Page 35 of The Demon’s Delight (The Demon Princes #3)

Chapter 34

Seir

H ailon was far more magnanimous than I was. I’d have killed that horrible woman on the spot halfway through her speech about how Hailon had ruined everything. As it was, I had half a mind to keep record of everyone who so much as looked at her sideways so I could have a few words with them. To start, at least. After that, my blades could finish the conversation. Or hers. That might be better, truth be told—then they could see for themselves just how dangerous she really was.

I smiled. Yes. That would definitely make me feel better.

A glance at my mate left me concerned. She was withdrawn, quiet.

“Are you hungry, Moonflower? Let’s go find something you’ve missed while you were away. We’ve time enough for some food before we continue on our way. Unless you want to try to find somewhere to rest?”

“I don’t think I can make any rational decisions right now.”

“Food then,” I nodded, threading my arm through hers.

Hailon might have been upset, but she still knew how to find several of her favorite food vendors as we worked our way through town. I got a glimpse of her previous life I wouldn’t have otherwise gotten while both filling our stomachs and keeping her momentarily distracted.

The meat skewers from the little open brazier set up outside the butcher shop were truly divine, and I wished I’d bought at least twice as many when she left me at a little wooden table situated just off a main sidewalk and disappeared into what looked like the back door of someone’s house. When she returned, I was presented with the largest baked potato I’d ever seen. I stared, marveling at the plate in front of me.

“I was a little worried they’d no longer be serving. It’s later in the day than I’ve ever been. They often sell out.” She pushed around the toppings with her fork, the brief moment of happiness she’d found already fading away. “I didn’t know what you’d like, so I got everything.”

I was salivating just looking at the very dressed-up humble vegetable. “What is ‘everything’?”

“Butter, soured cream, cheese, crispy pork belly, spices, and spring onion.” She pointed with the tines of her fork, then scooped up a hearty bite. There were no words for what I felt when I got my first taste, but she seemed less than moved.

After that, we found dessert in the form of deep-fried batter dusted with powdered sugar and sweet spices from a little cart on wheels. I playfully dotted her nose with the fluffy sugar.

“Feeling any better?” I asked. I was still positively murderous, but I could tell that’s not what my Moonflower needed. She had moved into grief and needed a bit of space to breathe around that shift in her emotional state.

“I haven’t been this full in a while, if that’s what you mean. I’m grateful none of those vendors refused to serve me. I was worried they might. None of them even seemed to recognize me, though. Perhaps after a busy day, all faces look pretty much the same.”

I clenched my teeth, and she soothed me by putting her hand over mine. “Was it always like this? The hostility, I mean.”

Hailon shrugged. “It does seem a bit more obvious than before, but maybe I’ve lost my knack at ignoring it while I was gone. Like Sal said, lots of them thought I was trading more than medicine. Even after a winter where sickness spread through most of the town, and we made enough medicinal syrup and chest rub to share with them and their families. Even though our clientele was mainly women. Rumors work like that, unfortunately. One batch of negative gossip claiming you’re in the skin trade with even the slightest bit of questionable evidence, like your spotty dating history and resistance to marriage… and suddenly you’re everything they always thought you were. Especially when you can’t save everyone who comes to you for help. Sometimes it’s too little, too late, but when the surviving family is angry, painting someone who was helping as at fault for their loved one’s death is inevitable.”

Frustration simmered in my veins, along with several new questions about this town. “You mentioned before several reasons the town looked down upon you but this… I’m sorry, Hailon. That’s not fair.”

She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter.” She stopped walking and after a long pause said, “We should stop by the grocers. Get some supplies to take with us.”

“We’re leaving?” I confirmed.

“There’s no point in staying. Best to move along.”

“You have everything you need from this place?” I didn’t want to let on how relieved I was, but if we hurried, I could maybe get her safely to Revalia before I had to be banished. “Let’s go then. We can get a ways down the road before we need to sleep.”

She nodded and led us down several streets, the third of which dropped us out at a main intersection with a fountain. People were gathered around it, talking in panicked tones about how the water had slowed down. Their chatter was too muted and mixed, but we made out several little pieces, all of which pointed blame at Hailon.

“My sister saw her earlier, walking through bold as anything. It must be her!”

“The wise woman won’t let her stay, don’t worry.”

“We can’t go back to how it was before! I refuse!”

Slowly, we stepped backwards, into the shadows of the narrow alley we’d come down and pulled our cloaks from the packs. Donning them with the hoods up wouldn’t be too suspicious as the evening chill deepened and would afford us a little bit of anonymity.

We avoided getting close to the fountain and turned to the right, walking quickly toward what looked like a large stable. Only a handful of horses were still left out to graze, the rest assumedly having been taken into their stalls for the night.

“Jacks?” Hailon called, heartened to recognize one of the animals. “Is that you, handsome?”

The horse raised his head from the grass and flicked his tail as Hailon approached the fence. She stretched out her fingers, and the horse pressed his nose close to Hailon’s hand.

