I gape at the orange-red horse, its sharp talons, the skull-like face straight out of nightmares. Somehow, its sheer size was lost on me when I first saw it. Now that it stands within arm’s reach, I’m aghast at how immense these creatures are.
“Holy shit,” I breathe out as a demon with tiny horns and snake-like skin puts a saddle on the horse. “Do people climb these without a stool? Maybe stairs?”
Zaki chuckles. “Practice. I’ve heard they’re not unlike the ones back in the human realm.”
“I wouldn’t know.” Once the saddle’s positioned correctly, the demon bows and leaves. “Oh, I forgot my clothes. I better go get them,” I say and turn around. The butler who showed me in when we arrived stands right behind me. I jump in surprise, a gasp choking in my throat. Motherfucker. “Do you need to stay this close?” I hiss at him, pressing a hand to my racing heart.
He ignores me, sliding a glance at Zaki. “My prince. I’m sorry to see you leaving this soon.”
Zaki shrugs. “I can’t say it wasn’t expected.” It’s impressive how he takes everything in stride. He at least looks relaxed, his shoulders pulled back with confidence. If Zaki’s afraid his father will catch up to us, he doesn’t show it. “I managed to find your master, though. We had something to drink and enjoyed ourselves for a short while.”
There’s something on his face, though. I narrow my eyes, studying him as he chats with the butler, or whatever this demon is. Maybe because we’ve stuck together for the past several days—or what feels like days—but I can see this tiny, tiny curl to Zaki’s upper lip. It wasn’t there before. It’s almost like he’s holding back his disgust for this life and the things he has to do. He hates it here, and he keeps it all bottled up.
Is that why he wants to leave? Is he being honest when he says he just wants freedom?
The servant bows to Zaki and makes to leave. I raise a hand to stop him. “Wait. Do you think I can go back to get my clothes?”
He curls his nose in obvious distaste. “They’ve been burned.”
My brows raise. No. There’s no way I heard what I think I heard. “Mhm, what do you mean by burned?” Is that slang? A word that changed meaning when it came to the Abyss?
He slides a glance to Zaki. “Brightness wasn’t ever a trait of humans. I’m sorry to see you burdened with this one, my prince.”
Zaki steps closer, his enormous body casting a shadow over me. Overus. The man trembles when he looks up at Zaki’s face, at whatever he sees there. “I don’t remember asking your opinion,” Zaki roars, leaning forward.
The man drops into another bow, one much lower this time. “I’m so sorry, Your Majesty. Indeed, that was disrespectful of me. Please, I apologize profusely.”
Zaki motions a hand in dismissal and the demon scurries away. I turn to him in time to catch his tail whipping from side to side. “Did he go after my clothes?” I ask.
Whatever the demon saw on his face that made him rush into an apology is not there anymore. Zaki is as handsome and as laid back as ever. “Sorry, but they definitely burned those clothes. Did they mean something to you?”
My jaw drops. “No, but... why would they just burn my clothes?”
“You were given new clothes, why would you keep the old ones?”
That logic makes no sense. I roll my eyes and try to accept the cultural shock. That has to be it. “Is it bad luck to wear the same clothes twice?”
Zaki shrugs. “You did come from the Underworld. Maybe they thought it was dirty? Stained?”
“Do you burn your clothes?”
“I don’t need to, remember?” And he snaps his fingers with a flourish. He’s back to his form-fitting pants, the boots, the shirtless look. The glittering tattoos look so pretty in this strange red light. I gape at them for a moment, then remind myself I should not feed into his large ego.
“Whatever. I thought we were in a rush?”
He grins. “Of course, of course.” Zaki motions to the horse waiting patiently next to us. “After you.”
I stare at the horse. The creature turns its head, burning eyes gaping back at me. “You expect me to climb on top of that?”
He snaps his head from the horse back to me. “Is there a problem?” he asks, with honest doubt on his face.
“You want me to sprout wings and fly to the top of the saddle? It’s too tall for me.” I’m not short, by any means, but I’ve never been on top of a horse. They’re scary. One with talons and fire and a skull for a face? What if I grabbed its hair accidentally, it got pissed, and decided to kill me? Can I even die again?
Zaki chuckles, a low sound in his chest that makes my knees quiver. I look up to find his yellow eyes on me, corners wrinkled in amusement. “You are a little moth, after all,” he murmurs, his lips curled sensually around the words.
Heat spreads across my cheeks, but before I can say something snarky, his fingers fold around my waist. He plucks me off the ground and puts me up in the saddle. I throw a leg to the other side and grip the saddle, my knuckles bleaching with how hard I hang on. Wow. This horse is freaking tall. I’m so freaked out by it, I take several heartbeats to notice the dress riding up my thighs, my legs exposed all the way to my panties.
“Shit,” I mumble, and pull my panties up over my hip bone. Great. Now it just looks like I’m naked. “That’s why I wanted back into my pants.”