The gates opened as they reached them, but as they road into the bailey, Mariel saw no sign of a living soul. The entire castle had the feel of a mausoleum, and that sense did not vanish as they entered the great hall.
She was led away by the six priests as they crossed the great hall, up a winding stone stair to a tower at the top of the keep. The room was sparsely furnished, but contained a huge bed, a chamber pot, a table with a pitcher and bowl.
Four narrow windows looked out at the view surrounding the tower, but each was covered with iron bars. The priests removed her gown, pushed her onto the bed and tied her spread eagle to the posts. When they were satisfied, they left again.
She could not fathom why she’d been bound. She couldn’t possibly escape. If she’d wanted to fling herself from the tower, she couldn’t… and she certainly had no desire to. Facing a knife could not be worse that falling so far and being crushed.
The stout door had been bolted from the outside.
When the sun sank low on the horizon and shadows began to crawl across the floor, the Demon Sheenigan appeared at the foot of the bed. She stared at the demon in horror for many moments, realizing belatedly why she’d been bound.
Climbing onto the bed with her, he pleasured himself on her until she was too weary to respond and then vanished.
When she woke, the room was filled with light and she found that she’d been freed. She spent most of the day pacing the room anxiously. As evening approached, the six priests returned and bound her once more, this time on her hands and knees. She wasn’t aware that the Demon Trihern had appeared until she felt the bed dip. Her legs were pushed wider and he pushed his three pronged cock into her ass and her pussy. The third raked along her cleft as he fucked her, his appetite seemingly insatiable. Almost the moment he would come, he would begin all over again.
One by one, she was visited each night by one of the seven demons, who had gathered their power to appear in physical form.
On the seventh day, Efathziman came to her.
When two days passed and none of the demons appeared to take their pleasure again, she realized she had reached the time that she had dreaded since she had been taken from her home. She felt almost calm when the six priests came for her, bathed her and dressed her in a pale golden robe, for it had finally occurred to her that, with or without her mortal body, the demons had claimed her. They would not let her go.
She was led down the winding stairs, and then down a short corridor to another set of stairs that led from the main level of the castle, until she knew they must be in the bowels of the earth. Flickering torches lined the walls of the vast chamber they reached at the foot of the stone stairs. In the center was an altar. She was led to it and laid upon it on her back and bound hand and foot.
The six priests who had escorted her moved to positions at the edge of a circle paved into the floor with black stones. Behind them stood six robed, hooded priests. Each wore the color of the temple they represented.
Silence reigned for perhaps a minute. A few moments later, a High Priest, wearing a golden robe entered, moved to the side of the altar and lifted his arms. She saw when he lifted his arms that he was holding a dagger perhaps twelve inches long. The blade was jagged, like a thunder bolt, and had been carved from crystal.
At his signal, the drums began to beat. The priests began to chant, calling forth the demons by name. Slowly, one by one, the demons began to materialize. With the exception of Annomiz and Efathziman, they were faint and indistinct at first. As they became more solid in appearance, they crowded around the ends of the altar and the side facing the High Priest, though their gazes were trained upon her avidly.
Her calm slowly evaporated. Fear began to gather in her belly as Mariel stared up at them, meeting each gaze in turn, seeing nothing in their gazes beyond lust.
The drumming stopped. The chanting priests fell silent. The High Priest lifted the blade toward the ceiling. Fire and light flowed from it, as if it were a torch rather than a cold crystal.
"Most dreaded demons--Bileezal, Efathziman, Hezifath, Sheenigan, Annomiz Raezitath, Trihern—I, Behsart, who are we, give you your bride, Lady Mariel Champlain—NOW!"
Mariel squeezed her eyes closed as she saw the blade slamming down toward her body. The sound of shattering crystal sent a jolt through her and her eyes flew wide. Time seemed to have slowed to a crawl.
As she looked around the room, without comprehension she saw the robed priests slowly withdrawing the knives they held from the bodies of the six massive priests who had escorted her to the castle, saw bright red blood begin to flow down their chests from the gaping grin carved into their throats, watched blankly as they began to sink slowly toward the stone floor.
Turning her head, she looked up at the demons surrounding her. On their faces, she saw shocked disbelief and dawning rage. Finally, she glanced toward the priest, staring at the broken sacrificial knife for several moments before she looked up at him.
He had tossed the hood of his robe back, but it was not Behsart who stood above her… not the one that she had come to think of as Cavan, the man held hostage in his body by the demon Behsart.
Instead, she saw a horned demon, more man than beast, but most certainly not a mortal man. Hair, black as night, streamed around his broad, muscular chest and shoulders.
His face was Cavan’s.
Abruptly, the howls and screams of the demons filled her ears until she thought she would be deafened, drawing her curious gaze from the demon priest. As she turned her head to look at them, she saw that they had grown faint, like wraiths, watched as their forms thinned to vapor and finally vanished.
