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Had she, a mere human, somehow sensed the serpe?

Zacharel considered her She wore a paper-thin gown, dirty and torn, her slender fraled around a delicate face, the strands so black they appeared to be a breathtaking ile skin under her eyes, and her cheeks were more hollowed than they should have been, not to mention terribly bruised and scratched Her lips were red, chapped Her eyes were ice-blue, and in their depths he saw a never-ending storm of pain no hu to a ed to a deh lord--the erous of all hell’s fiends--who considered this human his exclusive property His to possess, his to torture…his to enjoy in whatever fashion he desired The de she could see into the spiritual world that coexisted alongside the ht her to the attention of other de participant in her , for humans could not be forced Seduced, yes Tricked, absolutely Eager to dabble in the dark arts, beyond a doubt But never forced

Had the high lord grown tired of her? Was that why she was here without hirew tired of his human He stuck around until the bitter, bloody end--or until the human wised up and forced him to leave

So…why not kill her and try to hide his cri a sentence of death The demon’s and the human’s Not that Zacharel or any of his men would kill this one That still was not on today’s e

"Stay away fro Zacharel out of his s or strain Or was that her natural tone? "I’reed to bond her life to a demon’s, she did not sound happy with the results He illing to bet she had been seduced or tricked, and now regretted it

Humans so rarely learned until too late, yet it didn’t have to be that way

"I’ll hurt you if you come any closer" She clearly possessed Japanese ancestry, yet her voice held no hint of an accent Odd in a way, but all the , and the perfect contrast to her bold features

"Hurta fatal rhythue darted between his fangs "That’sss what I like--before every sssnack"

The minion wanted her, not because of her but because creatures of the underworld loved nothing hts were as valuable as gold, as was the acco sense of superiority Well, that, and the thrill of ruining someone as supposed to be under the protection of the heavens

Tensing, the female said, "Touch me once, just once, and I’ll find a way out of these restraints I’ll remove your head I’ve decapitated your kind before, you know Maybe even friends of yours, eh?"

An interesting response, going deeper than ret

The brave words earned a hiss of anticipation "You lie, you lie, you delight me asss you lie Ssso deliciousss"

"I’ like shackles will stop ht And news flash--I thought your IQ was in the single digits"

She gazed left, right, as though searching for someone to help her While the female could see the serpe, she could not see Zacharel That wasn’t exactly a revelation--if he did not wish to be sensed, he would not be sensed; not by a deels

Curious about her reaction to him, Zacharela sword of fire fro the fe itswas that easy for him He dismissed the flames

"What-- How--" Crystalline eyes found hi? The drugs… I have to be tripping Or drea, maybe Yes, that makes sense"

"It does not, for you are not"

"Are you sure? You look like the prince I once…uh, never mind"

She once…what? "I am positive"

"Then ho are you? What are you? How did you get in here?"

Despite her questions, she seemed to know that he was not like the creature he had just defeated Deels did their best to evoke a sense of calm Or rather, they were supposed to