Waiting until Caleb finished pulling his clothes on, Lilliana bit her lip as she saw the nasty, jagged wound that he didn’t even seem to feel. She could only imagine how much it must burn. Yet he said nothing. Indeed, he acted as if he wasn’t wounded at all.
Malphas. She knew that name. He was one of the generals who was against them.
No wonder he was feared by so many. He was massively huge and terrifying to behold. Yet it wasn’t that simple. There was a great beauty to his form. Granted, it was an unusual form. Still…
He was handsome in a peculiar way.
He’s a demon!
Her father would beat her senseless if he ever learned she’d helped one of his kind. The village elder would kill her for daring to render aid.
So why are you risking your life for someone who spends his time killing humans?
She had no idea, really, other than it was what she’d been taught. Help those in need. If someone was hungry, you should feed them. If they were wounded, you helped.
You know they never meant that for a demon.
True, but he didn’t seem like a mindless raging animal. He was quite sentient.
Human-like.
She glanced at those eerie eyes that watched her so intently. “Does that hurt?”
“What?”
“Your eyes. They …”
“What?” he barked again.
Lilliana wished she’d not said anything. But now that she had, she needed to finish it. “You seem to see more than I do.”
He let out a bitter laugh. “Not true.”
“How so?”
“I would have only seen an enemy and I would have killed it where it lay.” He rubbed against the bandage she’d made. “I never would have rendered aid.”
“Should I be afraid?”
The tenderness evaporated from his eyes. “Yes. You should. I’m a very dangerous thing.”
“And I am not, Caleb. I’m trusting you to keep your word and not hurt me.”
He curled his lip. “That name is atrocious.”
“That name is quite beautiful. It’s my favorite, in fact.” Sitting back, she wrinkled her nose at him. “Do you have a favorite name?”
“Lilliana.” It came out as a faint whisper that shocked her and by the stunned expression on his face, she could tell he felt the same.
Clearing his throat, he sent his gaze toward his weapon. “May I ask another favor?”
“Of course.”
“Could you hand my sword to me?”
That wasn’t terrifying at all. Had she angered him so greatly that he intended to kill her, after all? “May I ask why?”
“It needs to be cleaned.”
“Oh.” Lilliana hesitated as she finally realized how much blood coated it. “Was it a great battle?” Or had he slaughtered so many innocents? A tremor of fear and trepidation went through her. Had she assisted someone she shouldn’t have?
He let out an elongated breath. “It was a tremendous battle.”
“How did you survive it?”
Snorting, he gestured at his blood-soaked bandage. “I haven’t yet.”
She dragged the heavy sword to him. “I don’t think your wounds are mortal.”
A slight smile curved his lips. “It’s not mortal wounds I fear, little mouse. It’s immortal ones that will end me.” He took the sword from her hand and used a portion of her bandage to clean the blade.
“Who were you fighting?”
“Not humans. Put your mind at ease. I normally pay no attention to your kind. I have better prey I prefer.”
She wasn’t sure if that comforted her or made it worse. “Are you saying you don’t kill humans?”
He paused in the cleaning to pin her with an intense stare. “I kill anything that gets in my way. And definitely whatever attempts to kill me.”
“Point taken, then. I shall stay out of your way and I no intention of trying to kill you.”
Malphas lowered the sword. “I didn’t mean that as a threat to you.”
“It sounded like a threat.”
“Then I’m sorry. I don’t spend much time talking to others.”
“Ah. I see.”
He frowned at her. “What does that mean?”
“You’re like my father. Too busy barking orders and opinions to be bothered with what others think.”
One corner of his mouth twitched as if he wanted to smile, but wouldn’t allow himself to do so. “Do you fear anything?”
“You, my lord demon. You are terrifying.”
“So you keep saying. Yet you don’t act afraid.”
“I beg to disagree.”
He shook his head. “In my opinion, people in terror run away, screaming. They don’t embrace their fear.”
“I can’t speak about how others behave. My father taught me that if you run, things will chase you. Therefore, you should stand strong and confront danger. Better to die on your feet than on your belly.”
