Chapter 36

CHAPTER 36

"V ery well," said the demon. "Let's start with the man you told me about. Jaeger. Which one is he?"

Malissa looked through the flames and saw that Jaeger was still standing on the castle wall. He had not moved since the chaos had begun. In fact, he seemed to be the only other person besides Malissa and Beliath who was not in a total panic.

"He's there," she said, nodding toward him. "In the robes. But—"

Before she could finish, Beliath stretched out his arm and pointed one clawed finger in Jaeger's direction. An instant later, the man was lifted off the wall and he began to fly toward the pyre where Malissa and her demon were still standing amid the swirling flames. Based on the way Jaeger's arms and legs were flailing, Malissa guessed that the man was not flying by his own volition.

"Wait!" she cried.

Jaeger's body stopped moving about an arm's length from the flames. Beliath's hand remained outstretched toward him. The demon turned his head to look at Malissa.

"You do not wish me to kill this man?"

"I don't know," she said. "He just freed you."

"True, but he also captured me. And let's not forget how he tried to poison our child."

"I never did anything to hurt your child," said Jaeger. His voice was surprisingly devoid of fear. "Even vengeance has its limits. I would never do anything to harm an innocent baby."

Beliath looked doubtful, but he still waited for Malissa's decision.

"Vengeance," she said. "Is that why you freed the demon just now?"

Jaeger nodded slowly. His face was dripping with sweat from the heat.

"I am an Esmorian. The kingdom of Drachenval all but eradicated my people. I pretended to be loyal to King Wulfmar, and then to his son Wulfgang, but the whole time I was secretly plotting my revenge. It would appear I have achieved it at last."

"My woman tells me you offered to breed her," Beliath snarled. "I ought to kill you for that."

"Kill me if you wish," Jaeger said calmly. "My life's purpose has been fulfilled. But know this: I only offered myself to the queen out of spite for her husband. An Esmorian on the throne of Drachenval would have been a sweet revenge… but a demon on the throne is even better."

Beliath growled.

"You didn't desire the queen for her beauty? You really expect me to believe that?"

"The queen is beautiful," Jaeger admitted. "However, she is not my type. I prefer the company of men. I have among my potions a certain medicine that would have made it possible for me to, you know…"

For a moment, Malissa thought Beliath was going to kill the man simply for suggesting such an idea.

"What other potions do you have?" she asked. "Poisons?"

"If you search my laboratory, you'll find many poisons, but I swear I never used any of them on you." He shrugged. "I understand if you don't believe me. I'm not afraid to die."

He wasn't. Malissa could see that.

She could also see that the man didn't care about her own life, or the life of her child either. He had allowed the king to burn her at the stake. In fact, that had been part of his plan, hadn't it? He had intended to wait until after she was dead to set Beliath free. Then the demon, in a fit of rage, would have killed the king, and probably everyone else in the castle, including Jaeger himself. For that alone, Malissa would be justified in killing him.

Still, she could sympathize with the man's desire for revenge, and now that he had attained it, he posed no threat.

"Let him go," she said.

"Are you sure?" Beliath asked.

Malissa nodded.

Beliath turned his attention back to Jaeger, who was still hovering in front of the dancing flames.

"You are lucky, mortal. My angel has shown you mercy…"

Jaeger disappeared in a puff of smoke, and another cry went up from the crowd of frightened onlookers.

Malissa gasped. "Did you…?"

"I did not kill him," Beliath said. "I merely transported him to the road beyond the castle wall. If he is a wise man, he will start walking on it immediately, and he will not look back."

He looked around at the men and women crowded against the inner wall of the courtyard. Their faces looked like masks in the fire's glow.

"If it wasn't Jaeger who gave you the poison, then who?"

"I think I know…"

Malissa stepped down from the platform—what remained of it—and carefully picked her way down one sloping side of the pyre. Her bare feet sank painlessly into the glowing red coals. As she emerged from the flames, she stretched her new wings and looked around at the crowd. The people averted their eyes, as if they feared her gaze might turn them into stone.

All except the king. He glared at her with the same look of reproach she had seen watching her from within the frame of his painted portrait the night Beliath had impregnated her.

"Kill her!" he shouted. "Kill the monster!"

To Malissa's surprise, a few foolhardy soldiers actually rushed at her with their swords drawn. They barely made it two paces before Beliath sent a volley of fireballs to cook them in their armor.

