Page 15 of Her Demon Daddy
“You’ll never amount to me,” he says darkly. “I will be King, and you..” He pauses and leans in closer. “Will be forgotten.”
He stands up and punches me one more time square in the face. I shoot up in my bed, cold and drenched in sweat, looking around for him, expecting him to be in the room. I’m breathing heavily. my heart rate begins to slow as I place my hand on my chest. I gulp and try to catch my breath.
This has to stop. The nightmares have been constant, and they are consistently more violent. They began as dreams of my life before Galmoleth, of the good times, drinking with my friends in the army, having sex with beautiful women and winning battles, feeling the adrenaline from the victory.
They’re terrible nightmares that always begin with the same thing: A sacrifice to Oltyx. I must find a way to appease him, tide him over, and end this deal. I can’t continue like this, or I’ll be as good as dead.
I call in Drar'ran and Ti’lek to dress me. While these two are blind, they know the feel of the fabrics I wish to pair together. They dress me as I continue to control my breathing, trying to come down from the sickening feeling of the nightmare.
I barely wait until they put my robe on me before I rush out of my room and to my library. I walk in quickly, my strides long and powerful as I scream.
“Tolmond!” My call echoes through the hallways of the castle. “Bring me Tolmond!”
I whisk my robes around me and sit behind my desk. I watch the door intently, wondering what could take them so long. They know better than to keep me waiting.
After minutes of listening to my rapid heartbeat in my ears, Tolmond enters my study and bows. I motion for him to come forward.
“What can I do…”
“Bring me all the information you have on Oltyx.”
I don’t have time for his manners. I look at his face and see confusion flutter through his gaze. I fold my hands and lean forward, slowly cocking my head to the side. I watch him gulp and nod.
“Absolutely, my liege. I’ll be back with everything I can find shortly.”
Tolmond leaves my study and shuts the door behind him. I wonder if I should have entertained his formalities because now I’m alone again. My heartbeat pounds in my chest like a sledgehammer, my thoughts race so quickly that my mind goes blank, and I feel pins and needles all over my body.
I stand up and pace in front of the window, looking out at the rain every few moments, hoping the sight of it will save me. As I pace, I look at the shelves, hoping the titles of my books will distract me. Instead, I see the smooth stone on the shelf.
I remember the feeling as I stare at it. It fits perfectly in the palm of my hand, and the smoothness detracts from its danger. It’s the beacon that could repair my woes and destroy anything I have left to enjoy. It would summon the demons from Ikoth and has the possibility of bringing angels from Galmoleth with it. The tool would allow everyone to return to Aerasak, a risk I’ve never known I could take.
A stone. That’s what would change it all. A fucking piece of rock.You’re scared of rock,my thoughts scream.The mighty King, too afraid to hold a stone in his hands, a coward, a useless, worthless coward.
The thoughts tip me over the edge. I scream, shrieking like my mother in my dream. I race to my desk and knock everything off it, throwing the figurines and books against the walls, hoping when they break, my nerves will, too.
It doesn’t work. I run to the bookshelf and begin tearing books apart, letting the pages flutter to the floor as I growl and swear at the lined pages. My rage is untamed and primal, like a caged beast that hasn’t eaten in weeks.
I continue destroying anything I can find until one of my servants walks in cautiously. I turn around and look at him. In moments like this, I wish they could see my expression. He knows better than to disturb me.
“Why are you here?” I shout at him.
“My liege, I heard the commotion…’ He pauses briefly and clears his throat. “Maybe it would do you some good to take this energy of yours elsewhere?”
“Are you telling me what to do?” I growl, walking toward him slowly.
He stiffens and looks at me fearfully. “Perhaps you could take one of the girls from the dungeon. The woman you’ve claimed.”
“And what?” I snarl.
“Take out the energy on her, not the things you cherish.”
My rage intensifies as he speaks. How dare he speak of her like that, like an object that can be thrown around and discarded easily? I open my mouth, about to reprimand him, when I remember thinking I should have let Tolmond stay.
Her company might benefit me and create a distraction from the turmoil in my being. I stand tall, straighten my back, crack my neck, and look at the servant.
“Send her to the gardens,” I command darkly.
I walk past him and out of my study to the hallway. Walking along it, it reminds me of my dream last night. I reach the door to my gardens and breathe in slowly, worrying this may be another dream and I will emerge as a ten-year-old boy again.