Page 68 of Demon Heart: The Complete Series

DARCY

Q ueen Margarite poked posh ginger biscuits through the bars of my golden cage.

“Enjoy, dear rat.” She nibbled on one herself.

Shouldn’t that be dear prisoner ?

Shitty McShit. Why me?

Life loved to screw people over. Especially me. From witch, to rat, to prisoner, the past year really hadn’t be fun. Roman was the only good thing to come out of the turmoil. He’d saved me from the streets, gave me a home and a reason to keep on living.

I loved him like a brother. Somehow, I had to protect him from the queen’s plans to capture him.

After a plane ride locked in a box, I found myself in Nightingale Castle, a royal residence close to the Scottish border.

My cage was positioned by the window, rain pattering the glass.

The scarlet light of the demon towers glittered in the gloomy night, the castle walls thick around this inner keep.

The queen had said she’d give me a glimpse into her world when she’d kidnapped me.

I’d my fill of the glimpse.

Let me out of here!

On the other side of this opulent room of red and gold, Princess Piper sat in a chair, hands folded in her lap. Wisps of Synth drifted across her body. Her mum forced her to drink tea on the flight up here, and the poor princess hadn’t moved a muscle since.

Precisely why I avoided those ginger biscuits. Hers might be magic-free, but mine probably wasn’t.

Save your traps for other fools!

The queen dabbed her mouth with a napkin—a white piece of cloth with her initials embroidered in gold.

“Delicious. Are you not eating yours, Darcy?”

Once upon a time, I respected this woman. Believed in her divine right to rule me and the rest of this country. Not so much now.

“I’m not hungry, Your Majesty.” I kept things polite.

“A pity.”

“But thank you. Maybe I’ll try eating it later. It smells wonderful.”

“Indeed, dear rat. Indeed. Now, shall we discuss Roman some more?”

What else was there to say?

“You are sure he has never teleported before?” She’d asked me this so many times already.

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“Does he tell you everything?”

“We’re best friends.”

“Is that a yes?”

“He’s allowed to have secrets.”

She laughed. “Trust him to have a talking rodent as his companion.”

“Best. Friend.”

“Same thing. And I suppose you know he is my Shadow?”

I didn’t answer.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

My nose twitched. “Please don’t hurt him.”

She rested a hand on the cage. “Hurt him? How? He survived a bullet to the heart. But he hurt me. If he were half the man I believed him to be, he would be by my side, ready to die for me, to fight for me.” Her green eyes glistened.

“Yet he opened himself to a demon. A demon!” Her volume shot up.

She slammed her hand on the cage, rocking the toys and climbing apparatus inside.

“Allowed a demon to fuck him. How dare he? How could he? I should burn him like those disgusting lovers.”

That had been awful. A nasty spectacle of death and destruction live on TV, and a declaration of war. And she kept on stoking those hateful fires.

“Despite his betrayal, he is a useful tool,” she said. “A confusing one. And does he deserve redemption?” A single tear rolled down her right cheek. “After all, he is corrupted by demon cock.” She removed her hand from the cage. “Tell me, Darcy, have you seen them together?”

Ugh. Did we have to do this? How long did I have to spend in this castle listening to her bleat on about my best friend?

“Please answer me,” she whispered.

I didn’t know how to.

She slammed the cage again. “Answer me or I’ll put a snake in there with you!”

I squeaked.

“Answer me!” The queen grabbed hold of the cage and shook it violently. It threw me off the top level, sending me tumbling across the straw-covered floor.

“Answer me!” she screamed. “You will obey your queen!”

“I—”

The cage door opened, her hands crushing me. She yanked me out, bringing me up to face her terrifying expression.

Why me?

“I will crush you right now if you don’t speak.”

She already knew Roman and Xavier had done stuff, so this wasn’t me betraying him.

“Yes. I’ve seen them…together.” Her grip hurt my tiny ribs, one hard squeeze away from popping them.

“Fucking?”

“No…”

“Are you sure?”

“I wouldn’t…” Christ! She was going to have to loosen this hold. I wriggled, trying to get more air into my body. “I wouldn’t perv on my friend.”

Her grip loosened enough to stop the rib ache. “But you heard them?”

I sighed with relief. “No, Your Majesty. I only saw them talking together in the flat.”

“About what?”

Biting her finger would turn me into a mulchy mess of fur and gore. “They were getting to know each other.”

The queen considered my answers for a moment. “What about me?”

“You?”

“Did they talk about me?”

“No,” I lied. Of course, she’d been brought up a few times. Especially after she’d shown up at the flat in a surprise visit.

“I see.”

“He’s not your enemy.” Probably not the best thing to say.

“No? He fucked a demon, Darcy. I would say he is worse than an enemy. He is a weapon that just backfired on its owner.”

Weapon? Owner? My friend wasn’t any of those things.

Okay, maybe a little bit of a weapon for her, but he was more than that.

A man with a beating heart, a caring soul.

He may have killed in her name, been trained to be a machine, but I knew the real Roman.

I saw the man who wanted out of this life.

And Xavier might just be his ticket to freedom.

“I—”

“Do not speak unless I ask you to. If you favor your tiny tongue, that is.”

I kept quiet.

“I will have him again, Darcy.”

Had she laid a trap for him?

Be careful, Roman, I thought out at him helplessly. And where the bloody hell are you?!

“Anyway, I must freshen up.” She dumped me back in the cage and strode out of the room.

A woman hurried in moments later, setting up a tablet on a stand for another video call.

What bile would she spout this time?

“There,” the woman mumbled after positioning a chair at the tablet. “All set.”

Queen Margarite entered the room again, three bead bracelets on her left wrist, each bead a vibrant red.

