Page 35 of The Demon King's Destiny

She nodded.

“Dreamwalking is more real than most know, Evelyn.”

“Yes, I’ve learned that. My father doesn’t definitively know what happened to the previous king. I was always too afraid to tell him what happened here. Besides, I knew Brennen was not a good male. The first time he broke through I tested his magic. It was twisted. I’d never felt anything like it. So when news arrived he’d passed away, I figured it was best to keep my mouth shut. Father tends to worry and my instincts told me to keep quiet.”

“I understand. For what it’s worth, Brennen deserved far worse than he got. He was a scourge on this world.”

“I can see how he could be.” She motioned towards the barrier. “He tried to reach into my mind so I added the extra protection.”

“Are you saying you were strong enough to keep a rogue out of your head? Even in the dreamworld this would be almost impossible,” his tone held a hint of his skepticism.

“He was rogue?”

“He was. It’s why he felt wrong to you. Evelyn, you were six years old. There’s no way that should have been possible.”

She shrugged, looking down at her feet. “Possible or not, he didn’t get past my shields. The one in my head or the one I constructed around the clearing.”

He caught her chin with his knuckle and nudged it upward, forcing her to look at him. “I’m not saying I don’t believe you. I’m saying it’s implausible. Incredible, really. Few demons were ever strong enough to resist him. Once he’d crossed boundaries no one should ever cross, he grew in power—and let’s just say he crossed an awful lot of boundaries. You were lucky he wasn’t here long.”

“Not here long? He came every night for a week, taunted me for hours on end. I ignored him as best I could. I knew he had tremendous magics and I was terrified he’d get to me eventually. The night before you arrived I prayed to the Goddess to either send him away or give me the power to make him disappear forever.”

“I’d say She heard your prayer, little mate. She gave you the ability to pull me here. Either that, or She intervened. It’s irrelevant, however.”

He cupped her face with both hands. “I came to you and now there’s no going back. You’re my mate. The saatus bond has begun.”

Evelyn’s eyes filled and she blinked to keep the tears at bay. “But you don’t wantto bond with me. Not really.”

She thought back to his internal dialogue.Yes, then we’ll have our mate,the demon spirit had rejoiced.No, Marrok insisted.We’ll never take the witch.

He’d called her a witch and Evelyn questioned his ability to accept what she was.Calling an elementala witch was the height of insult. It implied sorcery that manipulated nature against its will, when elementals had a cohesive relationship with their elements.

“Of course I want it,”he countered.“I explained why I did not come for you. Your safety is my principal concern. Where is this coming from?”

“I dreamt it.”

“You dreamt of my fight with Brennen and took it to mean I didn’t want you?”

“No. In the dream, I—I was you. Well, I was inside you, living out your actions. I could hear your thoughts, felt traces of your feelings. I even heard you argue with your inner demon.”

Marrok crossed his arms, disconcerted and a little perplexed. Perhaps his powers were meshing with hers and she was able to read his mind. It wasn’t uncommon with demons.

What was uncommon was dreaming someone else’s dream, from their point of view. Though, nothing about their pairing was what he would consider normal. He worried what exchanges she’d overheard.

“What did you hear me say?”

“That you’d never take thewitch. It wasn’t just the words or the insult. I could feel your contempt. You were irate over it.”

He reached for her hands, pleased she didn’t stop him. “I apologize if the term I used insulted you. Factions outside of Gwydion do not see it as an insult. It’s only a word. I’ll not use it again if it bothers you so.”

Marrok brushed a strand of hair away from her face. “As for my ire, you are right. I was furious. Furious with Brennen for daring to come near you. Furious he’d been able to figure out who you were and try to exploit that knowledge. Furious with Fate for bringing us together in that moment. I was also furious with myself there wasn’t a damned thing I could do about claiming you. I was living in a cave with my soldiers, trying to figure out how to get to Brennen, how to stop the madness from spreading across Imperium. It was no place for you. Besides, you were a child.”

“So you weren’t upset your mate was an elemental?” Some of Evelyn’s hurt diminished.

“No. Admittedly, I wondered how the Sundari would react, but I never considered it to be the reason to leave you in Gwydion.”

“You could have spoken to my father. Arranged something for us for when I was older.”

Marrok stepped forward, crowding her. He’d already addressed this concern once and he didn’t like repeating himself. “I would never have arranged a betrothal without knowing beyond the shadow of a doubt the rogue infestation had been ended and you would be safe. As I’ve told you before, that is the reason we were not together once you were of age.”

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