The Inferno

Chapter 15 The Demon

I t could have been minutes or hours but I have a completely soundless and dreamless sleep.

When I awake, the small source of light greets me again as I stretch under the covers. That’s when I notice the figure beside the bed, slouched in a deep armchair, arms falling down the sides.

I stare at the dark creature, watching his markings hum in a soft glow as his chest rises and falls in slow breaths, his eyes closed… is he asleep?

I slowly sit up, pulling the covers with me as I assess Sai’s sleeping form. Surely his power can sense me? Does he see me as such a little threat? The thought angers me. I feel my power pulse and watch his hair catch in the wind it creates, but he doesn’t move.

“Sai,” I murmur, watching him more intently. I wouldn’t put it past him to suddenly awake and send a pulse twice as powerful back. But he doesn’t move. His breathing continues in slow and steady paces.

A sudden deep and heavy feeling begins to build in my gut, I start to feel worried.

I rise up onto my knees and tentatively touch his shoulder, gently tapping him. Nothing. Not even a zap of his power as it connects to mine.

“Sai, wake up,” I urge, my power sweeping out and around him, “this isn’t funny.”

When I’m standing, and using both hands to shove at his chest, is when I finally realise I’m fully healed. Not only that, but my power is overflowing, everywhere…

It fills the entire room, pushing at the doors and causing the hinges to creak under the pressure.

I quickly step back from Sai, staring at my palms as I realise exactly what I’ve done. I stare up at the fae’s unconscious form and a terrifying panic fills me to my very core.

I’ve drained him.

When an empath is injured, they seek out emotions to heal themselves but it seems my new awakened power didn’t stop at being healed… It wanted all it could take .

I urge the power to leave me and return, stepping forward again to make contact and force the action, when I’m interrupted by a voice much deeper than I remember.

“He’s fine.”

I actually shiver at the sound, like the voice is scratching an area I could never quite reach.

Then I remember I must have a concussion because I definitely heard his voice inside my head.

“You don’t have a concussion. Come downstairs.”

I rub my eyes and run a hand through my damp hair. This can’t be happening. What exactly was in those tablets?

“Don’t make me wait.”

I stare at Sai’s sleeping form a final time. He hasn’t moved an inch, but my power continues to caress him, running along his pale skin in slow, delicate touches.

Even as I back away, and begin to close the door, a part of my power remains in the room with him.

I’m trying not to overthink what just happened because I’m sure it will send me into some sort of panic attack. Instead, I try mentally consoling myself as I cautiously tread down the white hallway, telling myself it would be too much hassle for the enforcers to save me from dying just to kill me now… Right?

When I find the stairs, I brace myself at the top, peering over the banister and seeing the edge of a large table. I can sense him there without seeing him. His dark power seeping out in large shadows that make the white room seem almost grey.

“Stop lingering.”

Hearing his voice outside my head is somehow worse. The sound crawls up my spine and leaves an unbearably chilling sensation… I swear it didn’t feel like that before.

I narrow my brows and tighten my jaw. I have questions of my own and if he thinks I’m going to let him command me without answering them, he’s got another thing coming.

I make quick work of the stairs but refuse to look at him as I descend, although I can feel his gaze upon each step I take. My power wraps around me tightly, defensively, and when I reach the bottom, it physically coils around me in black bands.

I brace myself, force my face into an angry expression and scowl at him .

Something cold touches my bare feet and my scowl instantly drops. Overwhelming calm embraces me and my coils begin to lax, slithering away into nothingness.

“Sit,” he demands, the dark word echoes around the room as I follow his order.

Our eyes lock, I stare, transfixed by his dark gaze, a gaze that only seems to darken with each step until I’m finally seated across from him.

It’s too far. I want to be closer. I need to be.

As though sensing this, the calm, the cold, suddenly disintegrates and my hot rage instantly returns.

“Don’t do that to me!” I snarl, my power pulsing out, coils returning, and doing absolutely nothing to him.

“Shouldn’t you be thanking me? We did just save your life,” he replies, elbow propped against the table as he leans his chin on his hand, watching me with his usual blank expression.

“Something I can’t quite understand seeing as the last time we spoke, you wanted to kill me.”

“Who says I still don’t want that?” he asks, his tone cold.

“The fact you’ve wasted so much time and energy healing me says that.” I keep my gaze hard and focused upon his, refusing to look away even when his darkness is urging me to do just that.

He seems to consume my words for a moment, he doesn’t seem annoyed or irritated by my response but rather contemplating what I’ve said.

Then he completely ignores the current conversation and says something unexpected, “You need to eat.”

