I couldn't help but smile. Things could have been worse.

I tiptoed through the corridor, p.r.i.c.king my ears for any sudden movements. I had but one more thing to do. Then I was free to look for Morrison, or at least get an idea of which road he was taking. I still didn't believe he was leaving town. I wouldn't believe what he'd say even if I had a knife pressed against his throat.

I rummaged through my brain, trying to remember the layout of the mansion.

Remember the things we had to prepare in the cave earlier? One of them was that I asked Osgar to draw a map of the place for me, at least what he knew of the place. It turned out the bounty hunter knew the mansion like the back of his hand. He even knew where most guards were stationed. Not too many dared approach the conjuring chamber, but I had to remain on my guard anyway.

My destination was the kitchens. This was the only place Osgar didn't know much about. He said it had guards stationed at its doors day and night. That was enough to convince me. I had to get there. The mayor's mansion held another secret. I had to know what they were hiding. I hated being in the dark. It was what led us to this situation after all.

The corridor leading to the kitchen was empty, mainly due to the commotion I caused in the village. I tiptoed further, until I reached an intersection. I could go left, and reach the bas.e.m.e.nt from which I snuck in, or I could go right. At the end of the corridor to my right, I saw two guards, standing before an oaken double door.

There was no escaping it now, I had to fight my way in.

"Yeeees… Kill! Kill! Kill!" the voices in my head said. I would have killed these men easily if it weren't for these d.a.m.ned whispers. I was afraid of what killing would result in. What if that demon came out of the jewel to consume them?

"You wouldn't leave a trail of bodies then," the voices said. "Feed us!" they went on.

'Don't listen to them!' a familiar female voiced joined in. 'They can only affect you if you allow it.'

'Eva?' I asked. 'Where the h.e.l.l have you been?'

'You've been ignoring me,' she said in a reproachful tone. 'I tried to reach out to you many times. It seems like I'm getting weaker while you gain more strength.'

'It comes with a.s.similation I suppose,' I said.

"KILL!" the voices urged me. The tumult of voices inside my head was enough to make me want to scream my lungs out.

'Fight it!' Eva said. 'The demon is trapped. It can't get out without the conjuring words. Stick to your plan, and ignore the voices.'

'You're the little voice that kept reminding me of the plan,' I said.

'I'm glad you finally decided to listen to reason,' she replied. 'Go on, you don't have much time. They'll soon scatter their forces, looking for you.'

'Right!' I smiled, remembering how smoothly everything went.

I emerged from the corner I was hiding in, and walked slowly toward the guards.

"Hey there fellas," I called out to them. "Lovely day for murder, don't you think?"

The two got tense. They unsheathed their swords and pointed them at me.

"Don't get any closer!" one of them shouted.

"Hand's where I can see them, now!" the other demanded.

"I was just looking for the bathroom," I said. "Some guy dressed like you pointed me in this direction."

The guards slowly approached me, their weapons ready to hack me to pieces.

"The mayor doesn't have guests today," the first guard said. "Not after what happened at the inn."

They were three paces away from me now. I saw them tighten their grip around the hilt of their swords.

"Listen," I said, sounding a little scared. My eye darted from one sword to the other. "I don't want any trouble. I just want to take a s.h.i.+t."

"Why don't we cut you open and let it out from your guts?" the second guard asked.

"I can't accept that, you see," I said, wincing.

They were in range to hurl themselves at me now. I walked to the side, making sure I was facing only one of them. I gave them the opportunity to surround me. The first guard smiled and thrust his sword at my stomach. The other followed, slas.h.i.+ng at my head.

I s.h.i.+fted my right leg to the side, and let the sword pa.s.s by me. I then held the man from his arm and lifted it upwards. The other's slash landed on the man's shoulder guard. The sword landed with a clang then got stuck between iron plates. I disarmed the first guard with a quick hand twist then thrust his own sword at his comrade's neck. The latter fell down, gurgling.

The guard looked down at his dead friend, his eyes wide. He turned to me to find a fist coming his way. The first punch broke his nose. The second landed in his left eye. The third made him stumble back. I kept punching the man until I cornered him against the kitchen door.