“Good boy. How have you been? I’ve missed y—” The horse whinnied, eyes wide with terror. He nipped at Hailon’s hand, and not in a playful way. Then the horse tossed his head and kicked his hind legs out. “Hey, hey. It’s alright, it’s just me. Jacks? It’s ok—” The other horses spooked at his aggressive reaction, and all of a sudden, there were six or seven horses all braying in alarm, bucking and stomping, causing a ruckus. Several hands started talking loudly in the stable, and it was surely only moments before one or more of them came out to see what was going on.

My heart squeezed, watching the very last bit of light vanish from my sweet mate’s eyes.

“They’re right,” she said, tears in her eyes as she looked over at me. She tugged me along, the pair of us escaping down the street before we could be seen by the hands as the cause of the mess in the paddock. “The problem is me. Whatever this magic is that makes me the way I am, I’m sorry,” she choked, sobbing silently as she ran.

She threaded through twisted alleys and crossed busy streets without hesitation. It took several beats for me to realize that while she certainly was trying to escape the stables, the hatred of her by the townspeople and perhaps even herself, she was also running away from me .

My heart broke for her.

Panic set in when I couldn’t find her for several long minutes. There were too many narrow little alleys and buildings she could disappear behind, and I had no idea how I would locate her if she truly didn’t want to be found. The bond could get me pretty close, but in a city like this she could be feet away but inaccessible because of how the roads and buildings wound together.

I nearly walked by her, standing eerily still next to a mountain of discarded pottery behind a series of shops.

“Hailon?”

“I’m sorry,” she repeated.

“I know, Moonflower. It’s okay. I’m not going anywhere. Please don’t disappear on me like that again.”

Her tortured eyes met mine, and it set me on edge. I had to bite back the urge to let my horns and wings out.

“It’s not fair,” she said quietly, kicking out a foot. A broken pot slipped from the stack and shattered further when it hit the ground. Hailon stared at it, then looked around. The end of the alley was made up of brick walls, all part of the neighboring buildings. She picked up two teapots, one missing a handle and the other missing a spout. Hailon threw them, one at a time toward the bricks. “It’s. Not. Fair .”

She took off her cloak, gathering more broken pottery. One at a time, she worked out her hurts while hurling the clay against the bricks. “I didn’t ask my parents to leave me with her. I didn’t ask them to leave me at all.” Smash . “I helped everyone who came to me, even the ones I knew called me a charlatan or a harlot behind my back.” Smash . “I grieved the loss of every single person who died in my care, knowing I did my best and it wasn’t enough. Even when the families still blamed me.” Smash. Smash. “I ignored how people looked at me. The things they said. Because I knew whatever they thought of me wasn’t true.” Smash. “I listened to Sal, always. Respected her.” Smash . “I loved her, would have done anything for her, and she set. Me. Up.” Smash. Smash. Smash. Smash.

Chunks of beige and reddish pottery flew around us, Hailon’s breathing harsh as she rushed back to the pile several times. Her words devolved into screams as she broke a dozen more pieces. Finally, her energy flagged, and she started to slow down. “I suck the magic from everything around me.” Smash .

“Don’t say?—”

She wheeled on me, fury in her eyes like I’d never seen. I hadn’t ever really doubted she could take me out if she wanted, but in that moment, I was certain of it.

She was truly my perfect mate.

“You can’t properly shift around me. Or fly. I’m probably feeding on your powers right now, and we don’t even realize it.”

“I don’t care,” I said. She had turned to throw more pottery but spun back. “I’d give everything up for this,” I said, gesturing between us. “For you. I don’t need to shift or fly or sift.”

“I’m not worth that kind of sacrifice, Seir. I’m a… magical void. It will never stop.”

I stepped closer to her, gently but firmly taking hold of her upper arms. “You are far more than that. To me, you are everything . Never say that again.” She blinked at my tone and sagged, dropping the last pieces of pottery she’d picked up at her feet. I took her face between my hands and crushed my mouth to hers, willing her to feel how serious I was. “I’d rather be flightless for the rest of my life and be near you than be able to shift freely and have to go without you, Hailon.” I wrapped my arms around her, relief flooding through me when she finally held me back.

“I’m sorry.”

“No more apologies, beloved. You’re perfect just as you are. And for the record, I think we can have both. We simply have to figure out some details.” I picked up her cloak and put it back on her, assessing the mess she’d made. “This is nicely done.” She dropped her chin to her chest. “Do you feel better for it?”

“I think so.”

“Then it was a fantastic way to work out some frustrations without killing people, and that’s something I suppose you should be proud of. I can think of another,” I joked, “but it would have been very awkward to stop and get naked with you in the middle of the street, wouldn’t you say?” She shook her head, a tiny flicker of her humor showing. “Come on. Take me to the grocers, then we can leave this place behind.” I laced my arm through hers, ensuring that she wouldn’t leave me behind again.