I was fully prepared to continue our verbal dispute, so much so my mouth was already open, ready to spring into action. Now it hangs open, my brows pinching together as my brain finally begins to function again.

“I’m sorry, did you just say you want me to eat?”

“I didn’t say I want you to, you need to.” His voice remains hard as he stares into me, making his words clear. “Sai wasted a large quantity of his power healing yours; you need to eat in order to replenish him.”

Before I can respond, he moves towards the kitchen area, grabbing a small, velvet book and sliding it before me as he sits back down.

“Pick what you want.”

Am I awake right now ?

Is this actually happening?

I stare at the object in my hands, the word ‘menu’ embossed in gold, and peer back up at the demon before me. His eyes soulless, deep as an abyss, as they stare into me and send another chill along my skin.

I bite my lip to halt the shiver and open the menu to distract my body. I barely glance at the items listed, I see the starters and pick the first thing there, a fruit platter.

When I say the words aloud, the demon’s eyes narrow a fraction, he doesn’t seem happy with my choice. But I close the book and slide it towards him, quirking my brow in response. Surely, he won’t challenge me on this too?

He takes out a phone from his pant pocket and taps a number, it only rings once before I hear a quiet voice.

“Good evening enforcer, how may I be of assistance?”

There’s no cordial politeness in anything the demon says, everything is blunt, direct, an order with no questioning tone. You’d think he was delivering instructions to kill someone, not listing food and drink items. More than a fruit platter at that. Is he going to eat too? Do demons even need to eat?

I simply sit and watch him, feeling the furrow in my brow until the eye contact becomes too awkward and I peer away.

The room is large but solidifies my previous thoughts of hotel decor. Everything is decorated in a monotonous shade of white except the furniture, all a dark oak colour which contrasts pleasantly. Everything is perfectly in place, impeccable, like a showroom.

When he finally finishes demanding things, he slips the phone into his pocket and continues studying me in silence. My heart begins to race at the intensity of his eyes, their darkness almost reflective in the dim light.

“Where are we?” I finally ask, glancing around the ornate room once more, it’s the most luxurious hotel room I’ve ever been in.

“It doesn’t matter,” he says, tone as hard and cold as ever, “we’ll be leaving tomorrow.”

My wide eyes race to his, the darkness of his emphasised by the dark aura now surrounding him. That certainly wasn’t there before.

“As in, I’ll be going back home?” My fingers coil against the soft fabric of my robe as I feel my power begin to slither around my skin .

He doesn’t answer, there isn’t a flicker of emotion upon his stoic face, he just stares.

I take a deep breath and bite my tongue, desperate for some emotions to feed from, to alter the irritation that’s beginning to crawl along my skin, but I realise his silence brings its own answer.

“You’re not taking me home, are you?” My jaw is so tight I hardly form the words properly.

My power begins to tighten, I feel it running all along my body beneath the robe, warm and comforting in contrast to the cold, darkness sat before me.

Again, he doesn’t say anything and the irritation begins to bloom into the air around us.

“It’s open,” he suddenly announces, eyes still set on me, even when I turn to the door which immediately opened at his words.

A young girl dressed in black pants, a fitted navy blazer and a white shirt enters with silver trays of food upon a rolling table. She doesn’t look up as she walks towards us, she stares at the hard floor, even as she reaches the table.

Fear rolls off of her in thick waves, so much, so quickly, I have to grip my seat to maintain my composure as my eyes change. My power eagerly latches onto the billowing emotions, feeding almost too quickly, and I feel the wood creak under my grip as I force it to steady.

She is absolutely petrified.

Her hands begin to shake as she starts to remove the first tray, her fear spiking when she puts it down in front of us.

I reach out and grab her hand. Wide, frightened eyes race towards me and her mouth parts in terror. I devour her fear, shocked at how easily it parts from her and into me, considering I’m already so full from Sai. This time, I’m careful not to pull too quickly and begin to gently twist the emotion into something more pleasant, a calmness.

Without asking permission, I take from his darkness, mould the terror into something new, and share it with her.

Her fear melts away, pale eyes becoming glassy as they stare at me. Her hands no longer tremble and her lips purse as she watches me.

“I’ll do the rest,” I assure her softly, nodding my head towards the trays. When I begin to pull away, her fingers stay gripping mine. A new emotion, something akin to awe and desperation, sinks into me .

“What are you?” she breathes, her cheeks tinged with pink. It’s a personal question, you don’t go around asking people what they are often, and my brows furrow when her grip refuses to loosen.

“Go.” The one word cracks the atmosphere instantly, fracturing her haze as her fingers drop from mine and her awe disintegrates.

