Chapter 9 Des
Des
In the shower, Des ran his hand over his jaw, scratchy with stubble, and let the water run until it went cold. After all his
years of training, his reflexes were so quick he didn’t have to think before he acted. But now, in the aftermath, doubt plagued
him. What if he hadn’t been fast enough? He hadn’t even noticed the carriage until it was upon them. The Blake girl would
have been flattened right in front of him, and then he’d have one more death on his conscience.
They never should have interfered with her. If Daisy hadn’t introduced herself, she would still be none the wiser that the
Iron Guard was keeping an eye on her. And he wouldn’t be left with the feeling of her in his arms, the way her body had pressed
up against his armor, how she’d clung to him for just a moment even after he let go. As if he wasn’t the big, scary man who
frightened small children, but the person they turned to when the monsters came.
When he’d reported the somnia trailing Miss Blake, Commander Yew had commended him for trusting his instincts.
“I want you to keep an eye on the girl, especially until her uncle returns,” he’d said. “Leopold Blake is a friend of mine.”
“I’d prefer to track down the man with the thrall, sir.”
“I put Lieutenant Commander Grayson on the job.” Commander Yew looked up and met Des’s eye. “I suggest you take the assignments you’re given, Whitlow.”
Des had swallowed down the lump in his throat and nodded, but it was with no small amount of bitterness. Grayson hadn’t seen
the thrall or the tall man, hadn’t witnessed a somnia deliberately trail a civilian through the city. He would kill first and ask questions later, as all the other guards would.
As he himself would have, before. But now . . . he couldn’t help thinking that there were larger forces at play here, a bigger
picture he didn’t yet understand.
Daisy was still awake when he climbed into his bunk, as he’d known she would be. She always waited up for him, though he’d
never asked her to. If anything, he’d urged her to get the sleep they all needed. But she said she couldn’t rest without knowing
he was all right, and though he’d never tell her, it felt nice to know someone was leaving a proverbial light on for him.
“Everything okay?” Daisy whispered from the foot of his bed as he climbed in, weary and exhausted for reasons unknown. It
wasn’t like it had been physically difficult to follow the girl.
“Mm,” he grunted. “Just a long day.”
Daisy’s silence was so unusual that Des felt the weight of her implied judgment.
“What?”
He could hear the smile in her voice when she whispered, “It’s just curious, that’s all.”
Now it was Des’s turn to be silent. Curious was a code word for strange.
“She rattled you tonight,” Daisy continued. “More than I’ve seen in a long time.”
“I’d have reacted the same way if you stepped in front of a runaway carriage.” He exhaled. “Like you were a damned fool.”
Daisy poked him in the ribs, knowing it was the one vulnerable spot on his body. “Why do you dislike her so much, then?”
He flexed his abdominals, but damn if it didn’t still tickle. He batted her hand away. “I don’t have any feeling toward her
whatsoever. It’s all those people who spend their days drinking in cafés while we risk our lives that I can’t stand.” He sat
up, leaning closer to Daisy. “And the somnia trailing her, the thrall last night. It doesn’t feel like a coincidence.”
“Agreed,” Daisy said.
“She doesn’t seem afraid of demons.”
“Or of you.”
Des shot Daisy a dark look.
“All right, fine. If you truly believe she’s up to no good, what is her motivation?”
Des settled back against his pillow, thinking. Could the somnia that had trailed Aurelie be linked to the tall man and his thrall? He didn’t see how. Not yet, anyway. “I have no idea. But
I do think something about her is attracting demons. Why would that be?”
Daisy bopped him on the nose and climbed off his bunk. “Now you’re asking the right questions,” she said, and left him twice
as confused as before.
As Des cleaned his sword on Monday morning, resigned to spending another wasted day watching the gates of Wisteria University,
Commander Yew entered the barracks.
Everyone snapped to attention, clearly unprepared for this unexpected visit.
It was their day off, after all. Most of the guards were lounging on their bunks reading or playing cards, and Des heard more than one person groan as they rose, likely hung over from staying up late drinking the night before.
“At ease,” Yew said. “I’m here for an update. Don’t panic. You’ll still get your day off.” His mouth curled in a wry grin.
“But there were reports of three verita last week in the kingdom, three times as many as usual. Starting tomorrow, we’ll be extending shifts by one hour to ensure
every area of the city is covered.”
No one had the audacity to complain, but Des heard more than a few sighs.
“Whitlow,” Yew said. “Come with me.”
Des followed Yew to his office and waited for the man to settle at his desk.
