Page 80 of Demon Bound

Azreth’s eyes darted to Raiya’s, mistrustful. She gave him a look that was half reassuring and half reproachful. “Stop glaring like that,” she said under her breath. “You’ll scare her off.”

He continued glaring, albeit a little less intensely.

The elf warily approached, raising a hand that glowed with healing magic. “This may be a bit of an experiment. I’m not sure about how your biology compares to ours.”

Raiya looked at Azreth, who just shrugged slightly. Evidently he didn’t know, either.

One of the men who had accompanied the elf leaned down to rest his hands on his knees as he watched. “So… You’ve been a demon in disguise all this time, huh?”

“Yes,” Azreth said.

No one seemed to know what to say after that, and an awkward silence followed.

With the Roamers’ help, they patched Azreth’s wounds. He still lacked the magic to finish healing himself completely, so Raiya wrapped him in gauze and cloth to help keep his wounds closed and clean—a practice he seemed bemused by, but she insisted.

She felt proud seeing him wrapped in her inexpert but careful handiwork. She wanted everyone to see the proof that he was taken care of, that he was worth caring for, and she wanted them to know that she had done it. And, a part of her wanted them all to see that he had suffered in the process of protecting them, too.

By the time they’d finished, they still had not been accosted by a group of angry villagers, though Raiya could see the crowd still there, watching. The other Roamers had calmed the behelgi and were rapidly breaking down their camp.

Madira eventually found them. “The caravan’s moving on,” he said. “The matron just announced it. If you have anything to pack, you should do it now. The clan moves quickly and it doesn’t wait for stragglers. Ask us how we know.”

“Why would they wait for us?” Raiya asked. “Surely they won’t welcome us among them, after…”

Madira shrugged one shoulder. “She would have said something if the elders had decided to keep you out. She’s not shy about these things.”

Hope bubbled in Raiya’s chest. “And the other Roamers?” she asked, looking around at the people packing up the camp. “Won’t they be angry?”

“Perhaps. Some people objected when we first arrived, too. But they’ll adjust. Roamers are nothing if not adaptable.”

She retrieved her things from the stable, making sure she still had her bow and her notes and stylus in particular, because those were the only things she could never part with, and decided to find another bag later. She was a little curious about what had happened to the one she’d shoved down the vythian’s throat. Had it melted or burned or somehow remained whole? Perhaps the vythian’s saliva was acidic, or as hot as lava. She decided to ask Azreth later. But either way, she wasn’t interested in trying to retrieve it.

The clan packed up quickly and left Ontag-ul behind as the townspeople slowly descended on the dead vythian. Raiya spotted armored members of the town watch as well as a few Paladins at the front of the group. She frowned when she saw a familiar face in the distance.

“Is that Adamus?” she asked, nudging Jai.

“That’s him,” Madira said. His tone was flat, but lacked the hatred he’d expressed for the man previously. Maybe he was slowly learning to get along with others.

“For someone who claims not to be a Paladin any longer, he still spends a lot of time with them,” Raiya said.

“Do you think he’ll come after us?” Jai asked.

No one answered. Perhaps this was what it was to be among the Roamers—knowing that there was always a chance someone from your past would come calling, and accepting that running was a part of life. It helped that they had the clan at their backs, more or less. They were stronger together than they were alone.

Raiya put her hand into Azreth’s as they walked, squeezing it. He looked down at her, then squeezed back gently.

Raiya was not particularlysurprised when she heard a quiet argument at the entrance to the camp that night, and was even less surprised when the source of the argument turned out to be Adamus and the guard on watch, who was denying him entrance. His eyes locked onto her when she came into view.

“Lady Han-gal,” he said, dipping into a shallow bow. “I’ve been looking for you.”

The guard held out an arm to block his way. “I’ve told you, you’re not welcome. Leave before we make you.”

“You should listen to her,” Raiya said. “Nothing good will come of chasing us.”

“I need to speak with you. It will only take a few minutes. It’s about the monster at Ontag-ul. I saw you and your companion kill it.”

“So?”

“I think there are more of them coming.”

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