After that, the other guards left Malissa alone. Wulfgang shouted a few more impotent commands, but his men refused to listen. At last, the king gave up and fell silent. Malissa watched him for a moment, then turned away. She would deal with him later. Right now she was looking for…

"Droanna!" she called. "Droanna, where are you?"

When no reply was forthcoming, she directed her queries to the crowd at large.

"The maidservant," she said. "The one who spoke just now before my execution. Has anyone seen her?"

There was a small commotion from a section of the crowd nearby. After a moment, Droanna came stumbling forward, aided by the hands of the people around her. She tried to disappear back into the throng, but the people pushed her, and she hit the ground with an anguished cry.

Malissa moved toward her.

"Shh. Calm down. Everything is going to be alright. Come on, stand up."

Malissa helped Droanna to her feet again, but the maidservant kept her eyes downcast. She was shaking uncontrollably and hyperventilating with fear. Sweat was pouring down her face, mingling with her tears.

"That was quite a story you told earlier," Malissa said. "Some of it was true, but there were a few lies mixed in as well."

"I… I… I…"

"Shh. It's alright. I'm not concerned about those lies now. But there was another lie you told me several weeks ago. You made me think it was Dr. Jaeger who tried to poison my baby, but that wasn't true, was it?"

The maidservant was sobbing. Snot was leaking from her nose. Malissa carefully placed the tip of her index claw beneath the woman's chin and slowly tilted her face up until their eyes met.

"It was you who fed me the poison, wasn't it? Tell me the truth now."

The quantity of tears that came gushing out of the maidservant's eyes was unlike anything Malissa had ever seen before. She almost felt sorry for the woman. Almost.

"I'm sorry!" Droanna blurted. "I'm so sorry!"

Malissa sensed that the maidservant was about to flee, so she quickly wrapped her arms around the woman and hugged her tightly. Droanna cried out and tried to pull away, but her feeble struggles were futile against Malissa's newfound strength.

"Relax," Malissa said softly, and after a moment the maidservant did relax a little. "I'm not angry with you, I'm just a little confused. Haven't I always been kind to you, Droanna?"

"Yes, Your Highness," the maidservant sobbed into her shoulder.

Malissa gently petted the woman's hair.

"So why did you do it, Droanna? Why did you want to kill my child? You can tell me."

It was a long time before the maidservant was able to speak, but once she finally started talking, the words came out in a deluge. Her thoughts were all disjointed, and the events she described were out of order, but Malissa was still able to gather the gist of it. Droanna and the king had been lovers. At least that was what the maidservant thought. Malissa had her doubts as to whether the king actually saw it that way. Certainly he would never have elevated Droanna to the level of queen, even if he had managed to impregnate her as she hoped.

Now Malissa truly did feel sorry for the poor, deluded fool. When the woman finished talking, Malissa continued to hold her, rocking her slightly.

"I appreciate your honesty, Droanna. And… I forgive you."

"Really?" the maidservant gasped in disbelief.

"I forgive you," Malissa repeated as she tightened her hold on the woman. "However, my baby does not."

She took a step back, toward the flames.

"Wait!" Droanna gasped. "What are you—?"

Malissa took another step back, and another, pulling the maidservant with her. A murmur ran through the crowd. They were here to see a woman get burned alive, and now they were going to get what they'd come for.

A third step. A fourth. Malissa could feel the warmth of the flames caressing her wings. It felt nice, like sunshine on a summer day.

"No!" Droanna screamed. "Please!"

The woman was strong, and she writhed like a wild animal, but Malissa held her with ease. She took one more step back, and they were in the fire together.

The flames ignored Malissa, but they did not ignore her prey. The maidservant's loose hair lifted for a moment on the rising heat, then ignited all at once, surrounding her head in a halo of whipping light. Her flesh seared and split like an overcooked sausage, and the air filled with the sickly sweet aroma of roasting meat. Her throat quickly became too charred to scream, but she continued to thrash for a long time after. By the time it was finally over, she was little more than a collection of blackened bones.

Malissa felt a firm hand on her shoulder. She turned to find Beliath staring down at her with an expression that could only be pride.

"That was nicely done, my angel."

"Thank you, my demon."

"So, that takes care of the doctor and the poisoner. Who's next?"

"The king, I suppose."

"And what shall we do with him, angel?"

Malissa turned to face the demon fully, and she pressed her naked body against his. She kissed his chest once, then tilted her head back and smiled up at him sweetly.

"Let's make him watch."