Page 28 of The Demon’s Delight (The Demon Princes #3)

Chapter 27

Seir

“ N o. NO!” I spun in a circle, staring up in horror at a black ceiling and dark walls instead of a starry sky or the trees around our little camp. “Fuck!” I swore, the oath out of my mouth before I could temper my emotions. I curled into myself, the mate bond burning so intensely I worried it might turn me to ash from the inside out. It clearly did not appreciate the sudden distance between me and Hailon. I wondered fleetingly how there were mates who existed at long distances from one another for years or decades. Though it did make sense why they went mad if they tried.

“Is there a problem, Seir?” my unit leader asked, a dark eyebrow raised as he assessed me from behind his desk. Keplar was a hulking figure, a shadow demon of massive size and imposing personality. He’d always been fair, however, and seemed wholly disinterested in posturing for the sake of feeding his own ego. Not for the first time, I thought he and Magnus, who was in fact a stone kin general, would have gotten on famously.

I forced my body to straighten up, though I couldn’t make myself remove my hand from where it clutched at my shirt over my heart.

“Sir, hi. I was in the middle of something, and?—”

“You’ve been absent for more than a full shift cycle without checking in.”

I did a quick mental calculation, realizing I hadn’t been keeping track since early in our journey, and he was right. “I’m sorry about that, it wasn’t intentional. I talked to Meg, she sent a note?—”

“Yes, I got the note. Unfortunately, because you were gone that long with no further communication, summoning you back was my only recourse. I’m owed a debrief on your whereabouts and activities, at the very least.”

“Of course.” I tensed, unsure how to speed things up and cursing myself for having gotten comfortable being gone, not calculating the time difference from the start. I was wasting time in Hell while Hailon was alone, potentially being followed. I had to get back to her as quickly as possible.

“Well? Start at the beginning.”

“I was summoned for the first time. Sir.” I couldn’t help the excitement that bubbled up, getting to say that.

“Oh?” He raised a bushy black eyebrow in curiosity. “Go on.” He leaned forward, scribbling a note into a large journal with a pen that looked comically small in his hand.

“A human summoned me, and I am providing them aid.” My instinct was to be as vague as possible, to leave out names or even descriptors. I wasn’t sure why, I’d never not trusted Keplar, but something deep inside wanted me to keep Hailon a secret. It physically hurt not to declare her as my mate, so I wasn’t sure my tactic would be possible to maintain.

“And that has required more than a full cycle? Nearly, what, two earth weeks to accomplish?” He frowned, gesturing to the chair facing his desk.

“Yes, sir.” Had it really only been two weeks? That seemed like such a short amount of time to have passed, and yet I felt like I’d been with Hailon for far longer.

“Have a seat, Seir. You’re making me nervous.”

“Sorry, sir. But yes, we’re traveling, and it’s been quite slow.” I stared at him, catching the moment where he processed what I said.

“Travel has been slow ? For you?” He barked a hearty laugh, shaking his head as he made another note. “I do miss your particular brand of humor when you’re gone.”

I schooled my expression, making sure he was looking me in the eye before I continued. “I wish I was embellishing, sir, or making a joke. But I’m not. My powers aren’t functioning like they normally do, not since I was summoned. I can’t sift or jump, and portals will not activate for me. Even flight has been out of the question. Only in the last few days can I even hover a few inches for a short distance.”

He frowned even harder, flipping through the pages. “Says here you came back shortly after you were summoned.”

“That’s factually accurate.” I remembered all too well the unfortunate series of events where the water had spilled on the circle, forcing me back to my apartment when all I wanted to do was stay. To defend her. To talk to her. “The circle was broken.”

“But no banishment.”

“Correct. I took a portal back. For what it’s worth, when I returned, they were doing a very good job of trying to summon me again.” I was significantly stretching the truth there, but he didn’t know that. Or perhaps, he already did and simply wasn’t calling me on it. It was impossible to know how much detail the command leaders actually had access to in their seemingly infinite information.

“Tell me why I should consider letting you finish whatever this side mission might be instead of keeping you here and punishing you for forgetting to check in. I understand summoning bonds have their own rules, but I need my men at their posts. I need to know what’s going on.”

