Demon Slave (31 page)

Today was day five.

The only people he opened for were the
servants, who were apparently ordered to keep his supply of alcohol
coming. Scared out of their minds, they would leave pitchers by the
entrance, knock, and then scurry away.

Often, Nadua would pace her room, worrying
about him, wondering if she had approached him wrong, or it he
would have reacted so badly no matter what.

At night she couldn’t sleep, missing her
demon’s breath on her neck as he cozily slumbered, molded against
her. One night she crept down the hall and rapped lightly on his
door, asking if she could but sleep with him. He had given a gentle
no. It was hard not to feel like a beggar.

Cyrus was true to his word, gifting her with
an exquisite edisdon cloak and matching boots. The decorative chain
at the neck matched her necklace. It was beautiful. Yet, all she
could think was how upset Marik would be if he saw it.

Or maybe he no longer cared.

Before he’d locked himself in his room, he
sounded totally on board with her Serakian plan. His voice had been
so harsh when he said it she almost wanted to cry—suddenly
horrified by the idea that she might lose him. But wasn’t that what
she wanted?

Then later she realized all she was doing
was thinking about Marik. His absence made her feel strangely
hollow.

When had she grown to care for him so
much?

Rex was becoming more comfortable with his
surroundings, and had even begun striking conversation with the
people around him. They’d been fearful of him at first, but seemed
to tolerate his presence more and more each day.

Desperate for advice, Nadua asked Rex what
she should do about Marik.

He looked uncomfortable with her direct
questions, but replied, “I’ve never been mated, but demons in any
state respond most strongly to physical persuasion. Fighting or,
uh, other physical contact.”

Nadua was afraid Rex was going to ask her if
she wanted him to beat Marik senseless, but he left it at that.

After watching yet another servant produce a
pitcher, an idea sparked. Nadua followed a short ways behind the
girl and waited for her to knock before rushing away. When the door
creaked open, she caught it with her foot.

He tried to force the door shut, but she
faked a sound of pain, hoping it would weaken his resolve. It
worked. He backed away from the door and she barged in, slamming it
closed behind her.

His room looked just like hers. A small
hearth with a fire bathed everything in a soft orange glow.

Voice like gravel, he ground out, “Are you
hurt?” His eyes were rimmed in red, and didn’t make contact with
hers.

“
Yes.”

“
How? Where? Do you need a
doctor?”

“
No. My heart is
hurt.”

Marik snorted, and took a large gulp from
the heavy pitcher. “Whose isn’t?”

She supposed she deserved that a little. “I
want you to talk to me about what happened to you.”

“
Not going to happen.” He
paused, swaying slightly. “Didn’t I tell you I don’t want to see
you? Go be with your ice man while you can.”

“
I don’t want to be with
Cyrus.”

Marik shook his head and drank deep
again.

“
It’s true. I want to be
with you.”

“
Well
I
don’t want to be with
you
.
So—go—away.”

“
You’re lying.”

“
Am I?” He snapped. “Look
at you. Tiny little thing with barely any meat on you. Nearly
helpless without your army and that beast you ride. More trouble
than you’re worth.” He put his finger in the air as if he
remembered more. “You whine over some young chit. What’s her name?
Ava. How you miss her and wish only to see her again.”

Nadua crossed her arms and held her
tongue.

“
At least you handle a bow
like a seasoned warrior. Watching you wield it is...your hair and
skin are too soft.” He shook his head as if he’d forgotten his
point. “You’re not even my kind.” He lifted the pitcher to his
lips, but looked at her over the top of it, waiting for a
response.

“
I need you to stop
drinking, and to stop pouting.”

“
Get out, Nadua. Leave me
be.” He gave her his back, gulping from the pitcher. “I don’t
pout.”

“
I’m not leaving this room
until I get through to you one way or another.”

“
I can force you out.” He
continued to drink and made no move toward her.

“
Look at me.”

He didn’t.

Sighing, Nadua pulled at the tie of her
bodice and began removing her clothing. His shoulders went stiff
but he still didn’t turn when the fabric hit the ground, pooling
around her feet. She stepped out of it and sauntered toward him,
pressing her hands against his back.

No response.

She tried to move in front of him but he
sidestepped her.

“
Marik, please look at me.
I want you to touch me, hold me, kiss me like you did before. Bite
me, I don’t care.” He made no reply. “Are you afraid you’ll
blackout again? We can work on that too, like you suggested. I want
to help you.”

“
You don’t get it. I’m
done. Just go.”

Her throat tightened. “You’re just giving
up? Because I saw something you didn’t want me to see?”

“
It’s more than that, but
that is part of it, yes.”

“
What more?” Nadua held her
breath, surprised at how badly his words were hurting
her.

Marik was cold and dismissive, speaking to
her as if she were no more important to him than any other person.
She suddenly felt as though she had lost something magnificent.
Something few experienced. Nadua couldn’t describe it, but the loss
of it was devastating.

He shook his head.

Something snapped in her. “Just tell me
already!”

“
It’s because I can’t make
you happy!”

Nadua halted in surprise. She swallowed the
lump in her throat. “Yes, you can.”

With his back to her still, he turned his
head a fraction. “When can I? Maybe when I’m fucking your brains
out.”

She was taken aback, but knew he was only
being churlish to make her want to leave. He thought she should
find him repulsive and unworthy. But there was a deep sense of
integrity inside him that he didn’t even see. He had proven it at
every turn.

“
Now look at you. Naked as
a whore and looking for more.”

“
You bastard!” She kicked
out the back of his leg with her heel. He went to one knee with a
growl, but sprang back up. So she did it again. “Do you want me to
hate you? Fine, I hate you. Are you happy? Does it make it
better?”

