Chapter 30
Elise sat at the edge of her bed with a bittersweet feeling.
Kurt’s words still lingered in her mind, and it was proving difficult to regain her enthusiasm even with the more promising situation in the workshop.
Still, she had to remind herself of the true purpose of her presence in the castle.
That night, she was determined to go to the gardens and continue her search for the Stone of Raj.
As soon as the last candles in the hall went out, she slipped out of bed. She was only wearing her chemise. After the exhausting day, she had already removed her brown dress and leather bodice. The days were warming up, and she didn’t need much to feel comfortable at night.
Had Elise had a larger mirror in her room, she would have seen how much of a temptation she looked. The fine fabric did little to conceal her shapely form, and with the heat of the night, the garment seemed determined to cling to her more pronounced curves.
With only Bruno as her witness, Elise remained blissfully unaware of her alluring appearance. She was completely focused on leaving the fairies’ apartments without being seen until a soft caw from Bruno made her jolt.
He was looking at her warily, dancing on the small table with a strange urgency.
“What is it, Bruno?” she asked, but the crow continued hopping.
She knew this meant trouble. She had seen it often enough by now not to ignore the sign. It seemed sensible to wait until the bird calmed down rather than risk waking everyone with a loud caw.
But she didn’t have to wait long, as a rap at the door interrupted her thoughts.
A quick prayer escaped her lips as she jumped to the bed. Her mind started to imagine who might dare come looking for her at this blasphemous time of the night.
Kurt?
Her heart skipped a beat as the thought crossed her mind that perhaps he had reconsidered his feelings and come to look for her. She sighed and gathered the courage to approach the door.
“Is it you, Kurt?” she asked.
To her deep disappointment, instead of the duke’s measured voice, another brisk knock sounded from the other side of the door.
“Open the door,” an infernal voice called.
Elise gasped in horror. How had Seth managed to find her?
“What do you want?” she muttered.
No answer came, but the door began to rattle like a snake ready to snap.
Before the demon could wake everyone up with his delicate methods, Elise opened the door.
Then, among the thick fog or whatever hellish vapor had covered the entire hall, Seth stepped forward.
His hard expression sat upon an impiously handsome face.
His tan skin was a shade darker than she remembered.
Had she not known this diabolical being spent his days in Hell, she might have guessed he had just returned from a weekend in the country.
“What are you doing here?” she whispered, desperately urging him into her room.
To her relief, the demon didn’t oppose her, and as soon as he was inside, she closed the door. She hoped no one had seen him, though judging by the silence in the hall, she figured everyone was already asleep.
Much like Kurt, Seth was a man of few words. Although, with him no words were needed to understand what he was thinking. His lowered eyelids paired with his pressed lips were quite telling about the displeasure he felt by being there.
The demon was bothered enough with the visit that he had barely glanced her way. It was not until the door rested shut that Seth was benevolent enough to grant her some attention. Elise looked him in the eye, poised to defend her right to remain free.
It was there, eye to eye, that the demon’s entire countenance shifted. His lips parted slightly, and his eyes widened. He traced her figure before returning to her face. He blinked and brought a hand to his throat.
“Why are you almost naked?”
Elise stumbled, looking down at her chemise. The small candle in the corner of the room did little to help her see what he was talking about.
She suspected, however, that true to his fiendish nature, Seth might possess unnatural eyesight, like that of a hawk, only in his case potent enough to see through thin fabric. In any case, she quickly brought her hands up to protect her modesty.
Knowing that the demon ran low on patience, she walked toward him determined to tell him a few truths she had saved for him.
She did not need supervision nor constant reminders of what she already knew she had to do.
He was a demon, and she was not yet a witch, but she was not about to let a few inconveniences of rank limit her freedom.
Elise cleared her throat.
“If you came to see with your own eyes that what I told you was true, well, here I am in the castle. Let me do my part of the bargain in peace. If Morgaine says that a year is what I need, so be it.”
