Chapter 14
Fourteen
DEMITRIA
T he ever-familiar large iron gates came into view and Demitria nearly cried at the sight of them. It was something she never thought she’d see again. Atlas had perked up the closer they approached, his gait lengthening to a smooth canter as her own mood shifted with each step closer. Despite her lifting thoughts, her chest felt heavy at their return.
The Horseman’s eyes were open, but unseeing. Glazed over as if trapped in some fevered dream. Making sure he wouldn’t fall, she dismounted. To her surprise, he stayed upright. She hadn’t heard him say so much as a word or lift a finger in a day, and it was a miracle in itself that he’d stayed seated behind her the entire ride, let alone after she’d dismounted. For how long would be the question. Leaving Atlas standing fifteen feet away, her fist pounded four times, hard, on the gate. Everything remained quiet. More than it should be. She had expected Guardians to meet them the moment they’d appeared on the horizon, but instead, there was nothing but silence. They must have been on high alert. Minutes passed before it finally opened.
Slowly at first, only enough for one single figure to emerge.
His arms wound their way around her body before she could take in the height of him, engulfing her in a tight embrace.
“I thought I’d lost you.” Jace’s voice wavered, arms wrapped tighter, nearly cutting off her air. She didn’t care.
“Harder than that to get rid of me.” Her voice was no more than a whisper, but knew he’d heard. The familiar smell of mint taking over her senses, mesmerizing her entire body as neither of them could back away. The leather of his jacket was soft against her cheek. A feeling she hadn’t realized she’d missed so badly in the days she’d been gone. She returned his embrace.
He finally released her and took her in, his gaze moving up and down her body. Dark circles rimmed his green eyes, eyelids drooping, heavy with weariness as fatigue strained his features.
“What happened to your head?” Jace’s hand grazed against her cheek where his fingers touched softly to the wound on her temple. The incident having completely slipped her mind given the days that followed.
“Run in with a boar. I won.” She didn’t dare tell him that she wasn’t the one who ended it.
Shit.
She’d nearly forgotten about the Horseman atop Atlas. Had been so caught up in seeing Jace again that she’d lost all rational thoughts on why she had returned in the first place.
The scraping of the gate echoed around them as it was pushed wider. Identical faces emerged, and her heart sank. They were not who she wanted to see.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Sam was angry, his eyes anchored behind her, and as much as she hated to admit it, rightfully so. She’d brought the enemy home. One look at the Horseman and you just knew he wasn’t human. He’d had a supernatural air about him, unconscious or not. If his sheer size alone wasn’t a dead giveaway, the running horse embossed into the leather of his armor had been another. Like a beacon, announcing his heritage for the world to see. She supposed that’s technically what the Horseman wanted. They were a force of nature, not to be messed with. He at least looked the part.
“He’s not a threat.” She said, motioning toward the wounded male practically splayed out on Atlas. Demitria took a step back from Jace’s warmth. “He’s a Horseman, and I know it looks bad, but he saved my life on multiple accounts. We were ambushed, and I’m repaying the debt that I owe him. That wound was supposed to be for me.”
“Like hell he’s not.” Weapon drawn, Will notched an arrow, aimed straight for the Horseman’s head. His twin followed suit, but pointed it toward her.
“You’d be making a huge mistake by letting those fly.” On the defensive, the growl left her lips as she glared back and forth between the two. “Stand down now. We’re coming in whether you like it or not.” Demitria made to push past them both when Kellan hit the ground with a loud thud, laying in the dirt at the horse’s feet. “Does this really look threatening to you?” Mumbling, she strung along an obscene number of curses toward the twins as she returned to the fallen Horseman. The inky veins along his face seemed to have darkened even more, his chest pounding in an irregular rhythm,
Hesitating, Jace’s eyes roamed from her, to the community, and back again as if unsure what to do. She knew bringing him here had been a lot to ask of him. Of them all, but she couldn’t think of anywhere else to go. Anyone else to ask. He needed help, and he needed it now. Despite Kellan saying otherwise, he clearly was not ok. Finally, Jace slowly made his way over to them. His eyes met hers. She saw fear. Fear of what this could bring upon them. Confusion. It was the disappointment that hit her hardest. Jace had been there when everything happened. They shared the trauma. Now she’d brought the enemy home.
Kellan’s horse didn’t follow when they entered, despite her attempts at whistling and coaxing him over. She felt bad leaving him beyond the wall, but nothing could be done to get the mount inside. The gate closed as the fiery red stallion stormed back and forth around the community, pacing as his rider disappeared out of sight.
