Chapter Six
Window, desk, bed.
Window, desk, bed.
Window, desk, dining room, desk, window, desk, bed.
Endless pacing, ever restless, nothing to do, and no one worth seeing. This had become my life, or lack thereof, over the past three days. Aside from mealtime, I’d stayed here in this room, where I didn’t have to worry about confronting the household demons. Or worse, Sitri himself.
I hadn’t bothered returning to the streets of Lantyca. So long as I confined myself, Sitri had promised to keep me safe. It was a fool’s game to test the limits of his promise so soon. But as restlessness stirred in my bones and dark thoughts circled overhead, the walls of my room closed in.
In the stillness, my mind repeated the vow I’d made to Vapula.
I imagined my parents weeping for my loss and heard Levi’s last words to me on the balcony.
Alone and self-imprisoned, the rumination became difficult to bear.
Hunger always followed those thoughts, not for food, but for something to numb the pain gnawing away at my insides.
Staying here would drive me insane. I needed a change of scenery. What a shame it was that the only option I had was the lust Prince’s mansion, crawling with his henchmen.
I shuffled over to the door and listened, ensuring the hall beyond was quiet before unlocking and cracking it open.
There was still plenty of light, thanks to the lanterns hanging on the wall, but no demons.
My shoulders loosened. Maybe the place would be abandoned.
Holding that hope, I left the safety of my room and locked the door behind me.
The mansion’s corridors had felt claustrophobic in the dark. Now that there was light, they somehow felt even smaller. If I stretched my arms to my sides, I could brush both walls with my fingertips. If I held my hands straight up and jumped, they would have touched the ceiling.
The only things that remained imposing were the doors, made of stained wood without a grain pattern, and set into broad frames. Some of them I recognized; the door to Sitri’s chancery, with its lewd, intricate carvings, and beyond it, the door to the dining hall and kitchen.
The dining hall door gave me pause. If these demons possessed any alcohol, they kept it well hidden.
Sitri’s servants hadn’t served it at mealtime or left it out around the mansion.
If there were any wines or liquors, I would find them stowed away in the kitchen, where they would likely be used for cooking.
It was a risk to steal them, but the payoff would be worth it—a few hours free from my agony and a night of dreamless sleep. A chance to scratch the itch that crawled beneath my skin. That desire emboldened me, even though I knew how disastrous theft might be.
I reached for the doorknob. My fingers brushed its surface. Then, a faint scuffling came from the room beyond. It grew louder. A bang and a muttered curse made me flinch. I drew my hand away and took a step backward.
The door slowly opened, a bulky figure stepped through it, and I found myself face-to-face with Apollo.
He appeared almost exactly as he had before, save for the huge metal wastebasket he carried, full to the brim with glass bottles, soiled kitchen rags, and cloth sacks. He stumbled, nearly dropping his basket at the sight of me. His eyebrows raised.
“Oh, Lillia!” Apollo set the wastebasket down on the ground, careful not to let its refuse touch the wall. “I wasn’t expecting you to be out and about at this time of day. Everything alright?”
As I watched his face, Apollo’s surprise faded, and his brows pinched together.
His tight-lipped smile betrayed concern I hadn’t expected from him.
Though I wanted to believe it was genuine, I knew how dangerous that line of thought could become.
This was one of Sitri’s demons. I wouldn’t risk trusting him. Not yet.
“Just getting a little stir-crazy, that’s all,” I answered. “I needed a walk to clear my mind, and hadn’t expected company.” Apollo followed my gaze as I turned it to the waste bin, and his lips relaxed.
“You can usually find me and Mara around here somewhere,” he said. “Prince Sitri runs a tight ship, and there’s always work to be done. We drew straws. She gets the privilege of cooking today, and… well, someone’s gotta take the trash out, right?”
“And that ‘someone’ is an armored knight?”
I looked Apollo over and had to stop myself from laughing. There was something comical about seeing this bulky, muscled demon, sword secured at his side, carrying out such a mundane task.
He’d even drawn straws with the maid. For housework.
Just my luck that I’d find myself stuck in this nonsensical, backwards kingdom.
