Page 16 of The Fearless Witch

Had that been… the wind? In Hell?

Goosebumps covered my skin when something brushed against my feet, and I yelped in panic. The touch was gentle and soft, and when it happened a second time, I realized it was fur that I was sensing.

“Stay still,” a familiar voice spoke right before the smell of sulfur and death filled my nostrils. Rough, hot fingers took my hands, bending them even further, but then the cuffs fell off and I was finally free. By the time I yanked the gag out of my mouth, the collar around my neck clanked to the ground as well.

Turning, I almost cried with relief when I found a pair of familiar red eyes staring back at me. A monster three times my size stood hunched by the wall, his giant nails now curling toward his palms.

My monster.

“Nym!” I laughed, throwing my arms around his neck. His body was uncomfortably hot, but I welcomed the familiar feeling, releasing him only after he started shifting to a smaller form. My heart swelled with joy and a hint of relief. He had come for me. Even in Hell, he had followed. Just like I hoped he would.

He looked the same as the last time I saw him, if a bit more grim, and as I stared into his now golden eyes, I realized we hadn’t seen each other long before I was dragged down here. We had a lot to catch up on, but first, we had to get out of there. Fast.

“We need to hurry.” I pushed myself up, groaning at the stiffness in my muscles. “I’m not sure when he might return, but my magic is useless against him. So we need to—”

The door opened a second time and my head snapped toward it, frustration and panic filling my chest as Beleth unceremoniously strode inside. No, no, no! He had been gone for almost two days! Couldn’t he wait a few more minutes? Did Nym trigger some kind of alarm? Fuck!

He was covered in blood again—something that happened quite often—but he didn’t look nearly as bad as the last time he dragged his battered body in. I held my breath when his eyes landed on Nym and me, but all his face showed was… boredom.

‘What the hell?’ I thought. I get why he wasn’t afraid of me, but Nym was freaking terrifying when he wanted to be. Yet Beleth didn’t so much as blink at the sight of him.

“I allowed you inside, but I don’t remember giving you permission to untie her.”

A cold shiver crawled down my back at the dismissive tone he used and the fact that he was clearly not talking to me. I looked at Nym from the corner of my eye and my jaw dropped when I realized he was still in his tiny cat form. I couldn’t remember the last time he didn’t turn into a creature made of nightmares when someone threatened me in his presence. Even Roman wasn’t spared from his wrath if my familiar thought I needed protection.

Yet he made no move now. Not only that, he actually lowered his eyes at Beleth’s words. It felt like the ground had opened underneath me and I was falling, not knowing when I’d hit the bottom.

“She was in pain,” Nym said defensively. “You were supposed to take care of her.”

I could barely hear their words as I glanced between them, trying to remember how to speak. What… what did this mean? Beleth allowed him in here? Had Nym known where I was and…

I shook my head. No, Nym couldn’t have known. He wouldn’t let Beleth do this. He… there had to be another explanation!

“How…” I started, pointing at Beleth, then at Nym. “Do you… two know each other?”

The demon closed the door with a derisive snort, stripping his shirt over his head. He picked up the water bowl from the cupboard like he did every time and carried it to the table.

I… I couldn’t breathe and he acted like nothing unusual was happening.

“Well? Will one of you fucking explain?” I snarled, looking down at Nym when Beleth blatantly ignored me. A part of me was relieved that we wouldn’t have to fight him—I wasn’t sure his reasons for not killing me applied to my familiar—but the fact that Beleth looked so unbothered by Nym’s presence bugged me more than being tied up and gagged for days.

Nym was mine. He was loyal to me. He…

“Yes,” my familiar finally replied, striding past until he was close enough to jump on the table. Every step he took away from me felt like a stab in the gut and when my hand instinctively went to my stomach, I was surprised to find no blood there.

Beleth rolled his eyes, dropping into one of the chairs with a grunt before shifting his focus to wiping the crusted blood off his arm.

“Will you behave if I tell you?” he sighed tiredly, his voice devoid of the usual bite.

“Just fucking tell me!” I snarled, fisting the fabric of my shirt when my hand started to shake.

He paused, staring at the rag as if considering his options, then sighed again. “I created Nym from pieces of our souls and the body of a hellhound. Did you really think a demonic creature would just come to you and offer its eternal loyalty for no reason?” He shot me a pointed look before returning to what he was doing before. “If you did, you are an even bigger fool than I thought.”

I took a deep breath, but the tightness in my chest didn’t lessen at all. The vicious pounding in my head grew louder, swallowing all sounds, even those of my breaking heart. I shook my head, ready to reject his explanation, but then I looked at Nym. Fur bristling, ears back and tail swishing left and right, he avoided my gaze like he couldn’t even look me in the eye.

My vision blurred while I fought to remember how to breathe.

“You… made him?” I gasped, sucking in a big gulp of air that went nowhere. Why couldn’t I breathe? I wasn’t injured, and I wasn’t hexed, so what was that feeling? “And sent him… to me? How? Why?”

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