She really looks at me now, at my black consuming gaze, and a sliver of terror returns before she quickly scuttles out of the room.

“She was terrified,” I mutter, staring at my fingers, the skin still laced in her emotions.

“She should be.”

I stare across the table at him, my gaze now matching his, our darkness watching one another. I note my contorted reflection in the metal tray lid and I grit my teeth. One deep inhale, one controlled thought, and my eyes return to their previous crimson.

Instead of focusing on the fear on the poor girl’s face—fear initially directed at him before I entered the equation—I begin to lean over the rest of the trays, ready to move them. I feel a slight rush of excitement from the smells now filling the room but stop moving when dark shadows begin gripping the trays, placing them quickly and efficiently onto the table, removing the lids and setting them aside.

My eyes widen as I watch, wondering if he’s ever used his darkness to do something so mundane before.

It all smells delicious and my stomach begins to cramp in pain, when was the last time I ate? That thought has memories flooding my mind. The last time I ate was just before the queen’s party, the party which ended in screams of agony and piles of burnt bodies.

“What happened after we left?” I suddenly ask, my eyes meeting his across the table.

“Eat.”

I narrow my gaze. “I’m not hungry.”

There’s a tiny fracture in his composure when I don’t comply with his command. A slight tightening of his jaw as he tilts his head to the side, seemingly assessing me and the stalemate we’re currently in. The small movement causes strands of soft, black hair to fall over his eyes.

I realise the slicked back style he always wears seems looser now, and my fingers twitch at the need to run my hands through it and mess it up even more .

“You eat,” he begins, I lean forward, already preparing to refute him, but he raises a finger indicating he hasn’t finished, “and I’ll answer your questions.”

Was this… a compromise?

I watch him, waiting to see if he’ll add a threat onto the end, like how most our conversations close. But he doesn’t.

“OK,” I agree with a slightly hesitant nod.

My eyes flicker from him to the copious amounts of food laid across the table. When I spot the fruit, I lean over and pull it to me, grabbing a large piece of melon. I take a small bite and my body hums at the sweet taste; I even close my eyes just to make it last a little longer.

When I open them again, his gaze seems to burn into me. I look back at the melon for some relief, preparing my question again, before peering back up.

“After we left, did anything else happen?” I take another nibble as I watch him digest the question.

“No. There were no more attacks.”

I nod and feel a weight form in my gut as I prepare the next question, “And my family, they’re all OK?”

If possible, his gaze seems to darken. “Be specific.”

The heaviness in my stomach multiplies. “Are they all alive? Please tell me they’re safe, you said nothing happened after—”

“I need names,” he interrupts. His tone glacial, eyes a deathly glare as he simply waits.

My breathing splutters in my chest, I don’t want to give him their names. What could he do with that information? Would it make them vulnerable somehow? My heart begins to race as I battle an internal conflict, the urge— no, the need to know they’re safe but also the need to keep them safe from these devils.

“First name and race, I have no idea who you consider your ‘family’. If you want me to answer your question, I need that , ” he elaborates, but I don’t miss the way his voice dips sourly on the word ‘family’, “and you need to eat quicker.”

I quickly bite into the melon, mulling over his request, wondering how long this compromise will last when knowing how impatient the creature before me is. I swallow the piece before I fully finish chewing .

“Alexis: mage, Javier: light fae, Lewis: fire elemental, Louise: water elemental, Ferne: earth elemental,” I list, all the while watching his expression for any sudden changes.

“Aren’t you missing one?” His tone becomes almost teasing, a fragment of Sai’s regular voice, and it catches me off guard. My heart pounds as I begin to panic. That was it, wasn’t it? He’s not suggesting…

“What about Hugo?” The smirk now filling his face is deadly.

My power involuntarily spikes at the expression and his dark eyes almost gleam as he studies me. I begin to readjust on the suddenly uncomfortable seat, heart pounding harder and the room seeming increasingly hotter.

I should be terrified, I should be refusing to meet his intimidating gaze like the poor waitress, but my power thinks otherwise… and I can’t deny how attractive he looks when he isn’t staring at me with blank indifference.

His curved lips emphasise those sharp cheekbones, making his catlike eyes even more predatory and fierce when complimented by the teasing expression.

I have to close my eyes. The fear I normally feel for this demon becoming tinged with an allure I cannot and will not play with.

I focus on regulating my breathing, before forcing my own blank expression, responding monotonously. “I didn’t say his name.”

