10. Willow
Willow
After Nyx, Dravik, and Rhune leave my room, I fall into another deep sleep. Just like the other times, I wake up disoriented and aching, feeling more exhausted than when I closed my eyes.
What the hell is wrong with me?
I stretch my arms over my head with a massive yawn, my joints creaking and popping as I do so.
I must have been out for a while. That’s… alarming…
Pushing my fears to the back of my mind, I force myself to sit up, hoping that will take away some of my desire to go back to sleep.
Realizing I’ve woken, the baby antethorpe lets out a happy bleat, its hoofed back feet clicking against the icy floor as it hurries to my side.
It presses its flat face against my rib cage, a strange rumbling noise building in its chest as it nuzzles me.
“What a cutie.” I reach down to give it some scratches. “I guess if we’re going to be spending more time together, I should give you a name, huh?” I bring a finger to my lips, thinking hard. “How about… Kevin?”
Kevin does a little hop, reminiscent of the playfulness I’ve seen in baby goats back on earth. My lips tilt into the barest of smiles, and for a moment, I forget all about the dangerous situation I’m in.
Then Kevin lets out a monstrous whine, and I’m reminded just how different this world is from my own. The creatures, the atmosphere, the very material that makes up the land mass—everything is foreign. And I haven’t even seen the state of the world above ground yet.
I gaze upward, noticing that the ceiling has taken on a darker hue, and it shimmers like stars in the sky. I can’t directly see the sun, but if I had to guess, I’d say it’s nighttime.
As I gaze up at the sparkling ceiling, I find myself wondering if anyone from Earth misses me. Are they looking for me? Are they worried?
When I look inside myself, I find that I don’t miss them at all.
For years, I twisted myself into knots trying to conform to what they all wanted me to be. I think I lost a piece of myself in the process, and now that I’m so far away from that place and those people, it’s like I can breathe again.
My heart is still raw from the betrayal—obviously—but if I’m honest, it doesn’t hurt nearly as bad as it did just a day or two ago.
I don’t know whether it’s this newfound peace inside myself, or if I didn’t love Nathan as much as I thought I did. Either way, I have to admit that a part of why I’m so okay is this inexplicable desire I have for Rhune and Nyx.
Dravik is a bit of a mystery to me now, but my soul still calls to him, and I want nothing more than to figure him out. And Cin…
I haven’t even met him, and whenever I think of his name, my body reacts—as if it knows that Cin is that last piece of the puzzle I’m missing to become whole.
Even though they’re demons, the way they look at me, speak to me, and touch me makes me feel precious, cared for, and safe.
Which is highly ironic, considering that Rhune literally kidnapped me and chained me to a wall.
For some reason, it doesn’t matter to me.
I’m ashamed to say a part of me even enjoyed it a little.
But just a little.
“What the hell is wrong with me, Kevin?”
Kevin bleats and does another happy hop, unhelpful as ever.
“Thanks for the input, little guy.” I let out a deep sigh, dragging a hand through my hair. I cringe as my fingers get caught in the tangles and reluctantly pull away. “You think any of these demons have a hairbrush, Kevin?”
Instead of responding, Kevin’s face snaps toward the doorway, the fur between his shoulder blades standing on end as a piercing wail fills the room.
Damn… Kevin is pissed.
“What’s wrong?” I whisper, casting a glance at the hide-covered doorway.
Just then, there’s a faint scratching noise, and the sound of claws scraping against leather. My heart jumps into my throat, and instinctually, I pull one of Rhune’s furs up to my chin, covering my body from the potential threat.
“Hello? Is someone out there?”
Someone clears their throat. “Do you… um… are you decent, female?”
Dravik. I’d recognize that impossibly deep timbre anywhere. The demon’s voice is a soothing rumble that sends a shiver down my spine and causes heat to pool between my thighs—both of which I ignore completely.
“I am. You can come in.”
I lower the furs to my lap, and Dravik pulls the hide covering to the side.
He has to duck and twist his shoulders just to fit through the doorway, but once inside, Dravik straightens to his full height, which is well over eight feet.
His gorgeous sunset-colored wings flare, the tips brushing the walls on either side of Rhune’s bedroom—showcasing just how massive he really is.
Just like Rhune and Nyx, he’s dressed in a pale-colored dermal armor that clings to his impressive muscles and showcases the inhumane bulge between his legs.
His hair is long, thick, and heavily tangled, colored the same hue as his impressive glowing orange eyes.
