Sacrifice (22 page)

She had sent Rose to fetch a midday meal for her before Pearl had entered. They were alone, although she knew her husband’s repulsive guards were always lurking. Unrolling the paper further, she read the small note written by an unfamiliar hand, then felt the blood rush to her face when she saw the signed name at the bottom:
Sky
.

Skybright was here. Waiting outside for her. She didn’t know how it could be possible, but it was. “Did my sister visit alone?” Zhen Ni asked casually.

“No, there was a cousin with her.” Pearl gave a knowing grin. “He was very handsome.”

Stone? But Stone would never have let Skybright return here. “Was he dressed well? Like a wealthy merchant?”

“No, lady. Quite plain.” She giggled. “But I wasn’t looking much at his clothes.”

Kai Sen then. Had he succeeded in freeing Skybright from Stone?

A dark shadow fell across the main hall just after Zhen Ni had tucked Skybright’s note into her sleeve. Her husband, dressed in gray, filled the doorway. He entered, and Pearl stared, mouth wide open. Zhen Ni didn’t know how she could ever have mistaken him for human, noting now his strange gait to the too long limbs and lumps on his brow, where his horns protruded when he revealed his true self.

Zhen Ni stood gracefully, composing her face. She gave her husband a small, polite smile, revealing nothing. “Husband, this is an unexpected surprise.”

She heard a childish burble, and Zhen Ni was gripped with terror. She knew that soft cooing. A girl of about two years peeped from behind Master Bei’s loose trousers. She smiled sweetly at Zhen Ni, then Pearl, revealing small, perfect teeth—not the sharp little knives that had bit into a human eyeball. This was the same girl Zhen Ni had stumbled upon in the vast cavern beneath the manor yesterday, even though she was a full year older and walking now, when she could only crawl before. There was no mistaking the dark, expressive eyes, the perfect features. The girl’s cheeks were rounded with a faint blush of pink, reminding Zhen Ni of a perfect peach.

“What a beautiful little darling!” Pearl leaned down and extended a hand.

Zhen Ni almost swatted at the handmaid, envisioning the demon child ripping her arm off to gnaw on it.

The girl darted behind Master Bei, clutching the fabric of his trousers, and giggled, a delightful, joyous sound. It would have lightened Zhen Ni’s heart, had she not known the truth of what the girl really was.

Her husband’s mouth stretched into what Zhen Ni imagined he thought a smile was but instead was a strained sneer. “Blossom can be shy,” he said. Pearl nodded and straightened, blanching when she looked Master Bei full in the face. She shuffled back from him, bowing her head.

His black eyes captured Zhen Ni’s, and she felt sweat gather at the nape of her neck, but she held his gaze, damp palms clasped in front of her. “Blossom is my daughter from my first marriage.” His voice was like gravel. “You will treat her like your own.”

“Of course, Husband.” She wondered what became of his first wife—did she die of natural causes? She must have been beautiful, for Blossom looked nothing like her father. But the child, Zhen Ni had no doubt, was part demon—and that was every bit like Master Bei.

She plucked a dried mango slice covered in sugar from a lacquered tray and offered it to the girl. “Hello, Blossom.” To Zhen Ni’s astonishment, the girl dashed out from behind Master Bei and leaped into her arms. Blossom was attired in something coarse and baggy. It might as well have been a rice sack, and her black hair was knotted and disheveled. The little girl twined her chubby arms around Zhen Ni’s neck and rested a plump cheek against her shoulder. She smelled sweet, reminding Zhen Ni of the delicious aroma of walnuts cooking in sugar; something she’d steal in large handfuls from the kitchen.

“Mama,” the girl murmured.

Zhen Ni pulled back, enveloped in a blissful haze, dimly aware of Pearl gawping at her like a toad. Faint red smudges ringed Blossom’s bow-shaped mouth, like dried berry juice. But from far away, a thought reached the soft tendrils on the edges of her mind.
Not juice
, she thought.
Blood
. Human blood. Her little daughter had been dining and growing these last hours since she’d seen her, and Zhen Ni had been too cowardly to stab the child in the throat with Nanny Bai’s dagger.

