Page 100 of The Demon's Discovery
Vassago reached over and hauled me onto his lap, his arms banded so tightly around me I could scarcely move. “You are a wonder, and I will take my last breath positive I don’t deserve you.” He tucked his face into the curve of my shoulder and held me. His gratitude was profound, with an edge of apprehension. I was sure I’d feel the same if someone offered the one thing I’d searched for much of my conscious life. “As much as I’d like to take it this very moment, I should make preparations first. I want to be sure everyone is safe from me in the event my reaction is poor.”
As the night grew heavy, he simply carried us to my bed, hands never straying far from me except to assist with the removal of our clothes. Without breaking the quiet bubble we’d wrapped around ourselves once again, he worshipped me from head toe, my harsh breaths and his throaty moans the only noise. I tired long before him, but he kept me awake with his careful, loving ministrations.
It was far and away one of the best thank yous I’d ever gotten, and he hadn’t even tried it yet.
Chapter 39
Vassago
Greta and I lost several days to further translating the entries in Lilith’s book and creating at least one of any elixir we had the right ingredients for. I’d taken her into the markets again as well, making a day of it so we could restock and restore ourselves beyond the walls of d’Arcan.
She bounced happily from shop to shop and table to table, warming to the idea of purchasing things with gold she’d earned rather than coins from my pocket. It was all the same, truth be told, but if the small thought shift changed her attitude about spending, I was all for it. I carried her new items as we wandered through town, looking for a moment like a terrifyingly normal couple out for the day.
Mostly, anyhow. My eyes roved the streets constantly for the red-haired man, but he was nowhere to be found. I had gotten a description of the illusive Lord Feiser out of Henrik during our talk as well, so I had two men I was now hunting for.
As for Henrik, we’d come to a tense understanding. He had been thoroughly chastised by Feiser for allowing Greta to leave his house and watchful eye, though I believed Henrik had been less than clear with him about the truth of Greta’s situationand residence at d’Arcan. I would be all too happy to straighten things out with him directly, but he remained unavailable.
I held out hope that the upcoming ball would present an opportunity for me to correct any misunderstandings. It was probably not a good thing that I spent half my time fantasizing about doing just that.
Greta requested that Magnus join us in the classroom one afternoon, clearly excited about something. She slowly paced the room as she expressed to us both what she’d been working on.
“If Light blades exist, then that implies that Dark blades could also. Perhaps they already do.” She set Lilith’s book on the low table that sat between the sofa and the chaise, the book open to a set of pages scrawled over with fae writing and symbols I didn’t recognize.
I exchanged a look with Magnus. “Nobody has ever mentioned such a thing, nor have we seen it,” I argued. Her eyebrow lifted as she stared at me. The expression made me feel significantly less intelligent than I knew myself to be.
“And you are the keeper of all knowledge at all times about all things?”
Magnus coughed to cover his laugh. “Now, little niece, let’s not bait your demon too hard.”
“I only mean that there’s no way one person can know everything. There are thousands and thousands of books in the world, full of information and knowledge, and much of it in disagreement with the rest about one thing or another. Besides, at this point we all know that the councils can and probably do literally make things—people, knowledge, wealth—vanish. Who’s to say that they aren’t preventing the knowledge of such a thing from being widely known?”
“To what end though? If it would help us keep the demon hordes in check, why would it not be allowed?” I argued once again.
Her head tilted to the side as she moved back and forth in front of the unlit fireplace. “If a Light blade is specifically for use with demons, then it would only make sense that a Dark blade could be used against angels, stone kin, perhaps even fae. Especially if iron was used. I can think of several reasons why angels in particular would want to keep any knowledge of that kind of weapon a secret.”
I blinked, stunned. It wasn’t that we’d never had a thought along those lines, but for a woman less than half a century old, who had no experience in battle, she certainly understood how such things worked. It made me proud, but also terrified me. People who figured out the things others wanted kept secret were always in danger.
“Mm.” The noise rumbled through my throat, and Magnus once again caught my eye, the two of us exchanging raised eyebrows and an understanding that she was on to something we’d potentially been outright ignoring for centuries.
“What is the reason for this questioning, Greta?”
“I think we should make one.”
Her words fell between us with a nearly audible thud in the dense silence. There was nothing but matter-of-factness in her tone, clearly nothing but her scientific mind driving her statement.
“Makeone?” he asked.
“Yes. I think that’s going to be my blade request from Imogen. I’d like to ask her to help me forge it.”
“I…” Magnus stopped short, crossing his arms as he stared back at her. “Your blade? You believe that she can make you this Dark blade as your weapon?”
“I hope so. I could do the other parts,” Greta continued, “assuming, of course, the recipe in this book is what it appears to be. But I’m not skilled in metallurgy, nor strong enough physically to actually forge it. And stone kin have specificsmithies, right? Stone kin raised up from particular bloodlines that show that talent? That’s how Imogen ended up forge mistress at the conclave, as I understand it.”
“Yes, that’s how we appoint a forge master. It’s quite the honor for Imogen to have been chosen,” he explained, pride puffing up his chest as he spoke about her.
“Well, I’m obviously not the forge mistress, so I wouldn’t have access to the same tools, nor have the right skills. But she is. She does. And she’s waiting for my request. This should be it.”
“Yes, but?—”