“Apologies, sir. I just need a little more time. I’m trying to return someone to their home. They were taken, kept against their will.”

He made a thoughtful noise as he closed the thick journal and slid it to the side. “You’re a good soldier, Seir. You never argue, always agree to take missions nobody else will. Even with this last promotion, you’ve been more than happy to pick up the balance when asked. So, I do recognize that this is odd behavior for you. I’m honestly not sure how to react.”

“I’m sorry, sir. None of this was intentional.”

He folded his hands together over his notebook, staring at me intently, clearly searching for any kind of dishonesty. “I believe you,” he finally said. “What should I do?” He cracked a smile, and it gentled his stern expression immensely.

“Let me go back, sir.” I grunted as a flare in my chest took me by surprise. His eyes drifted from my face to where I was rubbing at the burn. “Please. If punishment is still part of that equation, that’s fine, I’ll accept it.”

“I can understand needing to see something through.” His head tilted. “What’s going on there?” He gestured to my hand. “Need to see the medics?”

“No sir, I think I have it under control.” As much as one could, anyway.

He cracked another smile, but it faded quickly, his eyes narrowing. “How much more time do you need to complete your errand?”

My heart ached. I’d known my time traveling with Hailon was coming to an end, but I’d never really thought about how quickly it might actually be done. “A few days, maybe a week. But?—”

“I can give you three days. Then we need you here. Nonnegotiable. I don’t want to have to summon you back again, the paperwork is a huge pain in my ass.”

I nodded. I didn’t see another choice, and that should be ample time for us to arrive in Ravenglen. “Sir?—”

“Three days,” he reiterated, pointing at me for emphasis, “then you report back here for reassignment or there will be serious consequences.”

“Understood. But I need to…” My heart stuttered. “Reassignment, sir?”

“Your particular skill set has become obsolete, I’m afraid. We’re going to have to give you a new set of duties. You’re my most reliable prince, Seir. I’m loathe to lose you, but my hands are somewhat tied. Unless you can make an intriguing proposal, your travel talents are no longer needed here in the office. They would, however, be rather useful out in the wastes.”

I stared at him, unable to find words to convey my disappointment. The wastes was, as the name reflected, a place where things were sent in order to do nothing more than decay.

“Respectfully, I’m your only prince, sir. My brothers are assigned to other command or are no longer active in Hell. I would like to remain active, but as a significantly less full-time resident.”

He smirked. “I see. This summoner. They’re a potential mate, then?”

I was momentarily stunned, though perhaps I should have expected his expert perception. “Sir?”

The sigh he gave was deep and long. “You insult my gifts, Seir. And my capacity for empathy.” He sat back, arms crossed. “Bring me a proposal. I’ll do what I can from this side, but I cannot push anything through unless you return. On time.”

“Understood, sir.” My heart beat faster, optimism having returned full force with his words.

“Good. In the meantime, report for ten lashes with…” He consulted his papers again. “Asim. Hall 73.”

“Got it.” Asim and I were friendly enough.

“Check in with the desk on your way out. Go take your lumps so you can finish whatever it is you’re doing. Then get back here— on time —so we can figure out where to put you so your skills are not totally wasted, no pun intended, and so you can pursue this mate situation. Lucky bastard. Perhaps all of us should make a habit of venturing out once in a while.” He chuffed and waved his hand in dismissal.

I didn’t hesitate. As a test, I even sifted a reasonable distance, letting out a victorious whoop when I found it just as easy as it had always been. Practicing on Earth, I’d been able to do tiny leaps but not without an intense amount of effort. I was able to sift through the many halls until I arrived at Asim’s designated torture room as smoothly as a stone skipping across a lake.

“Seir? What are you doing here?” Asim looked very much like the goat-headed demons depicted in a variety of artwork found on Earth. He had human hands, but cloven hooves for feet and a tail much like mine.

“Ten lashes punishment,” I reported, not bothering with formality before pulling the tails of my shirt from my trousers and yanking it over my head. Then, I braced my hands against the low stone table off to one side of the room.

He grunted in surprise, sorting through the available devices hanging from the wall next to his desk. “Ah.” He consulted the scroll sitting on his worktop. “There you are. You got here fast, not that I’m surprised. What have you done to earn a punishment?”

