The Demon's Game (31 page)

“She must have run off.”

When I started to turn to Logan, I felt a blast of
pain against the back of my head. It didn’t completely knock me out, but I
realized some time later that I was lying on the floor alone. I groaned because
crying wasn’t an option as I rolled over onto my back. My head throbbed and
lights flashed behind my eyes when I closed them. Suffering in pain was
something I wasn’t used to, as Ron was always by my side to heal me when I was
injured.

Some of the pain settled enough for me to know Ron
should have sensed my pain instantly.
“Ron?”

No answer.

I hauled myself to my unsteady feet using anything in
reach to grip. Naturally, I tried to shake the sluggishness from my body… but
that just left me dizzy and nauseous. I slowly made my way to the door with the
help of the table and counter, which cracked under the pressure. The knob
didn’t want to turn, but I was dile; I broke the lock with a simple jerk.

Ron wasn’t in the living room. Taper, Tatum, Luca,
and Drake were all unconscious and covered in scrapes. Luca had a nasty scratch
down his back and Drake had a busted lip. The twins seemed a little better off.
Logan and Alyssa were missing, but I really didn’t care. The only person who
mattered was Ron and he wasn’t answering me.

When I tried to use my Iadnah energy, I stumbled. My
stomach protested any movement or magic. Taper woke as I flopped down on the
couch. He immediately checked his sister for a pulse, and then sat back with
relief. “What happened?” he asked.

“I think Logan hit me.”

“They attacked us.”

“Who?” I sat up. “Who took Ron?”

“Demons. They ambushed us and then Logan came out and
told them that you’d been dealt with. Ron pounced on him, trying to claw his
eyes out. One of the demons hit him with some kind of electrical rod and I
think it knocked him out. Logan betrayed us.”

“Was Alyssa with him?”

“The fake Alyssa? No.”

I clambered to my feet and into the kitchen. I wasn’t
nearly as observant as Ron, so I knew I was missing many clues, but the table
bothered me. Obviously, there had been a struggle. If Logan betrayed us and
fought with the fake Alyssa, perhaps Alyssa was on our side. I searched the
cabinets and the walk-in pantry but found nothing. The only other door that
didn’t lead outside or to the living room was the basement.

I flipped the light switch and it did nothing. Taper
appeared beside me, far too quiet. When I glared at him for sneaking up on me,
he just looked at me expectantly. “Let’s go,” he said.

But I couldn’t. “The light doesn’t work.” No matter
how much I tried to hide it, I was still terrified of the dark. Ron would have
taken my hand or given me light. Hell, he would have shut the door and said
anything down there wasn’t worth our time.

Taper rolled his eyes. “I thought you were a wizard.
Can’t you make light like your brother did at the warehouse?”

“I’m not as powerful as him.”

“I think you’re just used to letting him do all the
work. You’re supposed to be the older brother; you should be using magic to
make light for him, not the other way around. I’m terrified of heights, but I
don’t make Tatum go up on the roof when she throws our ball up there.”

“I thought you were twins.”

“I was born first so I protect her. Apparently, I got
our mother’s fire-tribe temperament whereas Tatum got our father’s land-tribe
daydreaming, even though we are both of the land tribe. I can’t create fire, so
you’re going to have to light the way.”

Struggling to swallow, I held out my palm. Since I
could no longer feel nominal energy, I couldn’t use it to make fire, and my
Iadnah abilities were nothing compared to my brother’s. After much effort and
concentration, I created a small sphere of light, not nearly as bright or large
as Ron’s, but I was somewhat proud of it.

“That’s it?” Taper asked.

Ron would have shoved him down the stairs, but since
my head was still throbbing, I just started down them. The basement looked how
a basement was supposed to look; there were a ton of boxes, Christmas
decorations, and old clothes. What I didn’t expect to see was Logan on the
floor, bounded and gagged. He was conscious, but had a bloody nose. Taper took
the gag out of Logan’s mouth.

“It’s a changeling!”

“What’s a changeling?” Taper asked.

