18. Kazrith
“Never seen anything with skin like yours,” the gilak demon drawls, standing brutishly over Hanna as he eyes the wares while I sift through the ledger. “You got real pretty eyes, too.”
I leer at the great hulking behemoth, watching him from afar. I know not to cause a scene, but I could eviscerate him right here, in this crowded market if I wanted to. I’m sure a being like him would be unmourned.
Behind him stands a gathering crowd, all gazing in fascination at my intimate business partner. I can tell what they all want, because I’ve seen them, obsessing and ruminating over the human slaves back in Sarziroch. I see them now, wasting space and time.
“Just let me know if I can help you find anything,” Hanna says, deflecting the compliment politely. “What are you looking for?”
The gilak chuckles. “I don’t think you can give me what I’m looking for,” he says. “You’re not built sturdy enough.”
My lips rear back, exposing my fangs. It’s at least more subtle than previous attempts. One gilak even explicitly propositioned her, knowing that her husband, me, was within ears’ reach. I hesitate to think about the vulgarity he uttered.
I kicked him out real fast, telling him we didn’t value his business. But still, I fantasized about following him home and confronting him, cutting him into tiny pieces if need be.
But I know that Hanna doesn’t like that. And because she’s a valuable business partner, I restrain myself when necessary.
“Well, we’ve got a wide variety of wares,” Hanna says, gesturing to them. “And I’m sure if you don’t know what you’re looking for, my husband can give you a hand.”
She gestures toward me, and I visibly snarl.
“Oh, sorry, Kazrith,” the gilak replies. “I didn’t know this was your wife.”
I chuckle, letting the sarcasm ooze from my tone. “Maybe we should both hang signs around our necks,” I suggest. “Would that help?”
He shakes his head. “I don’t have to take this.” He growls, walking away.
Hanna stares at me with a strange look. Though she’s small and frail, there’s something genuinely curious about the look. I can almost hear her thoughts.
“Why did you tell him that?”she seems to say with her scowl. “Because of your genuine pettiness, we lost out on another potential sale!”
The next customer in line walks up to the counter, a soz’garoth demon with notably pointed ears and pale blue skin. He exudes snakishness, speaking with a pronounced lisp and slithering forward as though not moving on two legs.
Thankfully, he doesn’t seem quite as forward… at first. He looks with intrigue at all of our wares, picking up relics from their pedestals and weighing them, feeling over jewelry, fine weapons, and metals.
“This one has a smooth and shapely texture,” he says, rubbing the glistening bloodstone on a pendant. Hanna chuckles and nods in agreement, discussing the artifact as though he were an old friend.
As I peer over the ledger, weighing balances, my mind runs wild.
I imagine the two of them together, naked. I imagine that he is not massaging a ruby, but one of Hanna’s nipples.
I imagine her moaning as he fondles her. “Quite large and sturdy, aren’t they?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see my shadows slip forward, and I don’t know that I want to recall them this time.
She laughs at one of his jokes. It’s not very good. I feel embarrassed for him.
She’s only flirting for business, I think, resisting the urges that would have my market destroyed. Don’t take it personally.
But my claim to her is illegitimate, our marriage a sham. If she wanted to fuck him, she would technically not be violating our agreement.
I grit my teeth, watching as a shadow coalesces behind him. I could kill him right here if I wanted to, slashing into him with shadowy tentacle blades, or perhaps pulling him down into the ground.
But then the gathering crowd might take issue with that, and I would undeniably cause a panic.
“I don’t mind that you’re married.”
I’m snapped back to reality as, holding the necklace and a bag of trinkets, the soz’garoth states his intentions clearly.
“And I’m sure your husband doesn’t mind a little competition, either,” he says, sending a wicked grin my way.
The shadow begins to rise out of the ground. I’m going to kill him, letting my shadows drink his blood.
And I’m going to enjoy every minute of it.
“I think you should leave,” Hanna says. “And don’t bother coming back.”
A surge of relief overtakes me. Granted, I knew that Hanna was only playing coy and that she had no real interest in him.
I wonder why it bothers me so much. Why do these images torment me?
“Ah, but you see, you have my coin now,” the demon says. “So I think perhaps you should be a little kinder.”
A fire sparks in his hand, igniting in the face of the volvath demon behind him. The soz’garoth holds the glistening fireball in his palm, ready to throw it.
