Page 42 of Twisted Sins

Did he trust her to keep her promise not to escape again?

Her heart began to thud in hope.

My God. Maybe I am getting to the demon.

CHAPTER 13

Nandini suppressed a shiver when the heat of the demon’s body disappeared from her side.

She continued to close her eyes, pretending to be asleep. She heard the sounds while the demon moved across the tent and took out his things from the leather trunks at the back. A few moments later, a cold draft blew in momentarily while the demon stepped out of the tent.

She continued to lay still and slowly opened her eyes.

It was dark inside the tent as the sun mustn’t have risen yet. Sucking in a deep breath, she pushed aside the thick blanket and got up. She rubbed her arms when the cold air hit her, causing goosebumps on her skin.

The goosebumps were also because of what she planned to do, which was partly a suicidal mission.

She planned to follow the demon.

She wanted to observe and know more about him. Although she spent five nights with him, she barely knew anything beyond the fact that he was cold and merciless. She sensed he wasn’t that way with his people, so she wanted to witness it.

Taking another deep breath, she stepped out of the tent.

She gasped when the biting desert cold hit her face. Pulling the thin veil around her lower face, she slowly walked through the path that led to the bathing area.

It was still mostly dark, but the first few rays of sunlight streaked through the sky.

Her eyes adjusted to the dark but felt gritty as she hadn’t slept all night. She had been thinking about her mother’s letter and the implications of it.

She had to embrace the Kabalis, especially their savage leader. And to do that, she needed to know more.

Where did he go each morning? And what did he do until the sunset?

She couldn’t imagine him having a regular nine-to-five job somewhere. Did he attack and kill more innocent people?

Maybe he even married other rich women he kidnapped for ransom. Her legs faltered at the thought.

Can Kabali men have more than one wife?

Pushing away the shocking thought, she continued to go towards the pond.

When she almost reached there, she hid behind a large rock within a small cave. She expected to see a group of Kabali men taking a bath in the pond before riding out of the encampment like they did each morning. But there was only one person in the pond. The demon.

More streaks of light lit the sky in shades of orange and grey, making the large eagle tattoo on the broad back visible even from a distance.

She recalled that the pond was deep enough to submerge her until above her chest. But the water came only until the demon’s hip.

He was holding something in his hand, and she couldn’t see what it was clearly.

Is it a weapon?

Her heart raced. Did he know she was following him?

Before she could flee, a shocking sound filled the air.

She froze as she recognized the beautiful, soothing sound. She had grown up listening to the sound often because it was her mother’s favorite god’s instrument. It was the sound of a flute.

Wondering if she was dreaming, she blinked a few times. But she could still see the large eagle tattoo on Rudra Kabali’s broad back as he held the flute and played beautiful, soothing music while the sun was rising in front of him.

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