I had known Rachel Smith for less than a day. Which made it particularly inconvenient that I could already feel her emotions echoing through my chest.
The small inn sat at the edge of the capital's outer district, the kind of place travelers stopped at when they needed cheap food, a bed, and as few questions as possible. The wooden building leaned slightly to one side, its lantern swinging lazily in the night wind above the door.
Rachel paused outside, pulling the hood of the stolen cloak further over her head. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" she murmured.
"No," I said honestly.
She sighed. She did that a lot I noticed. "That's not comforting."
"However," I continued, "it is the least suspicious option." Humans hiding from powerful enemies rarely benefited from sleeping in forests their bodies where to weak, and Rachel was in no state physically or mentally for anything like that.
Rachel pushed open the door. Warm air and the smell of roasted meat drifted out to meet us. Inside, the inn was dimly lit by lanterns hanging from wooden beams. A few travelers sat scattered across the room eating late meals, their conversations low and uninterested.
Perfect. I could tell this place was used to keeping people's secrets. Rachel kept her head down as we approached the counter.
The innkeeper looked up. A middle-aged man with a thick beard and the weary eyes of someone who had seen every possible version of human trouble. "What can I get you?"
Rachel spoke before I could. "A room." She almost snapped back at the tired keeper.
His gaze moved between us slowly. "One bed or two?"
Rachel froze. I could practically feel the panic ripple through her through the bond. I answered calmly. "One." Rachel elbowed me. Hard, but instead of anger I only felt a light warm feeling. I was definitely enjoying this type of torment more than I expected. I didn't react. Why did I say one bed ?
The innkeeper just nodded as if that confirmed everything he needed to know. "Second floor," he said, sliding a small iron key across the counter. Rachel grabbed it quickly and practically dragged me toward the staircase.
"You did that on purpose," she whispered once we were out of earshot. "Hmm?" I looked around and scratched my ear seeming uninterested.
"We could have asked for two beds." She glared at me her cheeks turning slightly pink.
"Suspicious." Was all I could mutter out loud. Her embarrassment was radiating off of her , did I find it adorable, or was the soul bond just sharing her warmth with my cold…
"How?"
"Two travelers arriving late at night, clearly together, asking for separate beds." I really wanted the conversation to end.
"That's normal!" She threw her hands in the air. Rachel stopped halfway up the stairs. "We are pretending to be a couple." She whispered more to herself than me. She stared at me.
"Since when?" "Since the moment the innkeeper looked at you."
Rachel groaned quietly. "This is humiliating."
"It is effective." I chuckled.
She muttered something under her breath that sounded like a creative insult. Humans were fascinating when irritated. The way Rachel squirmed around angry made me want to irritate her more.
The room itself was small but clean. A single bed sat against one wall beside a narrow window. A small wooden table and chair occupied the opposite corner. Rachel closed the door quickly and leaned against it. "Well," she said. "This is awkward." I glanced at the bed. Her eyes narrowed "Don't even start."
"But I didn't even say anything yet." I looked at her with the most exaggerated hurt expression I could muster.
"You were thinking something." She seemed unfazed by my display.
"I am always thinking something."
Rachel dropped onto the bed with an exhausted sigh. "Fine," she muttered. "I'll sleep on the edge."
"You will sleep properly." I shook my head, she truly thought of me as a demon.
She blinked up at me. "And you?"
"I do not require sleep." I shrugged my shoulders.
"Of course you don't."
"I will keep watch, sleep, we have a lot ahead of us, you'll need it."
Rachel studied me suspiciously. "You're being weirdly polite for a demon."
"I am a king." These humans really understood nothing about demon high arches.
"That's not better." Despite her complaints, exhaustion was already creeping into her expression. The past twenty-four hours had pushed her far beyond what most humans could handle. Betrayal. Arrest. Escape. A demon contract. Even resilient humans broke under far less.
Rachel kicked off her shoes and lay down, still wearing the cloak. Within minutes her breathing slowed as sleep finally claimed her. The room fell quiet.
I leaned against the wall near the window, watching the street below. For a while nothing happened.
Travelers moved through the road occasionally. Lanterns flickered in distant windows. Somewhere nearby a dog barked once before settling again.
Then the bond shifted. A sudden wave of emotion crashed through me. Fear. Pain. Panic. Rachel's body twisted slightly beneath the blankets. "No…" she murmured softly. Another surge hit me. This time it carried images. Not clearly enough to see, but the emotions were unmistakable. Betrayal,Shock. The crushing moment when someone you trusted proves they never deserved it. Her breathing grew uneven. I frowned slightly. Humans dreamed often. But this felt different. Through the soul connection I felt everything. The moment she stood in the cathedral.The way her heart had dropped when she saw her step-sister in the dress meant for her.The cold realization that the man she loved had already chosen someone else. Anger flickered briefly. But beneath it was sadness. Not weak sadness. The quiet kind that settled and ached deep in the bones.
Rachel turned in her sleep, her brow tightening as another nightmare gripped her. I studied her for a long moment contemplating if I should wake her or let her be. How curious.
Most humans would have demanded blood immediately. Revenge. Punishment. Yet when I asked earlier if she wanted the guards dead… She refused. Even now I could feel the compassion she barely acknowledged. It didn't make sense. "How," I murmured quietly, "do you still feel mercy after that?"
Rachel shifted again. A loose strand of her hair had fallen across her face. Without thinking, I stepped closer. The moonlight spilling through the window illuminated her features softly.
Humans were fragile creatures. Short lives. Weak bodies. Yet somehow they managed to endure extraordinary suffering without completely breaking. I brushed the strand of hair away from her face. Her expression relaxed slightly. Interesting I thought to myself, the soul bond was brutal for demons, who were only allowed 1 in their lifetime. I never imagined how it would effect a human.
My gaze lingered. Rachel was not the most powerful human I had encountered. Not the most dangerous. Not even the most stubborn. But something about her was… Compelling. The word irritated me slightly. Demons were not supposed to become fascinated with humans. It complicated things. Yet as I watched her sleeping peacefully for the first time since I met her, a strange thought crossed my mind. "She may be the most beautiful human I have ever seen." The words slipped out quietly. Rachel stirred faintly but did not wake.
I stepped back toward the window again. Outside, the night continued as usual. Inside the room, however, something far more unusual had begun. And I had the unsettling feeling that the bond between us was only going to make things more complicated from here.