Page 34 of Christa's Obsession

Christa wished she wasn’t when her own nagged like a toddler denied sweets.

In the demon realm, Christa had no sense of their connection, and she could not deny it made her antsy in ways she’d never truly experienced before. It didn’t matter that she’d asked Dakata to keep an eye out for anything untoward. Or that she’dencouraged the trees to distract Wanda. Even that she’d sensed Dougal approaching Wanda’s trees before she’d translocated to the demon realm. None of it mattered when she was here, and Wanda wasalone.

Will you stop it?Christa snapped back at her demon.

I can’t help it.

“The king is ready to see you.”

Thank the demon gods!

Christa rose, not rolling her eyes at her dramatic other half, and walked on slightly unsteady legs towards the open door.

Show no weakness,her demon demanded.

Then you face him!

They’d argued over which side of them should speak and in the end, they had both decided if they wanted to play to Asmodeus’s human side, then she needed to be in that form for this meeting.

Christa walked through the open door and met the gaze of the huge demon, whose nose wrinkled the moment the door closed behind her.

“You smell of m—the forest.” He scowled and rose, coming closer, his eyes narrowing as Christa remained where she was, unsure if meeting him halfway was advisable.

He came to a stop, looking down his regal nose at her. “Why did you seek this meeting? Your brother isn’t causing an issue in the forest, is he?” he growled menacingly.

Oh boy, thanks Dakata!

Chapter Seventeen

Wanda

Wanda wanted to be brave for Christa, she did. The first couple of minutes after Christa left, she listened to her trees, accepted the gentle encouragement to breathe.

Someone needed to talk to her lungs. They weren’t behaving. The tight band that was currently crushing her chest made sucking in air impossible.

She will be fine, beloved. Breathe for us.

Leaves stroked up and down her bare arms and a sob escaped when it did no more than make the anxiety increase. Anxiety, the kind she had never experienced before—and after everything she had gone through in the demon realm, that was saying something—made her insides feel like they were being stretched, then hit repeatedly with something sharp. Her body vibrated with pain, hitting every nerve cell inside her.

Please, beloved, you need to focus on us.

The request made everything worse when Wanda felt she was betraying her trees because she couldn’t obey. She wanted to. Wanted to do what Christa had insisted she should do and let her trees distract her. But she could no longer sense Christa. Their connection was… severed.

Another sob escaped as she clutched at branches, gasping for air. Her tears blinded her as they fell unheeded. They made her feel even more defenseless, so she curled into a ball, hiding from herself and from her own lack. Sobbing harder, her chestburned, her face buried in her knees, doing everything to keep hold of the distress and prevent her trees from suffering.

Her limbs grew heavy, and the world shrank, closing her into misery. The cradle of her trees as they swayed and rocked her made no difference to the feelings crushing her.

Images floated unbidden to the surface of her mind of what the demons had done to her. Panting, she squeezed her eyes tightly together.

Beloved, please breathe in our scent.

Wanda heard the words floating through her mind, but she wasn’t able to grasp them, focus on them.

What if the demons choose to harm Christa? How would she know? She was useless, crippled by her own thoughts that she wouldn’t be able to get Christa the help she needed.

“Lass, what is it?” Dougal’s voice came through the branches like he was miles away, in a tunnel of trees. “I feel your distress. What has happened? How can I help?”

Wanda couldn’t answer, couldn’t concentrate on what he was saying. Leaves caressed her and with them came the scent of Christa. Wanda, greedy for more, released a body shaking breath and worked to suck in a breath to smell Christa. Her hands balled into her chest, willing it to work.

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