25
Cold hands touch my face.
“Kindra, look at me!” Darya’s voice rings tautly.
“My name is Lotte,” I whisper.
The Demon King smiles.
“You’ll be fine,” he declares, then kisses my neck. If I had any strength, I’d push him away.
The dream overwhelms me again.
When I wake up, I feel refreshed. I’m not in my room, but in Darya’s. The stab in my heart only slightly throbs, and my chest rises and falls evenly. I move my fingers. My arm isn’t broken, my ribs are intact. I press my hand to my head.
“Little Flower!” Nárs tears my fingers away from my forehead and intertwines them with his own.
“How long… how long was I asleep?”
“For two days, Lily Girl!” Nárs says, squeezing my hand encouragingly. “I was so worried about you!” he continues. “I hoped nothing had happened to you!”
“You hoped ?” I speak hoarsely. “You cheered for Kripot!”
Nárs waves his hand dismissively.
“Well, he was divine! But you! You were marvelous! I thought you’d hold out for two minutes! Of course, I only gave you that much time out of friendly kindness, because I wanted to reciprocate the loving gazes you threw at me every day. No, little girl, don’t deny it. I’m too good an observer!”
I roll my eyes.
“I wouldn’t give you more time against that monster either,” I mutter.
“Oh, Little Flower, you shouldn’t talk about him like that! He doesn’t even know what he did. When I explained to him that he almost killed you, he completely lost it. I passed on your message that you’ll only forgive him if he chains me to the bed…”
I throw a pillow at him just to shut him up, but the corners of my mouth involuntarily curl into a smile.
“What do you mean he doesn’t even know what he did?”
“Well,” Nárs begins, “Kripot is never in control of himself when he shows his true self.”
“His true self?”
“Oh yes,” Nárs says, shrugging. “When he becomes Polyphemus, he doesn’t really know what he’s doing. Although it excites me.”
“I’d never doubt that it does.”
“Darya granted him this human form as a grace, allowing him to think. Otherwise, he’s just an exciting creature…”
“I don’t believe he’s the real monster,” I whisper.
“Then who is, Kindra?”
I turn towards the voice. The Demon King sits in a gray, high-backed armchair. He waits patiently, a smile playing on his lips. I don’t answer, but I don’t take my eyes off the Kraldem.
“Thank you, Nárs, that will be enough now. The Herebias are attempting the eastern section of the Hél Mountains. We need Lizander. If you’re not tired, go to the war room. I’ll join you later.”
So, he doesn’t want to stay with me for long. Perfect. I can focus on the mission.
I have no idea where the Hél Mountains are, but I feel like the angels are close. Lavian is keeping his word; they’ll get me out of here. But first, I need to find something.
Nárs jumps up so suddenly it startles me.
“Why is it always him?” he asks. “For several days now, he’s the only one allowed to be present. I’m so bored…”
“ Off you go,” Darya says.
Nárs dramatically buries his face in his hands, lamenting a few times why he has to suffer like this, then strides away from the huge window Darya and I once fell from.
I glance back at the Kraldem, who looks calmly at me.
“I see that,” I start before he can speak, “angels pose quite a threat if Lizander has to be always vigilant. That’s good. I hope they’ll destroy all of you.”
Darya doesn’t take offense. Instead, he finds amusement in the threat.
“Would you like them to deal with Nárs, too?”
I bite my lip to avoid taking the bait, but I can’t lie to this extent. Maybe I could negotiate with the angels. Nárs’s death… would sadden me.
“I would like everyone to experience what you did to that kid.”
Darya does something I’ve never seen him do before. He rolls his eyes, which make him look years younger.
“It’s good to see that death hasn’t changed your views.”
“The death you caused.”
“Did I stab your chest with a dagger? By the way, if your heart was the target, you missed – you pierced your stomach. Although I suppose you figured that out when you didn’t die immediately.”
“Can I see the dagger?” Even to me, it sounds stupid, and I’m sure Darya will figure out why I’m asking.
“Why do you care?”
“I collect souvenirs.”
“Are you planning to leave or something?”
“I met with your father in the afterlife. He said that next time I should bring a dagger with your severed head. I thought I’d start with just one.”
Darya smirks challengingly, my performance having not fazed him at all. I hate how he smiles. Still… something stirs in me. He stares thoughtfully for a while, then changes to a more serious tone.
“So, is your devilish plan to kill yourself again?”
“It depends. Can you bring me back with your blood?”
Darya looks surprised.
“If you’re so eager to drink it, you can have it anytime,” he says, rolling up the sleeve of his black leather vest.
I think about the taste of his blood, and saliva pools in my mouth.
Jumbled memories flood back of Darya holding me in his lap for several nights, whispering soothing words in my ear, feeding me his blood.
I swallow hard to suppress the urge, because I really do want to taste it again. Quickly, I change the subject.
“No need. I’m not going to kill myself, at least not for now. I hate constantly passing out and waking up in someone else’s bed. That’s all my days consist of. Besides, it’s painful.”
“And my blood soothes the pain,” he says, so deeply that I shiver. The demon gets up and comes to the bed to sit next to me. “Maybe death did change you, after all. The fire in your eyes is unquenchable. Tell me, Lotte, what did you see in your dream?”
He smiles mysteriously. He addresses me by my name. He’s toying with me. He can’t know. He can’t know that I met Lavian.
“The gods allowed me to kill you in as many ways as I like.”