“‘Knight’ isn’t quite right,” he said with a laugh. “We all pitch in around here in the ways we’re able. If you ever wanted to help out, you could earn a little grace or some extra privileges. Sitri can be a stick-in-the-mud, but he won’t hurt you, and it helps to show him you’ll return the favor.”
I raised an eyebrow. “He certainly tried to hurt me. If he’d been any rougher, I would be covered in bruises. Besides, I don’t know if it’s a good idea to buddy up with the Prince of Lust and Lies. That title doesn’t inspire much confidence.”
“You’re under his protection now,” he said. “That isn’t something he offers lightly, not in times like these. Give him a chance to show you what it’s worth.”
The demon’s posture shifted. His muscles tightened, his brow creased, and he couldn’t seem to meet my eyes any longer.
“You trust him,” I said.
Apollo nodded. “Of course I do. I wouldn’t be here otherwise. We’re a team, and if any of us were going to leave, we’d be long gone. In Hell, it pays to work together. Things get easier when you have someone to watch your back, y’know?”
But I didn’t. That was a luxury I’d never had, that sense of sureness and trust in another person, and though it was something I’d always wanted, I had a feeling Sitri wouldn’t be the first to grant me that mercy.
But Apollo… he seemed almost normal in a way.
Under different circumstances, I could have imagined him as a suburban father or a grocery store clerk, rather than a demon knight.
If only we weren’t divided by his apparent loyalty to the Prince.
“I’m not so sure I’ll ever really trust him,” I said, omitting Apollo’s inclusion in that sentiment. “He hasn’t made a very good first impression, and I don’t know how much I believe in this truce he’s called, not when he had his hand around my throat just a few days ago.”
“I’ll remind him that his actions speak louder than his words.” Something flicked across Apollo’s face too quickly for me to read. As soon as it appeared, it was gone. Another forced smile replaced it.
“Listen, I’d love to chat, but I really should get this place cleaned up.” He scratched his head and gestured to the wastebasket. “If you need anything, I’m around. Just give a yell out the door and I’ll be right there.”
“Thanks,” I said, offering a less-than-genuine smile of my own.
Apollo collected the basket and carried on his way, the metal in his armor clanking against his cargo.
I shook my head. Even if he and Mara had struck an agreement about the chores, there should be more servants around who were better suited to those tasks.
Maybe the Prince hadn’t bothered to staff his estate.
If that was the case, it was a wonder anything got done around here at all.
Once Apollo’s footsteps faded, I wandered through more hallways, eventually stumbling into the foyer.
This was the only room that looked bigger in the light—a grand entryway flanked on one side by the mansion’s exit, and on the other by a pair of plain double doors I’d missed when I first walked this place in the dark.
They seemed unassuming, with no carvings or decorations.
Just black-stained wood and a polished finish.
I trailed my fingers down their smooth surfaces.
No sound came from behind them, but flickering light flooded out from the gap at the doors’ base.
If Sitri lit the place, and demons could see in the dark, then surely he’d tolerate my presence.
If I were caught, and the Prince displeased, at least I’d have an excuse for poking around.
Holding that thought in my mind, I pulled the door open and slipped inside.
Before me stretched a great room that stole my breath, adorned with chairs, couches, loveseats, and end tables, all done up in a Victorian style.
Some were cloth, some were scaly leather, and others were upholstered in red velvet.
Curtains made of the same velvet hung over the far wall.
Overhead, an enormous chandelier burned with dozens of flames that cast the scene in dim, sepia light.
At capacity, this place could comfortably seat two dozen demons, possibly up to four dozen, if extra chairs were brought in. The thought of so many demons in one room, making merry and indulging in hellish delights, made me shudder.
I glanced around. There was so much to see, so much furniture and finery, that I had no idea where to start searching the place.
Before I could decide, I was interrupted by a knocking that echoed in the foyer and through the barely cracked great room doors.
At the sound of quick, measured footsteps, I abandoned my investigation and crept back towards the entryway.
Through the gap, the foyer was on full display.
As I’d suspected, those footsteps belonged to the missing maid, Mara.
Of the demons on Sitri’s estate, she still unnerved me the most. I couldn’t place why. She dressed like a doll, carried herself like a servant, but something felt off about her. Maybe it was her inhuman skin, which shone with a porcelain-like sheen, or her near-unbreakable demeanor.