"Bhlease stabh!" the guard shouted. "I jusdh followed orders!"

His mouth was b.l.o.o.d.y. His left eye was closed. One of my punches cut his eyebrow open. Blood trickled down his eye and joined the one that streamed out of his nose.

"I'll dh.e.l.l you eveydhin! Don't kill bhe, bhleaaaase!"

I put my sword against the man's throat then leaned in closer. My eye was level with his right, open eye. "What's the mayor hiding in here?" I asked.

"I'll dhake you dere!" the guard said. "You'll see for yourself!"

"I'd rather you tell me," I said. I squeezed my sword against his throat, cutting his flesh a bit. The man winced then started shaking.

"Dere's a hidden door," he said. "Jusd find the scondce!"

"The what?!" I asked, squeezing tighter. The man trembled in fear. An overwhelming sense of ecstasy took over. I wanted to scare him even more.

"Scondce!" the guard said. "For the dhorch!"

"Aaah! Sconce you mean?"

The guard nodded.

"Bhlease don't kill bhe!"

"You just tried to gut me!" I said. "Why shouldn't I kill you?"

"I habe kids!" he said. "Bhy bhother is sick!"

"All I hear is a weak man whining!" I said. "Would you have spared me if I told you the same?"

The man fell silent. The look in his eye changed. He realized he was about to die. I read contempt and disgust in that eye that no longer quivered.

"f.u.c.k –" he said, but I didn't allow him to finish his insult.

I drove my sword down his throat. Blood gushed out and fell on my face. The sword cut through his wind pipe then went for the jugular. More blood came out, warm, ample. It filled my hand and my face. Some of it even got through my slightly open mouth. The guard tried to shout, but only gurgles came out.

He gurgled some more. He tried to breathe in and out, but air wouldn't reach his lungs. More blood gushed out. His legs twitched, as though he were running away from death. His arms flailed about, and the sound of air leaving his lungs filled the empty corridor. He was wheezing still, crackling, refusing to give up.

Something violently vibrated in my pocket. I knew it was the jewel. I dreaded what would happen next.

"Yeeeeeeeess!" the voices whispered in my head. "Blood! Give us blood! Give us fles.h.!.+"

The jewel vibrated even more violently. It felt as though it wanted to jump out and swim in the pool of blood I left behind.

'Fight it!' Eva urged.

I took the thing from my pocket and looked at it. I saw some dark shapes inside. They were floating about in a frenzied state.

"What are they storing here?" I whispered.

"BLOOD! GIVE US BLOOD!" the voices were almost audible now. I didn't know if they were inside my head or speaking out loud anymore.

The fist sized jewel was fighting my grip now, trying to jump out at the corpses.

"Shut your traps!" I mentally screamed at them. "It's your captor's fault for not feeding you."

"Free us then!" the voices said. "Let us out, we'll get rid of all your enemies."

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"Shut up!" I screamed at them once more. "Keep it down. I'll see what I can do for you later. You're not helping me out here, which means you're making your situation even more complicated. More guards might show up soon. They might kill me then deliver you back to your captors. Do you want that?"

"You think you can control us?!" the voices said in a mocking jeer.

"Oh no!" I said. "I can just keep you here, imprisoned, hungry."

The voices grew silent. I heard only one of them speak next. It was a voice I recognized. It was a voice that made s.h.i.+vers run down my spine.

"Fairy slayer," the voice said. "Let us out, and we'll forget you ever existed."

"Keep it quiet," I said, "and I'll see what I can do. You have a deal with the people in here, don't you?"

"Kill them for us," the demon said. "We'll make it worth your while."

"I'm not promising anything to you demon," I said.

"Then you'll die," the demon said. "I'll eat you whole!"

"You're pretty good at making threats," I said. "You forget that you're the one trapped here. I can help you get out, but you're not making your situation any easier by threatening me."

"I don't trust humans," the demon said.

"And I don't trust demons," I retorted. "You clearly don't want to stay in captivity. Then let's help each other out."

"Are you proposing a deal?" the demon asked.

"No," I said. "Deals include commitment. I have an offer for you, all of you trapped inside."

Silence… That was a good sign. It meant they were listening.