Lucinda, Darkly
Page 26
“Nico,” I cried and laughed and launched myself at him.
He caught me with laughter of his own, a beautiful white pigeon among all the dark-skinned wolves.
“You are well,” I said, running my hands over him, needing the tactile proof of what my eyes beheld.
“Yes.”
“I had to shield.”
“I felt it. It staggered me for a second, but then I was fine. I seem to be stronger.”
“We all are,” Talon said, standing beside us.
“Hey, you returned,” Nico said with a grin.
“Yes, it seems that she cannot get rid of us, no matter how she tries,” Talon said. To all of our amazement, he grinned also.
Nico reached out and pulled Talon in, then we were all embracing and touching and laughing, our triad complete. And it felt right and whole.
“Enough theatrics and emotion for the day,” the High Lord said gruffly. “Into the house before all creatures far and near come panting after Nico’s white, tender flesh.”
“And your delectably naked one,” Nico murmured.
I raised a haughty brow. “Are you leering at me?”
“Absolutely.”
“Good.” I swung one arm around that white, tender flesh, the other around Talon’s dark slenderness, and together we walked into the house.
I TOLD MY father of all that had occurred. Hari and Ruric confirmed my report. At the end of our tale, Blaec sighed.
“So much death and bloodshed of both demons and Floradëurs. It will be hard to overcome, but your bond . . . perhaps that will do what my laws do not. To start to heal the rift between us. It will take time, but that is one thing we seem to have. And speaking of time, I have sent out word on Derek’s rogue status, but none have seen him, and no word has come of his whereabouts.”
“It has only been a day,” Nico said.
“That is all it should have taken to locate him,” I explained to Nico. “Justice is swift here. When you are decreed outlaw, no one dares help you or render aid. To do so will mean their own death. That we have not found Derek yet means that he is not here in this realm.”
Nico frowned. “Where else could he be?”
“In the lower realm or the upper realm,” I said.
“There is a lower realm?” Nico asked with surprise.
“Yes, though not many Monère know this. Many consider Hell as the lower realm, but in truth, Hell is just the middle kingdom. We have a lower realm called NetherHell.”
It was Talon who grasped the situation. “So we are not safe until Derek is captured.”
“Correct, dark one.” Blaec looked at me. My senses tingled, and like before, I suddenly knew what was coming.
“No,” I said, raising my hands.
“Yes, daughter mine.”
“I see where you get your autocratic ways now,” Nico murmured. I snarled at him before turning my attention back to the implacable rock that was my father.
“You are tied to both Hell and Earth now,” Blaec said. “With this rogue demon at large, your Monère warriors will not be enough. You will need demon guards who can be trusted to protect you and your people, and traverse the two realms. Who can control themselves around a Floradëur and among the living Monère.” A weighty pause that was lessened somewhat by the laughter shining from those dark chocolate eyes that now I could see were so much like my own. “And most crucially, who can keep a demanding, unruly demon princess in line.”
The High Lord turned to his two most trusted guards. “Do you know of any that I can entrust with such a task?”
Ruric knelt before his ruler. “I know of none other than Hari and I, my Lord, who could fulfill all of those requirements. Especially the last.”
My eyes narrowed. Blaec smiled and slapped his right hand on the big demon’s shoulder. “Thank you, old rock.”
“I pledge to keep our Dragon Queen safe,” Hari said, kneeling beside Ruric, his handsome, dark face uncharacteristically grave.
“I’m not a queen,” I said. Not anymore.
“But you are,” this new and serious Hari said with not a trace of his usual sullen, leering self. “You are our Dragon Queen.”
He said it with utter belief in his eyes, with a reverence and devotion that shook me. That made me want to shout at him: Don’t look at me like that. As if I am your sun, your moon, your earth, your sky.
I would have preferred his old snarkiness, but it seemed to have been wiped away.
“Thank you, Hari.” The High Lord’s left hand came down to rest upon the wiry demon’s shoulder.
They knelt there before him like two knights of old—surely an odd thought to have for demons. And they looked at me as if I were their holy grail.
Holy shit, as the humans were so fond of saying.
“Keep her safe. And try to keep the peace above while you’re at it,” Blaec said, his dark eyes twinkling. In a voice almost too low to hear, he murmured, “Things are going to be different up there.”
What a hellish understatement that was. I didn’t know whether to feel sorry for myself or for the Monère Court I was about to unleash these two demonic watchdogs on.
Yup, things were going to be very different.
Goddess help us all.
Dear Reader,
For more about Lucinda, please pick up Over the Moon, where the demon princess makes her first appearance. And On the Prowl, her second cameo.
If you’ve developed a thirst for more about the delicious Monère and the series that began it all, Mona Lisa Awakening and Mona Lisa Blossoming await your dark reading pleasure.
Look for Mona Lisa Craving in December.
Till then—
Sunny
www.sunnyauthor.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A family practice physician and Vassar graduate, Sunny was finally pushed into picking up her pen by the success of the rest of her family. Much to her amazement, she found that, by golly, she actually could write a book. And that it was much more fun than being a doctor. As an author, Sunny has been featured on Geraldo at Large and CNBC, and has won the Golden Leaf Award. When she is not busy reading and writing, Sunny is editing her husband’s books, literary novelist Da Chen, and being a happy stage mom for her two talented kids. Please visit www.sunnyauthor.com.