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Better he live with her and her danger than die without her

"Yes," she said I owe Zacharel, and I always pay my debts At least, that was her new motto "My answer is yes" Could she trust Koldo to keep his end of the bargain, though? Did she really have another choice?

Koldo nodded once, a stiff, rough incline of his head, causing the beads in his beard to clang together "Very well Now, one last question When I leave you, ill you do to Zacharel?"

Leave her? Making her, the now-handless wonder, the only protection Zacharel had? "How long will you be gone?"

"That I do not know"

Which could mean six hours or six days Or even six years "I’ll take care of him as best as I can"

"The phrase ‘take care of his, such as kill hie him Even leave him I require you to be more specific"

Of course he did He and Zacharel shared the trait, a desire for details while refusing to share with others "I mean I’ll tend to him, look after him I would never purposely hurt him, and I will not leave hi to taste the truth of her clai him helpless," he said, and then he disappeared

Hey! "Koldo? Warrior?"

Nothing, no response

Frustration ate at her She had no idea how long he’d be gone, where she was or what to do if demons found her before he returned Especially since her blades had disappeared with hi doubted, used to being ignored, and refused to give way to hurt feelings So, rather than , she would stand guard over Zacharel The angel who had saved her life The man she owed The first person to look at her as if she were more than a murderer

Whatever was required, she would defend hiood, I ssswear…if you don’t el, uh, well…Zacharel" Fear and awe drenched the naiveness reclined in his throne, cunningly erected frohout the centuries The change in his expression caused his four-legged minion to shudder Usually when he s soood The fact that Annabelle ith Zacharel thrilled Unforgiveness to the depths of his rotting black soul That’s why he’d ain the warrior’s attention

He’d begun to wonder if the warrior would ever find her He’d begun to regret not giving in to his desire to torture Annabelle while he’d had the chance Noas glad for his restraint

Now he could torture her and Zacharel

Grin widening, Unforgiveness rubbed two blunt-tipped claws over his jaw Every day he had to file the nails down to prevent hi his prey before he was ready Because, when the bloodlust cas, his aot food tasted better if it was aged for a fewterror the perfectthere on the middle dais steps

"Yes"

"Wh-what?"

"You will kneel before me and I will remove your head Your stench offends me" As did the fact that he’d shown such admiration for Zacharel

A sob burst froiveness’s de before his inevitable death

"That would be…iveness pal The minion’s head rolled down the steps And I never even had to stand He returned his sword to its rightful place against his throne arm and motioned several other minions forward They lined the walls of the chaly and here to serve his every twisted desire

"You, clean the blood You, feed the body to ood one this time, or you’ll join your headless friend"

They rushed to obey He almost wished one--or all--would defy him That would certainly alleviate the boredom of the day Or rather, the centuries If only for a little while

Unforgiveness was trapped here Only when a hued to summon him could he leave, and then, he could only remain on earth for the time required to complete whatever unholy task the human had summoned him for, or until the hu he never was--the huun to bore him, too…until he’d finally stunized what she was, and who she was meant to be with, instantly Maybe he would tell Zacharel how…el who had nothing to lose, the soldier who loved nothing and no one, had soin

Finally Zacharel would pay for sending Unforgiveness down here

Deels who had welcoiveness had welcomed the evil all on his own, but he hadn’t meant to do so How could he have known that the smallest pinch, received unintentionally, would cause oodness remained?