came to a drastic stop as he nearly
tripped over a lifeless Cyrellian male body. Four deep gashes
marred his chest, and his head was twisted unnaturally. Still
gripped in the man’s hand was a sharp piece of ice. Scouring the
surroundings, Marik tried to scent if someone else was near, but
there was nothing.

In the distance, Nadua screamed. Like a
blanket, the Edge wrapped is mind so that only a single thought
pushed his legs into action.

Protect
Nadua
.

* * *

Nadua put her hands in the air as the glossy
tip of the sword poked at her. Soon after Marik had disappeared
into the woods, two men had appeared. Nomads. She’d heard Marik
roaring and feared the Kaiylemi had killed him with the ice
arrows.

While one Cyrellian held her at the end of
his blade, another rummaged through the makeshift fur sack.

“
Just grab the whole thing
and let’s get out of here! I don’t want that creature coming
back.”

The one pilfering the pack replied, “Dedrick
should be able to take care of him.”

Neither Cyrellian noticed the shadowy figure
growing behind them.

Nadua gulped at the sight of Marik’s slow
approach. When the men finally saw him, their attention shifted.
Nadua used the distraction and kicked the man with the sword, right
in the jaw. He stumbled back into Marik, who was like a monster
from a thousand nightmares.

Unmitigated rage rolled off him in palpable
waves. Nadua managed to turn away just as Marik snapped the man’s
neck. The sword he’d been holding crashed to the rocky ground. The
second man only made a soft gurgling noise. Next came the sound of
the bodies being dragged away. Braving a look, she realized she was
alone.

Nadua didn’t know why she couldn’t watch.
She’d killed men herself, plenty. Would again, if she needed to.
But seeing Marik in that wild state had seemed wrong.

Her heavy breathing echoed off the thick
walls, her body frozen in shock, but when Marik reappeared in the
mouth of the cave she reached for the sword. He was still in a
state of bloodlust and was, what she could only describe as,
stalking her.

“
Marik?”

His head tilted to the side, as if he didn’t
recognize his own name.

What would he do to her?

Unfortunately, she knew the answer to that
question by the way his desperate gaze was traveling her body.

Ominously, he inched forward and she rose to
her full height, lifting the sword toward him. Determined red eyes
scanned the metal before sweeping back to her face. His expression
said, “I am getting past that sword.” And he probably would, but
Nadua wasn’t the type to become prey to a crazed demon without a
fight.

He took another step. Nadua swung the blade,
forcing him back. His eyes narrowed.

“
That’s right, demon. I’m
not so easy, am I?” As soon as she said it, she knew she made a
dangerous mistake. At the word “demon”, a fearsome sound rumbled up
from within him. When he moved again, Nadua tried to strike, but he
was much faster than she. He had her down on her back in
seconds.

She expected pain next, but when none came
she peeked open an eye. Marik was gazing down at her, his features
unreadable. As if trying not to alarm her—as it was, her heart was
ready to burst from her chest—one callus hand unhurriedly reached
for her face. Afraid it would provoke him, Nadua stifled a flinch.
His thumb caressed her cheek while the rest of his fingers threaded
through her hair.

Nadua was stunned by the gentleness, when he
looked as though ready to tear the flesh from her throat with his
lengthening fangs.

Even after she agreed to journey with him,
she’d been in constant fear of encountering this side of him, with
no way to defend herself. The Cyrellians called it the Demon’s
Madness, where a demon loses all sanity and is no more than a
primitive beast.

Well, they were right. Marik looked beastly.
But she didn’t think he was going to hurt her. Then he shifted his
hips, giving her a better idea of what he had in mind. Her throat
went dry.

Earlier, while they were traveling the
forest, she had to work to keep her eyes from drifting his way. It
was hard not to marvel at his strong, fluid movements. He oozed
power. And every time he looked at her too, it had felt as though
he were consuming her with his eyes.

And she had liked it.

So long has it been, since a man looked at
her in that way. It made her stomach flip and her mind drift to all
the things she could do with him. Things she often feared she’d
never experience again. For the last few centuries, Nadua had tried
to force herself to forget what it was like to be with a man. How
good it could be.

Could she trust Marik not to hurt her?

Just as his eyes dipped to her lips, his
hand moved to cup the back of her neck. Nadua’s heart rate spiked
uncontrollably, while the rest of her body relaxed for him.

