Chapter Twenty-One
Daemon
HUNT THE HUNTERS
Fuck!
One of the demons—I didn’t know who—was now going after Vhaena. And she would have been going faster if she wasn’t dragging her fucking friend along. There wasn’t anything I could do about that right now, but I could stop the demon chasing her.
“Another victim!” my demon cheered.
“No. We’re definitely not killing this one,” I demanded.
I couldn’t kill them all. Not without drawing attention. I didn’t want to kill them either, despite the demon within craving their deaths.
Sure, I could do it. Again, there were no rules during the Hunt. But it went both ways.
There’d be nothing stopping them from targeting me for going against the status quo.
The other demons would eventually notice someone was killing demons.
And once that happened, they’d come looking.
They’d find me. Worse, they’d find out I wasn’t here to hunt women—but here to protect one.
Which was the last thing I needed. Knowing these depraved fuckers—if they were anything like Baen—learning she mattered to me would only make them want her life even more.
So I needed to make sure none of them discovered Vhaena in the first place.
I moved from my place atop the boulder, dashing across it and going in the opposite direction of Vhaena and Inka. I noticed the other deceitful woman taking advantage of her treachery and running the other way—escaping the demon’s attention entirely. It was smart but not smart enough.
Thankfully, he hadn’t seen Vhaena and Inka yet, and I wasn’t about to let him. I leapt from the boulder and landed right in front of him. Three more strides and he would have seen them.
Shit. He had three pink slashes—someone strong from the Mangel family. I didn’t know what he was capable of, but I hadn’t planned on fighting him anyway.
Time to play the game.
“Move. She’s getting away.” I sounded irritated and shoved him aside.
“She went that way, dumbass.” He gestured behind me.
“She threw a rock as a distraction, dumbass. Now, get out of my way. I have real prey to hunt.” I shoved him aside and ran after the other woman.
The side of my mouth lifted into a triumphant smirk when I heard him following. I made sure not to run too fast and let him catch up.
“She’s plenty for both of us,” he said darkly.
I had done what I needed to do. I had successfully diverted the demon back to the woman he was hunting, but now I also had to get out of killing her.
“No need. I’ll take care of it.” The words had barely registered before my demon surged to the surface.
The moment I caught a glimpse of her in the distance, he took over without warning. It was seamless, instant. The edges of my vision blurred with red as time warped, and everything happened in slow motion.
One second I was in control, the next I was watching from behind my own eyes as the darkness I had fought against for years consumed me.
My legs moved faster, more fluidly than they ever had under my will.
My claws emerged, tearing from the tips of my fingers, curving with intent.
My heart raced, thundering in my ears. Not with fear, but with visceral hunger.
I drew closer and closer, her figure framed within my vision with no escape.
The distance between us disappeared, and I heard the hitch in her breath as it caught on a scream.
I pinned her beneath me, slamming her into the dirt. A claw traced down the vein in her neck as my hand wrapped around her throat, holding her down. The scent of her blood pulsing beneath her skin had me ravenous.
I didn’t want this. This wasn’t who I was.
“This is who we are.”
The Mangel demon came up beside me and stared down at the woman. “Be quiet.”
Instantly, the screaming stopped as if her voice had been cut off. Her mouth remained open, but her wails had turned silent. My eyes widened. I knew then what his ability was.
He had the Chain of Will—capable of giving a command and forcing his victim to obey. So long as she was within his sights and he didn’t blink, she was tethered to his control.
“Don’t move,” he demanded, and she stopped thrashing beneath me. But she couldn’t stop the tears from spilling down her cheeks. “Part your legs.”
I flung myself off her. My demon urged me to follow my instincts, to give in to the temptation and use my ability like I had never done before. But I stopped. I wasn’t going to be the monster I was born to be.
I stood and stepped back. The Mangel demon didn’t notice, too consumed with his prey. Every step back was physically painful as my body craved a kill. It was in my blood, but I refused to let it be part of my soul. And no matter how much my demon protested, I refused to buckle under his control.
Once I was far enough away, and the Mangel demon couldn’t see or hear me, I vomited. I had almost killed an innocent woman.
“She tried to get Vhaena killed to save her own skin. She was far from innocent,” my demon defended. He had relinquished his attempt to control me once I was far enough away.
“She didn’t choose to be here. She was doing what she had to do to survive. I don’t blame her.”
It made it a little easier. I wasn’t saying she didn’t deserve it. Maybe she did. Maybe she was a horrible person. I had no idea. But I also didn’t know if she was a good person who was just forced to make immoral decisions since being brought here.
It didn’t matter now. She was dead, and Vhaena wasn’t. That was all I truly cared about.
Vos, this wasn’t exactly what I signed up for, but I’ll do it for you.
And for his mother. And…for Vhaena. She didn’t deserve this either.
