Page 28

Domemri leans down, bringing her face close to mine. Her scent—like metal left too long in sunlight—fills my nostrils.
"Understand this, human," she whispers. "You are nothing but a vessel. A convenient womb with legs. When your usefulness ends, so will his interest."
I meet her gaze steadily, refusing to flinch. I refuse to let her words settle into me. "You don't need to tell me what I already know."
"Don't I?" She straightens, smoothing nonexistent wrinkles from her gown. "The way you look at him suggests otherwise. The way you linger in his spaces when he's gone. Did youthink I wouldn't notice you wandering into his study yesterday, touching his things?"
My cheeks burn. I had gone to his study, drawn by some foolish need to feel closer to him in his absence. Had run my fingers over his books, sat in his chair, imagining him there.
"I was bored," I lie. "This place is a prison, regardless of its comforts."
"A prison with very thick walls." Her smile turns cruel. "Walls that could easily muffle screams, should anything... unfortunate happen before Vaelrix returns."
Fear slides cold fingers down my spine, but I force a laugh. "Are you threatening me? You think Vael wouldn't notice if something happened to the woman carrying his child?"
"Accidents befall humans all the time." She shrugs one shoulder. "Especially fragile, clumsy ones like yourself."
The implication hangs in the air between us. I wrap my arms protectively around my middle, a gesture I immediately regret when her eyes track the movement.
"He won't be pleased if you interfere with his plans," I say, trying to keep my voice from shaking.
"His plans?" Domemri's chiming laugh returns. "Sweet, stupid human. His only plan is continuing his bloodline. You're simply the most convenient path at present." She leans close again, her voice dropping to a venomous whisper. "But convenience can change."
My face remains impassive as she straightens and turns to leave, but inside, my mind races. The threat is clear, even if never explicitly stated. Domemri wants me gone, and a demon with millennia to live isn't likely to be patient about getting her way.
"I'm sure we'll see just how quickly it all can soon enough," Domemri says, leaning so close I can feel her breath on my face.
"You'll see nothing of the sort."
The voice cuts through the air like a blade—deep, commanding, and unmistakably Vael's.
My heart leaps traitorously in my chest as I turn to see him standing in the doorway. His massive frame fills the space, shoulders squared and stance wide. The crimson sky behind him frames his silhouette, making the curved horns rising from his head look even more imposing than usual. His midnight hair is windswept, falling in pieces around his face where it's escaped the leather tie at his nape.
Domemri freezes, her back going rigid. She whirls around, the charms in her hair creating a cascade of tinkling sounds. "Vaelrix! You've returned earlier than expected." Her voice shifts into something honey-sweet, the venom completely vanished. "I was just checking on your human. She's been rather unwell in the mornings."
Vael's red-gold eyes narrow to slits as he steps onto the porch. The boards creak beneath his weight. "I heard exactly what you were doing." His gaze slides from Domemri to me, lingering on my arms still wrapped protectively around my middle, then returns to the demon woman. "Pack your things."
"What?" Domemri's composure cracks, her delicate features contorting. "Surely you misunderstood?—"
"I understand perfectly." Vael moves closer, each step deliberate. "You've threatened the carrier of my child. You've overstepped your place in my household. You're dismissed."
Domemri's pale skin flushes an iridescent silver-blue, her eyes widening. "Vaelrix, please. I've served you faithfully for years. This human has bewitched you somehow?—"
"The only one attempting manipulation here is you." His voice remains level, but there's a dangerous edge to it that raises the hair on my arms. "I won't say it again. Pack your things and leave my property before nightfall."
"You can't mean this." Domemri's voice rises, her elegant composure crumbling completely. "After everything we've shared? You would choose this—this temporary vessel over me?" She gestures wildly at me, her pale violet eyes flashing.
Vael crosses his arms over his chest, his expression hardening to granite. "Trinity is carrying my heir. That makes her more valuable than your wounded pride."
"Valuable?" Domemri laughs, the sound brittle and sharp. "You speak of her like she's an asset, but I see how you look at her. She's gotten under your skin somehow."
I hold my breath, unable to look away from Vael's face as his jaw tightens, the muscle there jumping beneath his ash-gray skin.
"My reasons are none of your concern," he says finally. "But threatening anyone under my protection is unforgivable. You know the values of our people better than that."
Domemri's shoulders slump, her elegant horns dipping forward as the fight seems to drain from her. "Protection," she repeats, almost to herself. Then her gaze lifts, hardening as it lands on me. "She'll leave you, you know. The moment she's fulfilled her obligation, she'll be gone. Then what will you have?"
"My heir," Vael answers simply. "Which was always the arrangement."