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He gave this some thought, then ventured, “Are you pregnant?” His tone suggested he didn’t find the idea the least bit offensive or troublesome. An interesting tidbit, but one she didn’t have the mental capacity to dwell on at the moment.
Shaking her head, she said, “No. I killed a chicken.”
His head cocked to the side. “Your first?”
“I’m not into maiming animals.”
“But you do eat chicken?”
With a sigh, she said, “I understand the concept, Darien. It’s the manner in which I killed it that disgusts me.”
“Must’ve been a violent death. You do have some blood on your sweater.”
“I’m sure the murder scene in my kitchen is much worse.”
He got to his feet and helped her to hers. “Why don’t you freshen up? I’ll deal with the other room.”
“Thank you.” She didn’t think she could face the carnage. What sane person would have done such a thing?
Then again, she knew in the back of her mind that Tanner had been right to force her hand. Now she had a better understanding of what it would be like to kill a demon. Only that scenario would be infinitely more difficult. At least she had some semblance of an idea as to what she’d be up against, particularly if they found the shifter that had hurt Walker.
After cleaning herself up and brushing her teeth and hair, she changed clothes and met Darien in the living room.
He wore a perplexed expression. “There was no chicken in your kitchen. No blood. Nothing.”
Her brows knitted together. “Tanner must have taken care of it.”
“Tanner?”
Jade’s heart plummeted. Her day of reckoning had come, and explaining everything to Darien would not make for pleasant conversation.
“Mind telling me what’s going on?” he asked in a low tone as he folded his arms over his chest. “You’re not wearing my ring.”
“I had to take it off for the slaughter.”
“Not for any other reason?”
She smiled, despite the tension gripping her. “You were gone for a while, but I didn’t turn my affection elsewhere, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“You’ve been forced to spend a lot of time with Tanner because of the incidents with the fire wraith.”
“You think he grew on me?” She let out a hollow laugh. “Trust me, Tanner and I have the push-pull relationship of an older brother and younger sister and nothing more. In fact, I have half a mind to kick him in the shin the next time I see him, but it wouldn’t do any good. He enjoys testing me.”
“Why?”
Here came the moment of truth. “You haven’t been to the castle yet, have you? You came straight here?”
“I left the patrol when I heard of Walker’s injuries. I returned to assemble another garrison to search for the shifter that attacked him. And to offer additional protection for the village.”
“The shifter seems to have vanished, like our fire wraith.”
“Yes, that’s a problem.” He absently stoked the fire, which had nearly died since she hadn’t attended to it all day. After tossing a log into the hearth, he turned back to her. “You were right about the caves. We found evidence the army had been there not long before we’d arrived. We’ve found multiple tracks leading in several different directions, and I’ve divided our forces to follow them.”
“Any more villages destroyed or humans murdered?”
“Not that we’re aware of. Although…” He winced. She clearly wasn’t the only one ill at ease. “My suspicion is they’re on a campaign to band together all the renegade demons on the continent. And head north.”
“Toward your castle.” And the human village that sat in its shadow. “Oh my God.”
