Chapter 190

Chapter 190



Trying to sate a lifetime of questions in the course of one conversation, Livia let them fly at will.

"Why do people become obsessed with me? I mean, I'm not... well, that you know...?" she asked, the question she’d been harbouring for the last decade.

Sitting back in her seat, she braced for the answer, nervously playing with the hem of her sleeve while she tried to listen past the abnormally loud beat of her heart.

 

"All humans experience that magnetism toward demons. It’s called allure. You evidently just haven't been taught to keep it in check. You are not just a witch, dear, but a demon." Rhye answered.

"Oh." That it was something Livia could have controlled hit her in the chest like a ton of bricks, stealing her breath and making her head spin. How long had she tried to contain her power? To change people’s reactions to her? And all along, it was apparently an easy fix. If only she’d known what she was, she could have saved herself a lifetime of hardship. It was almost painful to swallow. No wonder her coven hated her as much as they hated werewolves, she was no better.

 

Rhye must’ve caught the stricken look on her face, because he reassured her gently, "I can teach you how to control it, Livia."

 

"Thank you," she murmured softly, her lips curling in an affectionate smile. She tried to center herself. Pulling in a breath, then letting it out slowly. "Where do I come from? The ugly thing in the dock mentioned realms during our deal. Was it hell?"

Joseph beat the others in answering. "Yes and no. Francisco and his demons, however, was a different issue. This realm and ours, and quite a few others, are connected. Sort of. It’s basically a different dimension. Demons come from the underworld. Humans call it hell. Well, they aren't wrong though."

 

"Okay," she said slowly, blinking a couple of times, trying to wrap her head around the concept of entirely different worlds somehow connected to this one. It was a lot to digest, so she moved on to another question and filed it away to mull over later.

"So, what exactly is a demon witch?" She glanced at Rhye, raising an eyebrow. "Since apparently, the Internet isn't always to be trusted."

 

She could’ve sworn he almost cracked a smile, but the faint curve of his lips was short-lived and quickly replaced by his usual watchful suspicion.

Leon’s deep voice cut through her and Rhye’s stare-off, explaining, "Unlike humans, there are many different kinds of demons, though all are divided into two courts: Dark or Light. The number of species is so vast it would take days to describe them all, but I can tell you they can look like almost anything, from what humans would call "monsters" to those of us who look more humanoid. Demons' lifespans are longer, closer to a thousand years, and—"

 

"I’m sorry. What, that old?" she asked.

Joseph smirked and nodded. "Yes, thgat old."

For a moment, Livia wondered if she’d said the ‘old’ comment out loud but realised he’d just read her expression.

 

Hiding her relief and wishing she could hide her hot cheeks just as easily, she cleared her throat. 

"You said, ‘Courts.’ What are those?"

 

Rhye’s smirk told her he knew she was trying to change the subject, and why not, but he responded anyway. "It depends on species and bloodlines, but all demons are born either of the Light or of the Dark. In the past, there were many courts, and like us, they had clans, like wolves' packs in each, left to rule themselves autonomously."

 

"And now?"

 

Rhye and Leon’s expressions hardened briefly before Alpha Rhye smoothed them back out. "Since the War of the Rebels and the Um-the rebellions, there have been only two courts. Everyone in the underworld has been conquered and is now under the control of Prince Daemon and the Light Court, was overseen by Francisco and his rebellious men."

 

"Which one am I?"

 

The three men exchanged a weighted glance with each other.

"We don’t know, because you were born here in the human realm. I mean, I'm not sure really. We have never met someone like you before." Rhye answered honestly, a hint of regret in his otherwise deep, soothing timbre.

 

"What? Why? Is it hard to tell?"

 

Livia studied them, trying to discern if she could suss out which court she was from.

Joseph seemed easy. She’d often thought of him as a golden god, and he’d always reminded her of sunshine. It was his styled blonde hair, those amber eyes often gleaming with mischief, and the sunny, manic energy he had. Yet, she knew he wasn’t lying. Joseph surely didn't know more about her kind.

