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Sympathy swirled through his scent. “Nothing. Except how we’re useful to him.”
“Exactly. I can't obey someone blindly, especially when they have the power to kill me on a whim.”
Azimuth shook his head, his hands waving away her concerns with an air of easy dismissal. “You’re not used to him, that’s all. We’ve had hundreds of years observing the fleeting nature of his dispositions.”
Nadir scowled. “This is more than a flight of fancy by a spirited daemon Prince! These sancre he’s devised are fearsome, above and beyond the tre’jor.”
“Sure, but that’s what he does. New weapons are a source of ongoing amusement to him, that’s all.”
“It’s not that simple!” Nadir rounded on him, stepping into the comfort of his aura despite her irritation with his disagreement.
Azimuth threaded fingers through the hair at her nape, and Nadir leaned into his touch, allowing him to cradle her head.
“Explain to me your concerns,” he whispered.
Nadir sighed. “Haven’t you wondered ifanyonein Sheol has taken notice of the missing daemons we’ve destroyed?”
Azimuth shrugged. “Daemons are legion. They war incessantly. How could anyone notice a missing faction here or there? Or a handful? There are countless feuds to blame well before anyone would even consider holding our small cabal accountable.”
“I hear what you’re saying. I do. But consider, we kill entire factions each week. In good weeks, we’ll destroy more than a handful.”
“Again, it’s a drop in the bucket.”
Nadir pulled away, catching his hand with her own when he tried to pull her back in close. “The sancre completely changes our kill ratio.”
“So, two drops in the bucket, then?”
A chill wind swept through the trees, sending an unexpected shiver down Nadir’s spine. “I have a bad feeling about this, Az. I know he said it destroys the daemon we attack, their siblings from the same brood, and the daemon’s parents.”
He nodded. “That was my understanding of his explanation as well.”
“Right, but he’d initially withheld this information from us. What else has he left out? Do you think he’d have mentioned it if I hadn’t observed the sancre’s powers during our last raid?”
A slight frown creased his lips. “I doubt he would have. However, there was no danger to us with his omission and additional kills won’t harm our efforts.”
Nadir nodded. “I know he didn’t endanger us, but I still have concerns. My gut tells me this isn’t just a drop or two in the bucket of legion’s blood. It’s a ripple, and I don’t think we can predict the sancre’s impact.”
“You may be correct,” he conceded. “However, this doesn’t change our course of action. He’s our sire, and we do his bidding, which for now means using the sancre in our fight.”
“That may be what you need to do, but I need to think about why my gut is giving me such fits before I head back into battle with the prince’s new toy. I know I don’t fully understand all of my new powers, and I don’t want to be discovering something new while I’m in a melee with a barbed skunk-biter.”
Azimuth chuckled. “Why don’t you take some time to search your feelings? We’ll cover for you with Big Blue. Tell him you’re hunting down leads or something.”
“That would be such a relief. Thank you for the offer.”
“You’ll need this for your soul-searching,” Azimuth pulled a sancre from his jacket and handed it to her. Nadir grudgingly accepted it, disliking the near-electric tingle she experienced while holding the blade. “The guys will want to know if you hone in on anything.”
“If I come up with anything, you’ll be the first to know. Can you ask Orias to look into it as well?”
“Of course. Perhaps you just need a break from life in Sheol? I sometimes forget you’re new to living amongst daemons.”
Nadir laughed. “Culture shock doesn’t even cover it.”
“Then I’ll wish you a couple of boring days and get back. I’ll let you know when there’s a new horde to eviscerate. Do feel free to ping me if you get hungry.”
His eyes roamed down her silhouette, and even in the relative dark, Nadir could feel her inner succubus yearning for his icy fire. “Oh, I’ll be calling. I’m not a fan of starvation.” She took the sancre and slid it into a side pocket on her pants, needing to be rid of the sensation of the blade in her hand. Sidling up to him, Nadir deeply breathed in his scent, as she ran her nose up the curve of his neck. Her body thrummed in response to his presence.
He ran fingertips down the outside of her arms. “I either have to head back alone now or port you back to my bedroom for a few days. I’d prefer the latter, but if I do, you won’t get the downtime you need. So I’ll leave and honor your need for space.”
