Chapter 4

Descaris

I hesitated outside the room. What was I doing? I'd completely failed to stay away from her. Every single person I decided to kill just led me to another vision of her dying. Which was a shame because I especially wanted to rip the balls off that guard who was flirting with her. Slowly. I'd thought about it a lot. But each time, the visions got more painful. Watching her die over and over and over again was flaying me raw. I was breaking, and I had to find out why. Why was she so important? How could she break down centuries old barriers like no one else ever had? Why did I want to murder every man who even looked at her?

I passed through the door and immediately she glanced up at me. Wide brown eyes looking me up and down. Every part of me wanted to rush to her. She was beautiful. The thought stopped me in my tracks. Truly beautiful. I'd seen plenty of attractive human women before. I'd even enjoyed them from time to time. But this. This was true beauty. It didn't matter how hard I tried to push it away. She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.

"Please sit."

I sat in the chair opposite her. We were so close now. I felt my body harden in that place where my cock would be if I took a solid form. I adjusted my robes just in case she could somehow see that, too.

"Well, as you know, I'm Ella. What's your name?"

"Descaris."

"Hello, Descaris."

My name sounded like a song when it came from her. I wondered how it would sound if she was moaning it. She watched me for a moment, twisting her hands. She was still scared of me. I didn't know how to fix that. I was a shadow demon. Demons were naturally dangerous and often violent. I'd killed countless other creatures.

"How are you finding your time in prison, Descaris?"

I didn't have a heart in my body anymore, but I could swear that it started beating harder in its box.

"Tedious. Aggravating."

Until you, was what I wanted to say next. But I held it back. She leaned forward, like she could tell I wasn't saying everything, and she watched me. Quiet. Waiting. Those brown eyes taking me in. She wasn't shaking anymore. This was her arena. Clever. She'd changed the state of play by pulling me into the place she was strongest. I admired the strategy. It made me even more turned on by her.

"Prison isn't exactly how I planned to spend the next couple of centuries of my life."

"How did you plan to spend them?"

I paused. How honest to be?

"In luxury. With power."

"What went wrong?"

For the first time in my life, I didn't want to talk about what I had done. I didn't want to see her reaction. I knew she wouldn't approve.

"I did what I had to. The underworld that I come from is full of the most vicious creatures, all vying to be on top. It's kill or be killed. Sometimes you need to send a message to those that threaten you."

"Do you?"

I tilted my head at her. It was a genuine question. She wasn't judging me. That was unusual for a human.

"Sometimes. I had people that lived on my lands. People that worked for me. It's only right that I protected them. Proactively when needs be."

"Proactive protection?"

She was dubious. I wanted her to understand. To know me. I couldn't explain it, but it mattered in that moment that she knew me.

"I can see the future."

She sat back in her chair and her mouth pressed into that little pout.

"I've heard that's possible. Can you control it?"

"If I could, I wouldn't be here now with my heart locked in a box."

She smiled for the first time since we had entered the room. It made my heart sing.

"Good point."

"I get flashes. Usually, they are pretty reliable. But on the day I was caught chasing an enemy into the human realm, there was nothing."

"Maybe you were meant to end up here."

At any other time, I'd have argued with that. How could it be possible that I was meant to be here? Rotting away. But the more I was in her presence, the more it was dawning on me that she was important.

"Perhaps."

I leaned forward and caught a whiff of jasmine. My hands itched to reach out to her. I'd never felt alone before. Not since I was a child. But this couple of feet between us felt like an ocean. I was hollow and empty and alone. Perhaps if I could have her, then all that would change.

"Why are you following me around?"

It was bold. She had to know I was a hundred times more powerful than her. I could rip her to shreds.

"I don't know. There is something about you. I keep having visions of you dying."

Her face turned to shock and then crumpled for a moment before she pulled herself together. It was almost as devastating as watching her die over and over again. I'd been too blunt and caused her pain.

"I'm trying to stop it. I won't let you die."

The words flew out of me vehemently. I meant it with every part of my being. Her face screwed up with confusion.

"Why?"

"I don't know. I just…."

She was trying not to panic now. Breathing deeply and blinking tears away. Grasping onto my words like a lifeline.

"There are feelings… ones that… I haven't…."

I took a moment.

"I haven't had feelings of any sort for a long time. But when I look at you, they keep pushing in. Relentlessly. I've watched you die in my visions a dozen times now. It hurts."

She stared at me. Fear and hope warring with confusion. I wanted to hold her. I needed to. Needed her. Her face had her feelings written all over it. Every time I saw her, she was an open book. Just for a moment, I stopped fighting and I let my own feelings for her in fully. It was like being hit by a tonne of bricks. A gasp escaped me and concern flashed across her face. I knew it in my bones. I could never push the knowledge away or stuff it back in now. She was my mate. She was my other half. My everything. And I knew at that moment I would kill every single person in this prison to protect her.

The light is weeping over my body. Wracked with pain. She isn't paying attention and a monster lunges at her. Tearing, shredding.

I shook myself and found her kneeling in front of me, her hand on my shoulder.

"Are you ok?"

"A vision."

Her face was so close to mine. Her touch was like a burning brand. Every part of me wanted to run. But I also wanted to consume her. I reached out a hand and touched her cheek, running a thumb over the soft skin. Her breath trembled slightly, and I leaned down, taking those succulent lips in mine.