Page 61 of Demon Bound

A few moments later, she heard footsteps coming near. The cultists ran by, coming within feet of them but never looking in their direction.

She and Madira waited until the footsteps had gone far down the road. Finally, Madira dropped his spell.

“I told you,” he said, crossing his arms.

Raiya bent over, her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. The seriousness of the situation was beginning to sink in.

She looked up at Madira. Suddenly her throat was sticky with emotion. They would have caught her and killed her if he hadn’t stepped in. “Thank you,” she said hoarsely. “Thank you.”

His smug demeanor softened a bit. “What happened?”

“They have Azreth. They imprisoned him in a rune circle.”She scraped her fingers through her mussed hair. They would make him a slave again. With him imprisoned and helpless behind that barrier, they could restrain him and bind him again and force him to do everything Gereg had demanded.

“Gods damn them,” she hissed, shoving her inert baton into her belt.

“I told you,” Madira said again, looking unimpressed.

He was right. Azreth had wanted to leave the very day they’d arrived in that place. He had stayed because Raiya wanted to. He’d trusted her judgment, and now he was paying for it.

This was her fault.

“I have to get him out,” she said.

“You say that as if it’ll be easy.”

“It won’t be. I can’t do it myself. I’ll need help.” She glanced over at him.

He scoffed. “Why are you looking at me?” He leaned against the wall, crossing one ankle over the other.

She could go to the town guards, but they wouldn’t help her set a demon loose. And if they were anything like the lawmen in other parts of Uulantaava, they would not be inclined to investigate anything involving the cult of Moratha. The cult held a lot of social and political sway lately.

“Can you take me to the Roamer camp?” she asked.

“We can’t help you,”the shepherd said. Raiya wilted.

It was the same stout woman Raiya had bargained with when she’d first encountered the caravan. It turned out that the woman was not only a shepherd, but the clan matron as well, named Fu-lon. Raiya had just given her a summary of everything that had happened since she’d met Azreth.

Fu-lon gave her a weary smile, puffing on a long pipe. She was seated on a plush pillow on the floor while Raiya paced anxiously. The smoke was filling the tent and making Raiya slightly dizzy. “I like you, girl, but your problems are not ours. What do you expect us to do about it?”

“I know there are warriors among you. Ex-soldiers and…” Deserters, pirates, rogue mages, ex-bandits. “…others. If I could just ask them—”

“If they would be willing to fight the entire cult of Moratha with you?” Fu-lon broke in, chuckling.

“I can pay. I’m an enchanter. I could make something for you. For the clan,” she said quickly. Never mind that she could only carve an inert enchantment. “Anything you want.”

At that, the woman tapped the end of her pipe to her lips, considering. But then she shook her head. “There is little that would be worth getting on the cult’s bad side,” she said. “We don’t get involved in things like this. If we did, we would never have survived as long as we have. You understand. We have to protect our own.”

Raiya clasped her hands nervously. “My mother was a Roamer,” she said, her voice soft with embarrassment over her obvious desperation. “We’re kin.”

The woman nodded. “I guessed as much when we last met.”

“You did?”

“I can see Roamer bones in your face. And not many outsiders would walk into camp so comfortably, the way you did.”

“And?”

Fu-lon gave her another smile. “You know that doesn’t change anything, don’t you?”