FORTY FOUR

Word Count: 1856

~Tove

I'm transported by the Demon into a separate part of the cave.

She nudges me forward, ensuring I walk down the corridor that emerges into a surprisingly intimate sitting area.

My eyes immediately fall upon my mate, who is sitting rigidly on a plush crimson seat, holding a glass of something dark in his hand.

On the seat over from him is an unfamiliar man who I pin as the other Demon.

He has the same air about him as Keo. He seems tall, with broad shoulders and long legs, and is utterly terrifying.

He shifts his attention to us as we enter the room, the words he was once speaking to Keo falling short at his lips.

His eyes are a brilliant silver, sweeping down over me. Something shifts in his expression.

He knows I'm an Angel-blood.

I'm not sure if I'm used to being around a powerful Demon, but I don't flinch away from the force of his presence. His sister's nearness is just as intimidating; especially since she is still staring at my neck.

He stands, and to my surprise, he smiles. Broadly.

"Ah, you're finally joining us!" He announces, stretching his arms out.

I blink, taken aback. I expected hostility, for him to rush at me and snap my neck without letting me explain my story.

"Are you Ziah?" I ask tentatively.

He smiles, which is an expression that doesn't seem to suit his sharp features. "Ask your mate."

I look at Keo, whose eyes remain dark and shadowy. Something isn't right. Instead of matching Ziah's energy, which he is very capable of, he remains quiet and observant.

"It's him. One of the Demon's," he tells me.

"How is the Angel-blood, Astera?" Ziah asks his sister.

"She hasn't told me much," Astera mutters, a sneer fixed on her face as she looks over me. "I thought we could both decide whether we want to kill her or not."

"Kill? Please, this is a civil space. We don't need to talk about anything so terrible here," Ziah exclaims.

I can't seem to wipe the confused expression I know is on my face.

The dynamic between the siblings is completely different. One seems cruel and harsh, while the other is outgoing and welcoming.

I doubt my initial examination of his character is flawed, however. Something about him is off.

"Keo told me about you. Apparently you're a sympathiser," he muses. I don't miss the amusement in his tone, like he doesn't believe me.

"I'm not just that. I'm willing to do what I can to save Demon's," I tell him firmly.

Astera laughs bitterly. "I think it may be too late for that."

"Astera, please. These are our guests," Ziah soothes, giving her a long look. They are exchanging some kind of information by looks alone, making me nervous.

I draw in a long breath, focusing on what is important. "Where is Dax?"

"He is waiting for us in the dining room," Ziah tells me, gesturing through an archway carved into the rock that reveals a long table adorned with plates and cutlery. "Please join us for dinner."

I look at Keo. Considering the way Astera is looking at me, it may not be safe to stay here much longer.

"I don't know-"

"We certainly can. Then we can talk about what we came for," Keo cuts in, nodding at me. I tense, unsure about this, but I trust him. He knows we are close to getting what we want, we will just have to submit to these Demon's wills for a bit.

"Right through here." Ziah leads us through, gesturing for us to sit down at the table.

The moment we take a seat, food magically appears on our plates, liquid filling our cups. I stare down at it, bewildered. It's soup, which seems perfectly edible, steaming temptingly.

I'm not going to touch it though. Not when they drink Angel-blood.

"So, Tove. You are Keo's mate?" Ziah leans back in his seat, watching me.

"I am."

He smirks, looking between Keo and I. "Interesting."

Keo is staring at the other Demon with a blank expression. I wish I could read his thoughts. From what I can tell, he's surveying the situation, trying to determine whether he can trust Ziah and Astera or not.

"Is Dax okay?"

The Noble sits in a chair at the very end of the room, stiff as a board, staring blankly ahead.

"It's important he remains under this spell," Astera exclaims, pausing to take a long drink from her glass. "We wouldn't want him returning to his Angel-blood's with knowledge of us, would we?"

"I'm no friend of the Noble's, trust me," I growl, although seeing Dax like this is disturbing. How long have the Demon's been controlling him?

Did they know about me before I ever knew about them?

"Dax has no information for us this evening, so he will donate some blood-"

"No...don't kill him," I blurt out.

Everyone goes silent, staring me down. My eyes widen as I realise what I said. I don't care what happens to Dax, but in a way I don't actually want him to die. Territory One needs Noble's, whether any of us like it or not.

"It's just a glass. Unless you would like to volunteer?" Astera drains her glass, waving it suggestively.

I look at Dax, at those dead eyes. How long have they been stripping him of his blood? He has unwillingly been feeding these two...