Darya laughs freely, in a manner I haven’t seen before. He shakes his head. I hope I’ve dispelled his suspicions.
“I have an idea…”
“Not interested.”
“But you haven’t even heard it yet! Your training will be different from now on. I’ll be with you all the time, teaching you close combat. If you defeat me, you can kill me. I won’t object.”
He smiles in such a way that it’s almost offensive, as if I stand no chance against him. I contemplate his offer, looking for loopholes. Obviously, he’s lying.
“Either you won’t teach me properly,” I begin, “or it’s simply impossible for me to defeat the world’s strongest demon.”
I regret my words when I see Darya’s suggestive look. I’m such an idiot: I’m flattering him.
“It’s an honor to have the title. Indeed I am. However, once again, you don’t trust yourself. You’ve never fought a monster before, yet you almost defeated one. A little practice with the world’s most handsome demon—”
“Strongest.”
“And you don’t think you’d be stronger than him?”
Darya’s too close, and he’s smiling too widely. I want to hit him. I want to kill him. I want to do it almost as much as I want to feel his hand on my skin.
“What do you gain from this?” I ask, as he begins to stroke my thigh through the blanket. I shiver, but I don’t pull away.
“There will be a lot of close combat…” That’s his answer. Then he looks at me with a wicked smile.
So, the whole point is he wants to grope me all over? I try to calm down, while possibilities of how he’d touch me flash before my mind’s eye. Learning to keep away from him isn’t such a bad idea.
“Fine,” I say through gritted teeth. “When do we start?”
“It depends on whether you still want to drink my blood.”
I swear to myself to freeze that smug smile on his dead face someday.
My mouth dries up as if craving for some drug. That’s how I longed for my medication.
“And what if I don’t ask for it?”
“Then you’ll heal later.”
I bite my lip, not breaking eye contact. I can’t waste any more time – I’ve slept for two days already. I need to find what Lavian sent me back for.
“Let’s get it over with.”
The Demon King smiles, takes out a knife from his belt, and cuts his wrist. His blood is almost black. He extends his muscular arm towards me, and my eyes widen.
“Hell, no! Give me the glass!”
“Just drink from here.”
“That’s disgusting! Give me the glass, or I’ll lie here for months!”
The Kraldem flashes his reptilian grin at me, and I realize I’ve said something wrong again. He goes to the table, pours some into a brown clay cup, then brings it to me. I take it in my hands. I can’t believe I’m going to drink blood. I cover my nose and take a sip.
As the liquid touches my throat, I feel dizzy, as if I’m drinking alcohol and getting pleasantly buzzed. Warmth spreads through my body, my control slipping away slowly. I gulp down the contents of the cup. More. I want much more.
I look at the Kraldem; he’s already cutting open his muscular forearm. I move closer to him and press his wrist to my lips. His skin is cold, and he uses his other hand to brush my bloody hair from my eyes.
I grab onto his clothes and pull him violently towards me.
Sitting in his lap, I moan as I move my hips against his.
I enjoy the blood coursing down my throat.
I gulp greedily, disregarding everything else.
Darya’s fingers dance on my thigh and I moan again as they dig into me.
I pull my mouth off his white arm and press my bloody lips to his.
So cold, so soft, so fucking delicious.
I open my mouth to him, and he responds eagerly.
Darya pulls me closer to him, pressing against my hips, causing me to groan as my hair falls over his face. My hair is too short… short because…
I tear myself away from his embrace.
“Get out!” I scream at him, falling back onto the bed. “Just get out!”
Every tiny line on Darya’s face twists to form a mocking smile. He walks away from me, placing the glass on the table and pulling down his long-sleeved shirt. The wound has already healed. He looks at me like a conspirator as he comes closer again.
“I didn’t expect you to drink that much, but with this, you’ll be able to stand by this afternoon. That’s when we’ll start.”
I feel used. Clearly, I shouldn’t drink any more of his blood, yet I can already feel the healing. And the longing.
“I hate you,” I whisper.
Darya shrugs.
“That’s good. I like intense emotions.”
I need to get out of this. I need to focus on the mission. I’m about to respond but Darya beats me to it.
“I have to leave now.”
“Wait!” I say, and he raises an eyebrow. “Can I visit the mirror room?” I ask, trying to feign indifference.
“Why would you go there?”
I grit my teeth, trying to come up with the most honest lie.
“I want to see my brother.”
Darya sizes me up from head to toe. I’m only wearing a loose nightgown, with nothing underneath.
“That mirror is a dangerous thing,” he finally says. “You’ll go mad.”
I throw my head back and laugh, seeing the terrifyingly attractive silver streak in Darya’s eyes.
“I’m already crazy, Darya! Because of you and your monsters! You have no right to keep me here all day!”
“I have every right, but if you ask nicely, perhaps I’ll let you go.”
He waits. I wait. A smile freezes on my face.
“Do you really want me to ask nicely?”
“Go ahead.”
I force out the words mockingly, “Please, Darya, may I go to the mirror room?”
Darya lowers his head.
“Now, kiss me.”
I grab the pillow next to me and throw it at him, causing him to laugh.
“I love this new fire. I think we’re going to have so much fun.”
He walks to the window.
“Alright. You can go there. I’ll tell Nárs to come and get you.”
He’s about to push himself off from the window when I shout at him:
“I hate you! Never think it’ll be any different!”
He just smiles.
“Oh, Kindra. We both know that’s not true.”