A part of her wanted to throw the girl aside, jerk her head away so her face wouldn’t be eaten by the little monster. But she had to pretend she liked Blossom to fool her demon husband. And even more frightening, Zhen Ni realized she enjoyed holding the girl in her arms, feeling the soft chubbiness of her, breathing in her honeyed scent.

She’d never liked children before.
What was happening?

“Mama,” Blossom whispered again, sighing contentedly, and Zhen Ni’s heart filled with love for her.

She was being charmed. The demon girl was weaving some magic spell over her. Dread tugged at the edge of Zhen Ni’s consciousness like dull pinpricks. She tried to set Blossom down, but the girl clung to her like moss to stone.

“How could you let her run around dressed like this?” Zhen Ni reprimanded, speaking more boldly than she ever had before to Master Bei. She discreetly tugged at Blossom’s round arms, trying to disentangle herself from the girl’s grip. “And her hair is like a crow’s nest!” The demon child was strong, already stronger than Zhen Ni.

Her husband folded his massive arms, obviously expecting Zhen Ni to take care of such feminine matters. “What is the letter?”

She felt faint alarm, and in that moment, Blossom dug sharp nails into her back, as if in warning. “From my mother,” Zhen Ni said and tilted her chin toward Pearl. “News from home and a letter of recommendation for her.”

Home was a few streets away, in the same town she had grown up in, but behind these massive walls, trapped with a demon husband and child, it might as well be worlds away.

“You will write and say all is well,” Master Bei said. It wasn’t a question or request. “We don’t want to cause worry … or trouble.”

For the briefest moment, she thought she glimpsed red flames in the depths of her husband’s eyes. “No, no trouble. All is well, Husband. Of course I’ll write and tell her.” The implied threat to her loved ones was clear enough, even in her fogged mind. Zhen Ni would suffer alone to keep everyone she loved safe. “I’ll write a letter to my mother and send it back with Pearl—tell her how perfect everything is.”

Perfect
. Like this girl she held in her arms. Zhen Ni’s fear of Blossom was being swallowed by happy feelings. Feelings of love, comfort, and peace. She strained to hold on to her terror, that knife-edge of anxiety, but she’d been frightened and distressed for so long, her mind was unwilling to cling to the fear. Why not feel love instead? She hadn’t felt truly loved since she had said farewell to Lan months ago, since she had lost Skybright …

Master Bei nodded and left without so much as a word or glance back at his new bride.

Pearl watched his hulking back, her brown eyes as round as teacups. “Master Bei … Master Bei is a formidable man.”

Even in her blissful, loving haze for the child, the handmaid irritated Zhen Ni.

“Mama, down now.” Blossom’s strong grip eased around Zhen Ni’s neck. “Please.”

The girl had some manners at least. Already more polite than Pearl—which wasn’t saying much. Who had taught the little girl to talk? Certainly not Master Bei, whose speech was halting at best. But then, Blossom had grown a full year in less than a day’s time. There were no logical explanations here. Zhen Ni’s sole task was to survive.

She put Blossom down gently as Rose swept into the main hall bearing a tray laden with dishes. Casting a curious glance at the little girl, Rose set the food on the oval rosewood table where Zhen Ni took her meals. The aroma of garlic, scallions, and black bean sauce drifted to her, but she had no appetite. Still, she would force herself to eat something. She wouldn’t wallow in self-pity and waste away. She needed strength to contend with her demonic husband.

A year ago, she would have laughed at such absurdity. But a year ago, she had no notion that her closest confidant, her companion since she was a babe, was a half serpent demon. Sky. Skybright was waiting for her outside; she had come back for her. There was so much uncertainty in Zhen Ni’s world now, but she should never have doubted Skybright’s love for her.

Oriole followed soon after with a pot of tea and jug of rice wine, placing the tray carefully on the lacquered table. Zhen Ni nodded at the older servant in dismissal, and she slipped out of the hall on noiseless feet.

“Will you take me on, lady?” Pearl asked, her hands clutched in front of her chest. “It’d be an honor to work for the Bei manor!”