Magical beads?

The queen sat herself on the throne.

Her servant fiddled with the tablet, making a few tweaks before she told the queen they were going live. There was a whirring tone, then the sound of a man’s voice.

“Queen Margarite.” A French accent poured through the device.

The queen sat with so much poise it made me flinch. “King Basile. Nice to see your face without that demon by your side.”

Meaning Phillipe—the bastion of peace.

“As requested.”

“I do appreciate your efforts to appease me.”

“I shouldn’t, after everything you have done. How are you after the attack on your palace?”

“Safe, thank you.” Her left eye twitched slightly, her smile wavering.

“But let’s skip these pleasantries. It’s no secret I want you dead, Basile.

You consort with demons, you conspire behind my back.

You are a disgrace. And that is reflected in the rise of support for my cause.

Humans don’t want this alliance of peace you seek.

They don’t want demons here killing their children, stealing their lovers, murdering their families in their beds.

Have you forgotten the button-eyed killer?

Have you forgotten the horrors your country has suffered?

Apparently so, considering your attitude and the statements you have made against me. ”

The king sighed. “Have your forgotten the pain of war?”

“One has to suffer to succeed.”

“You have lost your mind. There is violence on the streets.”

“Righteous violence.”

“All in your name.”

“These are righteous people. This is not a world for demons.”

“There has to be a better way.”

The queen’s smile was as sharp as a sword fresh from a meeting with a whetstone. “Yes, the death of those who consort with demons.”

Another sigh from the French king. “Then you’re dooming us all. Your words and actions have divided us. Mark my words, there will be so much more bloodshed and devastation.”

“Of course.”

“No witch monarch supports you in this. No witch monarch ever conspired against you.”

The queen took a moment to respond. “You do not have the best interests of your people at heart. You serve your cock and your greed.”

“Greed?”

“For power. To overthrow me, to rule in a tyrannical global state fueled by demonic backing.”

“Margarite—”

“No!” she barked. “Don’t you dare try talking down to me. I know what you seek.”

Erm, a global state? What was she talking about?

“You’re a fool!” the king cried. “What happened to you?”

“Betrayal.”

“You must see reason.”

“Why? Aren’t there assassins hunting me already? Don’t you plan on taking me out quietly? I would.”

“Margarite…”

“Come now, Basile. Let’s not be silly here. I tried to have you killed. It won’t be the last attempt.”

A brief silence followed.

“Lost for words?” the queen inquired.

“Then let there be war,” the king answered, ending the call.

Margarite smiled at the tablet. “Interesting peace talk.” She looked at me. “He thinks he can win this. They all do, those terrible witch monarchs. But they are disgraces, and their people will see. Mark my words, rat. Demons will fall.”

A royal guard knocked and entered the room at her response. He handed the queen a piece of folded paper.

She opened it, her eyes lighting up. “Oh, good. Roman received my message.”

“Your message?”

“We will be seeing him soon, dear rat.”

The door swung open, a more panicked guard hurrying inside.

The queen was on her feet, clearly startled. “What is the meaning of this?”

“Your Majesty.” The man bowed. “The demon towers are failing.”

“How are they failing?” She stomped to the window.

I looked with her through the rain-streaked glass. Three towers were down, the next three popping like grapes.

“What is this?” the queen said.

“We don’t know, Your Majesty. We’re?—”

“Fix it immediately.”

He bowed again, hurrying from the room without another word.

Margarite glanced at her daughter, then glowered down at me. “Is this your friend?”

“Sorry, Your Majesty?”

“My Shadow. Is this the doing of my Shadow?”

“I—”

She tore the cage door open. Before I could react, she grabbed me again, squeezing me hard.

“Bite me and die,” she warned. “Now, tell me the truth. Is this his doing?”

How on Earth would I know that? I was here as her prisoner, unable to conspire with my best friend.

If only!

A storm of butterflies rushing into the room made her drop me. I hit the carpet with a squeak.

The butterflies were loud, a spinning vortex. They parted to reveal a man within.

Erm, wow.

Clad in the most eye-popping all-in-one outfit, he strode forward, long purple hair billowing behind him. There was a burn mark on his chest, as if he’d been attacked by Synth.

Speaking of which, Synth danced around the queen’s fingers. “Who are you?”

His dark eyes flooded white.

“Demon!” she cried.

Royal guards stormed the chamber, weapons aimed at the new arrival, magic ready to take him down.

The demon smiled. “Hello, Your Majesty.” He bowed. “It is an honor to be in your presence.”

He was probably the most beautiful man I’d ever seen. Everything about him screamed beauty and sex and danger.

He made my whiskers twitch.

But never mind that. The door remained open behind the guards, my one chance to escape while this crazy monarch was suitably distracted.

I went to make a run for it.

The demon chuckled, blowing sparkly dust from his palm. It sprinkled over my body. I sneezed under the glitter, going to hit him with a snappy retort.

Instead, a butterfly landed on my back and lifted me into the air to the same level as his face, carrying me closer.

“How are you doing that?” I struggled, thrashing against the insect. But it was much tougher than me.

“A talking rodent,” he said.

Why weren’t the witches attacking? Why was the queen standing there as if there wasn’t a demon a few feet away?

Blow him up!

“Fascinating,” the demon added, offering me a smile.

“Who are you?” the queen asked.

His attention moved to her. “My name is Butterfly, and I have would like to talk to you.”

“There’s an army outside the walls!” someone yelled, a flurry of commotion following.

The queen remained calm. “You destroyed my towers?”

“I did.”

“Impressive.”

“Thank you.”

The queen touched one of her bracelets, holding a red bead between finger and thumb. “What do you want to talk about?”

“Roman Gold.”