Page 89 of Demons of Eden

I watch Torrin mess with some object he pulls out of his pocket as my panic rises, blurring my vision somewhat as I breathe heavily. The boost of adrenaline to my system has a contraction tightening my stomach, the feeling no longerdeniable for what it is. I suck in a sharp breath, hoping that the others will mistake it for worry.

“I’m sure he’s alright, Hellfire,” Rio says, but I can hear the growl in his tone. He’s worried about him too.

“Where is he?” I ask again, and I have to fight myself not to double over from the intensity of the contractions. It’s painful, but it’s also a huge amount of my body that aches. My ass and vagina included.Ugh. What the fuck is that about?I remember reading somewhere how the urge to push the baby out can feel like needing to push a watermelon out of your ass. I’d thought the poster was being dramatic, but now I’m not so sure.

Fuck, I really don’t like this.

It’s difficult, but I breathe through the contractions as Suvi watches me with a knowing look. It’s not just that she’s a healer; she’s also too fucking perceptive and knows me far too well. One small shake of my head has her glaring at me almost mutinously, but thankfully she doesn’t say anything.

“He’s…not anywhere good,” Torrin admits, holding the object he’s used to pinpoint Daion’s location as if it’s betrayed him. “The thing he went to check out, it was something demon-related. Now he’s far away…like right across the country, according to this.”

“Take me to him. Right now, before I go atomic bomb on this bitch,” I demand, my wings popping out from my back against my will as my fear takes over.

One knocks against Ash and sends him stumbling back a few steps, but the other slams into Rio, sending him flying backward. He lands on his ass, eyes wide as he stares up at me. I gasp, unsure how weak he is or if he’s recovered fully after I saved him. I don’t want to tear his damn chest open again.

“Damn, girl, those are intense.” Rio snorts as Torrin helps him to his feet, keeping his eyes on my new appendages. I feelAsh caress the one he’s closest to, and a shiver runs down my back.

“Beautiful,” he murmurs softly.

“You’re transforming? Fuck.” Torrin grunts, then frowns as he glances at my belly.

Don’t be suspicious.

“We don’t have time for this,” I say, propping my hand on my hip and dismissing both the compliment and their concern. “Can you take me to Daion or not? Do you know exactly where he is?”

Torrin nods, but he’s still frowning.

“If he shows me where, I can take them, little witch. You should stay here with Suvi. Transporting when you’re this far along could be dangerous. It might send you into labour.” Ash takes my hand in his, trying to soothe me. It’s a little late for worrying about that. Not that I intend to admit it, as they’d never let me go with them if they found out.

“No, I’m not just going to wait here,” I inform him as calmly as I can manage given the situation, which has a debatable level of success. “We protecteach other, so you’re a dead demon walking if you think I’m not going with you.”

“Alright, calm down, Hellfire,” Rio says gently, but I whip my head around to glare at him.

“Did you just tell me to calm down?”

Who the hell tells a heavily pregnant woman, in the middle of the most stressful situation of her life, to calm down? I may have realised I love the damn asshole, but that’s still some undeniably brainless behaviour right there.

“Come on, let's just go. There’s no use wasting time arguing over it,” Torrin interjects, pulling me away from his brother before I can go feral on him.

As we gather around Ash to be teleported, Suvi laces her fingers with mine, giving them a squeeze. Almost instantly, someof the pain fades as she subtly uses her skills to ease it for me without the others noticing.

“Thank you,” I murmur softly to her as everyone else grips onto one another, but before she can reply, the world spins.

Having teleporteda couple of streets away, we make the final part of our journey on foot to avoid gaining the demon inside’s attention too soon. The crumbling house we arrive at is giving off strong haunted vibes. It really belongs in a horror film, not an otherwise quaint-looking town.

Why the fuck would Paimon bring Daion here of all places?

“His mother was killed here,” Torrin murmurs, answering my unspoken question. My heart pinches at the thought of Daion being brought back here, at the awful memories it will surely bring up.

We’re approaching slowly, cautiously, and I hate it.

I’m ready to bust the door down, but with Torrin’s hand wrapped around my left wrist and Rio clutching my right, I’m not getting anywhere unless they let me. Ash takes the lead, with Suvi following closely behind us. I breathe deeply, trying not to lose my mind with worry. All I can do right now is follow their leads. They know what they’re doing.

Having crept around the building to approach from the back, we find a massive window that gives us a perfect view of the inside. As we get even closer, I realise that through it, I can see Paimon has Daion by the throat.Fuck.My wings, which seem to have a mind of their own, flap wildly. It doesn’t do me any damn good. They’re heavy, and I clearly don’t know how to fly.

Ash glances back over his shoulder, frowning when I try to tug my hands free from Torrin and Rio. They hold tight, only enraging me more as I see Daion struggle.

“Fuck this, let me go before he kills him!” I snap, and to my surprise, both men release me at the same time. However, none of them are essentially nine months pregnant, slowed by wings they don’t know how to use and swollen feet that ache. So when they let me go, they take off for the house, easily getting ahead of me, which was likely their intention in suddenly fucking rushing.

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