by Calista Fox
In truth, she felt more alive than ever before. More a part of something significant and bigger than herself, and certainly in tune to possibilities she’d never dared dream of—like the opportunity to discuss with Darien advancements that might improve human life. And the potential to strengthen relations so the demons within the king’s alliance—who obeyed his rules and did not prey on mortals—could be free of persecution and, in turn, the humans could be released from fear and tyranny.
A win-win was so close at hand, she nearly vibrated in her chair as Tanner tried to get the crowd under control. Speculation about the king’s presence, however, had everyone whispering and chattering in terse voices.
Finally, Jade jumped to her feet, as she was prone to do when she’d had enough of the speculative conversation.
“Everyone, please,” she said in a strong voice, “take your seats.” They did, and the talking dimmed. “Now, allow Tanner and me to recognize King Darien’s presence at our meeting.”
Darien stood and the congregation knelt in front of their chairs as they’d done the last time he’d visited the hall.
“Thank you, Jade.” He slid a sideways glance her way. He clearly found it amusing her patience with the villagers’ anxiety always snapped when there was important news to discuss. He gestured for the group to return to their chairs. Then he said, “I appreciate Tanner and Jade giving me the floor for a few moments to dis—”
Alarm gripped Jade as a movement in the anteroom snagged Darien’s attention.
Seconds later, Morgan swept into the hall, his cloak swirling at his feet. He wore a tense expression that made her instantly ill at ease. The villagers turned their gazes from the king to his general and bewildered whispers ensued.
“Excuse me,” Darien announced before joining Morgan in the far corner.
Jade exchanged looks with Tanner, then he stepped closer to her and ventured, “This must have something to do with the rogue army.”
Her heart sank to her knees. “Let’s hope there aren’t more casualties.”
But she wasn’t one to be left hanging. She moved away from Tanner and insinuated herself into Darien and Morgan’s conversation.
Darien stopped mid-sentence and glowered at her.
She said, “I’m supposed to be an ambassador now. I believe that entitles me to hear news that clearly impacts the village, given Morgan came directly to the meeting hall with his report.”
The general appeared confused by her statement. He asked, “Ambassador?”
“I’ll explain later,” Darien said. Then he added, “Continue with your update.”
Morgan did as requested. “The renegade army has split up and I believe they’ll be outside Ryleigh’s borders within a day. Two at the most. The tracks they’re leaving are scattered and intermittent, indicating they’re still vanishing. This throws off our detection of them. But they will materialize.” His tone turned grave. “And when they do, I suspect they will have surrounded the village.”
Jade’s pulse hitched. “Tanner and I can’t defend the village against a hundred and fifty demons.”
Darien nodded at her. “Thank you for actually acknowledging that.” As though he’d feared she’d be foolish enough to try to fend off the demons.
Then again… If it was her only choice…
She asked, “What do you want us to do?”
“Stay out of it.” Morgan was the one to respond. “You’re minus a slayer, and even if you wanted to be a stand-in, which I know Darien would never permit, you—”
“I’m more than a stand-in,” she bristled. Tugging on the sleeve of her sweater, she showed him her bracelet. “The king signed the papers last night.”
Morgan’s shocked gaze flashed to Darien.
The king raised a hand. “Again, I’ll explain later. The fact she’s a registered slayer has no bearing on the current state of affairs. This isn’t a fight to include the villagers’ or the slayers’ involvement. It’s between my army and the fire wraith’s.”
Regardless, Jade felt panic swirl in her belly.
Darien continued, saying to Morgan, “I want you to recall your patrols and have them come upon the perimeter of the village slowly, so as to thwart a retreat by the invaders.”
“Certainly.”
“We’ll assemble an army to barricade the border and advance on the renegades, pushing them outward. Station your troops at least a half-mile from the woods, so the wraith’s soldiers can’t penetrate the boundaries and scatter in the forest. The slayers will stay within the village. We’ll drive the wraith’s army back, or toward the castle, but certainly away from Ryleigh.”
“Wait,” she interjected in a quiet tone, so her constituency didn’t hear her. Her heart pounded erratically. “I can’t just accept you surrounding the village with your forces. You’re talking about two demon armies right outside our borders, encompassing us. No human is going to be accepting of that, including me.”
Darien’s brow jerked. “You doubt my intentions?”
“Of course not.” Though dread mixed with her panic. “But put yourself in our position.”
The word “our” made his eyes narrow on her. He clearly heard “the humans’ position” instead.
She rushed on. “What I’m saying is, you’re trapping us within the village boundaries.” A sense of claustrophobia seized her, but helplessness turned out to be a greater fear. “Come on, Darien. I can’t tell these people they’ll be the centerpiece in a demon-demon war. I don’t care that your army is bigger and more powerful. Even I feel threatened by being closed in.”
“You?” he demanded in a voice that held disbelief. “You would doubt me?”
“That’s not what I’m saying. I just—”
He turned sharply and stalked away. Jade’s distress escalated. Yet a thought sprang to her mind, and without second-guessing the obscure notion, she said, “Wait. I know how to ensure the villagers’ safety—and bolster their confidence—so you can deploy your army.”
