Being reunited with Siban had eradicated Rell’s urge to flee and given her a small spark of hope that she really could be human again. Though, if they were successful in the healing, she doubted she would emerge as the same woman who had lost her soul to the Demon Bane thirteen years ago.
Dark thoughts pressed down on her. “I’ll warn you,” she said, trying to lighten the mood, “I think I’ve put on weight with the rich food my mother has been feeding me.”
He smiled. “It’s fortunate I’ve been brought to full power then. My new strength will come in handy.”
Rell cocked her head and scanned his body from head to toe. “I knew there was something different about you. I thought perhaps you’d bathed.”
“A bath?” He harrumphed and pointed to his Tell tattoo. “I’ve just gained the mythical powers of our people and you compare it to bathing?” He reached inside the pocket at the front of his tunic and pulled out the key to her cell. “I can see I’ll never suffer from an inflated ego with you around.”
A small laugh slipped from Rell, taking her by surprise. It had been a long time since she’d actually felt anything close to happiness. Interesting that the only times she could remember had been with Siban.
The key scraped against the lock, and the metal grated as the large bolt slid into its casing. He pulled the door open and stepped inside, slipping the key back into his pocket. “Your carriage awaits, my lady.”
Rell folded her wings tightly against her back and took a step toward him, stopping an inch away. He was ruggedly handsome. His features spoke of a heritage from the sand people, darker skin and sculpted cheekbones and chin. But what she liked best about Siban were his hazel eyes. Though he was a man of few words, his eyes spoke volumes.
She tilted her head. “Siban?” Her voice came out as a whisper. “Will you kiss me one last time—as Rell?”
Perhaps with the feel of his lips on hers she’d make it through the healing. If not, she’d cross through the Veil knowing he’d truly cared for her for who she had been—a Demon Bane.
He lifted his hand and caressed her lower lip with his thumb. “And I will kiss you every day for the rest of your life when this is complete.”
His head lowered to hers and his lips gently brushing against her mouth. Strong arms enveloped Rell, dragging her against his hard body. He dwarfed her, making her feel safe and giving her a sense that he could indeed chase the darkness from her soul.
Chapter Two
Siban lifted Rell’s tiny, warm body and cradled her against him. The Bane taint bit into his skin but he made no show of the irritation. Now at full power, the bite was stronger than he was used to, but he endured it without complaint. She wound her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulders. Nothing would stop him from saving her—nothing.
He maneuvered her out of the cell and strode across the room. Before opening the door, he stopped and turned to face her prison. “This is the last time you will ever have to be in here.”
She gave a slight nod and threaded her talons through his hair. With no more words, he turned and kicked the door open. The wind caught the wood, slamming it against the outside wall. She shivered in his arms, and he pulled her more tightly to him.
The partial moon was bright, its glow lighting the path back to the manor. Wind rustled through the trees, causing their branches to sway in a slow dance. Leaves rubbed against each other. Their movement created a swooshing sound that rose and fell with the force of the breeze.
The healing house stood closer to the manor, far inside the warded boundaries the Bringers had erected. Siban decided on the direct path across the grass, his mind sifting through what was about to happen. It took a minute before he realized the biting irritation, a Bringer’s alert that there was a demon near, had increased. His steps slowed. The sensation was different than Rell’s, stronger, more caustic.
“What is it?” She lifted her head and looked around the dark grounds.
“Can you feel that?” He didn’t know if the Bane could sense each other. The Bringers had never had the chance to question a demon. Always they’d just dispatched the creatures back to the Shadow World. “I think there is another demon close by.”
Rell was silent for a second and then looked at him. “Icarus. I recognize his presence.”
A twinge of jealousy pinched Siban. She and the son of the Demon King had formed a relationship during their quest to lure Jade and Luc into the Shadow World. Siban couldn’t help but wonder what that bond had entailed.
He scanned the trees, turning in a slow circle. Not used to his new Tell abilities, he forced his awareness outward in an attempt to locate the powerful demon. His senses sped across the ground like a psychic blanket, perceiving a thousand different details about the night. The wind, the life force of insects, and plants registered but did not disrupt the wholeness of his inquiry. The immense amount of information rushed through him, pounding along every nerve of his body. In an effort to cope, he stilled his mind and relinquished control over his Tell powers. They would guide him.
Even before he’d been brought to full power, he’d been able to sense when something was true or a lie. Now the intensity of his abilities nearly swamped him. His Tell slithered toward the demon. At the tree line, it began to vibrate, sending information and warning back to him.
“Yes, it’s Icarus,” he said. Instantly Siban understood the situation. Curiosity, and even a sense of hope, emanated from the pulsing darkness. He let his awareness linger on the demon, trying to absorb and understand all he felt. The information was an undefinable mass of impressions and darkness, but the demon didn’t feel angry.
“Will he attack?” Tension flowed through Rell’s body, her posture growing stiff in his hold.
“No, I think he’s waiting to see how you fair with the healing.”
She settled against him again. “Oh,” was all she said.
Icarus’s discovery that the Bringers had found Rell’s human body had led the demon to confront Jade, Luc, and Ravyn’s sister, Meran, after Rell’s capture. Bold in a way no other Bringer had ever dared to be with Icarus, Meran had approached and touched the demon. What surprised everybody was that Icarus hadn’t attacked, hadn’t stolen her away when he could have so easily picked her up and flown into the night.
Later Meran had divulged to the rest of the Bringers what she’d sensed when she’d made contact with Icarus. “He is searching for something. The darkness inside him is like nothing I’ve ever felt. He is at odds with his father, Vile, and he knows all is not as he’s been told.” After another deep breath, she’d said, “He’s been banished from the Shadow World.”
That was all she had shared with them, but Siban suspected there was more. One could not touch the Bane darkness and remain unaffected.
Turning his thoughts back to Rell’s healing, Siban continued toward the healing house, his strides eating up the ground. The quicker they converted her back to human, the safer she would be from Icarus’s influence.
They entered the room and Siban’s step slowed. He was surprised to see even more Bringers assembled. One woman, he knew instantly, though he’d never met her—Ravyn and Meran’s oldest sister Juna. Expected to arrive days prior, unforeseen circumstances had delayed her appearance. Beside her stood a fairly young-looking man. His dark auburn hair glinted copper in the candlelight and Siban couldn’t help noticing that he appeared trail-weary. A few days’ growth shadowed his chin and though his eyes were bright, dark circles puddled beneath them.
Siban sent up a prayer of thanks to the Saints that Juna had reached the manor in time for Rell’s healing. The three sisters, Ravyn, Meran, and Juna, were the Trilation. Three Bringers to battle the darkness and open or prevent the opening of the Abyss of Souls. They were also powerful Oracles and might be the extra measure of guidance Rell would need to pass from demon back to human.