Page 25 of Demonic Division

I nod, gesturing once more toward the water.

“Okay…” All the wariness from earlier is replaced with an unfamiliar softness. Her eyes search my face, and when she fails to find any ill intent, she shrugs off Cyprien’s blanket and steps toward the bath.

I sigh in relief, turning on my heel and stalking toward the exit to give her privacy. I close and lock the door with a wave of my hand, sensing Dagny’s stare burning a hole through the thick iron.

Gods, what is wrong with me?

I rub a hand down my face, reeling from the violent tugging sensation in my chest. With a growl, I hasten to the main hall, taking the spiral staircase up to the third floor where the archives are.

As soon as I push through the doors, Lir’s deep voice pierces the air. “You let her out?”

I step farther into the room, breathing in the scent of old parchment and binding glue. My jaw ticks as I meetLir’s sapphire eyes—at the judgment swimming in their depths.

I couldn’t leave her down there withhim.He was getting too friendly.

Lir raises a brow, closing the leather-bound tome he was bent over and turning his full attention to me. “Anything to worry about?”

I don’t think so,I reply.The only thing I’m currently worried about is keeping an eye on her.I give him an expectant look, waiting for him to take the hint.

Lir just shakes his head. “Oh no. No fucking way. I’m not babysitting the human.”

You’ll do it, and you won’t complain.I bring a hand to my face, pinching the bridge of my nose in an attempt to stave off the incoming migraine.Cyprien will be back tonight, and since I will not be here, I need you to watch her andhim.

Lir sighs but still nods. “Fine.”

Good.I reach out, gripping his shoulder with a clawed hand.I’ll collect her and take her to her room, then I’ll be off. I’ll be gone a day or two at the most.

“Okay,” Lir murmurs, pulling away from me with a pout. “If this backfires, I’m blaming you.”

My chest shakes with a silent laugh as I step to the open window, my wings flaring out to the sides, catching the breeze.She’s just a tiny human. I think we’ll be fine.

I head out of the library toward the bathhouse, having no idea just how wrong my statement was.

13

Dagny

I let out a breath,allowing my eyes to close as I sink farther into the water. The dirt and grime are pulled from my skin by some magical force, clouding the heated liquid before dissolving into the surrounding pool like it was never there in the first place. I gaze down in awe, swirling my fingertips in the liquid. Sparks of heat line my bloody cuticles, and I watch in amazement as the deep craters fill in and scar over. My fingernails lengthen, covering the tortured skin that’s been gnawed and picked at for years.

I dip my hands beneath the surface, gasping as pain flares from the cuts in my palms. The skin slowly threads together, healing until nothing but faint crescent-shaped scars remain. A pleasant warmth flares to life in my chest, and I take a deep breath before dunking my head into the water.

The magic cleans and caresses the dark tendrils, coaxing the knots from the base and pouring life into the frayed edges. When I resurface, some of that earlier power thrums in my veins, bursting from my pores and falling in warm droplets down my skin. A smile pulls my lips apart,and I bask in the fullness of some long-lost part of me finally being restored.

Of course, all of it is forgotten when footsteps alert me to the presence of Kaebl. Heat creeps up my neck as I whip my head to face him, sinking deep beneath the surface of the water so he doesn’t see anything he’s not supposed to.

Without pause, Kaebl steps to the edge of the pit and reaches for my arm. I jerk back on instinct, and Kaebl’s eyes flash red, a puff of vapor billowing from his nostrils. He reaches into the water, nearly brushing against my breast in his quest to grab my wrist. His palm wraps around me, and he hauls me from the water.

I squeal as I’m ripped from the warm embrace, using my one free arm to cover my breasts as best I can while Kaebl hauls me away from the bath. Even though the room is warmer than the others, the water coating my skin chills me to the bone, and I begin shivering uncontrollably.

Sensing this, Kaebl stops halfway to the exit. He releases me, and I stumble back just as he turns on his heel to face me. His eyes drag down my body unashamedly—clinically—as if he’s studying an exotic creature.

“See something you like?” I snip, trying to cover my private parts with my hand as Kaebl’s gaze settles on my lower stomach. “Hey! Eyes up here!”

Kaebl blows out a breath, his jaw clenching as he does what I insist. Pulse thrumming, Kaebl waves a hand in the air, making a circular motion with his pointer finger. A vortex encases my body, and my mouth opens wordlessly as all the air is sucked from my lungs.

A minute later, I fall forward onto my knees, replacing the oxygen I lost with great, heaving breaths. I’m so grateful, I don’t realize the water has also been sucked from my skin, and I’m no longer shivering.

With another wave of his hand, Cyprien’s blanket flies through the air into his palm. He wraps it over my shoulders, securing both ends in front of my chest. I gaze back at my discarded pajamas, and Kaebl just shakes his head.

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