“No.” He rolled his eyes. “Yes. But…no.”
She gave him a look that made him believe she knew exactly what he was thinking. Then she returned her attention to the lightly populated walkway. The sideways glances they received from the villagers were of sheer relief. The Demon King had not harmed the human.
Fucking fantastic.
He was a monster in everyone’s eyes.
Though…perhaps not in Jade’s…?
* * *
Michael, Lisette and the slayers awaited her return—with mounting anxiety if their nerve-wracked appearances were any indication. Jade entered the community hall and Michael rushed toward her. She warded him off with a discreet lifting of her hand and he stopped in his tracks.
Sparking conflict between both her former and her phantom lovers would not bode well for any of them.
Davian announced, “We’ve deduced it’s a rogue demon hunting Miss Deville, not one from my kingdom. My general and I will see that whatever tracks her is discovered and removed from the village. I’ve asked her to remain in her cottage and I suggest no one visits her, lest either of you,” he said to Michael and Lisette, “find yourselves in jeopardy. I’m sure she would have difficulty reconciling any tragedy brought on by this unfortunate incident.”
Jade nodded.
Walker said, “Toran and I will come by the cottage at regular intervals.”
“Very good,” Davian told them. “The general and I will cover the woods surrounding her house and the riverbank. You ought to keep a close eye on the village itself. I’ll restrict my demons from crossing the perimeter, so if you see anything suspicious, you’ll know it won’t be from my alliance and you have my permission to take action.”
The gravity of the situation made Jade’s stomach coil. She gazed up at Davian, whose face was a mask of hard angles, revealing nothing.
Heavy footsteps on the stone floor drew her attention. A tall, lean-muscled, blonde-haired man strode toward them.
Davian introduced him to Jade and told her, “Morgan will see that you make it safely home.”
The general gave a simple nod.
“Thank you,” Jade said. “I appreciate your assistance.”
Michael looked deeply disturbed and opened his mouth to speak.
Jade quickly assured him, “It’ll be fine. They’ll locate their demon and that’ll put everyone’s minds at ease.”
“But why is it stalking you?” he asked.
Jade couldn’t help but smile, wanting to alleviate some of the pressure, even if her own nerves wouldn’t settle. “I’m sure the king and his general will learn that soon enough. Don’t worry about me. I have castle and slayer protection. I’m probably the most guarded human on the continent.”
Lisette said, “Then do as they say. You tend to have a stubborn side. This isn’t one of those times it should prevail.”
“I understand.” A thought suddenly occurred to her and she added, “Damn, Lisette. I made a small mess at your library and didn’t get a chance to clean it up.”
She’d bled on the floor. Not something she wanted to say in front of the group.
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Don’t make anything of it,” Jade adamantly told her. “It was entirely my doing. And I’m obviously fully intact.”
This caused the older woman’s brows to knit and caught the interest of the others as well.
Davian intervened before anyone could question Jade. “We should be going.”
He turned abruptly and she walked a step behind him, with Morgan and the slayers bringing up the rear.
Leaving the village proper, Jade learned the general wasn’t a man of many words. He uttered not a one on the way to her cottage.