Page 21 of The Demon of the Wood

She appeared pleased, as always, by his praise. He moved to the fire and began cooking the fillets and she settled onto the bearskin rug next to him, gazing at the fire, the light casting sensual shadows on her face.

“Where are you from, Kaemon?” she asked.

“Medeis. My family is from the House of Shadows. Do you know of it?” He gave her a sidelong glance. The House of Shadows had a storied past, one that lent them the reputation as a den of iniquity. He focused on cooking the fish in an attempt to ease his worries that she might think of him that way.

“I’ve heard things. But you seem quite different from the tales.”

“What did you hear?” He couldn’t make himself look at her, so instead he stared at the fire. He didn’t want to see the disgust on her face or any other emotions she might have.

“Oh.” She sounded embarrassed. “Not wonderful things. I don’t want to repeat them. I don’t think they may be true, anyway.”

He chuckled. “They may be.” He glanced to see her regarding him curiously.

She opened her mouth, then shut it again, clearly thinking better of what she was about to say. “Do you miss it?”

He nodded. “Very much so.”

Mostly, he missed his family. He thought of Enid and Dryston and how they used to tease each other on hunts. He could still picture that day in his head as clear as if it were happening to him now.

The temple in the forest. The cruel Lord had placed it on the main magical ley line of the woods, funneling the little bits of power that could be harnessed on Nemus into it. It had to be taken down. But it required a ritual. One that was sacred and secret to the demons.

Kaemon closed his eyes. Trying to shake off the guilt that came to him, trying to calm the images of blood that haunted that memory.

“Why don’t you return, then?” she asked, breaking his musing.

His shoulders tightened. “I don’t know that I will be welcome there.”

“Why do you say that?”

He sighed. “I was… well, I was captured. And my family never came to get me.” Her delicate face twisted in outrage at the news, so he hastily added. “I messed up. I trusted someone I shouldn’t have, giving them information they never should have had. My family was attacked. Many in my colony were killed because of my actions.”

“Did you mean to do it?”

He shook his head, and her hand reached over to rest on his arm. His eyes stuck there on her small hand, providing great comfort. Acceptance. He didn’t deserve it.

“How old were you?”

“Fifteen. Old enough to know better.”

“You were still so young, Kaemon. Are you certain your family knows you are alive?”

He nodded. “Yes. They were sent letters to negotiate my release. They never responded.”

Kaemon startled at the fury that lit Melina’s face. “How dare they?” Her tone was hushed but so full of fire that he grasped her hand on his forearm to still her. “You didn’t mean to. It was a mistake. And they are your family. They should have come for you.”

A silent moment passed between them, his head turning her words over. Finally, he squeezed her hand and removed his, pulling the food from the fire, and standing to take the plate to the table. Melina followed, and he piled heaps of food on her plate while she gave him a little scowl. He chuckled.

“What happened to your parents?” he asked.

She took a bite and swallowed. “I never knew my father. My mother had me outside of wedlock, and her parents cast her out. She was a seamstress in the village, but because of her reputation, she was taken advantage of often and not paid very much. We were starving when my uncle took us in.”

Kaemon restrained himself from making a face at the mention of her uncle, his next words coming out strained. “That seems very generous of him.”

She nodded, taking a bite of the fish. “My grandparents had died, so he took over the estate, and his wife had died years before that. He needed someone to raise his sons and be a servant. My mother and I filled those roles well. She died when I was sixteen.”

“That must have been hard.”

She shrugged. “It could have been worse, I suppose. I had food and a place to live. Many didn’t have that much.”

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