Turning on them once they were in the spare rooms that had been hers next to Epharis', she looked between them all curiously before she crossed her arms.
"Ask your questions," she said.
There was only a brief pause before all of them started speaking at once and then stopped, looking around at each other. They seemed to be communicating silently as she settled herself against the backrest of the couch, leaning back as she waited.
"You and Daemon?" Jaia finally growled, and she looked at him, fear flooding her as her eyes met his. He, Kai, and she exchanged a moment of tension. It was the first time she had been in the same room with him, and his glare left her trembling as she saw him again, naked and wanting.
The sudden tension between them had Daemon looking between them suspiciously. The demon knew something had happened, but not what, and most seemed to assume she had attacked him.
"We are not involved," Daemon said slowly, uncertain. "We had no choice in the matter."
Her eyes dropped to the floor as she chewed on her lip and tried to decide how she felt about the demon. It was a cruel reminder of what he had said to her, his angry words and those of Selene.
"It will take time," she said finally, and Jaia growled, frustrated that she hadn't said the same for what he had done to her, and avoided him as much as possible.
"You died?" Dirdos asked.
She frowned slightly, looking up at the dragon as she tried to decide. "I think I must die in order to go to that other place."
"You almost died the real way," Daemon growled, and she nodded.
"What does that mean?" Kai asked, looking between the two.
"The net they placed on my magic contained the creation within me, just like if I had been unable to give birth to a baby that was stuck."
"So much blood…" Daemon whispered, and Kai tensed, his eyes dragging down her, but she was intact again.
"I suspect that if I die in that process, it will not end well for Faerie. It is likely that unless I can sever the connection, my creation will likely destroy Faerie and this world with it. We need to have the binding removed."
"Do you plan to go through that again?" Daemon snarled, and she looked at him.
"There were a very large number of beings in that room Daemon. A very large number of them do not have any loyalty to me, and no reason not to speak. Word is likely already out, and we are all very aware of the number of beings who have no issue in taking what they want."
"We have to make sure you are protected," Daemon growled, his eyes landing on her hips.
She could almost see the devices he was going to try and use on her to ensure no one else was going to get his hands on her and she growled softly.
"We will be careful; you are not going to be doing anything to me."
"But if we just—"
"No! You are not touching me!" she snarled, and he looked slightly shocked. Flushing, she had not meant to shout at him, and she dropped her eyes to the floor. "Sorry…" she muttered, hating herself for her reaction.
A soft hand touched her cheek, and she looked up at the demon, his eyes gentle as he pressed a kiss against her forehead.
"I'm sorry…" he whispered, and she clenched her jaw, swallowing hard.
"Perhaps we can have Epharis come up with a means of defending the room," Dirdos said slowly, and she nodded.
"Am I not protected when you are nearby?" she asked, looking at the dragon.
"In a sense yes, but you would be safer in the cave. But barring that, your Lich is likely more useful unless you want me breathing down your neck every waking moment."
She frowned, looking him over and his grin was suddenly wicked. Jaia growled at the heat that radiated off the dragon. It was very tempting to have Dirdos with her all the time, though not practical.
"Stop trying to seduce her," the vampire snapped.
"Better than your strategy, little vampire," the dragon said. She jerked, looking up at him sharply. "You think I didn't notice something like that? You can hide things from them but not me. I could smell it on you."
None of them said anything, but Daemon was staring down at her.
"What is he talking about?" Daemon growled but she only shook her head. "What did you do to her?" Daemon turned on Jaia, but Jaia's jaw clenched in his refusal to speak.
Dirdos began to laugh, gleeful at their secrets. "Looks like your little pet Goddess is keeping secrets, demon."
Daemon turned on Kai lastly and both she and Jaia moved, but the demon was on the vampire, long fingers crushing the slender throat.
"Daemon, let him go!" she cried, pulling at the demon's arm, but he ignored her, glaring up at the vampire.
