Page 1 of Demanding Discord
1
CINDER
Heat engulfed me like an electric blanket. I lay on my side, the warmth taming the excruciating ache in my muscles, and I snuggled into it, squeezing my eyes shut tightly and hoping to Hecate it was all just a wicked bad dream.
If it wasn’t…well, that meant I had just killed two people, and that was so very not like me.
Sure, I battled the beasties that crossed into our realm whenever the occasion occurred, but they were just that…beasties. Tiny fae with razor teeth, who were as annoying as mosquitoes. Vampire ghouls with nothing but blood on their minds. Gnomes, ogres, and the occasional lower-level demon slipped through, but they didn’t possess the brain power to hold a conversation and none of them presented a fully human form.
Killing the rhino motel clerk hadn’t fazed me much. He was more intelligent than anything that had crossed to my side of the veil, but he was still a vile, disgusting beast who’d planned to kill and eat me. I’d acted in self-defense. I didn’t need to feel bad about that.
What I’d done to Bedlam and Seraphine was also self-defense. So…why did I feel so rotten about it?
My shoulder ached from lying on it, so I adjusted my position. Something long and hard pressed into my butt cheek, and I popped my eyes open. I lay in complete darkness, and—aside from the sound of Discord breathing—utter silence.
Wait. If that was my demon wrapping me in warmth, that meant the hard thing pressed against my butt was his…
“Discord!” I shot to sitting and turned toward him. “Seriously?”
He didn’t respond, so I lit a fireball, illuminating his form. He lay on his side, his eyes closed, and that rod I’d felt on my ass…?
It was the hilt of the dagger strapped to his thigh. Whew.
Although, after the kiss we’d shared by the river, I didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed that his soldier wasn’t saluting my presence.
Relieved, Cin. Definitely relieved. Sheesh.
I let out a breath and rose, taking in my surroundings. Red crystals in the rocky walls reflected my firelight, and an orange glow from the moon outside peeked around the massive boulder blocking the exit to the… Were we inside a cave? My backpack lay on the ground—apparently, I’d been using it as a pillow—and as I picked it up, Discord finally stirred.
He sucked in a sharp breath and pushed himself to sitting. “Cinder?”
“I’m here, though I’m not sure where here is.” I sat next to him, still holding on to a flame. “What happened?”
“Your sisters summoned me after our battle. Are you okay?” He gently touched my chin, turning my head from side to side.
So it wasn’t all a dream. Damn.
“I’m fine.” I took two candles from my bag and lit them. “Where are we?”
“We’re in a cave two miles from where we left Seraphine.” He scrubbed his hands down his face. “You passed out the moment you dragged me away from the summoning.”
Surprise lifted my brows. “You carried me two miles?”
He tilted his head, stretching his neck. “I had to. Seraphine had begun to stir.”
“She’s not dead?” A brick dropped from my chest to my stomach, and my mouth hung open.
“Sadly, no. Do you have any food in your bag? My body requires sustenance.”
“Yeah. Let me see.” I rummaged through the contents, finding two bars that resembled granola. I handed him one and unwrapped the other before shoving half of it into my mouth. It tasted smoky and slightly bitter, not at all what I was expecting, but not too terrible. I chewed, some kind of nut crunching between my teeth as I pondered our predicament.
Seraphine was alive. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that. On one hand, it brought my body count down by one, which was a good thing. On the other, that meant she’d be extra pissed and would no doubt come after us as soon as she was able.
I think I preferred the higher body count.
“How close are we to Hecate’s temple?” I took another bite and washed it down with stinky water, wrinkling my nose as I swallowed. I would never complain about the taste of Salem tap water again.
“A few miles out.” Discord’s expression darkened, his eyes tightening. “I have an unsettling feeling about it, though.”