“Who cares? Where is Ron?”

“They took Ron?” Logan asked.

“You know they did! You’re working with them!” I
yelled.

“No! Please, you have to believe me! That wasn’t
Alyssa we saved but a changeling. It’s a type of fae that can take the form of
any person or animal for as long as they’re alive. Somehow she knew we were
coming and took Alyssa’s place. That means she’s still alive.”

“And Ron?”

“I have no idea. I’m not working for the demons, I
swear.”

“How can we trust you?” Taper asked.

I wasn’t in the mood for trust. I reached out with my
Iadnah energy and focused on my bond with Ron. The only time I could
effectively flash was to Ron, but it had always been reliable. Therefore, I was
confused and frustrated when the light that filled the room died. I hadn’t
moved and Ron was still missing.

“I can’t let you do that, kiddo,” Xul said, appearing
beside me.

I growled at Xul’s betrayal. “You can’t stop me! I am
the son of a god!” I almost wanted to smack myself for saying something so
egotistical, but this wasn’t the time.

“If you flash to Ron, you will be immediately killed.
When it comes to saving your life, I have more power than I need. Your father
made sure I could protect you from any force in the universe, including
yourself.”

“Then save him!”

“Right now, they need Ron alive. They cannot hurt him
until they have your father subdued. The demons also know that if Ron can
control the balance, they have no chance. For the moment, we are at a
stalemate, because they can’t kill him until they have Dylan, but they can’t
let him go alive, either. Their only chance is to keep him unconscious and in
their control. If we try to take him and fail, they’ll kill him.”

“But you can use Dad’s power to save Ron.”

“If they try to kill him, yes, but I also can’t
endanger him by trying to rescue him.

“So go in invisible and take him.”

“I am an Ancient, far more powerful than most of
them, but Ilea would detect me a mile away.”

“Ilea?”

“Another Ancient. She is an evil, vicious creature
who finds humor in bloodshed. She has instigated countless wars. For fun, she
causes people to commit suicide, cheat on their spouses, and miscarriage.”

“I thought demons didn’t have names unless they were
under contract.”

“She was under contract. She fooled a man once who
was willing to sell his soul for a wife, but not just any old wife and not for
love; he wanted the most beautiful wife imaginable. Ilea agreed to make him a
more beautiful wife than he could dream of, but in exchange, he had to give her
a soul. She fooled him into believing he would have to serve her when he died.
Ilea created a woman so beautiful that men would fall to their knees before
her. The beauty was only on the outside, however; she was a hideous creature at
heart. Ilea couldn’t create a conscience when she had none herself, and she
couldn’t create a soul.

“The man loved and adored his beautiful wife and they
had a child nine months later. The baby was as beautiful on the outside as his
mother and had a pure, innocent soul. Every day of his life, he learned to be
kind and wise. He never understood his mother’s coldness, but he sought to warm
her heart with undying love, respect, and devotion.

“Ilea came on his seventh birthday and demanded the
child’s soul. When the man refused, she changed his wife’s outward appearance
to match her heart. She told him that if he completed his end of the bargain,
she would end the contract.

“The man wasn’t wise like his own child, but he was
desperate to have his wife back. He gave up his son and Ilea ended the contract
without changing his wife back. The name no longer held power over her so she
kept it.”

“What an evil monster. And she hates you?” I asked.

“More than anyone. If I make any kind of move against
her, she’ll know. I’m sure she even knows I’m telling you about her now. She is
commanding this growing army of demons. While she may say she does the bidding
of the balance, she expects to use it as a tool for her own gain. I think at
this point, the only one who can defeat her is your father, and even then I
have my doubts.”

“So you’ll take me to Dad and we’ll go together to
save Ron.”

“No, see, that would mean taking you into danger. I
can’t take you to your father, your mother, or your brother. Mordon is with
Dylan. Kiro is in the middle of stuff, too. The only thing I can think of is to
send you to Vivian.”

