The First Book of Demons

Yashmina was enjoying her daily stroll in the royal gardens when strong, familiar hands closed around her big brown eyes and cut off the view of the flowers she was enjoying. A smile lit her face as the scent of the demon she loved washed over her.

  “Tavi,” Yashmina said, her small hands coming to rest on top of his and pulling them away from her eyes.

  “I missed your scent,” he mumbled in her ear. He breathed in the wonderful smell of her soft brown hair.

  “I missed you,” she said, turning around to come face to face with him. Her smile faltered a little as she stepped back from him. “But you’re far too casual in your address of me, and in such a public place.”

  “Yashmina,” Tavi said, lifting a hand to her face, “You’re no longer a married woman.” A devilish smile curled on his lips, as he felt the softness of her round cheek with his thumb. “Besides, your husband was all too aware of my affections for you, and he wholeheartedly approved.”

  Yashmina gave him a playful punch in the chest, smiling and looking away from him as a blush lit her cheeks. She was a concubine in his father’s harem, though she was only there because of the affection Sami had for her mother, Adira. There was never any type of intimate relationship between the two. It was well known that Tavi and her were madly in love with each other, though it would have been terribly inappropriate for them to be together with her being a concubine of the Lord Sultan.

  “You’re so bad,” Yashmina giggled. “But you know how people talk. It’s still not appropriate for us to be together.”

  “Hnnn,” Tavi was paying more attention to the curves of her soft face than her words. He laughed at the pout that graced her plump lips when she noticed he wasn’t really listening to her, instead studying her face with adoration. He bent his neck and captured her lips in a kiss before she had time to protest.

  Yashmina couldn’t bring herself to stop him and she sank into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. He snaked his arm around her slender waist and pulled her body closer to his. He broke the kiss and smiled as his nose caught the scent of her arousal. Yashmina’s heart fluttered as she smiled shyly back up at him.

  “I heard a rumor,” Yashmina said, searching for something to take the attention off her arousal. “Did you really return with a human?”

  “Yes,” Tavi said, brushing a lock of hair behind her pointed ear with his eyes still locked on her lips.

  “What’s she like?” Yashmina asked, her eyes brightening with excitement.

  “I believe you’d like her,” Tavi said with a chuckle, “although I’m afraid she may not last long the way she talks to Balthazar. She’s been placed in Lady Carolina’s care.”

  “Perhaps I’ll visit the Lady with mother,” Yashmina said. Tavi picked her hand up with his and intertwined their fingers. He brought their clasped hands to his lips and began to kiss each one of her fingers.

  “Are you happy to have her with you in the Harem,” Tavi asked, tearing his lips away from her skin long enough to speak.

  “I’m happy to have her close to me now,” she said, her gaze falling away from Tavi. Yashmina occupied a grey area of Devasi society. Her mother, Adira, was special to Sultan Sami, and when Adira’s husband disgraced the family through desertion, Sami made Adira the Khaja and married her daughter. It had never been a real marriage, and was not officially consummated. She was allowed to live a quiet life of luxury, denied very little within the walls of the harem, but she was never supposed to love another demon. Then she had met Tavi.

  “Soon Balthazar will be anointed,” Tavi said, lifting her chin so that she would look him in the eyes. “And when he is, I intend to speak with him.”

  Her brown eyes shone up at him, hope filling her heart. “Do you really think he’ll release me? It’s never been done before.”

  “I know he will, my love,” Tavi said placing a kiss on her forehead as he pulled her into his chest. “Balthazar isn’t one to stick to custom simply for custom’s sake.”

  

  Blood. The stench of it filled Alexandra’s nose. Her vision swam with the thick crimson liquid. She felt the hot tears running down her dirty cheek and she tried to reach up to wipe it away, but she found her hands were bound tightly at her side. She screamed as fresh blood splattered across her face and Balthazar fell to his knees in front of her. Blood poured from his broken body as he looked up at her. He was dying and there was nothing she could do about it.

  “Alexandra,” a familiar voice cut through the air and her vision suddenly became blurry.

  “Alexandra,” the voice rang in her ears again. Everything went black and the world around her shook violently.

  “Alexandra,” Carolina voice was full of distress as she shook Alex awake.

  Her eyes fluttered open and pain immediately pounded on the back of her forehead. Her stomach churned and she couldn’t stop the spew of vomit that came up. A cold sweat washed over her trembling body.

  It took her a moment to realize that she was in Carolina’s bed, in her private chambers. After they had finished bathing, Carolina led her through the lush halls of the palace Harem to her rooms. It was like a large apartment, with an entrance room, a sitting room, and a large private bedroom with a closet off to one side that was the size of her old home with Aunt Tammy. The entire thing was nearly the size of Sam’s mansion home, and it was all trimmed out with glistening light pink marble and golden chandeliers. Beautifully carved furniture and swaths of silk fabric decorated every inch of the space and gave it a warm and inviting, exotic feeling.

  They’d had an amazing meal that consisted of entirely too much food, and then Alex had quickly fallen asleep, wrapped in the silky pink sheets of the feather mattress that rested on the floor.

  “Are you alright, girl?” Carolina asked, her brows raised in concern as she signaled for a eunuch to come over and attend to Alex.

  “Yeah…I,” Alex struggled to sit up, “It…it was just a bad dream.”

  “A bad dream?” Carolina asked, concern still showing on her beautiful face. “A dream made you this ill? Is that common?”

  “No…not really,” Alex flopped back onto the bed, unable to hold herself up. The eunuch approached with a wet towel in his hand and began to wipe it across Alex’s sweat covered skin. The coldness of it felt good and helped to alleviate some of her discomfort. “They aren’t always so bad. But this one…”

  “This one what?” Carolina asked. She could see the terrified look on the poor girl’s face. “What ever did you see that could make you so afraid?”

  “Balthazar,” Alex said. She wiped a hand across her forehead and wanted nothing but to forget the visions she had just seen. “Baal killed him.”

  “Oh, my, that is a horrible thing,” Carolina ran a hand along her arm. “Well, it was just a dream. No need to get so worked up about such an unlikely thing.”

  “Are you sure? I mean, are you sure Baal can’t get to Balthazar?” Alex asked. Her sudden concern for Balthazar surprised her. He had been so rude to her from the moment they met, but she couldn’t deny the attraction she felt for him. She also couldn’t forget that he had saved her, at least somewhat. She may have been the one to kill Raza, but without him there, she never would have made it through such a thing. The fact that she was more afraid of him dying than her being tied up by Baal again didn’t escape her.

  “Am I sure? Of course I’m sure,” Carolina scoffed. She sat back against a cushion that was on the side of the low set bed. “Baal is no longer a threat to my son. You needn’t worry about that.”

  “Good,” Alex said. It was a small comfort to her to know that he was safe. She let the eunuch continue to stroke her heated skin with the cold, wet towel. It was probably nothing, as Carolina said. She was still in shock from the kidnapping and proceeding fight, and the fact that she had taken a life. Surely that’s all it was.

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