"Fine. Take some," I tell them.

Keo frowns, although he doesn't say anything.

Astera stands, walking over to slide into the seat next to me. Taking my hand into hers, she produces a knife from seemingly out of nowhere before slicing down my palm.

I yelp at the sting. She curls my fingers into my palm and places the glass underneath.

"Squeeze tight and hold it over this glass until it's full," she instructs, a wry smile on her face.

"Tell me, Tove, why are you so interested in helping Demon's?" Ziah questions once Astera has taken her seat again.

I look down at the glass, at my blood dripping down into it. Nausea rolls through me, but I push it back.

"Because it's the right thing to do," I say. "Why have you done nothing for them?"

Ziah's smile falters.

"What is to say we haven't?" Astera questions, the bitter ice in her tone cooling off my initial anger.

"Keo has been doing everything himself," I continue.

I want information. We can sit here and talk in circles for hours, trying to figure out who we can trust.

"We single-handedly control the Noble circle. In fact, we have our hand in almost every powerful family in every Territory. We are the reasons there are no Demon's in prison, why the only one's successfully hunting them now are individual groups," Ziah tells me.

He's sober from his humour, which I'm grateful for. I hate the façade.

"They are still dying. They need to get out of here," I exclaim.

Ziah folds his arms over his chest. "Keo has told me about this plan..."

"Will you help?"

Ziah doesn't say anything, looking to his sister. She reaches over and takes the glass from under my hand, which by now is half full of my blood.

I watch, disgusted as she takes a sip from it, wiping the excess of her lips.

"She is being genuine, surprisingly," she mutters, smiling at me as I stuff a napkin into my hand, trying to stop the bleeding.

"You can tell?"

"There is a lot we can tell just from a sip of blood," Ziah explains. "Does your mate mind if I taste you?"

There's a cold, quiet rage in Keo's eyes as he regards Ziah. He know he's being challenged, but what other choice does he have but to oblige? We need these Demon's, and they know it.

"Go ahead," he encourages.

Ziah smiles at me as Astera slides the glass across the table at me. He holds my gaze as he takes a long drink.

"You taste delicious," he purrs.

Repulsion shudders through me. He's an attractive man - uncannily so, even - but knowing he just consumed my blood is grossing me out.

"You're not who I thought you would be. Either of you," I muse, looking between the two.

A challenge flashes in Ziah's eyes. "Oh yeah?"

"Astera is...but you..." I drift off, unsure of how to articulate what I'm feeling. It is obvious Ziah is pretending to be this outgoing, overbearing person to unsettle us, or maybe it's to get us to lower our guard.

But still...I thought he would be a quiet, cold and calculated killer like Keo.

"Say it," Ziah presses.

"I'm not afraid of you. This is nothing terrifying about you." I realise as I'm saying it that I'm probably making a mistake, but I want him to take me seriously.

Keo catches my eye. "Tove. Don't."

Ziah's smile doesn't falter. "Shall I drain the blood from your neck?"

"You won't. You need me to transport Demon's through the Realm. You need me to save them," I remind him. It's why we are here, after all.

Darkness flickers in his eyes. "How do you know I can't do it?"

"Then do it," I challenge.

"Your gift is hardly of any significance," he mutters dismissively. "However, I will concede that despite Astera's friendship with Relm, we are very much banned from tracking through the Realms more than once every couple of decades. And due to the amount of power we hold, we are easily detectable."

I raise my brows. I wonder why that is.

Regardless, because of the number of Demon's that need transporting, both these Demon's wouldn't be able to get all of them on their own. They need me.

"Relm told me he would allow Demon's to move realms if one of you went to guard them," I tell the two.

Ziah gestures to his sister. "He means Astera."

I look at her, wondering what Relm see's in a friendship with her. Unless of course, there relationship is more than just a friendship.

"Why would I want to change Realm's?" she questions, examining her nails tiredly.

"To save your people." I quickly push down the flare of anger within me. This is just another test. Keo isn't saying anything, watching keenly to see if he needs to intervene.

"She will think about it. Won't you, sister?" Ziah says, giving his sister a hard look, although his smile never slips.

She rolls her eyes. "I suppose."

"Go home, Tove and Keo," Ziah says, waving his hand. "Before I tire of the smell of your Angel-blood."

Keo stands abruptly, nodding at me. We have overstayed our welcome enough.

They don't like me, evidently. Me being willing to help does not faze them...I am an Angel-blood, and I will always be guilty in their eyes.

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