“I missed checking in for a full shift cycle. A little side work on Earth. I got summoned!”

“Really? Congratulations! First time, right?”

“Yes, first one. Very odd feeling, still not sure if I liked it or not.”

Asim chuckled and clapped my shoulder in a friendly way. “Good for you. Are you back then?” He shook out the long coil of whip he’d grabbed off a peg and did a test crack. The noise was painfully loud in the confined space.

“No, I have to go finish up once I’m done here. I’m in a bit of a rush, actually.”

He snorted. “Got a hot date waiting for you topside, then?”

I smiled wide, and Asim blinked. He’d been joking, but I was all too willing to take the opening. “Yes, actually. I’m pretty sure I’ve found my mate.”

He made a choking noise. “Really?”

“Yes! She’s the one who summoned me, though it’s a bit more complicated than that.”

“Of course it is. To have that kind of luck is a gift, friend.” He shook his head. “Alright, let’s get you gone then. Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.” I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to keep my muscles from tensing too much. I had taken fewer lashes than many demons I knew over the decades, but enough to know that the more you braced, the more it would hurt. I started sweating in anticipation, but a blow never came. I glanced over my shoulder as Asim crossed the room again, selecting a different tool from the wall.

“Turn around. Hold your arms out, palms up.” he instructed, and while I was a little confused, I obeyed. Asim was no longer holding a whip, but a small metal rod that appeared to be steaming. “Count the lashes for me if you please.”

He struck my forearms with the rod with enough force for the skin to sting, and the heat of the metal left red burn stripes in its wake. A few were worse than the rest where they overlapped, but still barely enough to draw blood. By the end, it looked like I’d gotten into a fight with a disgruntled hellcat more than anything.

“Are you sure this is adequate?” I reached for my shirt, confused. Burns weren’t something that hurt, particularly for me.

“The requirement is that lashes be served, not that they be debilitating. It is at the discretion of the assigned torturer what tool and force to use. It’s there in the conduct code, Section 3, part 8.4.” He cracked a small smile. “I believe I’ve served a punishment proportionate to your infraction.”

“Thank you, Asim.”

“Off with you then! Find me when you return, dinner and drinks on me? I want to know all about this adventure and your mate.”

“Sure thing!” He waved as I left the little room, immediately sifting into my apartment.

I’d taken most of my valuables when I left the first time, but I scooped up my remaining few pieces of jewelry, another knife, and quickly changed into a clean set of clothes. Once I was done gathering everything I wanted, I headed toward the hall of portals at a sprint.

It was with a pang of guilt that I mostly ignored the people who attempted to greet me, and it wasn’t until I was nearly past it that I remembered I was supposed to sign out where I’d left that note when I went topside the first time.

“Hi, Meg. I’m out for a few more days. Mission earthside, Keplar knows.”

“I warned you about checking in, didn’t I?””

“You did.”

“Worth it?” she asked.

“A million times.”

She smiled, all her sharp teeth starkly white against her deep-red skin. “Alright. I got you down. Have fun.”

“Thanks.” I finished my run to the portals, debating my options.

I had no idea where the closest one might be to our camp. The only one I knew of for sure was in the ruins, and I hadn’t even seen it while we were there. There might be one in or near Ravenglen, but I’d never been there. I could use Hailon’s face as a focal point, but if there wasn’t one near her, I might end up somewhere completely unfamiliar and take longer than necessary to get back to her.

The vast hall stretched out before me; the possibilities endless in the infinite doorways.

Then I smiled, realizing I could manage several things at once. I hurled myself toward a very familiar and reliable portal not all that far from where we’d camped, relatively speaking.

The portal turned me inside out and sideways, but I enjoyed every moment. I could travel again. I loved dreaming of the possibility that I could potentially bring her with me like this one day soon, take her to the fae realm to visit with King Ris. With me to Hell, even, to see my little apartment and the parts of it that weren’t actively participating in torture. I allowed myself to fantasize of a time where I could go everywhere, just as I always had, in the blink of an eye, only better. Because Hailon would be at my side.

My smile had returned with the daydreaming, and it widened as the portal dumped me out on the familiar grounds of the Collegium d’Arcan.