Page 54 of Hell Sent

He watched the two of them sit together by the bonfire one evening. They talked for a while, and then the girl pulled a paper package from her pocket and presented it to the boy. The boy looked surprised, but pleased. He opened the package to reveal a strip of something small and colorful.

There was a burst of delight so powerful that it made Azreth squint. The boy stared at the object, practically glowing with happiness.

“I made it for you,” the girl said. She sounded almost apologetic, but Azreth sensed her pride. She took the strip—a dozen different colors of thread woven into an intricate pattern—and tied it around the boy’s wrist. It was only a bracelet, but they were both trying and failing to suppress grins.

When they left the bonfire circle later that evening, they walked away hand in hand.

Azreth glanced down at the bracelet on his own wrist.

* * *

The next morning,he looked around the camp until he found a set of woodworking tools to borrow, then took them to a wooded space away from the tents to begin working. He searched the woods until he found a suitable branch, then propped it against a stone as he shaved bits of it away.

He successfully hid the project from the rest of the camp until it was almost complete.

“What’s that?” asked someone behind him.

Azreth stiffened in surprise, but he recognized the voice. Jai’s brother, Madira, had managed to sneak up on him. According to Raiya, this was something night elves had a talent for, so he tried not to take it personally.

“It will be a bow,” Azreth said.

The night elf came around to his front, stepping into the dappled sunlight beneath the trees. He crossed his arms as he watched Azreth work. His green eyes were as bright as a demon’s. Raiya had told Azreth that some mortal scholars believed elves and demons had been made by the same gods, from the same mold. Azreth found the idea ridiculous.

“That’s way too small for you,” Madira scoffed.

Azreth didn’t reply.

“It’s for Raiya, isn’t it?”

He sighed a little. Mortals were too good at guessing things he didn’t want them to know. “Don’t tell her.”

“It’s a surprise?”

The word had negative connotations. It made it sound like something alarming and dangerous. But technically, it was true. He didn’t like to lie to her, even by omission, but he wanted to see the look on her face when he presented it to her. He hoped she would be pleased.

“How romantic,” Madira said dryly.

“Is it?” Azreth said without looking up.

“No. You’re just trying to make her like you.” When Azreth didn’t reply, he needled, “Do you think she’ll bed you if you give her this?”

Azreth was surprised that he hadn’t realized she was already bedding him. The question amused him. Madira amused him, generally. The boy pantomimed aggression all the time, but there was no real aggression in him.

“You should speak more,” Madira said.

“Why is that?”

“Because it’s strange when someone speaks to you and you don’t say anything back. If you really want to pass as a mortal, you should act like one.”

“Perhaps there is nothing important to say, or perhaps your question does not merit a response. Perhaps more mortals should be like me. Some of them talk a lot.”

Madira shot him a glare. He came closer, eyeing the decorative designs Azreth was carving into the bow’s limbs. “Why is everything so square? You should carve some flowers on it. Ardanian women like flowers.”

“Raiya is not Ardanian.”

“You know what I meant. Human women.”

Finally, Azreth paused. He wondered if the designs were ugly.

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