Page 20 of To Crave Madly
I bristled at the derogatory term. It was offensive, like a verbal slap in the face but I knew she was doing it deliberately to try and get a rise out of me and I refused to let her win. “Bend you to my will.”
Her breath fanned my cheek as she laughed softly. Her tongue darted out between her lips as if my words had whetted her appetite. I knew full well what a Sin Reaper was capable of. Lori may look like a dainty little thing, but this demon was all monster, and I wasn’t about to test her skills here. I needed to move this conversation elsewhere; somewhere out in the open where we would cause less destruction.
“I’d like to see you try,” she crooned.
My hand darted out and clasped her neck without me even thinking about it. The vampire and the doctor exclaimed and rushed towards me, but I knew how to handle this troublesome creature. My mouth found the soft shell of her ear as I put a little pressure on that fragile column of her neck.
“Okay, little demon. You want to play? Then let’s play.”
I pulled forth my shadows and encased us in them before the others could reach us. Her little gasp of surprise was almost inaudible, but I smiled at the sound. It meant that I had managed to aggravate her a little. I just hoped her claws were out when we landed because this little brat needed knocking down a peg or two.
We materialised in one of the outdoor training grounds. It was set up like a mini arena, a large open space with a couple of rows of tiered seating around the edges. I suppose the purpose of this place was for tournaments to show off physical prowess, but it would serve my purpose well enough now.
As expected, the moment my shadows disappeared, the little Hell Cat came at me with claws unleashed and fury blazing in her eyes. I sidestepped her attack easily and batted her hands away from my face. She charged again, but I spun on my heel and lashed out my shadow whip to trip her. She fell to the ground cursing.
“Tut tut, little demon. Rule number one: never fight angry. You’ll make mistakes.”
She leapt to her feet and fell into a fighting stance. I could tell she was well trained, but she was pissed. She wasn’t fighting with a clear head and I intended to use that to my full advantage. Over and over again, she charged at me, and each time I found a way to avoid her attack and bring her to her knees. I wasn’t really trying; if I were, there’d be nothing left of her. I was merely trying to wear her out, hoping it would make her more compliant.
She tried various styles of attack, but each time I wormed my way out of her hold easily. I was much bigger than her and she was too focused on hurting me rather than subduing me. Add to that my many centuries of honing my lethal skill set and she had no chance of beating me. But I was getting bored now.
Playtime was over.
She charged again, but this time I didn’t hold back. I met her head on, flipping her before wrapping her in a full spinal lock. She bucked against my hold. Well, tried to. She wasn’t getting out of this one without breaking her back.
“Yield,” I called.
“Never,” she spat.
I tightened my grip and she grunted in frustration.
“Yield, demon. Tell me your name and I will let you go.”
Still, she said nothing. I pushed my hips further into her back, arching her into an unnatural shape. She screamed. I didn’t want to hurt her, but she needed to know her place. I wanted Lori back and if I had to play dirty in order to do that then I would just have to play dirty.
“Iveri! My name is Iveri!”
Finally.
I unlocked my limbs from around her tiny frame and she scrambled off me. I brushed the dirt off my coat as I stood before her.
“Hello, Iveri. I am Torsten.” I offered her my hand to help pull her up off the ground. I was surprised when she took it. I had expected her to just bat it away in defiance.
She grumbled her thanks which made me chuckle. I had definitely succeeded in curbing her attitude. She knew she couldn’t mess with me now and that was exactly as it should be. Demons lived in a hierarchy governed by sheer power and dominance. If I could prove my dominance over her, she would have to submit. Likewise, if there was ever a day she could beat me, then I would kneel for her. Right now, I had the upper hand and I fully intended to use it.
“You need to unite with Lori.”
She folded her arms and scowled at me. “Why?”
“Because without the union, you won’t be able to access your full potential. You will only ever be half of what you can be. You need her as she needs you.”
Iveri looked at the floor like it was the most fascinating thing she had seen and, for a moment, I felt sorry for her. She had been caged for so long and unable to taste real freedom, but it wasn’t Lori’s fault.
I stepped towards her and placed my hands on her shoulders in what I hoped was a comforting gesture. I didn’t do comfort, and this was all a bit alien to me. I was definitely more comfortable chasing enemies down and killing them than offering solace to a little demon. Her eyes sought mine and the fire that had blazed with her fury now simmered back to their lightly glowing embers.
“Iveri, why don’t you just talk to Lori? Maybe you can find some common ground?”
“Common ground? Urgh, she’s so needy and just complains all the time. We havenothingin common.” She folded her arms across her chest petulantly and I smiled. I hadn’t known either of them for very long, but even I could see the brattish similarities.