“I’m assembling a new unit,” he said. “The increase in verita attacks has King Gabor and his court on edge. To that end, they’ve asked me to assemble my best guards. I want you to be
part of that unit, Whitlow.”
Then it wasn’t his imagination. There was something strange going on with demons. But the Iron Guard operated almost independently
of the monarchy, and it was unusual for the king to interfere this way. Des found himself at a loss for words. “I don’t know
what to say, sir.”
“Say thank you.”
“Thank you, sir. I’m honored.”
“Good. Part of your new responsibilities will be to investigate attacks throughout the kingdom. For now, you’ll stay close to Wisteria City, but whenever possible, I want the creators of these verita captured alive and brought to me.”
“What about the verita?”
Commander Yew arched a brow.
“Should we bring them in alive as well, sir? I feel we could learn far more by studying a living demon—”
“Absolutely not. It’s far too dangerous to even attempt something so foolish. You are to kill the demon, as is our founding
objective since the days of King Aciano. Do I need to add a history refresher course to your schedule, Whitlow?”
Des’s cheeks heated. “No, sir. I’m sorry, sir.”
After a moment, Commander Yew continued. “You’ll begin training as soon as Dr. Blake returns to the university.”
Des struggled not to show his disappointment. He had no idea when Dr. Blake would be back, and in the meantime, other guards
would be investigating cases he should be on. But he’d clearly pushed Yew’s limits enough for one day. “Yes, sir.”
“It will mean no more days off, but I don’t believe I’ve seen you rest since the day you were brought here.”
Des lowered his gaze. “It’s not in my nature, sir.”
“No, I suppose not. Go on. I want a full report of Aurelie Blake’s comings and goings. If she leaves campus, follow her from
a distance. I don’t believe any more face-to-face interactions are required, even if she is a lovely young woman.”
“Sir, that’s not—”
“Dismissed, Whitlow.”
Des caught a ghost of a smile curling his commander’s lips before he turned to leave.
All the way to campus, he ignored Gareth, who peppered him with questions about the new unit, what Des thought of it, if he’d
ever left the city before. He replied with grunts and nods, still ruminating over the fact that he couldn’t begin his new
duties until Leopold Blake returned. What if it took days, or even weeks? He’d fall behind in his training, and for what?
They stood outside the campus gates for hours, watching other students come and go, but there was no sign of the Blake girl.
What good was he doing, standing around here, when she had no reason to leave campus today?
“I’m going to talk to the guard,” Des told Gareth. “Keep an eye out for Miss Blake.”
The campus guard was an older man with white hair and a belly that strained against his uniform, unlikely to be much use in
a demon encounter. But the girl had told him they rarely saw demons on campus, so there was likely little reason for concern.
“Excuse me, sir,” Des said politely. “I was wondering if you know when Dean Blake will be returning from his travels.”
The guard, taking in Des’s armor and stance, straightened a little. “Good afternoon, Lieutenant. We don’t know when he’ll
be back, no. He’s visiting an ill friend.”
Des stifled a growl. “And in the meantime, who is looking after Miss Blake?”
“Why, we are, of course.”
“What if she leaves campus?”
“Oh, that’s a rarity. She works away at all hours in her office in Easton Hall, even on weekends.”
“Is it normal for a student to have her own office?” Des asked.
The guard smiled with genuine fondness. “There’s nothing normal about Miss Blake, Lieutenant. Smart as a whip, she is. She
came here when she was just seven years old, orphaned in a terrible carriage accident. Her uncle has raised her here ever
since.”
Orphaned. He hadn’t expected that. He assumed her wealthy parents lived somewhere in Wisteria and she stayed with her uncle while
she attended the university. And she may be book smart, but based on his experience, she had very little in the way of street
smarts. “Do you know anything about the man who visited on Friday evening?”
The guard scratched his chin, thinking. “Can’t say I do. He said he was a friend of our groundskeeper, Mr. Morel. I believe
Miss Blake invited him for dinner. But you don’t need to worry about Miss Blake, Lieutenant. We take good care of her. I’m
off to make my rounds. You boys stay safe.”
Des thanked the man and wandered back into the trees across the street, where Gareth waited.
“Learn anything interesting?” Gareth asked.
“Of course not.”
“Daisy said you saved Miss Blake from a runaway carriage,” Gareth said after a few minutes, earning him a sharp look from
Des.
“Why were you talking to Daisy?”
“She’s nice,” Gareth said with a shrug. “Not many of the other lieutenants will talk to us. It feels good to be treated like