Across the broken skyline, Kareth has already disappeared, melting into the labyrinthine gaps between buildings. He knows exactly where I've been staying. Exactly who I've been with. Which means he's been watching—for how long?
The thought sends ice through my veins as I leap between structures, using chimneys and uneven walls as leverage. Below, morning market-goers scatter as my shadow passes overhead, but I barely register them. All I see is the path to cut Kareth off before he reaches them.
But demons don't move like humans. We flow like something liquid and lethal, and Kareth is one of the best. By the time I spot him again, he's already ahead of me, those stag-like horns silhouetted against the reddish morning sky as he vaults between two crumbling towers.
He's not running from me. He's circling back.
"Fuck," I snarl, changing direction so abruptly my boots skid on loose tiles. I miscalculated. He's not making a direct path—he's looping around to approach from the blind side of Esalyn's home.
I drop from the rooftop into a narrow alley, landing hard enough that the impact shock travels up my spine. No time for caution. No time for anything but raw speed as I charge through the maze of streets, shoving past anyone too slow to move.
The tiny house comes into view just as Kareth's sleek form disappears through the door I left ajar in my haste.
The door I left open for him.
My vision narrows to a tunnel of red-tinged fury as I burst through the entrance, knives already drawn. But I'm too late.
The scene unfolds like something from a nightmare. Kareth stands in the center of the single room, his amber eyes gleaming with undisguised triumph. One clawed hand rests casually on the hilt of his blade as he leans against the rickety table.
Opposite him, Esalyn stands with her back pressed against the far wall, Erisen clutched against her side, half-hidden behind her skirts. Her face is a mask of terror, but her stance is pure protection—a mother ready to die before letting anything touch her child.
"There he is," Kareth drawls, his voice smooth as spilled oil. "Our mutual friend."
The air in the room shifts as I step fully inside, tension crackling like gathering storm energy. Kareth turns his gaze to me, those stag horns casting twisted shadows across the wall behind him. His smile widens, showing each of his unnaturally sharp teeth.
"I was just explaining to this lovely woman why we're both here. Catching her up on the situation, you might say."
"Shut your mouth," I growl, positioning myself between them, though it's clear the damage is already done.
"Oh, but I've barely started, Domno." Kareth's voice is almost playful, savoring each syllable. "I was telling her about the five hundred novas Lord Vorrak is offering for her return. A tidysum, wouldn't you say? More than enough for a broken hunter to drink himself to death with."
The words land exactly as he intended—like poison darts finding every vulnerable spot. I can feel Esalyn's eyes on me, can almost hear the rapid beat of her heart.
"Is it true?" Her voice barely rises above a whisper, but it cuts through the room like a blade. "You were sent to find me? For him?" The words break as she asks, "Youknew?"
I knew when she told me what she was running from? I knew why she looked so scared? I knew what she was protecting Erisen from and forced my way into their lives still?
Yes. I knew. But I refuse to tell her that, to handle any of this until Kareth is gone. I'll make her understand, once she's safe.
I turn to face her, and the betrayal etched into her features hits me harder than any physical blow. Erisen peers from behind her, his golden eyes wide with confusion and fear, still clutching the wooden bird I carved for him.
"Esalyn—" I start, but Kareth cuts me off.
"Oh, he's been looking for you for weeks. Tracking you. Following you." He gestures expansively. "Lord Vorrak was quite specific about wanting his property returned intact. His property and his... offspring."
Esalyn's face drains of color, her knuckles white where they grip Erisen's shoulders.
"You knew," she whispers, answering her earlier question, and the light in her eyes—the warmth I'd seen just minutes ago—flickers and dies. "All this time, you knew who we were. What he wanted." She shakes her head. "I never should have trusted ademon."
And the way she says it is like a damn blade to my chest.
18
DOMNO
Kareth looks between us with a smirk, but his body is tensing. "Well, now that that's over…"
"Esalyn, get back!" I snarl, my body already moving before conscious thought forms.