Hanna’s posture is unchanged, though the crowd behind the demon looks apprehensive, even terrified.
He approaches Hanna, and she holds her ground.
“Now why don’t you get down on your knees and show me your gratitude?”
The fire in his hand expands. If he lets it loose, there’s a good chance it would just destroy our stall.
And I’m consumed, ready to eviscerate him. I’m not even sure that it would be frowned upon. I’d probably be the hero to these customers.
“There’s a long line of customers behind you,” Hanna says, not apprehensive for some reason. “Why don’t you let the line move forward?”
The soz’garoth laughs. “Oh! Good idea,” he says. “Maybe then we can all take turns on you? Would your pathetic volvath husband like that?”
That’s all the reason I need.
Roaring and raising my claws, my horns expanding, I bring my shadows upward. Before he can process what’s happening, my sharp tentacled shadows are slicing through the soz’garoth, leaving him bleeding on the ground as I ravage his body.
I expect hysteria in response. But as he’s unable to collect his last few words, the line erupts in applause, his eyes going white.
I step forward from behind the booth, attempting to keep the current running revenue in my head. I was on line 36 of page 5.
The crowd goes silent.
I look down at the mangled body in disgust.
“Twenty percent discount for the next ten minutes,” I say, growling for the crowd. “And a quick death to whoever propositions my wife again.”
The applause returns as the line of demons cycles forward, no longer attempting to flirt with Hanna.
I leave the body in front of my stall as an example. Once the current rush of customers dies down, I’ll clean it up.
For now, I’ll remind them what happens when they step out of line.
“Twelve of your cheapest necklaces,” a squat zonath demon says.
“Oh,” Hanna prods, watching the demon feel the cold silver links. “What are you going to do with all of those?”
“I’m enchanting them.”
His response is curt, his eyes wandering back to me as I laugh under my breath. I would never bother to kill a zonath demon. Their living conditions are abhorrent, their opportunities bleak and few.
And they could never pose a challenge to me. It wouldn’t be a fair fight.
Finally, I feel like I can focus on the ledger. I’m able to zip through it while the rush of customers dissipates. Eventually, we’re left with an empty stall. The quiet is almost unnerving.
But even while focusing, my mind turns back to the occasional stray, intrusive thought.
She wanted to fuck him, it chides me. If you didn’t kill him then and there, she was going to succumb to him.
Hanna walks back to me, holding a large bag of currency. It’s a luxurious sum for our high-end business. “Pretty good turn-out today,” she says, looking down at the burlap bag.
I look up from the ledger, my nostrils flaring. “So,” I say, setting aside the documents. “About that customer earlier.”
Her eyes shift from side to side, regarding the mangled body still on the floor. “Well, it’s not really like I had a choice, did I?” she asks. “I know my rank.”
“That’s not what I’m asking.”
She raises her eyebrow in confusion. I can feel her heating up, but I’m not sure if she’s more nervous or aroused.
“You didn’t have to stand your ground like that,” I say. “He could have killed you.”
My eyes study her body, running from her delicious neckline to her noticeable cleavage. I’m so tempted to pin her to the counter and remind her why she’s mine.
But I still see the eyes of passersby looking in, most focused on the body visibly apparent on the ground behind Hanna.
I have nothing to prove to them. And they’ve done nothing to earn the spectacle.
“So why did you stand your ground?”
She smiles meekly. “I knew you’d take care of him for me. So I wasn’t worried about it.”
She stares down at the dried blood, which will take some effort to clean up now.
“And I didn’t want to cause any trouble,” she adds quietly. She bites her lip.
I clean up the body in a hurry, and we rush back home.
These jealous thoughts still plague my mind, running uncontrolled through me. I imagine the crowd of demons having their way with her.
I need to purge these thoughts.
I carry her through my home, up to her bedroom door.
I need to remind her why she’s mine, and nobody else’s.
I pin her against her bedroom door, kissing her aggressively. She puts up no resistance.
Then I lean into her, whispering and letting my long tongue encircle her earlobe.
“I’m going to fuck you like none of those other demons could.”
I lean in deeper, breathing in and kissing her neck. “Do you want that? Do you want me inside you?”
She nods innocently.
I pull away from her, her eyes pleading for my touch.