Demons Amongst Us (The Book of Demons Saga #2) (14 page)

The sight that
met her eyes made her freeze.  It wasn’t Tavi that was in their apartment with her sister.  It was Prince Hasan.  Her skin began to crawl the moment she saw him.  She had never liked him, even before he tried to seize the throne from the rightful Prince Balthazar.  She liked him far less now.  No one in the kingdom wanted to associate with him, despite the fact that Lord Ashdad had restored his honor, as well as his missing body parts.

“Sister,” Nila gasped, the shock apparent on her face as her lavender eyes darted from Azira to Hasan. 
“What is going on here?”

“Nila,” Azira said casually, adjusting her robes.  Judging by the disheveled appearance of the typically meticulously dressed demoness, Nil
a could discern exactly what had been going on.  The smirk on Hasan’s face further confirmed her suspicions.  “Don’t act so surprised.  I am a woman, with needs.  And our husband has chosen to ignore those needs.”

“But sister,” Nila tried to argue, but she came up short, realizing that she had not been the most faithful wife either.  What she truly had issue with was not the fact that her sister was being unfaithful, everyone in this marriage knew it was a sham.  Her problem was the demon her sister had chosen to lay with. 

“Don’t be such a hypocrite,” Azira said, waving her little sister off.  She wasn’t in the least bit worried what Nila thought.  She had always held complete control over Nila, and that wasn’t going to end anytime soon.  Even if she did decide to run and squeal to anyone, Azira would reveal the affair with Kaveh that Nila thought she was hiding so well.

“I have business to attend to,” Hasan said, his eyes glaring at Nila with a taunting twinkle, daring her to cause a scene or speak any words against him.  His position was far above hers, now that his honor was restored.  He answered only to the Lord Sultan, and he could easily have the little demoness put to death if he so desired. 

Hasan wrapped his arm around Azira’s waist, his eyes still locked on Nila as he pulled her into his body.  His hand trailed down and grabbed her buttocks, over exaggerating the gesture for shock value to Nila. 

“I will return,”
Hasan said, a chuckle at Nila’s agape mouth and wide eyed stare at the entirely inappropriate gesture.  “And perhaps I will taste both of Tavi’s wives.”

The demon prince disappeared before
Nila had time to respond to the brash remark.  She would sooner rat on herself as well as her sister to Tavi before she allowed Hasan to lay a single traitorous claw on her. 

“How could you, Azira,” Nila said, her eyes narrowing in accusation.

“Do not play innocent to me, little sister,” Azira said venomously as she stepped in closer to her sister.   She stopped just a breath before her, the proximity intimidating the younger demon into stepping back.  Azira let a smirk spread across her lips.  “I know exactly what you have been doing, Nila.  I can smell Kaveh all over you, even though have tried to hide it well, bathing before your return.”

Nila was taken aback for a moment.  She had thought she was being incredibly sneaky.
She had assumed her meetings with Kaveh were well thought out, leaving little possibility of her getting caught. 

“I may not be faithful to Lord Tavi,” Nila said, struggling to
gain some confidence in the face of her elder sister, “but at least I am not lying with a traitor like Hasan.”

Nila felt rather pleased with herself, for once in her life standing up to Azira.  That pleasant glow quickly faded as she saw the hatred and raw evil that glowed behind the purple eyes of her sister.

“You would do well to address him properly,” Azira said, her voice low, “he may well be your Lord Sultan one day.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Nila scoffed, even though she was terrified
on the inside by her sisters display.  “Prince Balthazar will be Lord Sultan again, and then he will put the traitor back in his place.”

Azira stepped forward,
once again closing the gap between her and her sister.  Nila’s back was pushed into the cold marble wall behind her as she tried to get away.  Azira lifted a manicured, clawed hand to the silky silver hair of her sister, running it casually through the thick mass.

“Yes,” she said softly, darkness shining in her eyes.  “Just keep telling yourself that.”

Nila roamed aimlessly around the harem.  She didn’t know where she was
going, she just knew that she couldn’t go back to her own apartments.  She couldn’t bear to be in the room with her sister a moment longer. 
As she made her way down the long, empty halls, her nose caught a very particular smell.  It was such a foreign smell, so deliciously different, it made her nose tickle.  She knew exactly what the smell was, had smelled it before.  She made her way to the doors of the apartment where the scent was coming from. 

Nila knocked softly at the door, and waited.  After a few tense moments of worrying
that her presence would not be welcomed, the door slowly creaked open and a curious face poked out.

“Alexandra,” Nila said
softly with a short bow, still unsure of what the human’s reaction would be.

Alex was shocked, to say the least,
by Nila’s unexpected visit, and a little cautious.  She remembered the silver haired demoness.  Remembered how her and her sister had hurt Yashmina so much by wedding Tavi.  Her immediate reaction was to slam the door in her pretty little face.  But then she noticed the well hidden, but still visible distraught on her face, and Alex just couldn’t turn her away. 

“Nila, right?” Alex said,
to which she received a polite nod.

“I apologize for disturbing you,” Nila said.  She opened her mouth to further explain her presence, but shut it again when she realized she wasn’t entirely sure herself why she was knocking on Alexandra’s door.

“Do you want to come in?” Alex asked, a little confused at the uncertainty of the demoness. 

“Could I?” Nila said, perking up.  She had half expected the human to shun her without even a chance, and the simple fact that she would allow her into her private apartment gave Nila hope that she would soon make a new friend within the palace walls.  She knew all the other ladies already hated her, mostly due to the reputation of her sister that
had reflected onto her.