She knew it was going to happen, was ready
for it, but when he pulled her to his lips, nothing could have
prepared her for the heavy rush of desire that slammed through her.
Her breasts grew sensitive against the material of her shirt.
Liquid gathered between her legs. Her head turned to deepen the
contact.

Then his kiss, slow and testing at first,
became something more. Bodies pressing deeper, his tongue delved to
meet hers. Nadua answered back in kind, lost to the moment. She’d
never been shy about things like this; her only apprehension was
that Marik wasn’t himself. He was animalistic and
unpredictable.

And oh, how she loved it.

Her body arched when his tongue trailed the
line of her jaw to play with that sensitive area of flesh at her
neckline. When he pushed his hips closer to hers, she felt his
budding erection. Her body clenched in anticipation.

But then his hands grew impatient, roaming
the thick fur of her outfit, he clutched a handful of the material
as though he were ready to rip it from her.

She gasped, “Marik, no!” If he tore her
furs, she’d have no way of repairing them.

Body shaking with need, he stilled and his
molten eyes found hers. Their normal color slowly started to bleed
back into the red. After a moment longer, they were once more fully
green.

He eased back. A shadow of regret lingered
behind his eyes. Letting go of her completely, he crouched a few
feet away. When he looked her over, as though seeing her for the
first time, there was no more heat in his gaze. “Did they hurt you?
Did...I...” He trailed off, his unspoken words lingering between
them.

“
No. I’m fine, really.” She
reached out for him but he shot to his feet. To avoid her touch?
“Are
you
okay?”
She noticed a small trail of blood at his shoulder. The Kaiylemi
must have gotten him.

Instead of answering her question, he said,
“I’m sorry I frightened you. It won’t happen again.” It didn’t
sound like he believed his own words. He looked at his hands then,
as if suddenly remembering something. “Tell me, what kind of animal
can claw a man to death?”

Besides you?

“
I...don’t think there are
any on Undewla. Why?”

At length he said, “Something had gotten to
one of them before me.”

His concerned expression was alarming.
Whatever a demon feared would not bode well for her.

“
I’m going to search for
something for us to eat while it’s still light. I don’t sense
anyone else near. Will you be alright here?”

“
Of course.” She reclaimed
the hilt of the sword.

He nodded and then hesitated, looking as
though he was contemplating making her tag along with him. “You
won’t run?”

Nadua tilted her head. “I have nowhere to
run to.”

“
And if you
did?”

Her brows drew together as she considered
his question. There was something deeper in it. “I don’t know,” she
finally offered. “This is unlike any situation I’ve ever been in.”
The last few days played back in her mind. “You may think abducting
me was the right thing to do, but can you honestly protect the both
of us out here? What if there had been more than one Kaiylemi just
now? And what if you lose yourself to that madness again? Could you
keep yourself from hurting me next time?”

His features grew dark, and she feared her
questioning had upset him.

“
I won’t hurt you,” he
grated. A sliver of uncertainty crossed his face, but was quickly
replaced with determination. “I won’t.”

“
Are you trying to convince
me? Or yourself?”

She waited for an answer, but, fists
clenched, he only turned and left without another word. That was
probably the most revealing conversation they’d had thus far. He
was unsure of his level of control, and so was she.

From a window in the palace, Ava watched
with unbridled excitement as the troops marched closer to Sori.
She’d spotted them as they appeared from behind the low hills, just
outside the city. Her loud screech alerted Wren, who entered her
room, weapon drawn, as though to face an army.

“
We must go meet them!” she
cried, rushing toward the door.

“
My queen!” Wren caught her
arm.

Ava bounced with impatience. “What?”

“
You should not be seen in
this manner.”

She looked down at herself. “Oops.” She was
dressed in her sleeping gown and slippers. After calling for her
maid, Terina, Ava ransacked her closet, choosing a deep blue gown
that Nadua always said went nicely with her white hair and drove
the boys nuts. Ava held it up against her body for Wren’s
inspection.

“
That would be lovely,” he
said, and then, as always when women things were about to happen,
he retreated from sight. But she knew he’d stay close by in the
hall.

With Terina’s help, she dressed and had her
hair up in an elegant style in no time. Then she was out the door,
startling Wren once again with her speed. Keeping up with her eager
pace, he followed close behind.