Page 27 of Demonic Division (The Sundering Duet #1)

27

Kaebl

Dagny buries her face into my chest as we shoot through the air, wind and snow pelting my skin and encasing the tips of my wings in ice. I fly just above the dense canopy of Welwigs, sweeping my gaze side to side to check the surroundings for threats. The southern portion of The Far Place is home to roving hordes of Arachnix—horrible eight-legged creatures that feed on the flesh of demons and creatures alike. They tend to weave intricate nets just above the canopy of the trees, hoping to catch unsuspecting prey. But flying this low is safer than entering the upper atmosphere, where worse creatures dwell.

When we reach the end of the forest, I breathe a sigh of relief. I dip low, evening out just before we collide with the ground, hovering just above the surface and leaving the dangers behind in the distance.

We travel several miles before I come across the entrance to my secret dwelling. The ice tunnel sits in the ice like a great gaping mouth, shadows filling its throat and concealing the contents beneath. Dagny tenses as I dip inside, the wind howling around us as we shoot into the depths of the tunnel.

The air thickens as we shoot out into the room at the base of the tunnel. I land silently on the ground, waving an arm in the air to call forth the light of the sconces lining the walls. The space is illuminated in a beautiful orange glow, and Dagny gasps softly as she takes in the walls carved from shimmering crystal bedrock.

Without a word, I pass through the doorway at the far end of the room, carrying Dagny down a long hallway with doors on either side. At the end is a staircase carved from the same crystal as the rest of the hideaway, thrumming with its own living, breathing magic.

Vapor thickens the air as we descend, warmed from the hot spring lying just at the bottom. It’s similar to the one in the palace, though twice as large and brimming with healing properties that would put the castles to shame.

By the time we make it to the base, the sleet covering the tips of my wings has begun to melt, falling to the floor in a rhythmic plop, plop, plop.

The room is encased in shadows, but with a snap, the sconces flare to life, illuminating the space with beautiful silver flames. The walls and floor are carved from the same clear stone as the rest of the hollow, though the cut is rougher, giving the space a more natural, earthy feel. And at the center is a massive body of water, shimmering with the faint flow of magic.

I step to the edge of the pool and squat down, swinging my legs into the water before placing Dagny on the triangle of stone between my thighs. Both wings wrap around her in a cocoon, pulsing with a warm golden light.

The thing in my chest aches as I slide my palms up her arms, skimming over the tattered remains of her dermal suit. I’m not sure where all my irritation went—but it’s been replaced with a deep, thrumming need. A desire to touch her. To devour.

Dagny’s breath catches in her throat as my clawed fingers slide beneath her collar, pulling the suit down her shoulders and torso. I breathe a sigh as her breasts fall free, my pulse hammering against her back.

With a deep groan, I fold my forearm across her chest, holding her flush against my bare skin while I palm her breast. Dagny bites her lip as her nipples harden, arching into my touch. A choked noise falls from my lips, and my claws pierce her sensitive skin.

Careful, little one, I growl, my voice a deadly promise in her mind. Be still, and let me clean you.

A helpless whimper pours from her lips as I rip the suit from her with one powerful movement. I lower my face to her neck, breathing in deeply as my fingers toy with her nipple.

My tongue lashes out at the same time I lower us into the bath, and Dagny’s squeal is cut off as her head is dragged beneath the surface of the water.

I hold her down, letting the water peel the dirt and blood from her skin. When she struggles against me, I propel us toward the surface, the tapered shape of my wings acting like a torpedo.

Dagny takes deep, gulping lungfuls of air while l hold her, my chest shaking with silent laughter. As soon as she catches her breath, she whips toward me with a mighty glare, her little fists clenching. “I’m glad the sight of me drowning is amusing to you.”

My lips tip upward. It’s just a bath, little one. There’s no need to be dramatic.

“Well, where I come from, baths are usually a relaxing experience,” she huffs, squirming as my grip tightens. “And they usually involve soap.”

The properties of this water will clean you better than any “soap.” My nose scrunches up. It’s from the same well the Welwigs drink from and holds traces of their magic.

“I’ll take your word for it,” she murmurs. “So if I’m all nice and clean… Can we get out?”

My jaw clenches, all traces of amusement draining from my veins. Not until you tell me why you were running away.

Her muscles tense. “I just got scared…”

Scared? I tilt my head. Of what?

She bites her lip, looking anywhere but at me. “I know you’re going to kill me,” she whispers. “I saw it in your journal… that it was the only way to break the bond. I ran because I just wanted a chance. I wanted to live. ” She shakes her head, her words filling with bitterness. “This is all so fucked up. Here you are, giving me a bath—taking care of me—when in the end, you’re just going to snap your fingers and kill me. Because it’s the only way to get what you want.”

Those notes you saw didn’t even belong to me ? —

“Does it matter?” She finally meets my eyes, and I nearly crumble at the hatred swimming there. “Whether they’re yours or Lir’s or even M’s… you’re still going to use them. That’s why they were there. Isn’t that right, Jealousy ?”

I jerk back, shock causing my lips to part. What did you just call me?

She scoffs. “What? Shocked that I learned your deep, dark secret? I know more about you than you think, Lord Kaebl, ” she says, the last two words a mocking sneer. “You don’t have to pretend anymore.”

Whoever told you that is lying, Dagny. I’m not jealousy. I’m ? —

“Save it for someone who cares,” she interrupts, her eyes hardening to steel. “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. Because I know exactly what you are—a monster. ”

My jaw clenches, canines lengthening and piercing my lower lip as a deep growl rumbles in my chest. If that’s what she thinks I am, then there’s no reason to pretend otherwise. I stand, gripping her forearm and hauling her from the water as my rage shakes the very air.

You are right, little one. I am a monster. Your monster.