Orias clenched his hands into fists, but then shook his head. “My master has no immediate plans for your demise,” he admitted.
“And are you going to go against his wishes?” Drew asked.
“As much as I wish to see Andras punished for his blatant disregard of my prince’s feelings, I do not disobey orders,” Orias said.
The heavy weight of panic that had been crushing Drew since he’d woken eased. Yes, they were still in prison, but his immediate future wasn’t going to be filled with pain or death. The relief was staggering. “Okay, that’s good. Thank fuck.”
“So, what exactly happens next?” Andras asked.
“My master hasn’t shared that with me as yet,” Orias said. “I will, however, see to the familiar’s comfort as instructed.”
“Any chance we’ll be fed and watered too?” Andras gave Orias a winning smile.
Orias glared at him, then turned and stalked out of the room.
“Damn. I’m so hungry,” he complained, rubbing his stomach.
Drew sank down onto the pallet and dropped his head into his hands. “Argh! I forgot to ask about the ring!”
Andras sat next to him and patted him on the back. “I’m sure we’ll have the pleasure of Orias’s company again soon. You’ll get your chance.”
It wasn’t Orias who returned sometime later with a larger, cushioned cage for Leila, but one of the other guards. They also had a plate of stew, some coarsely sliced bread, and a flask of water for the prisoners, so it could have been worse. Drew just needed to bide his time and wait for another opportunity.
Chapter 23
The same thing we do every night
By the time Zach had been thoroughly greeted by the urco, the square had all but cleared out of demons. The few left behind were frozen in terror, cowering away from the massive hound.
“What the hell is that?” Tremblay demanded, looking at the urco with wide, fearful eyes.
“This is the urco that was hunting us,” Zach explained, sitting with the urco’s head on his lap, scratching behind its leathery ears.
“Is it safe to be doing that?” Cavendish asked, gesturing at the petting that was going on.
“Oh, yes,” Zach assured him. “Drew made friends with him, and Andras escaped on his back.” He looked at the urco and said, “So what in Lucifer’s name are you doing here?”
“I really need to meet this Drew guy,” Cavendish said, looking awed.
Tremblay huffed. “I’m sure Mr. Phillips’s exploits have been greatly exaggerated. I would be most surprised if he’s accomplished half as much as we’ve been told he has.”
Zach just rolled his eyes. There was just no point arguing with someone like Tremblay. He looked around the square. “We need to find someone who saw what happened.”
Kensington also scanned the square. “There’s a demon hiding behind that barrel in front of the inn,” he said. “Maybe they were a witness?”
“Worth a shot,” Zach agreed. He extricated himself from under the urco, ignoring the disgruntled growl when the petting stopped. “You stay here with these two,” he told the urco, pointing at Cavendish and Tremblay. “No need to scare the poor demon to death needlessly.”
Tremblay eyed him with suspicion. “Why are we staying here? What do you not want us to hear?”
“For fuck’s sake,” Zach muttered. “We’re just going to ask the demon what he saw. There’s nothing nefarious about it, Tremblay.”
“So why do we have to stay behind?”
“Because someone needs to look after the urco!”
“But why does it have to be us?”
Zach seriously considered what the ramifications would be if he fed Tremblay to the urco. Surely no jury would convict him, right? The man was a pain in the ass and would test the limits of anyone’s patience.