 

Leon, was a different matter. The man wasn't easy to read, and he’d also witnessed his dark side. The violent storm raging beneath the surface, carefully contained until he called upon it, didn’t change her guess. It was much harder to guess his loyalty, though. But everything about the brooding man was dark and dangerous without an ounce of sunshine or humour.

Rhye was telling the truth. She knew the man wouldn't lie to her, but there was something predatory about him, something ruthless and deadly. But, to her, at least, he was kind and caring, thoughtful and attentive.

 

Distracting her from her musings, Rhye replied, "Not usually, no. Your power, however, is difficult to discern."

She didn’t know what the hell that meant. Livia started to question him further, but Joseph cut in before she could.

"Let’s finish covering the basics before we delve into that." Joseph's tone didn’t encourage continuing down the path of questioning.

Narrowing her eyes at him speculatively, she considered ignoring him and asking anyway, but a knee bump and subtle head shake from Rhye stopped her.

 

Swallowing a growl, she let it go. For now. They would definitely be revisiting why her power, in particular, was hard to ‘taste,’ but she had more questions she wanted answered before she pushed Rhye or Leon into turning back into a brick wall.

 

"Since there are demons here, I take it that means I will able to go back and forth between... realms?" It felt strange as hell to talk about other dimensions like it was perfectly normal.

 

Leon nodded. "Unless they were banished, yeah. Those just visiting can use one of the gates. Or a portal to jump back, but only royal warriors have that ability."

 

"What stops the banished ones from using the gates?"

Joseph nickered, "Ha! I’d pay to see someone try it. The guards would eat them while they were still kicking and screaming."

Livia felt her eyes go as wide as saucers and gave him a horrified look. Seeing it, he bit his lips like he was trying to suck his smile back in and scratched at his neck.

"Er, just kidding! That would be... not funny." He paused and gave her a questioning look. "Right?"

"Right," she confirmed.

"Yeah, no, of course! Definitely not funny," Joseph proclaimed with a wave of his hand, though his eyes skittered away from her.

Shaking her head, she focused on Rhye again. "Wait, was I banished? I mean, maybe my parents?"

"No. Maybe." For the second time, Rhye made it clear that the line of questioning wasn’t open.

Sighing loudly, she made a face at him, but his expression remained immovable. Livia went quiet for a moment, trying to pick which of her many questions she should ask next.

 

"Not all demons look human," she surmised, remembering how shocked she’d been when she’d arrived at the docks and met her new metal dealer. "So, how do the ones like the ugly thing from the docks avoid being seen by people, or captured and turned into lab rats by the government?

"Glamour," Leon said. "All demons are born with certain features depending on their bloodline. I mentioned earlier, there were hundreds of types of Fae, and each species looked different. Glamour is an ability that can be used to hide those traits from sight."

"Like an invisible cloak," she murmured. It would have been hard to believe if she hadn’t experienced the tangibility of her own power before. But, she knew power, magic, witch’s magic, and everything they spoke of was real.

"Exactly. Except instead of actually making demons invisible, it only cloaks the characteristics that make them different."

"Like this?" Livia This is what I look like without the... extras." Livia’s eyes flashed a deeper gold, as if showing her the smallest glimpse of what she kept hidden beneath. And it made Rhye want to see more.

"It takes a little practice, but it becomes easy to pull into place," Rhye assured her.

"Does this mean I don’t actually look like this?" Her curious gaze darted from man to man, trying to see beyond their beautiful exteriors.

"At the heart, all demons look the same, just more inhuman." Rhye tapped the shell of his ear. 

"Things like our pointed ears and wings would draw far too much attention in this realm, so demons hide them away in favour of this rather mundane appearance." He peered down at himself as if he weren’t jaw-droppingly gorgeous.