She turned back to the melee in the meeting room. “We’re in a very precarious situation, and the threat does not come from the castle above us.” Jade spoke loud enough to her neighbors that a hush fell over the crowd.
“The fire wraith that attacked me twice leads an army headed this way. The king and his general will do everything in their power to keep that army from breaching our borders. But they have to barricade the perimeter of our village with demons in order to do it.”
Malcolm Carter, the blacksmith, shouted, “It’s a trick!”
This caused an outbreak of panic from the men and terror-filled shrieks from the women and children.
Jade leaped onto the seat of her chair and whistled loudly. Then she said, “I can assure you, this is no trick.”
When the din quieted enough for her to speak, she continued. “I’ve seen the fire wraith. I’ve been injured by him. Badly. More so than any of you know, with the exception of the king and his staff.”
Her gaze slid to Michael, who merely shook his head and averted his eyes. While her heart hurt because of the strain on their friendship, she didn’t waver from her duty. “I understand how difficult this is to reconcile in your minds. I’m struggling as well. As my father did, years ago. But the fact remains, we’re in jeopardy from demons outside the king’s alliance. And if he offers his assistance to us, I cannot, in good faith toward all of you, refuse it.”
Jade allowed the villagers to squawk and fret. The men were outraged and she didn’t blame them. Tanner folded his arms over his chest and gave her a curious look, as though to indicate she’d stuck her foot in her mouth and had worsened their troubles.
She disagreed.
“If you’re done,” she said in a sharp tone that garnered attention. She hopped down from the chair and addressed everyone as they returned to their seats again. “I have it on very good authority, with personal stakes involved, that the king and his general will keep their word and drive back the invading force—without harming any of us.”
“How, Jade?” This statement, laced with incredulity, came from Max Wilkins, the butcher.
She pulled in a breath, then surged forward. “First, I’ve been appointed by the king himself as an ambassador of peace between the demons and humans.”
Anticipating the eruption of dialogue, she waited a few minutes, then added, “In addition to being a slayer, I’m committing myself to improving relations between humans on this continent and the demons in the king’s alliance. What we don’t have control over, but which I am confident the king eventually will, are the renegade demons that make their random attacks.”
Malcolm was bold enough to ask, “How can you trust them, Jade?”
Without hesitating, she replied, “Because I know the king and his general. I’ve seen the lengths to which they’ll go for someone who lives outside their castle walls. I know their goodwill can stretch much further. And I will give you my personal guarantee that we are not in danger from the king or his men.”
The challenging looks were impossible to miss, but no one else seemed courageous enough to demand further explanation from her. Not while they were in the king’s presence, that was.
She answered for them. “I trust the king’s judgment. And the general’s. I also have an agreement with the king that we’ll work together to support his peace efforts. And, if that’s not assurance enough…” Jade took another deep breath, then jumped off a cliff. “You can be confident in that he’d never intentionally let anything endanger this village when it means so much to his,” she swallowed hard and said, “wife.”
The uproar made her roll her eyes. She let it go on and on. Sliding a glance toward Darien, she found him shaking his head and appearing astonished by her audacity. Michael looked duly stricken.
She’d deal with both men later.
When Lisette finally stepped forward with her arms lifted and an expression of utter shock on her face, Jade quieted the group once more.
“I realize this is stunning news,” Jade said. “And for the record, we haven’t exchanged vows yet. However—”
“You’re a demon slayer, Jade.” Lisette stated the obvious in an incredulous tone.
Jade fought the natural hackles creeping up on her. “I’m aware of that. And my fiancé is a demon, yes. But he is not the enemy,” she insisted.
Darien approached her. She could see he fumed, though he tried to hide it from everyone but her. In his commanding voice, he said to the villagers, “I understand this comes as a surprise. But the bottom line is that Jade is correct. I will do everything in my power to protect Ryleigh. And other villages. You have my word on that.” His gaze slid to her. “And we’ll talk more in private.”
She sighed. He stormed away and she focused on the outraged group.
Finally, Tanner exerted himself and announced, “Meeting adjourned!” He turned to Jade and added, “You could have warned me.”
“I hadn’t accepted his proposal. Until now.” She shrugged, though guilt ribboned through her. “What choice did I have? I had to prove to them Darien would never willingly let anything happen to these people when he knows how much they mean to me.”
“Jade,” he said between clenched teeth, “you’re talking about marrying the Demon King, not having a fence built around our village.”
“Actually, there will be a fence around our village. A demon fence.” She smiled at him, despite her own anxiety over having pissed off her fiancé once again. “I’ll admit the thought freaked me out at first, but face it, Tanner. There isn’t a chance in hell Darien will let that rogue army penetrate his forces.”
The other slayer gave this due consideration, his eyes clouding. Eventually, he said, “I agree.” He took a step closer to her and said, “But you just committed yourself to marrying him, Jade. How do you plan to reconcile that with the villagers?”
* * * * *
“She certainly knows how to twist the knife, doesn’t she?” Morgan commented as they mounted their horses outside the meeting hall.