I unlaced the water canteen at my hip. I tried to keep it filled in case I got the chance to give some to Vhaena, but what were the chances she’d trust it? I took a large gulp of water, hoping it would quench the thirst I was craving.
It didn’t. It didn’t even come close. I knew this was a thirst for something more depraved, a hunger I couldn’t stop—bloodlust.
This was why demons came here. It was why there was a Hunt to begin with. We couldn’t stop it forever. We had to release our demons—to feed them.
There were only a few who didn’t give in, who truly repressed their inner demon.
Some went through life just fine, while others ultimately couldn’t hold themselves back any longer.
I had hoped I was strong enough to be the former.
But I wasn’t. Especially not here. I’d already lost the battle against myself, but the true struggle was not losing who I was entirely.
With the night in full force, I took a long, wide route back to where I last saw my best friend’s sister.
From there, it wasn’t hard to find her. She and Inka had gone deeper into the cluster of boulders.
It was almost like a maze, which made for a good place to hide, but they could easily get lost themselves.
As I followed their trail to where they were wedged between two of the large rocks, I noticed dried red liquid streaked on the side of one of the boulders—berry juice.
And the next one, curving around it, then onto the one after that.
They’d made a trail—markers so that they could find their way back. Except all their efforts did was leave a trail leading to them.
I swore it was even darker within the rocks, so I had no concerns about getting closer tonight. Wingbeats fluttered above me as I approached, and I saw Vhaena was taking the first half of the night to keep watch.
I hadn’t been this close since the night before she was taken.
Somehow, despite trudging through the forest for three days, she looked…
beautiful. It wasn’t something that had eluded me before, but it wasn’t something I’d concentrated on either.
In the darkness, her hazel eyes seemed to glow.
Probably just my demon vision making it seem so.
Her clothes were torn in several places, and if it bothered her, she didn’t show it.
Inka and Vhaena quietly talked for a bit, swapping stories to give themselves some distraction. Vhaena even smiled—actually smiled—at one point, when Inka told her something funny. And it wasn’t just a polite grin. It was full and bright. Such a rare sight this past year.
Once Inka fell asleep, Vhaena stared into the darkness. I dared to move closer.
How was she able to find happiness in a place like this?
And after all she’d been through, I would have thought I’d never see the tilt of her lips again.
Yet, it was there amongst so much death and violence—like a little demon herself.
And here I was, fighting to not lose myself.
I felt like I was barely clinging to my humanity.
But seeing that smile, brought it back just a little bit more. And it reminded me why I was here.
I extended my claws, something I was able to do at will now, and used them to help me quietly scale the boulder.
With my feet dangling over the edge as I sat, I pulled off my mask to feel the breeze on my face.
From here, I could see Vhaena perfectly while also having the best vantage point for anyone approaching.
My head tilted to the side when I saw her spitting into her hands—or trying to.
She seemed to be struggling to accumulate enough saliva.
She scrubbed her hands together before wiping them along the rock at her back, leaving behind streaks of red.
Of course, it was Vhaena who had left the trail.
She and I were going to have to have a serious conversation about her survival tactics.
As I watched her through the night, I knew if I wanted her to live, I needed her to part ways with her friend.
Inka was slowing her down, and if it wasn’t for me having stopped a demon from killing her three times now, she’d be dead.
Inka was a liability. It wasn’t her fault, but I wasn’t willing to let Vhaena get herself killed for someone else. My promise was for her and her alone.
So I stayed and watched over her all night.
Well, for ten minutes at least.
Movement caught my eye. Something big, shifting between the boulders on the far side of the cluster.
I knew of the beasts residing on the Wal of Two Tears, but no one ever talked about them as if they were a problem.
But then again, why would they be? They weren’t trying to keep any of the women alive…
I decided to leave it be since it wasn’t anywhere near the women and didn’t pose a threat to Vhaena at the moment. Especially because, only a few minutes later, an even greater threat dashed through the trees toward the boulders.
Another demon.
Fucking hells… Can they not let up for one night?
He moved swiftly in this direction.
I didn’t want to lose sight of Vhaena in case the creature wandered near, and ravens had shit sight in the dark, but I couldn’t let the demon get too close either.
“Why not solve both problems at once?” my demon suggested.
It wasn’t a bad idea. And if successful, I wouldn’t have to move from this spot at all.
Subconsciously, my claws emerged once again. The thought of blood and slaughter had my skin vibrating with excitement.
“Daemon…” he paused for a moment. “Let me out. A little more this time. You can trust me.”
Was it fair of me to keep that part of me contained? If I didn’t release my demon now, would I lose control of him later when I could hurt other people? I wanted to let him out. I really did.
The demon was navigating his way through the maze of boulders. My eyes briefly flicked back and forth between him, the creature, and the woman below.
I slowly slipped my mask on, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. When I exhaled, I slowly released the hold I had on my demon.
“You’re free.”