Page 97 of Demon Bound

It was a shining irregularity in the air, an ovalish shape a little larger than a human, floating a step above the floor. Vague images flashed in the shadows within the shape, never quite becoming anything recognizable. She could not decide if it reminded her more of a mirror, a window, or a rune shimmering with magic energy.

As she looked at it, a shape appeared inside, like a creature from the ocean depths coming to the surface. It was another bird, like the ones upstairs.

There was a flash and a snap, and to Raiya’s shock, the bird burst forth and soared over their heads. It circled the room once before choosing a tunnel seemingly at random and disappearing down it.

Nirlan had opened a gate to the hells.

The planes of hell were not her area of expertise, but even a layperson knew that you couldn’t just open a gate. This wasn’t how you were supposed to go about summoning demons.

The gate itself was jagged and messy, like a rip in the air. It shouldn’t have been there. It felt wrong. A mistake born of desperation and hubris.

“What have you done?” she asked, dazed.

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Nirlan said. He had crossed the room and picked up something from a table. He turned around to face them, raising a small metal disk. Runes on the disk glowed to life, flashing as its enchantment activated.

Raiya didn’t have time to figure out what the thing was before a wave of something hit her. She felt herself falling, and then there was nothing.

Chapter 30

Raiya felt that something was wrong even before she awoke, before she remembered what had happened.

The first thing she became aware of was the cold, hard stone at her back. It felt cruel and unwelcoming, bruising her where it dug into her shoulder blades. Somewhere nearby, she could hear something large breathing.

Fear spun through her. She was in danger.

She tried to lift her limbs, to open her eyes, but her body was heavy. She was unnaturally tired, like she’d been drugged. Eventually, she pried open her eyelids, turning dry eyes on a scene that slowly came into focus.

Nirlan was standing over a table near the gate, his back to her. Raiya blinked, shifting her gaze across the room, and her heart stuttered. The red-skinned demon lounged in a too-small chair nearby. He’d propped the side of his head on his hand as he watched Nirlan doing whatever he was doing at the table, wearing no expression whatsoever. His red eyes flicked over to hers briefly.

He looked bored.

Raiya drew a shuddering breath. It felt like she’d been in hibernation for months. Trembling, she pushed herself up ontoher elbow. Her baton was gone, as were her bow and arrows. Her satchel had been emptied onto the floor beside her, presumably when Nirlan had checked it for more weapons. Her book of notes had been carelessly tossed upside down beside her stylus, its delicate pages crumpled.

Deep, ragged breathing drew her attention again. She followed the sound until she spotted the large figure lying on the floor in front of the red demon’s chair.

Azreth.

He was alive, but vicious claw marks covered his body. Worst of all were the deep punctures in his belly. The demon’s claws had cut into him so far that she could see the glistening, black viscera inside him. She didn’t know how he was still alive. The wounds were catastrophic.

“Azreth,” she said, without really meaning to. Her voice was choked and hoarse. Azreth’s breathing hitched. He slowly tilted his head to look over at her, the muscles in his neck straining with the effort.

Nirlan turned as she spoke. “I can’t lie—it stings that the first thing out of your mouth when you awaken is another man’s name.”

Raiya pushed herself up to a sitting position. “You said he wasn’t bound to you,” she said.

“And you believed me.”

She was a fool. He had lied to her about everything. The demon had never been out of his control. Nirlan had no intention of sending him back to the hells.

Beside Azreth, there was another bloodied body. Adamus. He was very still, and Raiya couldn’t tell whether he was still alive.

She looked around until she located Madira and Jai just behind her. They were both still unconscious from whatever magic Nirlan had used on them, but she could see them breathing. She was relieved they were alive, but a part of her wasalso relieved they were still unconscious—she didn’t want to see the judgment in their eyes.

She’d led them all here. It was her fault. She had wanted to trust Nirlan so badly that she’d put them all at risk, and she didn’t even know why. She’d spent so long wanting him to love her and wanting so badly for him to change that she’d taken the hand he offered her like a fish taking bait from a hook.

She wondered why the demon hadn’t just killed Azreth and the rest of them, and then she realized the obvious answer. He couldn’t feed off of them if he killed them. Even now, he was probably soaking in Azreth’s pain, letting it bolster his own power.

“You’re not so mouthy without your weapon,” Nirlan observed, cocking a dark eyebrow. He picked up the metal plate from the table. “Thank you for this, by the way. I never thought any of your trinkets would come in handy, but with a little help from that priestess, this one proved useful at least once.” He tossed it onto the table with a clatter.

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