She looked up at the High Priest as he dropped the shattered blade.
"I vanquish you!" he roared, lifting his arms in triumph.
When the echoes of his roar had died, he looked down at her for several moments, his eyes narrowed, speculative. "I, Demon Valdamer, claim Lady Mariel Champlain as my bride," Cavan growled.
Chapter Ten
Mariel was too stunned and confused, her mind too chaotic even to grasp what had happened. She stared at Cavan mutely as he released her. Scooping her into his arms, he turned, crossed the room and ascended the stairs with her. He did not stop when they reached the ground floor. Instead, he strode to the second set of stairs and ascended them to the second floor. Reaching the main corridor, he strode down the length of it and entered a vast, opulent bed chamber.
A huge four posted bed stood in the center of the room. He strode toward it and laid her gently on the mattress, then sprawled out beside her on his side, his head propped in his hand, a faint smile playing about his lips.
"Where are the demons?" Mariel asked hoarsely.
"I… you and I have banished them to their dark world. They will not trouble us again."
She didn’t know whether to believe him or not, but they had certainly vanished. She frowned, studying him carefully, wondering if her eyes had played tricks on her before, for now he looked as he always had. "You said you were a demon."
"I am."
Mariel swallowed with an effort. "But… you said you were Lord Valdamer."
"I am." His eyes had begun to gleam with suppressed laughter.
As tempting as he looked, Mariel glared at him. She had spent months in terror, culminating in the near sacrifice of her body. She was too confused to rest easy, too afraid that it wasn’t over to release her fear.
She saw no humor in the fact that she was so thoroughly confused.
Chuckling at the look on her face, he wrapped his arms around her and dragged her half across his chest, stroking her back soothingly. "It’s over. I give you my word. I’m sorry I frightened you, but there was no other way."
He pulled away slightly, staring down at her. "Many years ago, I came to take Daeksould from Lord Belean. It wasn’t until I had slain him, however, that I realized it was not he who ruled, but the seven dark demons he had summoned forth to give him power.
He frowned, then shr
ugged wryly. "Perhaps I would have been arrogant enough to have tried anyway, but I did not know, and I was caught off guard. They overpowered me and again took control of Daeksould—this time through me. For many years we have battled and I had begun to despair that I would find a way to vanquish them. For the most part, the best that I could do was to keep them from the sacrifices that made them stronger.
"When your father came to me to sell you, he brought your likeness to me and I sensed an interest in Behsart that led me to believe that you were the strength I needed to vanquish them."
"It was Behsart who held you then?"
He frowned. "It is hard to explain to a mortal. Behsart was a part of the others. Thus, the name and that is also why he was the weakest of them. I allowed them to believe that he kept me chained, because I knew that if they doubted it they would bind me more tightly."
"He told me you were Cavan, Lord of Reugal."
"I am—Lord of Reugal and also of Daeksould—now."
Mariel frowned. "I don’t understand how you thought sacrificing me would weaken them if it didn’t before."
"I never intended to sacrifice you. I could not have stopped them once they decided to take you. I did not have the power to do so."
"You said you’d stopped the others," she said accusingly.
He frowned at her, obviously striving for patience. "They did not lust for the others. It was not that difficult to pander to their arrogance and convince them they had no need for more virgin sacrifices. They had no use for the others, beyond consuming their spirits, drawing strength from it. You, they lusted for. They would have to expend energy to have you and once they had decided that they would have you, I could not prevent it. I had not expected that you would be as brave, clever and–lusty as you were."
Mariel reddened. "I…uh… I."
He smiled faintly, brushing the backs of his fingers over her cheek. "I am not complaining. Their lust for you consumed them. If you had not responded, they would not have been so enthralled with you that they did not even notice how weak they were growing. I am certainly not complaining on my own account."
His arrogance irritated her. She frowned. "You are assuming that I am yours."
His expression changed instantly. "Make no mistake, my love, you are."
Mariel felt a little prick of uneasiness, but the truth was she didn’t really object. After a moment, she sighed. "I was not courted," she complained.
He chuckled. "I am more than willing to court you--however you wish to be courted."
Mariel rolled her eyes. Men were never romantic. If you had to instruct them on courting you, there was little point in it.
He hooked his finger beneath her chin and forced her to look up at him. "Tell me—of all the things that you have experienced, which pleased you most?" he asked huskily.
Mariel reddened. That wasn’t exactly what she’d had in mind, but she supposed since they’d honeymooned most of the way to the Castle Valdamer, there wasn’t much point in weeping over the courtship she’d missed. In any case, she couldn’t help but be intrigued by his claim. "You could… do that?" she asked hesitantly.
He gave her an arrogant look. Abruptly, he sat up, hooked his finger in the thin fabric of the robe and ripped it down the center from the neck to her crotch. "I am the benign Demon Valdamer. Anything a dark demon can do, I can do better."
The End
Belly of the Beast Page 12