Apollo wore his emotions on his sleeve, and Sitri didn’t bother hiding his cruelty. But Mara… Nothing seemed to faze her.
Nothing except for Zaleos.
She breezed right by the great room doors.
If she noticed they were ajar, she didn’t show it.
I crouched low to the ground, thankful that no walls would break my line of sight as she answered the door.
In its frame stood a powerful demon of the bestial, red-skinned variety, who filled the oversized doorway with his muscular physique.
His face mirrored that of a bull, complete with bison-like horns and legs that ended in hooves.
The armor he wore reminded me of Sitri’s, though it had been crafted to fit his inhuman form.
He stepped into the mansion. The newcomer gave a muffled greeting in a voice as deep as a beast’s bellow.
Mara returned the pleasantries, shut the door behind him, and led him in my direction.
I froze, unwilling to breathe as they crossed within feet of my hiding place.
Heavy hoofbeats shook the floorboards, and the scent of perfume, sweat, and smoke washed over me as they passed.
Then, they started down the hall toward Sitri’s chancery.
Only after they’d disappeared behind the hallway’s bend did I loose the breath I held.
The lack of air left me gasping. My heartbeat thundered in my chest like a drum.
Leaving the safety of my room had been a mistake, and the appearance of this new, monstrous demon made that clear.
I straightened and slunk back through the gap in the double doors and pulled them shut, careful not to make a sound.
The foyer was now empty, aside from me. Only the distant murmuring of Mara and her guest to my right warned me of their presence. I’d have to pass them to return to my room, and with Apollo rummaging around outside, my hopes of avoiding another encounter waned.
I cast a glance at the hallway on my left—the only one I hadn’t been down.
The last thing I wanted was to be out in the open when Mara and her guest returned.
There was an opportunity there, some information I might glean, and a chance to be hidden out of sight.
Better to take it and keep myself moving until the way was clear, and I could return to my room in peace.
The hallway itself was unassuming, as were most of the doorways that lined it. When I rounded the last corner and caught sight of the final corridor, I paused. Another of the tall, dark doors stood there. Immediately, it piqued my interest.
Unlike the great hall doors, this one was carved with a surprisingly tasteful mural of a demon and a demoness, both stripped bare, and curled around each other.
Their suggestive poses put their bodies on display, but the image wasn’t wholly carnal.
They held each other in a gentle, loving way that made my heart ache.
No light came from beneath this door, a sign I wasn’t welcome, but my curiosity got the better of me.
My fingers met the doorknob. I turned it.
The metal clicked as the lock caught, denying me entry, the harsh sound echoing through the hallway.
“Do you fancy yourself a saboteur?” a feminine voice sneered, “or are you a unique breed of vacuous imbecile begging for an education?”
I jumped, whipping around to find Mara standing at the hallway’s bend, cutting off my only route of escape.
I stumbled backward, back hitting the door with a heavy thud.
Nowhere to hide, no weapon to wield against her, not that it mattered.
Even if I’d been armed, I suspected we weren’t evenly matched.
My cheeks flushed with heat as I met her scathing eyes, and I failed to swallow my fear. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude. I just—”
“I don’t care what you meant.”
Mara’s face remained a blank slate, her expression unreadable.
She flowed like water with every silent step she took, and the rippling of lean muscles across her arms and neck warned me her anger was a thing to be feared.
My eyes crossed to follow her finger as she thrust it into my face, nearly gouging her manicured, black-painted nail into my nose.
“Listen to me, Lillia. Those incubi might see value in you, but I do not. If you try to harm me, even the Prince can’t protect you from what follows. Am I clear?”
“Very,” I choked out.
Silence followed my answer. I didn’t doubt a word Mara said. The two demon men had powerful bodies, wore weapons that she lacked, but she wasn’t weak by any means. She had watched me at a distance, never bothering to leash the malice festering between us.
Just when I began to worry that my answer wouldn’t appease her, Mara whipped around, tension coiled in her body, and stalked back the way she came. Even after she disappeared down the hall, I didn’t dare move.
I wholeheartedly believed she would find any opportunity to make good on her promise—and a single step out of line would grant it.