The Demon's Bargain (A Deal With a Demon #4)(29)

It’s not as if I can blame her for that. She’s still reeling from Kristoff using her trust against her, and the stakes are so much higher than I could have anticipated.

There are still no answers by the time we need to leave. Lenora is giving off so much stress, her magic snapping and snarling around her, that I get a clear picture of her from head to toe. She’s given up the sexy dress, replacing it with cargo pants, a long-sleeved top made of a slick material, and hefty boots. She catches me looking and pats one of her pockets. “Spell ingredients.”

Clever…but only if her opponent is someone who isn’t, say, immune to spells. Even if she manages to get the amulet from Kristoff’s neck, she still won’t have time to prepare an offensive spell.

Worry wraps its hands around my throat and squeezes tight. “Lenora—”

“Let’s go.”

I still haven’t found a solution by the time we’ve worked our way through the market and stopped at the edge of a crowd. People of all shapes and sizes mill about, all soaked in the deep red of bloodlust. They want a good show, and their energy twists and burrows through the space until it makes me dizzy. I catch a few familiar strains a short distance away. There’s another bargainer demon here, though I don’t recognize the feel of them beyond being able to identify one of my people. Interesting.

“It’s overwhelming the first time. Hang onto me.” Lenora slips her hand into mine. “Come on.” She tugs me through the crowd. Even here, on the cusp of what promises to be a truly violent show, they get out of her way. She doesn’t seem to notice it…but I do.

A strange sort of pride takes residence at the base of my sternum. My little witch is fearsome in the extreme. Her confidence is shaken to its core, but no one would know it by the way she cuts through people much larger than her on her way to the edge of what feels like a large circle.

“Once people put their names forward, they’re announced at random. You have one minute to prepare and step into the ring, or you forfeit.” She takes a shaky breath I can hear even with all the people talking and shifting around us. “One chance. Fights end when someone submits, gets propelled out of the boundary of the ring…or dies.”

It’s difficult to tell with all the energies and magics snapping and snarling about us, but there doesn’t seem to be much space between the edge of the circle and the crowd. “Are spectators often harmed?”

“A magical barrier goes up. It breaks when one of the fighters crosses it.”

Hardly a foolproof solution. If one broke the barrier right as an offensive spell was launched, it would still hit the crowd. “That’s not quite an answer.”

“Yes, Ramanu. Sometimes people in the crowd are harmed. Most people are smart enough to have shields up, but it’s not always enough. Everyone knows the risks of coming here.”

I turn to her—and freeze.

In the swarm of color and energy, Lenora is dark spot. I still get a hint of color, but it’s nowhere near the strength I’m used to. “Lenora.”

She sighs. “Please, Ramanu. I’m not going to change my mind, and arguing is just ruin what time we have left together.”

“Cast a shield.”

“I can’t do that because—”

“Cast a shield.”

She huffs, and I hear her digging into one of her pants pockets. A few seconds later, a red shield shimmers into place…but it’s thin, and even as I watch, wear spots evolve into holes big enough to stick my hand through. “Your magic is faltering.”

“What? No. Not yet.” She mutters a word I can’t quite make out and flares a brighter red. But just like before, it dwindles immediately. “No,” she whispers.

“Lenora—”

“It doesn’t matter.” The magic drops around her, but this time it’s intentional. “I’m fighting.”

If she fights as little more than a normal human, then she’ll die.

The knowledge feels like someone dug their claws into my chest and started digging around. I can’t let her die. I refuse. Panic flares inside me, a tsunami of feelings I have no control over. They take my mouth, my tongue, my very thoughts. “Bind me.”

“What?”

There’s a stirring on the other side of the circle as people make way for someone who’s a void spot to my senses. Not like Lenora is right now. No, their shields are so tight, they aren’t letting a single thing out, which means they’re powerful. “Who’s that?”

“The official. It will start soon.” Her voice only shakes the smallest bit, but it is shaking. Even without seeing evidence of it, knowing she’s afraid has my desperation rising in response.

“Bind me, Lenora. I will win for you, and I won’t be able to disobey you. I’ll bring the amulet back.”

“I don’t believe in binding another being.”

I might laugh if I didn’t want to curse. “But you’re fine with murder.”

“It’s different and you know it.”

I do. I truly do. But I don’t care right now. I take a deep breath and use my claw to carve the mark into the inside of my bicep. It’s not one I’ve ever had cause to use before, but I learned early that knowledge is power, which means learning the various marks bargainer demons use with their humans…and which can be turned on us.