Page 107 of A Soul to Embrace

Zylah pointed at everything that grasped her attention, which incidentally had her forearm shooting over the tops of heads. Many ducked, and a few wandered away from the potential of being smacked in the face with an irritated grumble or grunt.

He smiled at that. Even if she upset a few, Jabez was certain he’d be able to deescalate any situation should it come to that.

Perhaps because her feet moved so fast, it took a while for her to finally let out a yelp and stumble backwards. She hopped on one foot before tentatively placing it back on the ground.

She shuffled them to the side of the street. “Someone stepped on me.”

The laughter that burst out of him was great and loud. “Zylah, I’m not sure if you noticed, but you’ve been stepping on everyone we’ve passed.”

Multiple people had staggered because of her, and they hadn’t even been on the street for five minutes.

“Sorry,” she said to some random passer-by, who frowned and shook their head in confusion at receiving an apology.

He covered his face when the urge to laugh struck him again.Fuck me. What am I supposed to do with this female?He’d never seen her appear so bubbly, and he found it rather adorable.

She chittered nervously, and he lowered his hand to find her shoulders had turned inwards self-consciously at his snicker. He thought he’d hidden it well.

“It’s fine. They’ll get over it. A moment forgotten in the many others they’ll have.” When that didn’t seem to appease her, hecocked a brow as he tried to hide his humour. “How about I lead?”

He should have been doing that in the first place.

He waited for a nice pocket of space to open up before he took them back into the crowd. This time, they were able to walk side by side with ease, and he made sure they remained at the same pace as everyone else.

“They really can’t see us,” she stated with awe.

He placed his forefinger over his lips. “Not too loud with comments like that.” His gaze drifted over those around them, and thankfully no one had noticed. “It’s also best that you refrain from saying my name.”

He really didn’t need someone realising who he was.

“Okay. I’ll do better with that than last time.”

He nodded to show his approval before he deviated off the main path to one that was a little less crowded.

I don’t want to take her to the centre of the town.

They had no reason to go to the meat market, and he wanted to avoid looking upon the ridiculous statue they’d made of him. He really hated that thing, and how Demons sometimes knelt and prayed to it like he was some kind of deity or saviour. He was neither, obviously.

But people of all species needed a faith to cling to, and he’d allowed the Demons to hold onto his promises. It kept them compliant.

They emerged onto one of the widest pathways designated for popular food stalls. Demons were already lining up for certain carts, all of which contained some kind of meat. Each store specialised in a different way to cook or serve it.

Whatever scent cloak they were using to mask the food was efficient, ensuring all those nearby who couldn’t control their bloodthirst weren’t impacted. Unlike his cloaking spell that allowed the waft of herbs, spices, and oils to float through theair while hiding the smell of meat, he noticed theirs cloaked everything.

It was a sad realisation, as it took away an important aspect of walking through a food market, but it was something that couldn’t be changed without his interference. Surely in the future they would eventually figure out how to mimic what he’d been able to do, but for now, this was sufficient to allow for harmony within Spiral Haven.

He slowed their pace to more of a meander to allow Zylah freedom to take it all in. Despite certain meats not being to his liking, he allowed her to be curious. She could likely read the signs crudely written on wooden plaques, although some were faded and needed repainting.

Some offered small spiced chicken pancakes, while others sold steamed baked potatoes sprinkled with pork. One of the most popular stalls was that of a folded omelette mixed with flecks of human meat, and another of fried fish on a stick.

What Jabez sought was simple, and his mouth watered the moment he found it. The stall was busy, as it always was due to its tasty contents.

They waited in line, and when it was their turn, he didn’t hold back.

“Three beef skewers and one chicken,” he told the male Demon attendant behind the counter working a coal grill.

Ansel, who bore a slashing claw scar across his entire tanned face, nodded, held his palm outwards, and flapped his fingers. A person of few words, he was asking what Jabez’s offer of trade was.

He placed a single piece of square human coin, pressed with a corn cob design to show which town it came from, into the man’s hand. Ansel picked it up and inspected it before curling his scarred lips back with disdain.

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