Page 21 of Demon Bound

“Tell me what he will do next. What methods will he employ to find me?”

She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, running a hand down her braid. “I’m not sure. But I know he won’t limit himself to methods that are legal and moral, and he’ll be relentless. It’s a matter of pride. But you got rid of his mage, at least. That will give you a good head start.”

A farmhouse appeared in the distance. Raiya grew alarmed when Azreth altered his path to guide them toward it.

“Where are you going?”

“There is a house. We will find food there.”

Raiya thought of the bloody mess left behind at the castle. Azreth looked down at her, as if sensing her sudden spike of fear.

“Wait,” she said. “I don’t think that’s wise.”

“Why not?”

“What if there’s someone inside?”

“I will kill them.”

“No!” She ran in front of him to block his path. “Stay here and let me go alone. Please.”

He kept walking. “You will stay with me.”

“But—”

“No,” he said sharply, frightening her into silence.

She prayed there was no one in the house.

As they got closer, she saw her hopes were in vain. There was a young man working in the field by the house. He stopped and stared, mouth agape, shovel motionless in his hand. Then he ran to the house, stumbling over his own feet in his hurry, and slammed the door behind him.

Raiya’s stomach turned. “Azreth, please, wait.”

He stopped in front of the entrance. The house was quiet. He attempted to push the door open, and he met resistance. It had been barred.

Raiya flinched at the thunderous crash of Azreth’s fist against the door. The wood splintered, and there was a shriek inside the house. Azreth hit the door again, which shattered it into pieces. It was bizarre to watch someone wreck such havoc so casually. Usually, violence followed anger, but he was completely calm. He nudged the remnants of the door aside and stepped over the threshold. Raiya hurried after him.

The house was a single large room with a kitchen on one side, two beds on the other, and a low table in the middle. From the corners of the room, a small family watched them. A woman, a young boy, an older girl, and an older man. Raiya couldn’t see the young man they’d seen outside.

Azreth didn’t do anything at first. He stepped into the room, giving the terrified humans only a passing glance. It was clear he didn’t consider them threats, which she hoped meant he would leave them alone. He looked around the room, and his eyes focused on the kitchen.

Something moved behind him. The young man appeared, leaping out from behind the splintered door and wielding his shovel above his head in both hands like a sword. He brought it down on Azreth’s back. The shovel bounced off Azreth’s body, making the man stumble backward.

Azreth turned. He grabbed the shovel from the young man’s hand and threw it across the room so hard that it stuck in thewall. There was a jumble of movement, and then Azreth cried out in pain and hunched over. It took Raiya a moment to make out what had happened.

The older man had pulled an iron poker from beside the hearth and attacked Azreth, embedding it in his side. The pointed end had easily penetrated where swords had failed, and he was bleeding.

The air pulsated with his pain and fury. Face screwed up with agony, Azreth grasped the end of the poker and wrenched it from his body. A gush of black blood flowed out, sizzling on the cold iron as if the metal were fresh from the forge. Azreth threw the poker away from him like it was poisonous. With one hand, he struck the younger man, which sent him flying, then he strode forward to grab the older man by the front of his shirt. He raised him off the ground, letting his feet kick helplessly in the air.

“Azreth!” Raiya rushed to stand in front of him, pulling at his arm until turned toward her, his expression furious, and for a moment, she thought he would simply kill her with one strike of his deadly fist. “They’re just afraid! They’re only farmers. Please let them go!”

Azreth bared his fangs at her. The younger man was on the floor, cowering. The girl on the other side of the room was on her knees, sobbing as she prayed aloud to Astra. The young boy was screaming as he hugged the older woman’s legs. A piercing wail met Raiya’s ears, and she realized that the woman was holding a baby—a shrouded bundle in her arms. The wide-eyed woman clutched the infant tighter against her chest, as if afraid the sound would draw the demon’s attention. Azreth looked toward the baby, his brows pinching together.

“They were afraid you would hurt them,” Raiya said. “They can do you no harm. You don’t have to do this. Please. Please, don’t kill them.”

Azreth glared down at her, still holding the older man aloft. His eyes shifted to the man, then to the weeping children and the woman.

Slowly, Azreth lowered the man. As soon as his feet touched the floor, the man backed away to huddle beside the woman and children. Raiya sagged with relief, astounded.

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