“What?! You can’t send me…”

But he wasn’t listening, and suddenly I was with my
birth mother.

Vivian

The setting sun cast beautiful colors over the lake
and the warmth of Dylan chased away the fall chill. His heavy breathing was
soothing my nerves, but it did me little good since he was asleep. For a man
who wanted five kids, he sure knew how to ruin the moment.

Leaning on his chest, I flicked him softly on the
nose so that he jerked awake. Realizing he had fallen asleep, he smiled and
stroked his hand down my back. He had a five-o’clock shadow that made him look
both rugged and sexy and his green eyes almost glowed in the twilight. I kissed
him gently and rolled over onto my back with a gentle tug on his arms.
Encouraged, he laid over me to continue our kiss.

He was always extremely gentle with me, to my
despair. I knew it was because he grew up watching his mother being abused. He
faithfully checked with me twice before making any move, which was tiring, and
also the reason we hadn’t gotten very far. Of course, I wasn’t exactly
encouraging him.

His hands were hot as he touched me gently and
roughly at the same time like he was teasing me. This time would be our first.
After more than a year of denying him, I agreed to come to this lake and spend
the night. I had every intention of giving myself to him.

A shrill crying froze the building heat inside me
like a slap to the face. I pushed Dylan away and he gave instantly. “What’s
wrong?”

“Sammy. I heard him crying,” I said.

He nodded, starting to get up. “I’ll get him,”

“No!” I shouted. “Please, I want this to be just us.
I’ve made you wait too long for me already.”

He smiled and kissed my forehead. “You’re worth it to
me. I’ll wait forever for you if I have to.”

Despite his promise, he stood and headed off into the
bushes. It was suddenly dark and so cold. I never felt more alone. “Dylan!
Please come back, Dylan, I love you! Don’t leave me here! Please!”

I shouted over and over in my dreams. Whether it was
my own yelling that woke me or Nano shaking me, I didn’t know. Tears of shame
joined my tears of loss when Nano just rolled over in our bed to face away from
me. I put my hand on his arm and he tensed up, so I turned to face the other
direction. I refused to fall back to sleep for the rest of the night, not for
the sake of my soon-to-be husband, but for the fear of being rejected by Dylan
again.

I made a mistake in not taking Dylan for myself when
I had the chance, and while Nano was there to pick up the pieces of my broken
heart, he couldn’t put them back together.

*          *          *

I tried to read the letter Nila had written to his
uncle, but although I was pretty decent at speaking Dego, I had no literary
skills. The messenger left before I could ask him any questions and since it
looked like he had a difficult journey, I didn’t want to stop him. I set the
letter down and leaned back in my seat.

I missed coffee, for Dios didn’t have most of the
simple comforts I expected from Earth. Electricity and indoor plumbing was still
developing here, but Nano and I had the best.

The house that had been constructed for us was quaint
to a fault. It was little larger than a cabin with a full sized bedroom,
bathroom, kitchen, and living room. We had no laundry room because there was a
house nearby with servants who did our laundry for us. In fact, the only reason
we had a kitchen was because I demanded it. I really didn’t like having
servants; it felt awkward to boss people around.

A wooden porch stretched around the entire house with
a colorful rose garden out back. The floors were hardwood with thick rugs.
There was a fireplace in the living room, along with a leather reading chair
and couch. The walls were painted a pleasant tan color with dark wood trim. We
had far too many windows, but it was expected after the entire population spent
hundreds of years underground.

The house overlooked the ocean, which Nano was
absolutely terrified of. Since dile couldn’t swim, I knew the house had been
constructed here solely for my pleasure. Sammy would have loved it, but I knew
he was better off with… his other family.

My heart stuttered as I thought of my baby’s face. I
hadn’t seen him in five years. He had to hate me. The fact was, I didn’t want
to be his mother. I loved him and I wanted to spend time with him, but I didn’t
want to be responsible for him. Growing up with five younger siblings that I
had to help my father raise was emotionally scarring. At an age where I should
have been spoiled and coddled, I was bringing up five kids. I had to work, go
to college, and raise them at the same time. There was no time for friends, no
money for clothes, and no room for privacy.