The response seems to please him, his dangerous smirk slipping into a barely-there smile for the sliver of a second. My eyes latch onto the action and my power instantly blooms, sending a pleasant hum over my skin before sinking away again. I work hard on schooling my expression into one of disinterest, whilst my fingers curl beside me.

“All alive,” he finally answers, eyes flashing with a wisp of grey. Blank expression refreshed.

I let out a slow exhale, feeling my stomach and chest instantly become lighter, my shoulders drooping as the tension filling my bones sinks away. I decide to take another small bite of melon, deciding I don’t want to give him any reason to stop fulfilling our compromise.

As I form the next question, I make sure to watch him even more. “Why aren’t you taking me back home?”

There. The slightest drop of his brows which makes his dark gaze seem more intense. “You have to be interviewed.”

I swallow the chunk of melon in my mouth. “About the attack? OK, that makes sense. Why can’t I be interviewed here? ”

“It needs to be conducted in a safe area, somewhere without risks of another attack.” His narrowed gaze searches my face for a moment before continuing. “The Council will be conducting the interview, in their district.”

I drop the melon I was holding, the soft thud as it hits the table mixes with the loud beating of my heart. My power flares in panic and phantom pains begin to spread along my body, emanating from my spine, from the mark.

The last time I tried to enter that district was when I was found outside it, pummelling the invisible barrier, agonising pain piercing my skin every second I tried to even attempt to cross the border.

Then there’s the Council, the creatures who decide the fate of all, no matter their kind. Known for being remorseless, powerful and dangerous. My family told me numerous horror stories about the Council and they warned me about their response to any creature who they considered a threat, creating the law that all powerful entities must be registered... but I never was.

I can feel the demon’s gaze as he quietly waits, I catch the edges of his shadows as they slither along the ground, edging towards me. I quickly pull my feet up onto the seat of my chair and deliver what I think is a threatening look his way.

In response, I see the smallest twitch of his lips before he speaks, “Is there something you want to share?”

“I can’t go to their district,” I mumble, my eyes flitting from his face to the darkness which has begun to crawl along the table.

“You can’t or won’t ?”

“I can’t,” I urgently repeat, my gaze hard, arms holding my legs tightly against my chest as the darkness continues to creep forward, seemingly displeased by my response. “My mark won’t allow it.”

The darkness halts and I peer over my arms to look at the demon across from me. He leans back in his chair and I notice how one brow is slightly raised.

“Explain.”

“Pull these guys back.” I flick my fingers out in a shooing motion towards the little slivers of shadow. When they remain, I force myself to sit up taller and look into those dark eyes once more. “Please, then I’ll explain. ”

A pause, then I almost hear them slink away, like silent whispers rustling leaves as they sink into the ground. I sigh with relief and gently place my feet back onto the shadowless floor.

“Eat and explain,” he demands, using a last wisp of darkness to push the fruit tray back towards me before he sinks further back into his chair, crossing his long legs at the ankles.

For some strange reason, my power emits a deep warmth from those two actions. It hums in pleasant waves in response to him giving me food, curling around me in a comforting pressure, but also due to the relaxed position he’s now manoeuvred into.

I stare at the fruit tray, suddenly fascinated by the variety, and force myself to ignore the strange reaction my power is having by picking up a new piece of melon before I follow his order.

“When I touched the barrier surrounding the district, it caused me agonising pain,” I explain, taking a small bite and becoming fixated, once again, by the remaining fruit, no longer wanting to meet his gaze. “Even the thought of it now, even thinking about entering… it’s making my mark burn.”

As though to consolidate my story, a sudden slice of white-hot fire flares up my spine. My body tenses and I quietly wince.

A shadow instantly latches onto my ankle and a gentle coolness sinks into me, numbing the slicing sensation. Unlike previous times when his darkness touched me, I’m still in control, there’s no haze, no sudden urge to be closer him.

I risk looking across the table to peer at him again and his dark gaze collides with mine. The coolness caressing my skin amplifies, and all the tension in my shoulders and spine simply dissipates.

“We’ll deal with that,” he replies, nodding his head towards the fruit pinched between my fingers in a silent order. “Is that it?”

I subconsciously take another bite at his nod, ignoring the sliver of annoyance I felt at his dismissive tone towards my genuine fear of pain, and the soothing sensation he’s sending through my skin.

“The Council,” I begin, trying to ignore the feel of his shadow curling around my calf. “You know I haven’t been registered. What happens when I go and they realise? You’re taking me into a death trap.”

“You’re there to be interviewed. We will be escorting you, therefore it won’t be an issue.” He pauses. “For now. ”

Even though it’s vague, I do feel slight relief at his response. The demon has no need to lie, lies would only comfort me now, something demon’s do not take an interest in. No, creating terror and pain is their interest. The small shadow still lingering upon my leg emits another pulse of coldness.

