Page 6 of Once Upon a Demon’s Heart
This was a stupid idea, maybe I should try going for his weapon and get him to kill me. Then I can start the loop over and not endure whatever it is he’s promising.
No. I chide myself. Peace is my goal. The protection of my friends and people of my kingdom.
End the senseless war.
It takes everything in me to lower my chin and to not respond to him. That only seems to make him angrier. He’s about to reach out and grab me by the shoulder but King Borlin clears his throat.
“Duke Lornhelm, do you accept the daughter of Venus as a peace offering between our kingdoms?” the king asks with a booming voice for all to hear. Civilians have already begun to crowd the side streets and many more peer from their windows.
Wait, Duke Lornhelm?
My eyes slowly drag over the Blood Knight. He’s the duke? My heart falters and I have to steady my knees to remain standing upright.
The knight bides his time taking in the king’s words, almost as if he’s considering turning down the accepted agreement and slaying us all here and now. But then he finally lets out a long, weary sigh as he clutches his armored hands at his sides tightly.
“Yes, King Borlin of Alzhor. I accept the offering and will send our king’s declaration of peace between kingdoms upon our safe arrival into Devicit.
Any pursuers will be slaughtered, but we will allow your witness to travel with us as you requested,” he says the last part with skepticism in his tone.
I don’t blame him for being careful, not after what the king did last time.
King Borlin nods and extends his hand once more.
The knight doesn’t move for a few seconds. Then he carefully lifts his helmet and sets it under his arm before extending the other to shake the king’s hand.
Time all but stops and my heart twists on its axis.
How have I never seen the Blood Knight’s face in all the times he’s slain me?
A breeze gusts through us and blows onyx strands of hair over his forehead.
His brows are prominent and dark. A stark contrast to his fiery amber eyes.
They look like the jewels the royal family wear.
Ears pointed and pierced with four rings of gold.
The cut of his jaw is striking. A scar that looks like a series of x’s runs up his left cheek groove, and his straight nose is just as sharp as someone I met only a week ago.
Kalel?
My lips part, but no words come to me. His eyes narrow with thought as he continues to converse with the king.
My ears only pick up on the deep muffling of his voice.
He told me he was an apothecary. Bile rises in my throat at the revelation that I sat and had a meal with the harbinger of death.
If I’d known he was the commander and duke of Devicit, I would’ve killed him on the spot.
Well, I would’ve tried to.
Part of me hopes he won’t remember me from the forest, but another part of me hopes that he will. Would he take a sliver of mercy on me, knowing that I’m not as evil as he makes me sound? Or maybe I am evil and this is divine punishment.
How can a demon as merciless as him be so handsome and lovely? Demigods are the only beings to hold such beauty. Never a demon. It’s all I’ve ever known to be true.
I thought as much when I first met him, but there’s something about the way his pupils are dilated out and the heaviness to his breath that rattles me now. Was he really the one to kill me in each of my loops? The thought is unsettling.
“The deal is complete. You have safe passage to the edge of the holy lands. May the sparrows be with you,” King Borlin says the latter for me. The grimness set in his jaw hits deep into my bones.
It has been years since I’ve heard anyone mention the sparrows. We stopped saying it when they too abandoned us. The little birds use to protect us with their warnings and bring us food while on the battlefield. They became a symbol of hope for us. A phrase to wish someone good luck.
May the sparrows be with you. A small smile pulls at the corners of my lips. Perhaps they will return one day. Once peace has been restored to us.
Kalel shifts his attention back to me. His presence is so daunting that it makes my stomach churn. “I need to verify that she truly is a daughter of Venus first. Please escort us to a private room, King Borlin.”
My lips part and an audible gasp escapes the king’s mouth.
“How do you verify such a thing?” The king sounds skeptical, borderline mortified.
Kalel doesn’t let his hollow eyes leave me. I half wonder if he can see my face beneath the helmet, but the lack of shock that he’s expressed proves that he doesn’t. Surely, he’d be as surprised to see me as I am him, right?
“There is a mark of fertility on the maidens born of Venus. How else would anyone know?” Kalel has an arrogant, impatient tone.
I have a mark? My throat bobs. I didn’t even know that.
It’s not exactly surprising. The demigods training to be knights don’t get a heavy education. That’s for the scholars or high royals. But it seems that even the king didn’t know this.
Why don’t we know more about Venus ? I press my lips together at the oddness of it.