Every day was miserable and the only thing I ever
looked forward to was my time with Dylan. Worst of all was that I could never
see a better future. Then Dylan vanished on me and Nano showed up to enlighten
me on how meaningless my life really was. Obviously, when he offered to take me
to Dios and show me the universe, I jumped at the chance.

But he left me, too. Not only that, but he left be
with a child. I had to give birth to Sammy without a single person to be there
for me. I juggled work and motherhood, not knowing if his father would ever
return. Then Dylan arrived, not for me but for Sammy. Anyone else would have
taken my baby and left, but he was too kind for that. Although he loved another
woman, he was willing to take me with him. Instead, Nano came back, not for me
but for Dylan. Nobody ever came back for me.

Nano entered the kitchen where I sat at the table and
got a glass out for some juice. I passed the letter across the table to him.
“Will you tell me what this says?”

He glanced at the name and dismissed it. “It’s from
Nila,” he said, pouring his juice.

“I know; I recognize his name. I just can’t read it.”

“It’s not for you and you shouldn’t read other
people’s mail.”

“Not even my husband’s?”

“I’m not your husband.” When I said nothing, he
sighed and took the letter to read it. After a few minutes, he tossed it aside.
“It’s nothing. Nila is having a difficult time getting the slaves free that are
in the under cities. There’s no slavery here, so you don’t need to worry about
it.”

“What do you plan to do to help them?”

“Nothing. It’s not my job and it’s dangerous. I
really don’t care about them; they made this mess themselves.”

It was true that the population of Dios was nearly
destroyed by war. It was also true that their actions caused the scant remains
to retreat underground. But that was generations ago. The only dile anyone knew
that was old enough to remember the days before the war was Nano. Therefore, I
believed it was unfair for slaves, including children, to be forced to stay
underground just because they were too slow to get out.

And that really was what it amounted to; the rich and
powerful moved aboveground while those in servitude or who were too poor to
move became slaves to the scummiest characters known to this planet. Nila was
the exception. As High King, the most politically powerful man on Dios, he
stayed where he was needed most.

“Your nephew is braver than you,” I said. Somewhere
in his heart, Nano cared about his people and his nephew deeply. Over the
years, however, I saw his soft side less and less. I knew why, too, because it
was my fault.

“He’s their king; it’s his job. My job is to protect
my book and I can’t do that if I’m putting myself and you in danger. If you
like Nila so much, you should marry him instead.”

I understood that marrying Nano was a permanent
thing. He didn’t just want to marry me; he wanted me to be his life mate. He
had gone so far as to strike a deal with his god to make me immortal if I
married him. For that reason, I never did. I loved him, but I wasn’t ready to
permanently attach myself to him for all eternity. I couldn’t even imagine
living that long let alone being with one man forever.

I knew it hurt him and every day was a little harder
for him to accept. The coldness that grew in his heart was due to my rejection,
but I could only ever make it worse.

“He’s not Dylan.”

The sharp pain across my cheek was startling. It was
the first time he struck me, but I knew it wouldn’t be the last time. I didn’t
want it to be. I wanted him to hurt me as I knew I hurt him. Maybe if the pain
came from Nano instead of inside, I wouldn’t hate myself so much.

“Neither am I. And you forget; he left you,” Nano
said coldly. “He could have come back for you or even took you with him. He
didn’t. Instead he upgraded. He caught himself a goddess.”

There was that pain I needed. It was a pain I could
fuel anger with and it would keep me alive another day, as opposed to the
hopeless pain that came from my own head. Before I could say anything else, he
left the room. He would take his anger out on himself and tear himself apart
over hitting me.

I looked around the room again and sighed. “I can’t
do this,” I said aloud. Sitting around at home while my husband went to do…
whatever he felt a Guardian should do… I wanted to help people who couldn’t
protect themselves. As a lawyer, I was selective about my clients and gave
priority to the rights of minorities and LGBT clients. Of course, maybe I was
as wrong in selecting clients as Nano was in choosing not to help the slaves
underground.