His horns are massive and thick, curving back in a tight spiral like those of a ram, the pointed tips brushing the base of his square jaw.
His tail is long and thick like Nyx’s, but it ends in a thick club that looks like it can easily be used as a weapon.
Unlike his brothers’ unblemished faces, Dravik’s left eye has a deep scar running vertically through it, and the horn on that same side is broken off at the top third, adding to his menacing appearance.
Warrior, my inner voice says. This one is the protector.
Dravik’s eyes dip to my chest, and they flare bright before he forcefully drops them to the floor. “I’m sorry to intrude,” he says, his voice strained. “I heard voices and wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
“Oh, that. I was talking to Kevin.”
Dravik’s back goes ramrod straight, the tips of his wings bristling angrily as he swings his gaze around the room, searching. “Who is Kevin and how did he get into my home?”
I bite my lip to stifle my laugh. “The baby antethorpe. I named it Kevin.”
Dravik blinks, his expression going lax. “You named the bloodthirsty predator Kevin?”
“Yup.” I nod. “It fits him, don’t you think? Or her. It’s impossible to tell with all that hair.”
Dravik balks. “I… guess? You do know what that thing is going to grow into, right? Rhune explained this before he let you keep it as a pet?”
“First of all, his name is Kevin, not ‘that thing,’” I say. “Second… no. No, he didn’t. But it can’t be that bad, right? He’s so cute and small.”
Dravik grimaces. “Hopefully, we will get you home before you have to find out.”
“Hopefully,” I agree, trying to ignore the pang in my chest. “So… is there anything else you need? Now that you know there are no intruders…”
Dravik lowers his gaze, suddenly looking nervous. “Actually… yes, there is.”
“Well, out with it.” A tiny smile tugs at my lips. There’s just something so endearing about this big scary demon looking so anxious and unsure. “What’s up?”
His eyes flash bright orange before he turns and walks back toward the exit. He disappears behind the covering for a moment and returns with a pile of fabric in his arms.
He crouches beside me, laying it across my lap. I reach out, my fingers brushing the fabric of the armor-like bodysuit. It’s similar to the ones the demons wear, sleek and pale, and it thrums faintly with a warm magic energy that is strangely comforting.
“It’s beautiful,” I whisper.
“I can’t take all the credit. Cin helped me with the imbuing part. So it’s a gift from us both.” He hesitates, then adds, almost sheepish, “Just don’t tell Cin—he wanted to keep his part in it a secret.”
“Thank you, Dravik. This is wonderful.”
I lift the suit off the top of the pile to get a better look—and freeze. Underneath it is my wedding dress. It’s still that brilliant, impossible white, still covered in thousands of tiny crystals that catch what little light there is and scatter it in every direction.
It can’t be… there’s no way…
“I found this discarded in the bathing chambers and I figured… well, I thought you might want it back.”
Unwittingly, I reach out, running my fingertips over the cool satin.
Unlike the last time I saw it, the dress has been cleaned, and some parts even appear to have been patched.
Hundreds of carefully placed stitches holding the frayed edges together, shimmering with a magical quality that makes the dress even more beautiful than it was before.
“Did you do this?” I ask, my voice strained.
“I did.” Dravik doesn’t explain further, just stands there, watching my expression with an intensity that takes my breath away.
I turn my attention back to the gown, taking in the hand-beaded crystals and intricate stitching.
The dress is useless here, and no part of me ever wants to put this back on my body, but the sentiment brings tears to my eyes.
The fact that Dravik, a stranger, would do something like this for me… it tugs at my heartstrings.
“Thank you.” I blink away a wave of tears. “This means a lot to me, Dravik. You’re very kind.”
Carefully, I fold the dress as small as I can and tuck it under a hide in the corner of the room—where I won’t be tempted to look at it.
Though I don’t want to see it, I can’t exactly get rid of it right after Dravik was so sweet to fix it for me.
I don’t know if he’ll understand my complicated emotions about the subject, and I don’t have the energy to explain them to him right now.
Eventually, I’ll figure out something to do with it, but for now, I just want to focus on surviving this place and my growing attraction to these demons.
When I don’t say anything else, Dravik clears his throat, pushing a massive clawed hand through his unruly hair. “I imagine this all must be… strange to you.”
I nod, unsure what to say. I don’t want to offend him by saying something negative about his world, but… “This place… it’s so… cold. Barren.”
“It is how The Far Place has always been,” Dravik says.
The Far Place. I guess that’s the official title for this world. “Pretty depressing, if you ask me.”