“Sure,” Alex said, opening the door a little wider and moving to allow the demoness to pass through.  Nila was insta
ntly impressed by the luxuriousness of the apartment.  All the harem apartments were well appointed, but this one was exceptionally so.  The finest silks in the most envious of colors were draped throughout the apartment.  The expansive rooms were filled with the most expensive carved wooden furniture, all covered with a thin lacquer of gold leaf.  Nila was truly impressed, and considering she had been raised in luxury her entire life, that was saying a lot.  It was very clear to see how much Balthazar treasured Alex, he had spared no expense on her private quarters.

The two women settled into a pile
of silky cushions stuffed with soft feathers.  A eunuch, one of the many that had been appointed to serve Alex, brought in a light meal of sweet cakes and various vegetable pastes for the ladies to pick at.  Alex picked timidly at the food, waiting for Nila to say something.  The demoness could tell there was something bothering Alexandra.  A scent of deep sadness tinged her aura.  Nila wondered if it was because she missed her home.

“So,” Alex said
, after a long awkward silence, “Is there something you wanted to talk about.”

“I…” Nila began to speak, but found she just didn’t know what to say.  She didn’t really know how to make friends. 

“I’m sorry,” Nila said finally.  There was really nothing else she could say. 

“Sorry?” Alex said,
her eyebrows scrunching together.  “Sorry for what?”

“At the
Taj festival,” Nila said,  “I know my sister was not very kind to you.  I do not wish my sentiments to be associated with her any longer.”

“Ok,” Alex said with a small smile.
  “I appreciate your apology.”

Nila felt instant relief
.  She had never met anyone more kind or accepting as this human, she decided.

“You are truly kind
,” Nila said, picking up a lightly steaming cup of tea, “I can see why Prince Balthazar is so enamored with you.”

Sadness flashed across Alexandra’s face at the words, and Nila wanted to kick herself.  She wasn’t sure what exactly it was she had said, but she felt terribly uncomfortable being the cause of such a reaction. 
Her nose twitched with a hint of salt and she knew Alex was on the brink of tears.

“Did I…
” Nila began to ask, searching for words to stop the sudden mood shift.

“Oh, no,” Alex said, waving a hand.  “It’s ok.  I just…don’t really want to think about him right now.”

“No?” Nila said, her curiosity piqued.  “Are the prince’s affections not returned?”

“No,” Alex said, her eyes falling into her lap.  “I thought they were, but…”

“I believe everyone thought they were,” Nila said, wanting to suddenly comfort Alex.

“He says that he won’t see me anymore,” Alex said with a sniffle.

“I
do not understand that,” Nila said, a sympathetic shake of her head. 

Alex just shrugged, still avoiding the demoness’s eyes.

“I have seen first hand the affections he has for you, Alexandra,” Nila said.  She rose from the cushion she was sitting on and moved closer to Alex, putting an arm around her.  “I am sorry that he has made you feel this way.”

Nila’s mind searched for a way to distract Alex from her sadness and a thought crossed her mind.

“Come,” the demoness said, rising suddenly from her seat with an excited smile as she held a hand out to Alex.  “I have something that will cheer you.”

“Where are we going?” Alex asked, as she tried to keep up with the rapid pace set by the demoness.

“You will see,” Nila said, turning
her head to look over her shoulder, an excited glint in her lavender eyes.

“Can you slow down a bit?
” Alex said, nearly panting from her exertion. 

“Yes, o
f course,” Nila said, slowing down only slightly, “I forget you are slower than us demons.”

“How much further?
” Alex said, asked.  They had been roaming around the harem complex for a good twenty minutes.   

“It is just around this corner,” Nila said.  She held her clawed hand out to Alex, who cautiously put her own hand in it.  Nila pulled her in closer to her with a smile
, intertwining their arms.  She was truly happy to have made a friend with the human. 

They came to single
, plain wooden door at the end of the hall after the turn.  Alex had no idea where she was.  The walls were a simple brick and the floors were wooden.  It felt so out of place from the typical opulence she had seen in the rest of the palace. 

“I believe you are g
oing to enjoy this,” Nila said, reaching for the door handle and pulling it open.  Alex was surprised by what she saw, although she couldn’t see why Nila had thought she would enjoy it.  Beyond the door was a room filled with rows of cages holding falcon like birds.

“Ok,” Alex said, trying to be polite but the confusion was clear on her face. 

“Not this, silly,” Nila said, pulling Alex through the room by her hand.   The silver haired demoness led Alex to the back of the room, to another simple wooden door. 

“This is what I wanted to show you,” Nila said, swinging the door open.

Alex gasped at the sight.  There in the middle of the room, resting on a large nest of twigs and hay was Peta.  The firebird squawked when she saw Alex, her one blue, one red eye focusing on her owner.  She ruffled her golden feathers as she spread her wings out.  She was much larger than the last time Alex had seen her, now about the size of an eagle.

“She has missed you,” Nila said,  “she says that she is happy you have returned.”

“What do you mean, ‘she says’?” Alex said, turning to look at Nila,

“S
he speaks of course,” Nila said, “I am one of the few who can understand her.  It is a talent of my family’s bloodline.  I have been caring for her while you were away.  I have tried to keep dear Peta  company.  She is incredibly smart, and defiant like her mother.”

“Her mother?” Alex said, recalling the
phoenix who had approached her to be a caretaker.  “You mean Simiri?”

“No,” Nila said, cocking her head curiously at Alex, “I mean you.  Do you know nothing about the bird?”

“Um..well, not really,” Alex admitted.  “I only had her for such a short time.”

Peta let out another loud caw, drawing the attention of both women.

“What did she say?” Alex asked, looking at Nila for a translation.

“She says,”
Nila said, her thin silver brows pulling together, “that we must leave.”