King Borlin gnashes his teeth and lifts his brows at Kalel’s rudeness but only motions his open hand for us to follow his right-hand guard, Hans.
He’s the guard that the king decided to send as the witness to the marriage in Devicit.
Apparently, he’s only being allowed to travel with the captive demigods that the demon’s currently have in an enclosed cart.
They will only be freed once the marriage commences.
I trail behind Hans while Kalel walks mere inches behind me.
It makes my blood run cold with him so close to me and out of sight.
All I can remember is the cruelness of his blade.
Over and over again. It’s completely opposite to the kindness that we shared in the Florum forest. Gods, I don’t want to take off my helmet.
We’re led to one of the kingdoms’ guest rooms on the first level. It’s a small, simple room that is normally used for royal guests when they need to freshen up before dinners or meetings.
I step in first, taking in the room with wide eyes.
It’s the first time I’ve seen it myself.
The walls are adorned in molding that wraps around large paintings.
The room’s aesthetic is warm-toned and dimly lit with wall sconces.
A single cream-colored bed is set in the center of the room, the frame made of a wide, dark oakwood with curtains on the ends.
It’s quite lovely and takes me by surprise. Compared to where I’ve been sleeping, this room is fit for a king.
I don’t have long to gawk as Kalel steps in behind me and shuts the door. He drags his gloved hand down his jaw like he’s utterly sick of me already. He’s made it perfectly clear that there’s nothing more he desires than to kill me.
“Remove your helmet and trousers, you may keep your undergarments on,” he says gruffly. A thick vein runs up the side of his neck, catching my attention.
My helmet? A rush of dread beats through my veins.
“Don’t keep me waiting, I’m already holding myself back from just killing you, little godling,” he says louder, and it makes me tremble.
I quickly unlatch my armor below the waist and tug down my trousers as he commanded. He refuses to look at me and it makes me feel only a smidge better. Maybe he won’t look at my face.
“Helmet too.”
I swallow and carefully take my helmet off. My silver hair slips over my shoulders. It’s easily the longest few seconds of my life. I feel completely exposed to the world with no armor between my skin and him.
He’s going to recognize me… and I don’t know why that matters to me so much. If only I didn’t meet him in the forest last week. Why was he even there, in that specific spot? A place that should only have meaning to me.
I set the helmet on the bed and sit down on the edge.
Kalel’s eyes are still focused on the paintings of gods when he lets out a deep breath and drags his hand through his dark hair with reluctance. I don’t think he wants to do this either.
My lower lip is trapped between my teeth as I wait for him to look at me.
“What is your na—” he cuts himself off as he finally turns and stares at me. He takes me in, jaw slacking and eyes widening with recognition.
For a moment, his amber eyes aren’t cold and hard like they were a second ago.
His facade breaks and the torment in his features is evident.
A pained frown that tells me what he has in store for me truly is as terrible as he said, and that perhaps he wishes it was any other demigod but me sitting here before him.
Wishful thinking.
He wastes no time blinking away the shock and resuming his cold expression.
“Alira,” he says my name without a hint of the kind demon I met several days ago.
“Kalel,” I echo his callous front.
His eyes dull as he approaches me and lowers to his knees. His alder wood scent washes over me. I can’t help but notice how soft his hair looks this close. My pulse leaps as his cold hands brush the tender skin of my inner thighs.
Please find the mark quickly. I swallow the knot in my throat.
Contrary to his expression and intimidating appearance, he touches me with gentle hands. Searching respectfully and stopping once he spots it.
“It’s here,” he says so quietly that it almost sounds like disappointment. “You really are the daughter of Venus.”
My heart hammers in my chest. I was sure of it, but hearing it confirmed only makes it more real. I let my eyes move down to where his thumb is set to the notch of my thigh that leads to my core. He’s an inch away from my center. I silently thank the gods that he let me keep my undergarments on.
Kalel keeps his hand on me for a moment longer before resigning without another word. He stares at me coldly. “Get dressed. We’re leaving immediately.”
I do as he says and quickly redress. He moves to open the door but stops abruptly before turning the knob.
Kalel’s amber eyes find me over his shoulder and the softness in them flickers as the muscles in his jaw feather.
“I wish it wasn’t you, little godling.”
His words travel through me as we exit the castle.
I don’t hear the song of the gods and hymns for safe passage as my kingdom sends me off with the army of demons. I don’t hear them thanking me for sacrificing myself for them.
I only agonize in the fear that Kalel’s words instilled in my heart.