Page 58 of To Hunt a Demon King

“You need rest,” Carnon argued. “At least, certain parts of you do.” He grinned, and I flicked water at his face, making him laugh.

“Lean back,” he said.

I turned to look at him suspiciously. “Why?” I asked, staying put.

“So I can wash your hair,” he said, matter of factly, as if this was some service he offered to all the women he shared a bed with. Maybe he did.

“I can do that,” I said, holding my hand out for the soap he was holding. He was kneeling on the bare stone floor, and it must be uncomfortable. “Really, you don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”

“Red,” he said, breathing out my nickname as if I both irritated and delighted him. “I already said, Iwantto. Now lean back.” The smolder in his eyes at this final command had me obeying, and I submerged my hair in the water, luxuriating in the feel of strong fingers running over my scalp.

He tapped me to come up, and I obeyed, taking in a sharp breath when I felt his hands go to my head again and begin to work the soap into a lather. I let out a moan of pleasure that was completely unintentional, and flushed as he chuckled behind me.

“Easy, Red,” he said, a smirk in his voice. “This is nothing compared to what I have planned for later.” My stomach gave a little happy twist as he guided me back to rinse my hair, running his fingers through the long tresses to make sure he got all the soap. When I rose again, he pressed a kiss to my wet shoulder.

“Now,” he said, moving from behind me to the side of the tub, where he sat on a low stool. Everything was visible still, and I blushed again, feeling like I would be “Red” forever at this rate. “Ask me some of those questions.”

“Okay,” I started, trying to decide what was most important. I settled on gleaning more information about the Demon King. “This invocation of the Horned God. What is it, and what would I do to violate it?”

Carnon frowned a little, as if trying to decide what to tell me. I cursed my bad luck that there was no yarrow on hand for a truth spell. While I didn’t think that Carnon was really lying, he was definitely getting creative at omitting things.

“I told you that the Horned God is worshiped by demons, along with the Triple Goddess,” he said, speaking slowly as if still considering his words. I nodded, hoping he would continue. “The God represents duality. He is life and death, light and darkness, truth and lies, wilderness and civilization.”

“Okay,” I said, frowning as I received more of a theology lesson than I had hoped for.

“The Triple Goddess, as his consort, represents many of these things too,” he continued, watching me intently as I began to scrub myself with the soap. “She is the moon and sun and stars. Life and death and rebirth.”

“Yes,” I said, trying not to sound irritated. “I know all of this.”

“Okay, well,” Carnon said, raising a brow at my impudence. “If you invoke the protection of the Horned God, as your mother wants you to, you basically enter a binding contract with the Demon King. You give him access to your life and power, and, in return, he will protect you in the name of his God.”

“I still don’t get it,” I said, rinsing the soap from myself as best as I could. “How is that anything to do with the Horned God? And what do you mean about my life and power? I don’t want to do that.”

“You may not have a choice, Elara,” Carnon said. I noticed he used my real name only when he was very serious or very angry. I frowned. “The Demon King is said to be chosen by the Horned God himself. He is the representative of the Horned God’s duality, and as such, his powers emulate those of the God himself. If you invoke the God’s protection, you invoke the King’s, but something must be given in return.”

“My life?” I asked, feeling myself pale.

“Until the contract is broken or absolved, yes,” Carnon said. “Your living loyalty and powers and strengths are his, until you end the contract.”

“So,” I said, trying to think through the particulars of this deal Mama had insisted I make. “I can invoke the contract, but I also have the power to end it?”

“Yes,” Carnon said. “Demon bargains generally favor the petitioner. As long as you don’t violate the contract, the power to end it is yours.”

“And how would I violate it?” I asked, wondering if there was an easy way to escape this binding magical contract I was setting myself up for.

“By injuring him with the intent to hurt or kill him,” Carnon said simply. “Remember, demon magic is all about intent.”

“Is there a chance he will hurt me?” I asked, frowning and growing increasingly uncertain about this plan Mama had devised. I hoped I wouldn’t have a reason to hurt the Demon King, but I really didn’t like what “my power and my life” might entail.

“No,” Carnon said sharply, eyes flashing a little at the suggestion. “He will protect you with his life and treat you as a member of his household, until the contract is fulfilled. His hurting you intentionally would violate the contract as well.”

“Okay,” I said, slowly, trying to absorb all of this. “And if I invoke the Horned God’s protection, does the Demon King get a choice?” I asked, looking up at him. “Can he say no?”

“No,” Carnon said with a frown. “Up.”

“That doesn’t seem fair,” I said as I stood, letting the water sluice off me as Carnon wrapped me in a fluffy towel and scooped me out of the tub. I gave a little yelp at the suddenness of the move. He returned me to the bedroom and plopped me on the bed, kneeling before me. For a moment I thought there might be a repeat of what happened between us last night, but instead he took my hands in his, smoothing his thumbs over my palms and studying me seriously.

“When you invoke the Horned God’s protection, you create a magical bond with the king,” he said, looking up at me seriously, no trace of a smirk in the lines of his mouth. “You can be sure the Demon King will uphold his end, but be sure you are ready to uphold yours.”

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