Chapter Thirty-one

CONTENT ADVISORY / TRIGGER WARNING

THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS DEPICTIONS/STRONG IMPLICATIONS OF THE FOLLOWING THAT SOME READERS MAY FIND OFFENSIVE OR DISTURBING:

~ NUDITY

~ CONTENT SEXUAL IN NATURE

~ VIOLENCE

"Behave yourself, beast."

Eskil felt a strong pulse beat through his member. The skin was soft and silky, and each touch and every contact with the tissue sent bolts of fire to his groin. He moaned again as he slid his hand from the base of his member to the round tip.

If this is what mortals feel while mating, I can understand why they do it so much. He turned his fiery gaze towards hers with ill thoughts, his grip on her waistband tightening as he tried to pull her back down beneath him. To hell with her not being his lifemate, he was willing to find out how this mating business occurred between mortals.

Libelle pulled her arm back and balled her hand into a fist, swung it forward with all the strength she had and smashed her knuckles into Eskil's unguarded nose. The man-beast howled and instantly released her, stumbling backwards as his hands went straight to his once-again bleeding nose.

She stood up, struggling to ignore the desire to kick him hard in his gut, and forced herself to walk away. She stormed out of the room and down the hallway towards the opposite wing of Uppsala. She muttered curses under her breath and stomped her feet as she walked towards the room where all the priests would be gathered for their morning meal. The hallways of Uppsala were always warm and several blazes lit the halls with warm fires. Her bare feet slapped the stone floors as she stomped down the few steps into the council room where she found the four priests.

They all looked up from their meals with a puzzled expression when she continued to march into the room and up to the table. She dropped herself into a heavy chair, leaned forward to rest her elbows on the stone table and rubbed her temples with a deep sigh.

Davyn stared at her while scooping up a spoonful of a hearty stew. "Are you having a rough morning?"

She groaned. "Yes. I slept like a log and I have this horrendous knot in my neck. First thing I opened my eyes to was a pair that belonged to a devil who merely wanted to cut me up. I wasn't even able to eat breakfast before I needed to beat the beast down."

Davyn raised an eyebrow to her. "So you are saying that your magic did not work?"

"No, everything worked." She accepted a hot bowl of stew and a spoon from Kirk before taking a large, welcome bite. The soft potatoes and tender meat unleashed a burst of flavor with all the added spices, and she felt her empty stomach beginning to warm up. The food tasted amazing.

"I thought Eskil would be unable to harm a mortal after the curse was placed upon him? How was he able to attack you?" Davyn asked after another bite.

Libelle took another bite as well. "Well, I discovered what would happen if Eskil were to try and harm a mortal. Not that this spell completely prevents him from taking a move to harm a mortal, but he for sure is not able to follow through with any intent."

She continued eating while the priests looked amongst themselves, more puzzled than before. Davyn spoke for the other three men, "What does that mean?"

Libelle took the last few remaining bites in her bowl before answering. "Initially, I assumed the spell would prevent Eskil from taking any action that could harm a mortal. I assumed he wouldn't be able to even think of it, but I had nothing to base my assumptions on. Well, it seems he is able to take action on those thoughts. He attacked me when I first opened my eyes and managed to get his hands around my throat.

"Yet, it seems the moment Eskil actually makes the attempt to harm a mortal, his body is riddled with pain. It looked like he had an electric current running through him. He went stiff all over, and it obviously seemed to hurt; it stopped him fast in his tracks."

Davyn's puzzled expression seemed to fade as he processed her words through his mind. "So, there were no effects until he tried to harm you?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"So we have nothing to worry about then? You'll be able to keep an eye on him, keep everyone safe?" Davyn asked.

"Yes, I can keep everyone safe. For the moment, we have nothing to worry about." She accepted another bowl from Kirk. "If he cannot harm a mortal now, he merely needs to be supervised. Currently, he is not a threat. I suppose I will take him back to my home and have my manservant show him some manners. He may look like a man, but he is still the dragon prince."

"What will you do with him? You sound as if you're keeping a new pet."

Libelle chuckled, "Yes, it does sound like that. But no, I am not keeping a pet. I am taking a chance by not killing Eskil, and not letting him kill anyone else. It's quite the responsibility."

Yes, she was taking on a great responsibility. One she was not fully prepared for, and one she was not even expecting to ever have. She could not leave Eskil in Uppsala, nothing good would come from him trying the priests' patience. He would undoubtedly become their next sacrifice.

She could not leave him to roam the land as there was no guarantee that the gods' spell was permanent and no guarantee that he would never be able to harm another mortal. As a slayer, she was tasked with something she felt would be impossible.

Eskil was vicious and demonic, and he wanted blood. Her blood. She would need to remain on high alert around him, despite him failing to harm her earlier this morning, she would not let her guard down. She did not know what would come from keeping him so close to her, so it was an idea that did not please her.

Eskil would probably pose a continuous problem; he will most likely be destructive and try to escape, or try to find ways to kill her and everyone around him. Perhaps she would simply lock him in a cellar, keep him fed and watered but nothing more. The devil had taken many lives in this world and slain many men just to satisfy his hatred. Even the souls of the dead were not safe from him.

"Slayer!"