Demitria had never been so grateful to have the infirmary so close to the gates as she and Jace managed, barely, to get the Horseman to the building where they placed him on a too small bed. His large frame engulfed it, as if it was made for a child. Inside, the walls were sickeningly white, illuminated by the sun’s rays and an array of lamps placed around the room. They didn’t have electricity anymore, so any procedure had to be done by lamplight.
Shelving sat half empty of supplies. She hated taking it away from her people, especially when they were using it on a Horseman, but she still couldn’t shake the fact that she owed him after the demon.
“I refuse to work on him! Get him out.” Braun roared, exploding into the room. His eyebrows pulled together, lips curling inward as he snarled. The door hit the wall so hard she thought it might break.
“Then I’ll do it myself!” Demitria countered, shoving the sleeves of her shirt up to her elbows. The dark blood oozed onto the floor. Making quick work, she began tearing at the buckles of his armor, tossing it aside to better reach the wound. The veins were even worse there, darker than the night sky as they snaked across his sun-kissed skin. Like the poultice she’d painstakingly put on all night had done nothing. She knew she made the right call in bringing him. “He needs a shot. Something to counteract the poison. Where is it?” She’d searched three shelving units, shoving things out of the way, but evidently, she didn’t actually know what she was looking for. Pharmaceuticals was not her area of expertise.
“Leave it to Braun. He knows what he’s doing.” Jace placed a soft hand on her shoulder, stopping her from searching another shelf for the second time. Reluctantly, she took a step back, letting Braun work. His eyes burned holes into her and Jace as he walked by, begrudgingly working on Kellan. Her eyes never left his hands, watching his every movement. Tracking what he did. She knew she should, but she didn’t trust him. Not right now, at least.
Jace slid a chair up beside her. It scraped, loud along the tiled flooring, but she was grateful for the seat and happily let her body fall into it. She loved riding Atlas, but a cushioned chair under her battered body was a sensation she didn’t want to leave. Wasn’t sure if she actually could, for that matter.
Demitria watched for two hours while Braun worked. The welcoming they had received was proof that she couldn’t leave Kellan in the Guardians’ hands, especially if his life depended on it. For all she knew they’d purposely kill him, seeing it as a major win for their side. Nobody would treat him unless she was there. She may have known her fair share of first aid, but anything complicated was out of her element. Ask her to stitch a small scrape? Great. Give an injection? Sure. Counteract a poison, debride, and deal with whatever the hell they were dealing with was way over her head. She could admit that without hesitation.
“This was out of line, Jace.” Braun sneered, that same look harsh across his features. He walked toward the clean bucket of water on the counter, scrubbing the inky blood from his hands. “Saving one of them? Are you out of your fucking mind?” Grabbing a clean infirmary top from a nearby drawer, he moved toward the Horseman once more, pulling it over his head. The pale blue shirt clung to Kellan’s body, the fabric stretched taut over his broad shoulders and chest. Jace’s steady hand on her shoulder was the only thing that kept her in the chair. That and the fatigue that had taken hold of her body.
“You know I value your opinion,” Jace started, “You are one of our most trusted, Braun.” The Guardian opened his mouth to speak, but Jace continued. “I trust in Demitria’s judgment that the Horseman means us no harm.” The fact that Jace had remained so calm through everything amazed her. She had so many different emotions swirling within she had been ready to explode. “He saved her life, and for that I am eternally grateful.”
Braun’s face darkened. “Everything is always in some benefit to her. We all know it. You claim we are all equal, but she has always been held on a different stature, as if you worship the fucking ground she walks on. Bringing him here was one strike, Jace. Saving him? That was the biggest mistake you ever made.” Braun forcefully shouldered past Jace as he left, slamming the door behind him.
Jace teetered, but kept his balance. He said nothing. Did nothing as the Guardian walked away.
“How dare he.” Demitria’s eyes stared at the door that slammed shut, hard enough as if Braun had tried to break it. “He can’t talk to you like that. I could kill that asshole.”
“He has a point.” Jace ran a hand through his hair, his frustration evident in the small gesture. “You brought a Horseman here.”
“He couldn’t even walk!” She turned the anger on her best friend, hating herself for it. “He needed our help.”
“Demi…”
“Don’t do that, Jace. I owed him.”
“He’s not Callum. You owe these beings nothing.” But she did… despite the order to kill her, the Horseman hadn’t. She owed him her life.