Darien said, “I do vacillate frequently between wanting to kiss her and wanting to shake some sense into her.” It was unfortunate that he found Jade’s cunning intriguing and that he respected her determination and nerve, because those things also infuriated the hell out of him.
“Can we count on her to follow your direction and stay in the village?”
“She knows the extent of my patience and tolerance.” He hadn’t missed the flicker of dread in her eyes while his temper had simmered over her unexpected announcement of their now-impending nuptials. She’d known she’d aggravated him. Yet again. “I’m certain we have nothing to worry about with her or Tanner. Jade will obey my command this time.”
“I still can’t believe you allowed her to take the slayer’s oath,” the general said as they rode through the woods.
“Who says I allowed her to take it? She had Tanner swear her in while I was gone.”
Morgan shot him a confused look. “You didn’t have to approve the registry.”
With a jerk of his head and a sardonic tone, Darien said, “As if that would stop her.”
His general was silent as they passed over the narrow bridge in single-file formation before doubling up again. “Forgive me for asking, but how will you justify marrying a demon slayer?”
Darien sighed. “That does complicate matters.” By a lot. “She wasn’t a slayer when I proposed.”
A snort from Morgan was followed by, “As if that would stop you.”
“No, I didn’t intend to rescind the proposal. But I could have used more time to work out the semantics. Now I’m relying on the fact that she’s part demon to help smooth the waters with my alliance.”
He was resigned to an inevitability he hadn’t previously considered. “Her being a slayer certainly gives her more weight than when she was merely human. The demi-demon aspect will work in her favor as well. And our union will prove we’re both serious about maintaining peace.”
That was a very reasonable stance to take, he decided. One that would validate the choice he’d made when he’d selected his queen.
They climbed the hill to the castle and dispersed, each having strategic tasks to implement.
Unfortunately, Darien’s optimism about marrying Jade waned as he gave the scenario more thought. He could not dismiss Morgan’s statements and found himself wondering if he really could pull off the impossible.
* * * * *
Jade spent the majority of the day making the rounds in the village, popping into shops to listen to her neighbors’ fears regarding the invading renegade demon force and the king’s army surrounding the perimeter of their small community.
She attempted to calm the anxiety of her friends, but there was more to the deep-seated concern than the threat of attack. She’d created upheaval and turmoil with her announcement that she intended to marry the Demon King, but she was diplomatic in placating everyone and actually very good at soothing frayed nerves. To an extent, anyway.
Her last stop was the tavern, where she sat with the regulars and assured them the king’s army would deal swiftly with the renegades, now that their whereabouts had been narrowed down.
Michael asked, “What if the rogue demons break through one of the barricades?”
“Then Tanner and I will have to protect the villagers. In fact, it would be a good idea for everyone to remain in the general area, in their shops and here, tomorrow and the next day. So no one’s wandering about, making a target of themselves.”
The severity of the predicament did not escape anyone. Jade imagined this was the sort of tension and terror Lisette and the elders had experienced each time a demon war had erupted, decades ago.
The waiting, she decided, was the hardest part. Having no idea what happened outside the border of Ryleigh and not being directly involved in the conflict created as much consternation as the threat against the people she’d sworn to protect.
So when Tanner strutted in with a purposeful gait, she jumped from her chair and
met him in front of the fireplace.
“Something happened, I can see it in your eyes,” she said, though he was clearly trying to keep a reserved visage.
“Bring your swords,” he said in a quiet voice.
She collected both, and her jacket. They left the tavern, but someone followed them. She whirled around and found Michael hot on their heels.
“Whatever it is,” he said, “you can probably use another sword.”
“You don’t have a sword,” she reminded him.
Tanner handed over one of his. “Do you know how to use it?”
“Of course. Not as well as either of you, but I can manage.”
“Absolutely not!” Jade was horror-stricken at the suggestion Michael intended to join them.
“Jade,” Tanner said, his tone dark and ominous. “We need him.”
With that, the other slayer turned sharply and mounted his horse. Jade bristled, but Michael clearly wasn’t going anywhere.
“Fine,” she said against her better judgment. “Ride with me and do as I say.” He scowled at her, but she didn’t hedge. “That’s the deal, or you might as well walk back to the tavern.”
They followed Tanner to the west woods but slowed a quarter mile before the forest ended and opened to a flat clearing. Snow fell lightly, though not enough to obscure the visibility. Through the trees, Jade saw the commotion beyond the woods and her heart lodged in her throat.
The ragtag assembly and the black banner blowing in the breeze told her the demons gathered were not from Darien’s alliance.
As her pulse raged, she heard riders approach from behind. She drew her sword as she jerked on the reins and faced the newcomers. She recognized them from the recent patrols, though they’d always been on the other side of the border.
“We’ve violated code by cutting through the forest,” one of them said, “but it was the fastest way to get here.”
“How’d you know the fire wraith’s army had congregated?” she asked.
“The king sent scouts as soon as he returned to the castle. One from this area headed back to alert him the rogues have arrived ahead of schedule. The others found us. Additional scouts are searching the remainder of the outskirts.”