Free Claimed by the Demon Knight: Book One by Cryptic Fawn Page A

teetotaller... but some of the others knights did.
    There was a large stash of vodka preserved in storage, along with the rest of the food. One bottle would surely do. And when he was done with the bottle, he would break it over that burnett head.
    Tenuxhal bared his teeth at nothing and grinned at the idea. It quickly turned into a snarl and a dark frown as another whiff of the sickly scent caught in his sensitive nose. He shook his head and snorted ineffectually in an attempt to expel the pungent scent, then he stomped off with purpose across the sand to get himself thoroughly plastered.
    ~~~
    T he next time the witch awoke, a tray of food sat beside the bed, Tenuxhal conspicuously absent. Elsi sat up slowly. Energy was nice and all, but she still needed to eat. She was shaky and painfully weak. She looked at the tray. More bread and water. Delightful. When it came to his culinary skills, the knight certainly had a flair for boring. Elsi was going to starve to death in this wasted place if she didn't get some real food soon.
    She reached for a piece of bread, and something on the floor caught her attention. A white towel lay strewed across the spot where she'd lost her guts earlier, as if it had been tossed there haphazardly, from a distance. Elsi raised one long, brown brow, then snorted. It seemed rather ironic, and Elsi couldn't help but laugh at the notion that when she'd finally found Tenuxhal's Achilles heel, it was not something she could ever produce on a whim, or would ever want to.

Seven
    A fter spending a few days trapped in bed, with the knight hounding her, Elsi was convinced of one thing...
    ...That Tenuxhal could start a fight in an empty house.
    Elsi sat up in her bed, less dizzy than before, and regarded the demon she'd come to know all too well. The knight lounged across the room, well-muscled red limbs stretched out comfortably along the entire length of the dark gray couch, freshly opened bottle of vodka resting upright on his bare chest, reinforced by the tips of strong fingers and claws. He lay like that, comfortable, careless, white hair tousled perfectly, looking for all the world like a debauched rock star. His large steer horns only adding to the ridiculous look.
    To watch him as he was now, Elsi thought, and not know him, one might think he looked like a little kid, full of mischief, youthful laziness, and cockiness, all wrapped up into an undeniably boyishly handsome package. On the one hand, yes, he did possess those traits. On the other hand, when he angered, he worked himself into a frenzy, becoming a sadistic, brutal, lethal, cold, calculating, taunting, menacing, homicidal chaotic sonofabitch.
    That was the demon Elsi had come to know, and being unarmed in his presence was unacceptable.
    "Where's my staff?" She asked.
    "I took it. Why?" said the man from across the room. Tenuxhal didn't even deign to open his eyes.
    "Uhh... it would be nice to be able to defend myself."
    "You got nothing to worry about witch. Regular demons don’t come around here. Too damn scared." Silver eyes opened and slid sideways, sly and mocking.
    "I meant from you," she snapped, and if Tenuxhal heard her mumble 'asshole,' he didn't acknowledge it.
    "Che. You aren't worth killing as you are now. I ain't interested in the weak." He turned his gaze away and took a long, lazy pull from his bottle to emphasize his disinterest and display his contempt.
    Elsi felt the heat in her face as she flushed, her temper beginning to rise. She knew what the demon meant. As much as she loathed the feeling, she was an invalid right now. But still. What a dick.
    Tenuxhal reached back and stretched languidly before raising his knees and feet up then bringing them down, rocking himself forward in a fluid motion into a sitting position, twisting as he did, so that he faced forward on the couch.
    "You don't seem to realize the position you're in, human. Just because I'm letting you heal, don't go thinking that means I've forgiven