“Yes. I’ll write a letter to my mother asking to keep you as part of my staff.” Pearl was an annoyance but wily and skillful at sneaking and gathering gossip. She might prove useful. “Rose, take the child for a bath, and do something with her hair. Send for Ning Ning and have twelve outfits tailored. Shoes too. Choose the most expensive fabrics.” She eased herself onto the carved stool and picked up a ladle to try the fragrant soup. “I’ve no set limit on how much to spend. Blossom will have the very best.”

Rose leaned over to take the little girl’s hand. Zhen Ni saw how her face softened, and her eyes lit up when Blossom curled her chubby fingers around the handmaid’s. She hadn’t imagined the effect the child had had on her. It was sorcery. Magic. And even though they were no longer touching, Blossom’s charm on her was like some redolent perfume, suffusing her senses, lingering in her consciousness and on her skin. The small, sharp note of warning was nothing compared to the wave of love she felt from the child and for her.

“Is she hungry?” Rose breathed, her gaze never leaving the girl’s face. “Should I feed her?”

If she only knew
, Zhen Ni thought. It was a distant voice in her own mind.

“Take her to the kitchen first. Coax her to eat,” Zhen Ni replied. “She can have whatever her heart desires.”

Rose nodded. “Of course she can.” She led the girl down the steps and out into the lush courtyard.

“Sit.” Zhen Ni waved a hand at Pearl, whose astonishment hadn’t grown less when she had heard Zhen Ni casually tell Rose to spend as much as she pleased on the little girl. “Eat with me.”

Pearl uncovered all the dishes for Zhen Ni: silk gourd with shrimp, bean curd in a black bean sauce, beef stew with carrots, and pork ribs marinated in a sweet and spicy dressing.

“Take what you’d like,” Zhen Ni said. She knew the servants were treated well at her mother’s manor, but to have seafood and so much meat at a meal was a rare feast. “Thank you for bringing the letter to me.” They both knew Zhen Ni wasn’t speaking about her mother’s note.

Pearl had already taken a mouthful of food and finished chewing before she said, “Of course, lady.” The girl lowered her voice—she was smarter than she acted. “Is there a message in return?”

Zhen Ni swigged a large gulp of rice wine, something she rarely indulged in. “Tell her—” She fisted her hands. “Tell her I could never forgive her for all the lies that she told. Tell her—” Zhen Ni had to stop, lest her voice wavered. “I never want to see her again.”

Pearl’s arched eyebrows climbed so high, it would have been comical, if Zhen Ni didn’t feel so heartbroken. She knew how loyal Skybright was and what lengths she would go to save her if she realized Zhen Ni was in danger. The one way she could think of to get Skybright as far away from here as possible was to imply that she couldn’t stand the thought of her presence.
She’ll think that I hate her
. But Zhen Ni could live with this knowledge if she knew that Skybright would be safe.

Skybright

Pearl took forever to come back out from Bei manor.

Skybright vacillated between excitement and irritation, anxiety and fear. She wanted more than anything to change into her serpent shape, slither over the manor’s tall wall, and kill all the demon guards that held Zhen Ni captive. Instead, she sat on the bench, painfully aware of the sun’s gradual descent. Stone tried to distract her by making small talk—but after two millennia as an immortal, he was terrible at it.

“The birds are not singing in the trees,” he said after a long silence.

Skybright flicked her senses upward. Stone was right; there were sparrows in the pomegranate trees, still and silent.

“It’s because of the demons,” he said.

“Hmm.”

After another long lull in conversation in which she had to restrain herself from fidgeting and Stone sat motionless, he said, “They are hellhounds.”

Skybright jerked to hear his voice, which had kept its resonance even after the goddess had stripped Stone of almost all his immortal powers.

“What?” she asked.

“Those statues made to look like ordinary guardian lions flanking Bei manor’s entrance are really hellhounds. The hidden horns and their eyes gave them away.”

She wasn’t sure if she wanted to know, but she asked anyway, “What do they do?”

“They are powerful companions to demons of old.” Stone steepled his fingers and stared at his hands, pausing as if considering something. “Ancient demons who had minds of their own. Not like the kind we grow and harvest for the Great Battle. You, Skybright, are from ancient demon stock.” He glanced toward the statues, even as one of the magnificent outer doors of Bei manor pulled open. “I’ve never come across a hellhound—they were before even my time.”