I place the melon rind down, focusing my thoughts whilst in this cloud of calm, before picking up a cube of mango. “Why can I hear you?”

Our eyes remain, as they have for the majority of the conversation, focused upon one another. He doesn’t need me to clarify and, to prove his point, he doesn’t open his mouth.

“When did it start?”

My eyes widen at hearing his voice inside my head again, the final word seems to echo and fade until it returns to silence. His eyes flicker over my expression before burning into mine again.

I take a breath and focus, trying to pinpoint exactly when it began. Blurry visions fade into my mind, the three of them there but also another presence, one not so… dark.

“Was there a healer?” I ask, searching the floor like it held the answers.

He doesn’t reply and when I look up, I see he’s pointing to his temple, lips pulled together in an almost invisible smile.

I run my tongue along the edge of my teeth in agitation before following his silent order. “After the healer, I could hear you all, I think.”

He confirms he heard me with one small nod, using the finger at his temple to rest his head against.

“ Please tell me it isn’t permanent,” I urge, fingers entwining with my robe beneath the table.

The corner of his lips flicker, he tries so hard to maintain his composure but I can somehow see through it. “Keep eating, you have no excuse now.”

“Is it permanent?” I feel my panic rising as I repeat the question and ignore his order to eat.

A bubbling sickness begins to rise in my gut at the very thought of this being something I won’t be able to stop. My own thoughts being on display for them… have they been able to hear me all this time? Since the first time we met? All those things I thought about them …

“I’m not sure,” he finally replies, cutting into my panic as his gaze locks with mine, forcing me to maintain contact with the deep intensity there, “and no, we haven’t been able to hear you until recently. Calm yourself.”

I try to do just that, pushing my back against the chair and taking a deep breath. “Why couldn’t I hear you until just now?”

“You can block it,” he suddenly says aloud, the sound of his voice in full intensity makes me involuntarily shiver. I wish it hadn’t and I feel the flush rising upon my chest in realisation.

I instantly begin speaking to try and cover up my body’s reaction. “How?”

His gaze has finally dropped from mine and the relief I feel is instant, my body feels less tense, that is until I see his eyes roaming the bare skin of my chest and throat. I can feel the heat of my skin, coated in a crimson blush, which only seems to be intensifying with his gaze.

In order to distract myself, and frustratingly following his order, I pull the tray even closer with a loud scrape, picking off a few grapes and quickly popping them into my mouth.

The sound seems to attract him and soon that inky vision is back with mine, containing a warmer depth which would make my skin bleed for him if it wasn’t already. My power crackles, sliding along my skin and seeping out.

“How can I stop it?” It was meant to sound strong and demanding, to show how little his presence is affecting me, but the question comes out as a raspy mutter. I shove more grapes into my mouth to stop myself from talking any more.

“You just need to focus,” he replies, his voice is a smooth caress that cools the heat rising on my skin. “Imagine creating a physical barrier inside your mind. Picture it. The more you do, the easier it will be. Though, you’re at a slight disadvantage…” His words seem to trail off as he watches me pop another grape between my lips.

I nearly swallow the thing whole. “Because I’m an empath?”

"Yes." He nods slightly. One finger taps slowly against his temple, then stops. His knuckles rest against his cheek and the edge of his mouth. “Because you’re an empath, your emotions fluctuate rapidly, which means it is hard for you to maintain a mental block. It’s a weakness of your kind,” he explains with a patronising edge I try very hard to ignore.

I scowl softly at him, but it almost falls when I catch the slight curve of his lip.

“And because we’ve had…" He pauses, clearly contemplating his next words. "A very long time to learn how to block one another out.”

“Great.” I shake my head in frustration and pop the final grape in my mouth in an aggressive, rushed action.

My eyes sweep the rest of the silver tray, trying to keep myself distracted from the pleasant feeling of his shadow which has crawled further up my leg at some point. I pick up a strawberry and the bright colour instantly fractures my calm.

“The tablets, what was in them?” My gaze sweeps up to meet his. His eyes are fixed on the strawberry pinched between my fingers, and I make a point of biting into it to draw his attention back to me.

Huge mistake.

When his gaze meets mine, my skin erupts into goosebumps and a cooling sensation smooths away the previous anxious thoughts.

His onyx gaze hungrily watches my lips, tracking my movements as I slowly swallow and place the remainder of the fruit back down.

He cants his head, eyes finally travelling from my lips to meet my concerned gaze. “You’ll soon see.”