The man appeared before her very eyes. A cloaking spell to disguise his presence,, that took strong magic. He didn’t move towards her, just faced her from her neighbor’s yard.

Her breath caught, heart stuttered. The first thing she noticed was his eyes. The darkest eyes she’d ever seen, too dark to be human. Pitch black. Her eyes moved away from his face. Curiosity had her digging to learn more about him. Just who was this and what did he want with her?

“Abbigail Krenshaw.” Her stomach trembled at his deep voice. He had a deep voice. It could be sexy if it wasn’t so terrifying. The way he said her name was unusual too, Abb-ee-gyle Kreenshaw.

She sensed the question in his voice though she hadn’t heard the upward inflection normally there in a question. Maybe it was fear or the strangeness of everything, but she answered. “Yes.”

He started towards her. Coming closer, out of the shadows, she could see him more clearly. His long, dark hair was as black as the empty pit of his eyes. His hair came down to his shoulders but was cut unevenly at the ends, not straight. She saw ebony skin that was so dark it was to the point of being black not brown. He wore a strange looking shirt that reminded her of a tunic. It was black, knitted, long-sleeved but with an open collar, black pants, and tall black boots. None of this kept her attention for very long because as he came closer, she saw the glint of metal on his back. Two weapons, swords actually, were strapped in an X pattern across his pattern.

“What are you?” she whispered. He was handsome, tall, and looked strong enough to pick her up and snap her in two she’d bet. He also didn’t look entirely human.

He stopped so close she could feel the heat from his body. For some reason, she found she wasn’t scared anymore. Maybe it was finally seeing her pursuer, but she didn’t get the vibe that this man would slit her throat and leave her for dead. It might be dangerous, but she trusted her instincts on this. She craned her head up to see his face. No, he wasn’t handsome. He was stunning.

His hair formed from a peak at his broad forehead. He had a brusque, distinguishing nose and high cheekbones that gave a hollowed definition to his cheek line. Dark stubble covered his jaw line and chin, but underneath that she could see he had a hard, jutting chin. He had full, masculine lips with the top just thinner than the bottom. They weren’t perfect but that’s what made them even more intriguing. All of his features on closer inspection were too perfect, and they shouldn’t have formed a good-looking face. He should look too fierce, too sharp but somehow his features came together in a way that drew the eye.

“Demon,” he answered.

His voice drew her out of her inspection. She’d forgotten she’d asked him a question. He’s a demon? She knew about them. Most humans just pretended they didn’t exist or only did in a religious or mythical way, but she knew about the supernaturals. Heck, her best friend Jenna could shapeshift into a panther, and Abby had once autopsied a vampire. However, she’d never met a demon. To say they were uncommon would be an understatement.

Her mother had spoon-fed her lore of the great wars fought by the vampires against demons long ago. Weapons manufacturer and wealthy tycoon, Telal Demuzi had come out publicly when heat grew on him about his strange appearance some years ago. He’d admitted to being a demon, he’d embraced it, said he was over a thousand years old, and it’d shocked many humans. You wouldn’t think they could be shocked. Vampires were all the rage—real ones anyway. They were slowly coming out but most still lived in secluded communities across the globe. Many more had called him a liar and still believed he used makeup and hair dye to achieve his unique look. They said it was a marketing gimmick.

But, Abbigail knew better. Her best friend Jenna was a shapeshifter, something else many humans pretended didn’t exist, however many knew. Humans just didn’t seem as interested in the beings who could shapeshift. Abby had seen Jenna shift before—it was one of the most frightening and beautiful things she’d ever seen in her life.

Yet the creature before her was neither vampire nor shapeshifter nor witch for that matter. He was the stuff of nightmares.

“What do you want?”

His answer came fast. “You.”

Her stomach knotted then dropped right out of her.

A flutter moved inside her. Pleasure.

Oh, don’t be silly, Abby. He’s probably going to kill you. She should seriously not be flattered that a good-looking demon said he wanted her. It had to be hormones because she could feel the beginnings of a blush stir.

Before she could say anything, he wrapped a strong arm around her shoulders pulling her close and then she felt the earth sway at her feet. Darkness enveloped her eyes, and she went blind. Then she felt nothing under her feet. She was falling in space, seeing nothing but empty blackness and hearing nothing but her own fast breaths. The strong arm holding her drew her in tighter as her heart thumped louder in her ears.

The human was different than he’d expected. The presence of magic surrounded her like a bright cloud. How could she not be using it if it was wrapped around her so? She must still be practicing. The seer must be wrong and this meant only good news for him. This meant she’d be ready to kill his mother much quicker than he’d originally thought. Perhaps with a little additional training from him she’d be ready in no time. They could leave to track the queen in as a little as a week if luck stayed with him.

Alrik shifted the slight weight of the human girl in his arms—she was a light thing—and scanned the area around him before swimming down into the lake and resurfacing in the hidden cove that lie under the slope of the beach. He rose with the human, water dripping from their hair and clothes. Thanks to the effect of porting, she still slept. Many couldn’t handle it especially for their first time.

His boots splashed in the ankle-deep water as he made his way into the blackened cave that’d become his impromptu home. He’d had many ‘homes’ since being banished by his brother Telal. Sometimes on his travels, he would find a desolate shack or old farmhouse that he’d steal a few nights away in, but the further he’d gone from the kingdom the less he saw of other people.

Not much lived outside the kingdom, and the kingdom offered the only protection against idummi attacks. They had a highly trained militia of shahoulin demon warriors—the best in the rift. The lethal venom idummi carried in their fangs would kill anything it bit unless treated promptly by someone who knew what they were doing.

Alrik hadn’t slept well in years it seemed. Since he was forced from his crown, his journey seemed to stretch on endlessly. He had no one. He’d never known how much he craved companionship, even just idle conversation, until he no longer had it.

He couldn’t even relax let alone get a full night’s rest. Not when the idummi targeted him like he’d be their next juicy snack. He’d interrogated enough idummi before ending their lives to learn his mother stood behind the attacks. He couldn’t say that surprised him. She knew he was after her and that he was shunned from his kingdom. Which only meant that she knew he wanted to kill her. Alrik had prepared the best he could for her because few were smarter and more cunning than his mother. She’d set a target on his back the moment she learned of his banishment. Now it was just a matter of time to see who died first.

Just how many idummi she’d managed to rally to her cause, he didn’t know. If his mother was one thing aside from insane, it was smart. She might have an army bigger than he could imagine. He’d just have to prepare for the worst. He did have one benefit on his side—determination. He wouldn’t stop. Nothing would get in his way until her royal wet blood slipped between his fingers.