"What did he do?" Daemon snarled.
Stepping into it, she drove her knee into Daemon's stomach, but he only grunted and turned on her, wrapping his arm around her and hugging her to him, Kai's face turning red as he struggled for air.
"What was it, Kai?!" Daemon screamed, Kai whimpering in a strangled sound that broke her heart.
"I raped her!" Jaia yelled, and the room froze in place. "I knew she wouldn't be able to stop me for fear of hurting me, and I just…"
Kai dropped and hit the ground as Daemon released him and she broke free of Daemon's limp grasp as she hurried to the vampire and clutched his face, making sure he was breathing, her fingers light on his bruised throat.
"When?" Daemon asked in a low, deadly, flat voice.
"Just after she remembered who I was," Jaia said. "She let Hunter out right after."
Looking up from Kai, she found Daemon looking down at her, his face expressionless, but his hands were shaking.
Standing slowly, his eyes tracked her movements, and she pulled Kai up with her, the vampire wheezing as he pulled at her, but she refused to retreat.
"You kept this from me," he breathed.
"You would have killed him," she said softly.
"You would keep him safe? You would protect him after that?"
Her eyes slid past him to Jaia, seeing his fear and resolve before her attention moved back to Daemon and she swallowed.
"You can't kill him."
"Do you still love him? After everything he has done to you?" Daemon breathed.
The question hung in the air, but the answer she had was not one that Daemon needed to hear, because she didn't want to admit it to herself. She didn't want to think about that, she didn't want to think about him or anything he had done to her.
Jaia moved slightly, wanting to know the answer to the question himself and she shook her head, not in denial, but in refusal to answer the question and she took a step back from Daemon.
The scene seemed to move in slow motion as the demon turned and Jaia jerked back as Daemon's hand closed around a short spear of wood, she didn't know he carried, and she moved. She didn't know how she had moved from where she was, to between Daemon and Jaia, but she was suddenly there, her arms lifting to protect the vampire, and she felt it as the stake found her.
Daemon's eyes were confused for an instant before the anger vanished into fear as they looked down as one to watch the thing vibrate with the thudding of her heart.
"Oh…" she breathed, not having thought about what might happen if she ever took a stake to the heart. It was very effective against vampires, but to her? She supposed they were about to find out.
"Etani…?" he asked, the scene speeding back up as her legs gave out and Jaia caught her, his face white as he saw the thing that had been intended for him.
Daemon had tried to murder him, and had even been prepared for it, as though waiting for his chance.
"Etani!" Kai screamed, the sound tearing at her, but her body seemed to no longer want to work.
Dirdos had Daemon by the back of the collar and had thrown him back into the wall, Versalis dropping to his knees and crawling closer as they tried to figure out what to do.
Looking up at Jaia, she searched his face, but he was fine, and she smiled slightly, relieved that he was at least safe.
"What do we do?" Kai cried, all eyes on the spear as it thrummed, but even as her vision began to blur, the thrumming slowed.
She had only been alive for a few hours, and now this? How many times was she going to die this week? She didn't know, but she was getting sick of it.
"Take it out!" Versalis gasped, but no one moved, no one certain of what needed to happen.
Dirdos reached down and his long fingers curled around the thing. There was a revolting sucking sound as he pulled it free of her chest.
She whimpered, looking up at the stupid thing, and she would have laughed if she were able to. Dirdos turned on Daemon and threw the stake at him, the demon ducking, and the hunk of wood sank into the wall where Daemon's head had been a second before.
Reaching down slowly, Kai pulled down the front of her dress and they saw the black fingers that stretched out from the hole in her chest. The three vampires looked up, realising at the same instant what it meant, and she smiled very slightly as Kai's fingers found hers and she squeezed as her heart stopped beating.
The last thing she felt as she surrendered to the blackness was Jaia lifting her against his chest, growling as someone reached for her and the tension in the room growing dangerously.