Page 98 of Demon's Bane

“Is he? Rhett doesn’t talk about his father much.”

Alva’s smile goes a little bittersweet around the edges. “No, I don’t suppose he would.”

We both look to where the group of miners have stopped at the edge of the square. There’s another station set up where members of the council are keeping tabs on all the comings and goings and progress made with the cleanup. As we watch, Rhett steps forward and speaks to one of the councilors, expression serious and stoic as he gives his report.

“It hasn’t been easy on him,” Alva murmurs. “Being back here this past year.”

My throat tightens, and I nod, not knowing what to say to that.

“But I still hope he’ll get some sense into that stubborn head of his that this isn’t the only life for him.” She glances meaningfully at me while she speaks. “Whatever he thinks he owes us for the years he spent away.”

I’m dying to ask her more about it. Maybe there’s something that might help me understand Rhett better—how to talk to him about his past, how to support him—but I don’t get the chance.

“You’ve put my mate to work?”

We both look over to see Rhett approaching. There’s a thread of humor in his voice, but also a pinch of worry in the tight lines of his forehead as he glances back and forth between us.

Alva shrugs. “She volunteered.”

“I did,” I chime in, planting my hands on my hips. “So don’t think you need to—”

Before I can finish that thought, Rhett strides forward, ignoring his mother’s huff of protest as he circles around the back of the table where we’re serving and slings an arm around my waist. Drawing me to him, he smothers the rest of my words with a hard kiss, eliciting a few laughs and wolf-whistles from the gathered crowd of miners.

“Alright, alright,” Alva says, angling her body in front of us and spreading her wings to give us some privacy. “Nothing to see here. Get your food and get on your way.”

As grateful as I am for her interference, I can't find it in me to care all that much we have an audience. No, as soon as I’ve got my hands and my lips on him, the rest of it melts away.

Sinking into the kiss, waves of tension I wasn’t aware I’d been carrying release themselves from my shoulders, my neck, my whole body.

And fear, I realize as the kiss deepens and Rhett’s rumble of pleasure breaks against my lips.

I was afraid for him today.

I’mstillafraid, knowing he has to go back down into that darkness soon enough for his next shift.

“You’re alright?” I ask, low and breathless, pulling back a couple of inches. “You’re… safe? Working in the mine? Is there any risk of more cave-ins or—”

“The tunnels are sound. The masons have evaluated the damage, and we’re in no danger down there.”

He sounds certain, and I want to believe him, but the pit won’t leave my stomach. Not even when he draws his wings forward and cradles a hand around the back of my head to hold me to his chest. Not even when I hear the steady beat of his heart—proof enough he’s alive and well.

Anxiety spikes in me again, but it’s punctuated by a deep growl in his stomach, loud enough to have us both laughing softly.

“Go,” I say, nodding back to where the miners have taken their seats at the long tables laid out in the square. “Sit for a while and eat. You need it.”

With a nod that’s equal parts gratefulness and lingering guilt, Rhett takes his meal and walks over to sit with the other demons. As he does, he gets a good natured clap on the shoulderfrom the male next to him, and a few more knowing glances dart my way.

A furious blush climbing my cheeks, I duck my head and get back to work helping Alva.

Our first two days back in the village go pretty much like that. Rhett, working long hours down in the mines and me, helping wherever I can and trying not to draw any attention to myself.

Besides assisting Alva with the food, I go searching a couple of times with Allie and Eren’s soldiers—Rhett always nearby with a ready wing around my shoulders—to see if I could pick up on any sign of David’s or other human magick.

There’s been nothing. Not a single trace.

And with the soldiers here, with Allie ready to take on Esme, and with no sign that the other demons in Rhett’s village are ready to trust and accept me, it’s getting harder and harder to ignore the truth.

It might be time for me to go home.

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