I waited until Nano left and then I packed a bag.
Luckily, Nano had let me take many of my personal items from home so I had
clothes and a backpack to put them in. I also grabbed food, water, and a
picture of Nano, Sammy, and me together. Last, I gathered some of my gems and gold
jewelry just in case I needed something to trade with. I locked the door behind
me and I made my way down the stone path to the servant’s house. It was a much
smaller, one-bedroom cabin made with lower quality materials.

I knocked on the door and Mreda let me in. Her
husband sat at the heavy wooden table in the center of the room. By his scowl,
I could tell that I had interrupted one of their frequent arguments.
And I
want to be married for eternity?
“Vunhag un Nila seta?” I asked. To the
best of my abilities, I asked where the High King, Nila was.

“Muga debun,” she said.

Probably dead.

I stopped bothering to speak Dego. “How can you care
so little for your king?! The only reason your people are able to live above
ground again is because of him!”

“Mind manners, Vivian, or Nano smack wife again.” She
made the gesture of smacking me and I knew by watching mothers scold their
children that making any hand gestures was considered rude.

There were so many things I wanted to say to the
woman, but I was in her home. Dylan taught me when we were teenagers that if we
let someone goad us into attacking them, we were giving them control over us.
With Dylan’s voice in my head, I inhaled and exhaled slowly, turned, and walked
away.

Unfortunately, Nano and I didn’t live in a populated
kingdom like we did in the under cities, so the closest neighbors were an hour
away. Faced with the choice of returning home to wait indefinitely for Nano or
to walk indefinitely until I found a neighbor that could help me, I started walking.

We lived on an island. There were walking paths
everywhere, along with the occasional tree. In the center of the island was a
forest, which I was still amazed by.

I eventually made it to a quaint little neighborhood.
The small farming community was different enough from Earth to make me feel
homesick. People milled about in colorful work clothes, most trading raw
materials or dragging them off to their houses to make things with. I stopped a
middle-aged woman who was chasing her young child around.

“Edva undrik,” I said. While dile didn’t normally say
“excuse me,” to get someone’s attention on the street, I wanted to retain my
human manners. “Vunhag un Nila seta?”

“Dred vehkt,” she answered kindly.

I knew that “dred” was the word for dark, but I wasn’t
great at the language. “Trejka hetba… kre…” I tried to get the sounds right,
but I couldn’t even tell her that I didn’t understand.

“Endes?” she asked, attempting to pronounce my mother
language.

I sighed with relief. “Yes.” I knew the “l” sounds
were very tricky for the dile to say in most English words, yet I have heard a
few words with the letter, including their High King’s name. Nano once
explained that it had something to do with sound perception. I did realize on
my own that all words with the letter in it had an “i” before the letter. 

“High King in dark city,” the woman told me.

“How do I get there?”

“Dark city danger. Daughter die in dark city.”

“I know it’s dangerous. I want to help Nila. How do I
find him?”

She hesitated and watched her child run into the arms
of a big man. The guy was covered in sweat from a hard day’s work, but he was
extremely gentle with the little boy. When he took the child inside a house,
the woman turned back to me.

“Center of Kreu is cave. Tegod guard dark city. Drask
hyven.” Kreu was the name of the island, “tegod” was the Dego word for troll,
and she told me to be careful before she turned and headed for the house.

I didn’t have magic like everyone else on this world
did. Nano offered to teach me, but I was completely unrelated to any Guardian,
so I had no natural talent, and I honestly had no interest. I read plenty of
nonfiction as a child, but fantasy never fascinated me, so I never wanted
magic.

It took all day to reach the center of the island,
and when I finally did, I was exhausted. Being a kept woman was no good for my
cardio. As I sat on a rotting log to eat the food and drink the water I packed,
I made the decision that when I returned to Nano, because I would, I would
absolutely change things up.
I can get a job.