But before she could say more, a trail of vapor began to seep from beneath Seth’s cloak. The demon seemed to have entered a state of agitation as he turned his back on her and hurried to a corner of the room.
“Are you well?” she asked.
The demon’s eyes were flaring. “Cover yourself.”
She hurried to grab the cape hanging by the bed. What a prudish demon this was. It was a wonder he came from the lower sort at all. He was so offended by a simple chemise that Elise thought he must be an authority in etiquette down in his own realm.
Unknown to her, the mere sight of her body was sending the demon into combustion. Had poor Elise been aware of this, she would have covered herself before opening the door.
“Have you found the Stone of Raj yet?” Seth asked after he managed to calm himself and the vapor finally came to a halt.
Elise gave a hesitant shake of her head.
“Ah,” the demon complained. “So you want a year for what? Just to look for the stone?”
“If you must know, I was on my way to the gardens, where I know for certain the stone is located.”
“Mortals,” was all he said.
Elise stood there, furious at the haughtiness of the demon. Her confidence was already shaken. She hated to admit he was not completely wrong and that she had taken long enough to find the famed rock.
Wanting to regain some authority, Elise decided it would be best to show Seth she was perfectly capable of doing this on her own. Perhaps then he would stop paying her surprise visits.
“There’s no reason to dwell on what I have or haven’t done,” she said. “If you are here to help me, let’s see to it.”
Seth stared at her and dipped his head.
“Come along, then.”
*****
Elise could hear the demon’s breathing quicken as she walked beside him toward the gardens. The horrid things he must be thinking about her for not being able to find the stone yet. Elise thought the vapor had been proof of his growing anger.
Every time she glanced his way, she found him staring back at her as if he could not decide whether to be concerned or horrified by her company.
Bruno was now flying high above them as if to give them some privacy. The pale blue of the late-night sky lent just enough light to guide their steps. Elise made her way toward the section she had only half explored, the one where she had met the king the night before.
As soon as they entered the maze, the many walls of greenery surrounding them made Elise aware of Seth’s powerful presence. She had been too worried and too offended to be shaken by his tall frame or his handsome face. But having him so near, she felt parts of her body reacting against her will.
He was as handsome as he was irritating. He was also one of the few who understood her situation, and like it or not, that was more than she could say about Kurt.
With the demon’s scent invading her nose, Elise found herself attributing more and more small virtues to his company.
She was beginning to think he might have reasons to be annoyed.
He was here against his will, and he was helping someone who knew little about magic in either world.
But those benevolent thoughts lasted right up until he opened his demonic mouth.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Seth grumbled. “Just because we are alone does not mean you have a chance with me.”
In an instant, Elise found herself fuming. A surge of pride erased all the generous thoughts she had entertained moments before. How dare this demon stumble into her room in the middle of the night only to suggest she was trying to pursue him?
“Again with that?” she snapped. He had made the same outrageous assumption back in the First Bloom. “If it’s because of the chemise, I couldn’t possibly have known you were coming.”
She did not wait for his answer and walked past him with her chin held high.
There were not many things that could offend a person used to the worst outrages as Elise was, but this?
She shot him a look of disdain. All she saw was a being so spoiled he found himself irresistible to any woman. An infernal with an ego as immense as Hell itself. A complete idiot, as far as Elise was concerned.
But the arrogant fool was not as confident as he appeared. As soon as Elise showed a few teeth, he found himself at a loss for words. She glanced back at him, and for a moment he looked like a startled rabbit. She figured not many people had dared put him in his place.
“Are you coming or not?” she muttered from a few paces ahead.
The demon gave a reluctant nod and quickly caught up with her.
Elise felt a renewed confidence as a fraction of a smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
“If you have any supernatural powers that can help find the stone, now would be the time to put them to good use,” she said. “This is as far as I have explored.”
Seth grumbled something indistinguishable, but interested as he was in making his visit short, he closed his eyes and began to wobble his head like a hound catching the scent of prey.