“
Yes, it does.”

“
You don’t care about me at
all then?”

His shoulder twitched.

Nadua decided she needed to change tactics.
Standing naked arguing with him wasn’t working. Not to mention she
felt quite silly.

“
Fine, you stubborn demon.
Prove it.”

She crossed to the bathroom and hesitated
next to the tub. The servants filled it with fresh water every
morning, not realizing the freezing temperature did not appeal to
any of them.

“
What are you doing?” Marik
leaned against the door jam. The fact that he followed her was a
good sign.

“
First, you will apologize
for that comment. Then, I want your arms around me.”

He shrugged and swallowed more alcohol. To
her delight, he was drinking her in too.

“
I’m not going to
beg.”

“
Good, it wouldn’t do you
any good.”

“
But I
will
get what I want.”

“
How’s that?”

Nadua stepped into the tub, hissing at the
icy temperature.

“
That water is not
warm.”

She lowered herself farther. Every cell
screamed in agony, but she forced herself in until she was
submerged up to her neck.

“
You daft woman. Get out of
there.”

Her body went stiff from the icy shock. She
had to rip apart her jaws to speak. “First, apologize.”

“
You can’t stay in there
forever.”

After a moment she began to shiver, teeth
chattering and skin turning nearly as blue as a Cyrellian.

Marik sat down the pitcher. “Damn it, Nadua!
Come out of there.”

She pulled her knees to her chest as if that
would help. The water was so much colder than she’d expected.

Looking bewildered, Marik’s features turned
to concern. “Fine, I’m sorry. Stop this now. Your lips are turning
purple.”

Nadua wanted to speak, but she could no
longer form words. Pain laced up her arms and legs. The task of
breathing was increasingly difficult.

Then Marik went to her, pulling her from the
tub and carrying her to the bed. She couldn’t feel his hands. He
wrapped her in a blanket, and then crossed with her to the fire and
sat with her at the hearth. His arms folded around her.

“
T-t-told
y-you.”

“
That was stupid,” he
growled, staring into the fire.

Probably the stupidest thing she’d ever
done.

Nadua laid her head to rest on Marik’s
shoulder and curled into his heat, but the shivers continued.

“
Blanket’s n-not helping. I
n-need you.”

Marik didn’t hesitate. He stripped and
wrapped them both in the blanket, pressing his warm flesh against
her. She smiled with triumph, even though her skin was prickling
with tiny explosions of pain.

“
Why did you do
that?”

“
You w-wouldn’t
listen.”

“
So you hurt yourself?” He
was shaking with anger.

“
D-Didn’t think it w-would
be so bad.” She wiggled closer to him.

“
Do not ever do that
again.”

“
I have to speak with you
about your past. I have to tell you what I saw.”

He went stiff. “Nadua, don’t.”

“
You didn’t hurt those
girls. It wasn’t you.”

“
Stop it.”

“
It’s true.”

“
For the love of the gods,
Nadua! I was there, I know what I did!”

“
No, you don’t. You were
driven to madness but you didn’t touch them.”

He shook his head.

Placing her hands on either side of this
face, she forced him to look at her. “My first vision of you in the
arena was days before I let you kiss me. Do you think I would have
allowed that if I had seen you do something so terrible?”

She could see the hope in his eyes, his mind
working to believe what she said.

“
How can you be
sure?”

“
Visions of the future are
foggy and unclear. This was so clear it was almost like I was there
with you.”

The pain on his face broke her heart. As if
he were gripping a lifeline, he clutched her tight and buried his
head in the crook of her neck. She didn’t know how long they stayed
like that but her eyes had grown heavy and she had stopped
shivering by the time he moved again.

Gently, he lifted her to the bed and settled
next to her. She nuzzled up to his chest, and he offered no
protest.

Just as she was about to sink into slumber,
he whispered in her ear, “I’m sorry you had to see it.”

She replied, “I’m sorry you had to live
it.”

* * *

Almost as soon as his eyelids closed, Marik
was asleep. His dreams were mild compared to the previous few
nights, and the sweet scent of his mate eased him as his
unconscious mind warred with the new idea of his past.

When light drifted in, rousing him, there
was a split second of fear that she would be gone and that
everything from the night before had only been a drunken
delusion.

But her lovely body was draped over his in
the most gratifying way. Her leg trapped one of his, her arm folded
over his chest, and her head rested atop his shoulder, a mess of
red hair fanned out behind her.

By the slow pattern of her breath, Marik
could tell she was still asleep. He took the opportunity to marvel
at her beauty. Her plump lips were slightly parted, allowing her
breath to tingle across his chest. With her hair swept back, a wee
pointed ear with such a delicate odd curve was revealed. He knew
her body to be just as perfectly shaped under the heavy
blanket.

His cock grew hard at the thought and he
couldn’t help but gently palm her backside. He cursed himself when
she began to stir. Then she smiled up at him as though she were
pleased, making him harder still.

“
Good morning,” she
drowsily mumbled and kissed his chest.

When he softly groaned, a wicked glint grew
in her eyes and she did it again.

He could come from that look alone.

“
Morning,” he replied in a
husky voice, shifting his hold to the crest between her legs. She
let out a slight gasp, but then smiled wider.

A demanding grumble came from his
stomach.

Nadua rose up concerned. “How long has it
been since you’ve had something eat?”

His lips curled into an evil grin. “Far too
long.” He flipped her to her back. She let out a delighted squeak
and he placed himself between her legs. Her cheeks flushed when she
caught his joke.

He started with her breast, licking and
teasing till she moaned, circling one peak with his tongue while
gripping the other. With his free hand, he felt between her legs,
gratified to find her growing damp for him.