Page 7 of Taken to the Deadlands

I gave her a forced smile.

“I, too, am bound by the rules, Eros,” I replied. “No matter how long we’ve known each other.”

Oros turned around and motioned for the human worker to get them chairs. The man seemed to be young, maybe in his twenties, and while he looked well fed, the terror of witnessing this auction had left his cheeks hollow and eyes dead.

I sat down with them when their seats were brought over.

“Answer the question,” Oros demanded as soon as she sat down.

I took a deep breath.Answer what you need to. Give nothing else.

“I heard there was a spirit seer here,” I admitted.

Oros let out a laugh that was so loud, it caused others to turn and stare at us. I cursed her for her lack of tact.

“And what wouldyouneed with a spirit seer, hm?”

“To eat them, of course,” I quipped. “Maybe steal their power if I am able to.”

It was mostly a lie. Demons could rarely steal a human’s powers after devouring them. It was nothing more than a myth because no demon would ever actually admit to having stolen the powers for fear that they too would be eaten.

“Didn’t you stop eating humans?” Eros asked. My eyes narrowed on the darkened stage. I didn’t want to meet her calculating stare. She would see right through me.

“What about you?” I asked, deflecting.

Eros let out a hum.

“There is a human lie detector here,” she said. “You and I both know how well that would do in court.”

I nodded. Demons were notorious liars, but the royal family even more so. They were cunning, ruthless, and I did not envy Eros and Oros’s life.

“Maybe we can have a bit of fun with them as well,” Oros whispered, her excitement obvious in her tone. “According to Beau, their nectar tastes just as sweet as their blood.”

My hair stood on end, and an unrecognizable heat flared in my belly. How many years had it been since I had a chance to taste a human that way?

Memories of her body against mine. Of her sounds as she came. All of it hit me so hard, it felt as if I’d seen her yesterday as opposed to a millennium ago.

“Aris.”

Fuck. Can I just be left alone?

“Yien,” I greeted, looking off to the side. I might have banished myself to the shadows, but Yien was born from them. She could have been standing in the corner the entire time, and the darkness would have hidden her presence. I wouldn’t have put it past her. She stepped forward, the shadows melting away as soon as she stepped into the dim light.

Her inky hair fell to her waist in straight, silky strands. Her light purple horns jutted out from her head and curled backwards. Looking closely, I noticed the dark jewels embedded in them. Her all-black eyes narrowed on me, the ghost of her white pupil the only thing that let me know I was her target.

Unlike the others here, myself included, Yien didn’t dress up for the occasion. Instead, she wore a loose robe that tied around her waist and pants that hid most of her frame. They, too, were all black. I didn’t have to look down at her feet to know that she wasn’t wearing shoes.

She never did.

“I need your help.”

I bristled at her comment.

Help?Since when am I the one to ask for help?

“You want one?” I asked.

She gave me a stiff nod. It wasn’t hard to read her. She might have been just as old as me, but sometimes she acted more like a child than the terrifying demon she was supposed to be.

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