Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 52553 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 263(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52553 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 263(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
“Excuse me?”
I part my lips to answer, but everything goes gray, and my knees give out. I expect the sharp sensation of my head cracking on the rock—it’s going to hurt like a bitch—but it never comes.
The last thing I feel before darkness takes me is a mass of tentacles creating a soft cradle for my body.
5
THANE
“What were you thinking?”
I cross my arms over my chest and try not to get defensive. It’s nearly impossible when faced with two accusing pairs of eyes pointed in my direction. “It didn’t occur to me that it could be a problem.”
“She’s human, you fool.” Azazel flexes his fists like he wants to slam one into my face. “They aren’t like us. They especially aren’t like you.”
“We don’t have as many humans in our territory as you do,” Embry cuts in. No one looking at us would mistake zir and me for anything other than siblings, for all that Embry inherited our mother’s more green-based tones. Ze and I both got our father’s crooked nose, which ze is looking down right now. “Honestly, Thane, he’s right. What were you thinking?”
“I wasn’t—”
“I think that is abundantly clear.”
“Enough, Azazel. We both know this wasn’t intentional.” There’s no relief to be had in Embry’s defense, though, because ze points a finger at me. “But you should have asked for more details before bringing her back through the canal.”
“It’s the quickest way home.” That’s the only thing I was thinking about.
No, that’s a lie. It wasn’t the only thing I was thinking about it. I couldn’t get the sight of Brant’s bracelet in Ramanu’s hands out of my head. We may not have many humans, or the like, in our territory these days, but the bracelets were always in high demand before among people who wanted to play tourist in their respective rivers and lakes. Especially parents of children who lived close to bodies of water. The assurance that they wouldn’t drown was worth its weight in gold.
Not that Brant ever charged enough for the bracelets.
Seeing Ramanu holding one of them, knowing the demon possibly even got it from Brant himself, felt like a slap in the face. I couldn’t think beyond the need to reclaim the item and get out of the castle as quickly as possible. The deep path is the fastest, so that’s the one I took.
It never occurred to me that it could hurt Catalina.
I glance at the bed. She levitates over it, wrapped in a bubble of magic that Embry assures me is proven to help humans with this particular sickness.
A sickness I caused with my carelessness.
“They can’t adjust to depth changes as quickly as we can. If you take her deep, you have to ease her back to the surface.” Embry swirls zir fingers through the air, eyes narrowed as ze considers Catalina. “She’ll be fine.”
“This time.” Azazel still looks like he wants to beat my face in. I don’t blame him. I made a mistake—a costly one. He glares. “No one can argue this isn’t harm. I’d be well within my rights to call this contract null and void.”
I tense. If he does that, I’ll lose the territory to him. I’ll lose Embry’s territory to him. The thought leaves me sick to my stomach. “I meant her no harm.”
“Intentions matter less than the result. You caused harm, no matter what you meant to do.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Someone get the record books, Thane has apologized.” The raspy quip makes us all look at the bed. Catalina has her eyes cracked. She still looks too pale and almost frail, but she must be feeling better if she can mouth off.
Azazel is at her side in an instant. “I apologize, Catalina. I didn’t realize Thane’s intentions to travel the way he did, or I would have educated him on the dangers involved for you.”
She looks at him, and there’s something wary in her hazel eyes that makes me want to shift between Azazel and her. It doesn’t make any sense. If anything, she should be looking to the demon for protection from me. Azazel is a fearsome leader, but he has a reputation for taking great care with his humans. Surely she must know that, or she wouldn’t have entered into the bargain with him in the first place.
Catalina blinks, and the moment passes. “I’m fine. No harm done.”
“I disagree,” he growls.
“Well, it doesn’t really matter if you agree or not, does it? Now be a good demon daddy and tell Thane you’re not going to take his territory over a simple misunderstanding.”
Embry’s eyes are far too wide as ze takes in the human. “Catalina—”
“A simple mistake,” Catalina says firmly. It doesn’t seem to matter that she’s flat on her back in a room filled with three beings bigger and stronger than her. There’s not even a waver there.