Demitria had reached her limit. Couldn’t talk to him about it anymore, afraid that if she did, she’d say something that she would regret later. Getting into a fight with him was something she just couldn’t do. Their friendship meant too much to her. Pulling the chair closer to the bed, she settled down once more. Staring at the sleeping Horseman. Jace stood there, unmoving. He didn’t say a word. Minutes went by before he finally let out a sigh. The soft click of the door was the only indication that he’d left.
The anger at the situation was roiling around inside, like her body was in an endless spin. She was angry with herself for bringing him there. Angry with the others for the hostility toward her , when all she’d ever wanted was the best for them. Felt as if she couldn’t discern right from wrong. Because she understood their worries. Some part of her knew that bringing him back to Solis was bad, but they hadn’t been there when the demon showed up. They hadn’t been forced to face the living nightmare that had haunted her for ten fucking years. To have a being that she loathed with every fiber of her being save her from it. If she didn’t have any sort of moral code—humanity, would they be so different from the demons that slaughtered them? Demitria refused to regret her decision.
With a sigh, she let her head rest in her hands. What the hell did she get herself into.
Kellan hadn’t awoken in three days. Due to a growing concern of his assassination while he slept, Demitria hadn’t left the infirmary once. The chair Jace had brought in upon their arrival had become her perch. Watching. Listening. Waiting for someone to come in and make a move. They wouldn’t while she was there. It’d be a stupid plan if they did. More than likely a death sentence. By her hands.
She had moved to the side of the bed. Kellan’s body lay still, unmoving, except for the steady rise and fall of his chest. The tone of his skin evening as the inky veins had all but disappeared. A drastic change from when he’d collapsed outside the gates.
“How is he?” The door clicked shut and she didn’t need to turn around to know it was Jace. No one else had dared to set foot in the room, and she knew he was only doing it for her.
“Still no change.” Her voice soft, quiet, but she met him with a smile. Jace handed her a steaming mug of tea, a special blend that Stella routinely made. Growing and drying the herbs herself. The sweet aroma of blackberry and hibiscus filled her nose. Eyes closed, she inhaled the smell, breathing it in deeper as she let it fill her senses. Stella may grow everything herself, but it was still a luxury.
“Why are you so adamant on saving his life?” With his body leaning against the far wall, a good distance away from the Horseman, Jace’s eyes didn’t leave hers. Searching.
“It’s… complicated.” She sighed. “He saved my life; I’m repaying the favor.” Demitria stared into the mug, watching the billowing steam slowly rise and disappear. “When one gives you life, you repay the favor. It’s a debt I owe.” Forcing her eyes back up, she met Jace’s once more. “You understand that, right?”
“I’m grateful he saved your life. For that, I’m indebted to him.” He was upon her in two large steps, pulling her up from the chair. The mug nearly clattered to the floor. She managed to stash it on the side table before it did so. “I just keep wondering why… What happened out there?” His brow wrinkled with worry, his gaze anchored to her own.
“The things I saw out there…” Choking on her words, it took everything in her not to cry. She still felt completely and utterly raw from the encounter. Like a wound that just wouldn’t close. “You have no idea, Jace.” When his arms wrapped around her small frame, she didn’t protest. She never did. His touch had always been calming. Safe. She felt so safe in his arms.
She couldn’t bear to tell him about the demon. The one who had single handedly torn their families apart. They both had been through so much, and she wouldn’t put him through that again. Not when it remembered her. Because if it remembered her, it would remember him. That was more than enough reason to keep that knowledge away from him. She didn’t know what he would truly do if he knew it still roamed these parts. If he knew it was coming after her.
“I don’t like having a Horseman here.” He sighed, arms tightening. She understood his worry, truly. Hell, she’d felt the same way at first. Questioning if she had made the right decision in bringing him here, but one look at him on the infirmary bed had steeled her thoughts. She didn’t think he would have made it if they hadn’t.
“I know.” Her words came out in barely a whisper. She’d had nothing more to say at this point. Didn’t know what to say for that matter. “Once he walks out of here unharmed, my debt will be paid.” She wouldn’t tell Jace that she’d be walking out with him. The safety of Solis was imperative on that. And if there was some small chance that she could survive this, she’d find her way back to them. She just needed her own answers first. To find out why they wanted her dead, because maybe, she could fix it. Change whatever fate that had been laid out for her.
And just maybe, at the end of it all, she could return home . To Jace.