Page 8 of Deranged Demons

I pause only for a heartbeat, and then another blade is in my hand. I twist, letting it fly toward Dante where it pierces into his chest, just beneath his heart. He grunts, but the playful smile gracing his lips doesn’t shift.

“I’ll be the only female there,” I remind him, not sure why he’d bother attending when it’s clear we’d be terrible for one another, and Lady Fate wouldn’t possibly match us.

He only continues to stare at me, those dark eyes fixed on my face. “I’m counting on it.”

I scowl and don’t say another word as I leave the room.

Chapter

Four

~ Princess Blake ~

The next night, I sit straighter on my throne ignoring the bite of the cool black marble beneath me as the string quartet to my right plays a haunting melody. I’ve opted to wear a black corset dress paired with skintight black pants, and a curved dagger is strapped to my thigh, mostly because I felt too naked without my weapons. I tap my blood red nails against my wine glass as the guards follow the king’s command and open the doors of the grand ballroom. There’s some kind of commotion that I can’t see, but then a horde of demons, shifters, archangels, and other monsters stream in, all dressed in finely tailored suits and embroidered tunics depending on what realm they’re from. Hundreds have turned up,and my chest tightens as the cavernous room fills quickly.

“Is the king expecting you to dance with all of them?”Shade asks, sounding more excited than horrified. She’s perched on my shoulder, and she swaps legs tucking the other one into her feathers to keep warm against the chill in the room.“You know, I’m not bonded either, and I’ll happily volunteer as tribute if you need a hand. If they turn out to be my mates, then you’ll know they can’t be yours.”

I force myself not to grin.“I’d swap with you if I could. Though…”I pause thoughtfully,“do crows even have mates?”

“Sure we do,”she chirrups.“But it’s usually only one mate, and we don’t actually bond or do anything fancy like that.”

“And I’m guessing your mates also aren’t usually a demon or some other monster?”I add.

“That, too, but hey, I’m willing to give anything a shot. I’m here with you, aren’t I?”

This time I can’t hold in my smile.“And thank Lady Fate for that. I can’t imagine having to go through this alone.”

She ruffles her feathers and swaps legs again.“Anytime, girl.”

A resounding thud echoes as the guards close the massive ballroom doors, and I pay attention to the alphas. The majority of them remain in segregated groups, sticking to those of their own kind. Palaceservants weave between the guests, offering drinks from their silver trays laden with glasses.

The alphas from Rostof, realm of the giants, are the easiest to identify. The largest in the room, the giants all reach at least seven and a half feet high. Black tribal tattoos cover their thick muscled bodies, and many of them have braided beards decorated with beads. Their long hair is kept neatly away from their rugged faces, and most of them are wearing some combination of leather clothing. It's been a long time since I've seen a giant in the flesh. Like the beast shifters, they’re able to change their forms at will, except instead of changing into massive animals and other creatures, giants can increase their size three-fold. If one of them were to take on their giant form in here, it wouldn’t end well, but the king would take care of them before that happened. And so would I, for that matter.

More than one of the giants is glaring at me, and I hope Dad knows what he’s doing by bringing them here. The last thing we need is an incident with the giants when our relationship with the royals of Rostof is already fragile.

“Well, they look like a friendly bunch,”Shade comments, clearly noticing them as well. “You still think the king’s hoping you’ll bond to one of them?”

“All of the Rostof princes are already bonded, but if I’m mated to a giant who’s a well-respected member of the royal court, it would be an easy way to build trust between our realms,”I reply.“I don’t mind who my mates turn out to be,as long as I can unlock my power and stop the demons in Seral from destroying themselves.”At that, I tilt my head, staring at one of the giants who is talking animatedly to a male beside him. I can’t help but wonder what the sex would be like with such a large male. I mean, would it…fit? An image of the demon I bedded, the one who ended up dying pops into my head, but I try to push it away. That wouldn’t happen to my mates…would it? It was a problem I’d have to figure out another night.

“Whoa, maybe stay away from that one,”Shade says, distracting me.“That guy with the cloak looks like bad news.”

I swing my gaze to where a cloaked male is standing among the giants. I can only make out his vivid gray eyes, straight nose, and square jawline that’s covered with stubble. His hate-filled glare makes my skin prickle with awareness, and I resist the urge to reach for my dagger. The giants move around as they chat to one another, and the alpha disappears into the crowd.“Great. I knew Dad made a mistake by inviting the giants.”

Keeping my chin high, I try to forget about my new hate club, and turn my attention to the group from Norso. Their realm is made of ninety-percent water with huge sea creatures that roam the seas, moving in territorial pods. The alphas from Norso are distinct with thick strands of green and blue hair that reminds me of seaweed, and angular features that are accentuated by the shadows in the ballroom. I’ve heard their kind also has webbed toes, which helpsthem glide through the water when they’re swimming with the sea creatures, and it makes me wonder how different the rest of their bodies are.

Truthfully, it’s not something I ever thought I’d have to contemplate. I always assumed my mates would be demons, or that I wouldn’t have any at all. Suddenly it all seems so…complicated.

I turn my gaze to the shifters from the beast realm, Kanzepes, next. They appear to be just as hostile toward me as the giants. I wonder if it’s because their ruler, Queen Nareen, had once propositioned King Dalton. From what I’ve heard, she didn’t take it well when she found out they weren’t fated mates as she’d believed. The relationship between our kingdoms has been tense ever since.

All of the beast alphas are in their non-shifted forms, dressed in earthy-colored tunics, but half of them are looking at me like I’m their dinner, while the other half are staring at me like I’m some kind of prize.Well, this is going to be fun.

Between the different groups, demons strut across the ballroom floor, their pristine suits gleaming in the dim light. The demon alphas act like they own the space, and from their arrogant expressions it’s obvious that more than one of them thinks they’re going to be my fated.I guess mentioning that the king will be retiring soon really did work wonders on their attitudes.Dante is among them, his hair sleeked back, and a pristine black suit fitted to his athletic body. Undoubtedly, if this were a different party, she-demons would befalling all over him. He grins and winks at me, and I avert my gaze, not wanting to encourage him. The last thing I need is him making a spectacle in here. It’s incredible the mischief a demon can get into when they have the power of invisibility.

“Who is that?”Shade practically squawks in my mind, distracting me, and I turn my attention to where she’s staring.

Standing in the middle of a group of archangels, is a devastatingly handsome male with thick golden locks, a sculpted symmetrical face, and a heart-stopping smile that has my breath catching in my throat. Even his lips appear to be brushed with gold. His golden armor shines under the lights coming from the great chandelier suspended high above him, intricate swirls and whirls cut into the metal covering his chest and shoulders, and large feathered golden wings are folded behind him.Merciful Lady Fate.

“That would be archangel Prince Callan from Toralyn,”I answer, still staring at the male who has a golden crown nestled in his hair. Most of the princes from the other realms are already bonded, and truthfully, I’m surprised the prince attended.

---