Page 27 of Taken to the Shadow Realm

Something burst through my chest.

“Yes, I would like that very much.”

Yien only gave me a stiff nod at that.

“I'll be leaving soon. It’s urgent, and I don't know when I'll be back. But don't go outside. Let the staff know if you need anything.”

I nodded and had to watch as she melded into the shadows, feeling even more confused than when I first arrived here.

And feeling alone for the first time.

Iris

This time, instead of playing with the souls, I wandered the grounds.

It didn’t take me long to realize there were many more demons here than I had originally thought. All of them must have been hiding away during my first few days. But as I roamed the halls, I caught quite a few either cleaning up or down in the kitchen preparing food.

There were so many I couldn’t believe I had overlooked them. Many of them ignored me, focusing on their work. But there were a few who turned. A few whose veins turned dark. But when I noticed, I merely nodded at them, and they returned to their work.

Simple as that.

They clearly weren’t like those at the auction. Maybe those were just the bad of the bunch.

But if so, why was Yien there?

I shook the line of questioning out of my mind. Yien wasn’t like the others, and neither were the demons she employed. That had become obvious over the short time I had been there.

I don’t know how long I spent exploring, but somehow I ended up right outside the kitchen, my stomach clenching painfully. I peered in, unable to help myself.

Two demons were inside, hard at work, tearing apart demon flesh and bashing it with what looked like a hammer. They were too busy chatting to notice me.

Just go in, I told myself. This is your house too.

Well… I was sort of a captive here, but I’d much rather think of myself as a guest than as someone who came here unwillingly. No one treated me awfully. They left me alone. I had a comfortable bed. Food every day. Baths.

I am free.

And it could have been worse. I could still be stuck with my father and the men back in… whatever realm mine was. I bet they had a name for it. Yien did say this was the Shadow Realm.

How pitiful is that? I am actually relieved to have been swept up by a demon and sold to Yien.

Of course the arrangement could have gone so much worse in a number of ways, but I had gotten lucky with her. Beyond lucky.

I could still feel the way her shadows moved across my skin, sending a wave of heat through me.

“So this is the little plaything Yien brought home,” a teasing voice said from behind me.

I jumped and turned around, coming face to face with a demon with deep red hair, the same grayed skin as Yien, and almost all-black eyes save for two white pupils, a bit like her too. As always, my first instinct was to run, but I tried my best to clamp down on it.

They won’t hurt you. Not here. Though there was a twinge of worry running through me when I realized just how alone I was with Yien off helping her friend.

But this demon… She wouldn’t hurt me. Her aura was clear as day.

There was a slight smirk on her face, but behind her sprouted dark blue wisps of smoke that spread out into space. It was a painful, melancholy picture painting the walls behind her with such sadness it caused my chest to clench.

Whoever this demon was, she was grieving.

“Iris,” I corrected her. “And you are…?”

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