Page 10 of The Guardian (Dark-Hunter 20)
"That you're a bastard."
He didn't smile, but she could tell that insult bitterly amused him. "Aren't we all?"
"No." She lowered her voice into an adamant tone. "No, we're not. Not by a longshot."
He curled his lips into a sinister sneer that had probably given countless people nightmares or strokes. "Then you're a fool. Solin has already left you. He didn't even look back for you when I freed him."
Yeah, right. She knew better. "You're lying to me."
He held his hands up to form a mist. There in the middle of it, she saw the room Solin had been in. A room that was now completely empty. "You see? He's gone and yet you remain, even though he knows I'll most likely torture and kill you for being here."
The demon was lying about her ... She refused to finish that thought in case he was in her head. Solin would never do such a thing. She knew that for a fact. "Then he had a good reason for leaving me."
"Yes, he traded your freedom for his."
She shook her head in denial. "I don't believe you. Not a single word and not for a single nanosecond." And she didn't, even though her animal instincts said he was telling her the truth. She had faith in Solin.
She would always have faith in him.
Seth was amazed by her steadfastness to someone he was sure didn't deserve it. The only thing he held that much belief in was the willingness of others to hurt or sacrifice him for their own whims, personal gains, and pleasures.
How could anyone her age be so stupid and blind?
Suddenly, he heard Noir calling for him. But for her presence, he'd wince. He knew what his overlord wanted and he knew how the bastard would react when he disappointed him with his report.
Again.
This was going to leave a mark ...
But he had no choice. To make Noir wait would only worsen his punishment.
Sighing in resignation, he manifested food for the woman on top of his desk. There was no point in making her starve when he didn't know how long he'd be gone this time.
His gut tightened into a knot that choked him. Not from fear, but dread.
"I'll return."
Lydia started to ask where he was going, but he left too quickly.
Grateful for his absence, she tried again to find some way out of here. There were no windows. No closet. Just this one room and nothing else. How weird ...
"What do I do when I have to go to the bathroom?"
Not that she had to right now, but ...
A loud swoosh behind her made her jump sideways. She turned around to see a door in the wall. Her heart pounding, she ran to it, hoping it led to a hallway.
What was there actually startled her more. It was a huge, gleaming bathroom with a marble steam shower and a claw-foot tub. The bright decadence seemed out of place with the austerity of the bedroom. Obviously this was where the vain bastard spoiled himself.
She rocked the door back and forth as she considered its appearance. Was that how things worked here? You asked and ... "I want to leave."
Nothing happened.
C'mon. Don't do this to me. You know you want to let me out of here. She tried again. "Where do I leave? What do I do when I have to leave?" Maybe the key was in the phrasing.
But again she was disappointed when no door appeared.
You didn't really think it would be that easy, did you?
A jackal could hope.
Speaking of which, she tried to turn into one. But even that innate ability was taken from her. She was as good as human.
How horrible. Not that being human was bad, but she didn't like the feeling of vulnerability. She liked having her powers. All she had left right now were her heightened senses.
At least you have something.
Oh, goodie. Lucky me! Maybe tomorrow I'll win Shirley Jackson's Lottery.
Yeah, that would be her luck.
"But I do have a voice now." She couldn't resist saying that out loud. It was so strange to be able to speak after a lifetime of silence.
The last time she'd spoken ...
She flinched at the horror that had cost her her voice. Her mother had stolen it from her to keep her safe. In the end, she wished her mother had let her scream and die with the rest of them.
It would have been a far kinder fate. Especially if the demon did to her what he'd done to Solin.
Wanting distraction from the past that hurt too much to even contemplate, and the future that wasn't looking any better, she returned to the bedroom, where the warm pleasant scent of food beckoned her to the desk.
She pulled back the ornate silver lid to find a strange assortment. Fried bananas? Ironically, she loved them. Could he have picked that out of her brain? That thought actually scared her. She didn't like the idea of anyone reading her thoughts.
The other dishes made a little more sense-pastries and some kind of fried meat pie. There was also an abundance of fresh fruit and wine. Enough to probably feed her for days.
It all looked scrumptious, which begged one question. "Is it poisoned?"
With a demon, there was no telling. Though to be honest, if he wanted her dead, he certainly didn't have to resort to that. He could most likely kill her with his thoughts. And definitely with his hands.
Surely the food was safe.
Taking the empty plate, she filled it, then sat down to eat in the lair of her enemy.
* * *
"Well?"
Seth despised that one word with a furious passion. It ranked right up there with eye-gouging, gutting, and castration.
He wasn't afraid of Noir. Merely, he knew what the bastard was going to do to him when he answered, and he dreaded the coming pain.
Just don't geld me ... Sex was the only source of remote pleasure he could have here. Sadly, he'd hate to lose it.
"I'm close, my lord."
Noir hissed like a snake that was gearing up to strike. "Close? Is that not what you told me two days ago?"
No, I told you to leave me alone to question him, King Moron, and you sent me on so many effing errands that I haven't had more than an hour to question him in over forty-eight hours.
Seth ground his teeth to keep from saying those words that would have him castrated. He forced himself to keep his gaze trained on the floor at Noir's feet. If he looked up, Noir might pluck his eyes out. But what he really wanted to do was beat the shit out of him.
If only he could. Without his powers, he wouldn't get in a single punch before Noir would have him pinned. And because he'd tried that enough times, he knew exactly the punishment for that particular stupidity.
"I have finally found a way to break him. I will have it for you very soon."
Instead of placating Noir, it sent him off into a homicidal rage. "Tell me truthfully, does it hurt to be that stupid? I just have to know. Really? I would think by now you'd have learned what I do to failures."
Seth braced himself as pain exploded throughout his entire being and his armor vanished. As soon as he was naked, Noir blasted him through the stone wall behind him. He landed in a painful heap on the floor where he tried to catch his breath, but it was impossible to breathe through the throbbing agony. Noir rapidly closed the distance between them and pulled him up by his throat, choking him in an iron grip. There was no missing the evil gleam in Noir's eyes that said this wasn't about punishment.
It was all about pleasure.
Yeah, it's going to be a really long night.
