Unstable by Lacey Carter Andersen
3
Kiera
I’ve been shackled,along with the strange man in my cell named Cole. We’re both led through the demon castle, pushed through huge doors, and thrown onto the ground in front of the demon king. At least, that’s who I’m assuming he is. The man on the throne is tall and massive, with horns nestled in dark hair, and eyes that are blacker than Cole’s. He wears a neat, button-up white shirt, and slacks, and on his head is a simple gold band that serves as his crown. If not for the hatred in his eyes, I would’ve thought he might be merciful.
But those eyes? There’s nothing of mercy in them.
I hear a commotion behind me and turn. To my surprise, it’s my men. Adam, Drake, and Emory look a hell of a lot worse for wear, but the fact that they’re all alive takes a huge weight from my shoulders.
All of them are shackled too and then tossed down beside us. Their gazes cling to me, and I mouth that I’m alright, wanting to talk to them, to touch them. But praying there will be time for that later.
Depending on the plans the king has for us.
My gaze returns to the man, and I find his eyes are locked onto me. “It seems your group is valuable to the Royal Jackass…”
None of us speaks. We just keep staring, waiting.
“He’s offered a substantial reward for the return of all of you. Well, all of you except the mutant.” His gaze continues to hold mine as if he’s waiting for something, but I’m not sure what.
For us to plead? Beg?
Well, we aren’t doing that. Maybe those were the kind of prisoners he was used to, but most of our little group had been to hell and back. If he wanted groveling, he’d have to find it elsewhere.
“You could do that…” Drake begins, and the king’s laser-focused eyes go to my big dragon shifter, before Drake continues. “But why would you want to help your enemy? If he wants us back, shouldn’t you do the opposite? Free us?”
The demon king grins and leans back on his throne. “And why, shifter, would I do such a thing?”
“Because, as much as Maxen wants everyone to believe that all demons are mindless animals, you and I know that’s not true. Maxen intends a full-out war with the demons, and he’s weakened you. I think the last thing you want to do right now is give him anything.”
“How do you know we’re weakened?” The demon growls, and all amusement is gone from his cold gaze.
Drake hesitates but then presses on. “I heard it rumored he took your relic, your ability to open a portal into the demon realm and bring reinforcements over. I also heard he plans to take this time to conquer you, take your lands, and all the valuable resources and riches within them.”
The demon king clacks long claws on the arm of his throne. “And so in such a time of need, why would I possibly throw away prisoners that could be useful to me?” But before Drake can answer, he continues. “There is only one thing that I want right now, and it’s the relic. If you can’t help me with that, I will sell you back to your king. Yes, we may simply ambush the party that meets us and kill you all, but that has value too. More of a value than just,” he laughs, “setting you free.”
“But what if we could get your relic back?” Cole asks from beside me, his deep voice seeming to echo through the room.
The demon king leans forward, his expression fierce. “We have sent our best warriors to retrieve the relic and all have failed. So how could a group of,” his nose wrinkles, “prisoners do more than we can?”
We’re all looking at Cole in shock. What the hell is he doing?
“None of your demons are trusted by the king,” Cole says, grinning. “Maxen sees us as allies. We’ll be able to walk through all of his defenses and simply take what we want.”
The king laughs. “What a lovely idea, except it’s more likely that you’ll simply return to your king, describe our defenses to him, and abandon us.”
Cole, even in cuffs on his knees, radiates confidence. “Except that we all hate Maxen. He plans to destroy this world by enslaving any demon that should come through the relic. He will unleash the hordes on all of humanity and level everything to the ground. No one will survive, except him. The rest of us will be little more than slaves to him. So, if you send us on this mission, we have the skills to succeed, and the motivation to do so.”
“No,” Emory says, his tone infuriated. “Kiera is not going anywhere near that psychopath.”
Cole glares at the berserker. “Shut up.”
Emory starts to swell. “I won’t allow this!”
“Enough!” The king shouts, standing. “So, you give your word to help me return my relic? Let us see! Take them to my study!”
We’re suddenly surrounded by guards and dragged away. We’re tossed onto the floor of a room with a large desk, chairs, and books lining the walls. Our whole party looks confused as hell, until Emory seems to remember that Cole is there.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Cole’s eyes flash with rage. “Trying to survive.”
“No,” Emory shakes his head. “We can’t be sent back to him. Never again.”
“I don’t know a lot, but I do know strategy. And right now, we’re guaranteed death if he sells us to Maxen, then slaughters us all. But if we volunteer to work with them? We have a chance.”
“You might know strategy, but you don’t know Maxen as well as I do!” Emory shouts.
Cole’s gaze narrows. “No, I don’t. He is your brother, after all.”
Tension sings between them, and I clear my throat. “So, I’m guessing you two know each other?”
“We grew up with Maxen,” Cole explains slowly.
“Fuck, that little-dicked-asshole really did a number on everyone around him,” I say, looking between Cole and Emory.
All gazes snap to me.
And then, the door opens behind us. The demon king enters, flanked by a handful of guards, and a strange man in a hood. The king sits behind the desk, and the hooded man stands at his side.
“Why did the spirits of the woods protect you?”
I think we’re all startled by the question.
“What spirits?” Adam asks, sounding confused.
“The spirits,” I say, and my voice comes out a whisper. “The spirits in these woods are disturbed, by all the blood and death Maxen has unleashed on their land, but it’s more than that.”
“What?” the king hisses, leveling me with that cold gaze of his.
“I—I’m not sure. But I think they want us to stop him.” Yes, I hadn’t had time to think about why they had surrounded us after we escaped the wedding and offered us protection from the demons, but the spirits were connected to the world of the dead.
Death could be the only reason they came to us.
He regards me for a long moment. “I have always trusted the spirits, so I will trust them in this too. But that doesn’t mean I’ll trust you.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” Emory asks.
The king’s lips twist into a mockery of a smile. “I will do as you’ve requested. Let you go, to return the relic to me.”
“Thank you so much!” Adam gushes.
But the rest of us wait because there’s more to this. Nothing is ever so easy.
The demon nods to the hooded mage. “My Blood Mage will ensure this deal of ours is sealed by an unbreakable bond.”
My blood runs cold, and I look at the mage. I thought Blood Mages were more legend than reality, but there he stood. A man who was both a shifter, a vampire, and a mage. What could he possibly do to ensure our deal is unbreakable?
The mage circles the desk, and I have the horrible feeling I’m about to find out.
