Page 123 of Demon's Bane

“Traveling the realms,” Soleil says, running a hand anxiously along the long black braid hanging forward over her shoulder. “Goddess help her.”

Her eyes go distant and her mouth pinches with worry, and I don’t know what to say. I don’t know if there’s anything else Icansay, but luckily I’m saved from trying to come up with a response by Allie reappearing in the doorway.

She smiles at Soleil and me, but there’s something tight and worried in her expression.

I don’t like that look. And I really,reallydon’t like the fact that she’s alone.

Soleil leaves with a murmured comment about going to find Vayla for something, and as soon as the door closes behind her, I swallow hard and make myself ask.

“Is Rhett coming?”

Allie shakes her head slowly. “No. He’s… he’s not here, Jo.”

A weight settles into the bottom of my stomach. All of that worry and foreboding gather into a singular, terrible question.

He’s gone?

Just like that? I mean, sure, I’ve been out for the last couple of days, but if the tables were turned, I wouldn’t have left. Not for anything.

“Where is he?” I ask.

“He returned to his village. I’m sure he’s just there to—”

“It’s fine,” I say, swallowing against the wave of sick disappointment in my chest. “I know he’s needed there with everything that’s going on.”

Allie shakes her head, frowning, before she crosses the room and sinks into the chair beside the bed. “He was here. The whole time you were out, he was here.”

Some part of me already knew that, but the confirmation of it hardly makes me feel any better at all.

“Then why’s he gone now?” The words come out sharper than I intended, and Allie’s frown deepens.

“From what I could learn, he went with Eren, who apparently left without thinking to give me a heads-up. I’ve been busy with council stuff all morning and planning for my visit with Esme, and everything’s been chaos these past couple days, so I didn’t—”

“It’s fine,” I say again, suddenly ready to be done with this conversation.

To be done with this whole freaking realm.

The need to be back in Beech Bay, back in my own shop and my own home, to be somewhere familiar and safe where I can lick my wounds, hits me like a punch to the gut.

It’s not entirely rational, and if I were feeling anywhere near stable right now, I might be able to reason through this better. To wait for Rhett to come back or to go after him to his village. To figure out what the hell happened to make him leave me here.

But I’m so tired.

Between scheming witches and cave-ins and murderous exes, I’m so damn tired and ready to be done.

“I think I want to go home,” I say quietly, and Allie sits up straighter in her seat.

“Now? You’re barely recovered. We’ll send someone to get Rhett so you two can talk this out, we’ll—”

“Allie. I’m ready to go home.”

She falls silent, studying my expression, and whatever she finds there has her nodding, albeit slowly and reluctantly.

“Sure, if that’s what you want… we can make that happen.”

Things happen quickly after that.

Vayla and Soleil both step back into the room to give me a healer-approved bill of health, tonics and salves to bring home with me, and some stern warnings about taking it easy. I pull ona set of demon clothes Allie brings for me, and it reminds me where the ones I came to this realm are right now.

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