Chapter 1

The demon's nest

Juliet had never believed in much anything, but there was one thing that she had always held dear. Her family, in other words her sister. If she could have carried her sister's burden, she would have done so without hesitation. Poor Ophelia had suffered so much already. Her sister had always been kind and gentle, everything that she wasn't. Juliet was a fighter and she was willing to do anything in order to free her sister from those demons.

She braced herself before stepping into the tavern. She was wearing a red gown with very open neckline and a black cloak. It was likely that Kol had seen Ophelia, so she hid her face carefully under a hood. They were almost identical twins, so she had to be very cautious. Thankfully an open neckline was usually enough to distract most men, why would they want to look at her face.

The tavern seemed to be full of people who were drinking, chatting and laughing. No one seemed to be paying much attention to her which was good. She stayed as unnoticed as possible until her target arrived. The atmosphere in the tavern changed immediately when the young lord walked in wearing a fancy looking black and red tunic. All the talking stopped and everyone seemed suddenly very cautious.

"Please, carry on," he said smiling charmingly. "Do not mind me."

The innkeeper, who was an elderly man, approached him quickly.

"Welcome, my lord, your table is ready."

"Why, thank you, my good man," he said cheerily. "Here you are."

The innkeeper caught a coin he tossed in the air.

"Thank you, my lord."

He looked almost bored while sitting at his table.

"Drinks for everyone! And I want some music!"

"Right away, my lord," the innkeeper said quickly and almost ran to a backroom. Two men started to play violins while the barmaids were quickly filling a stein for everyone in the tavern. Clearly this young lord had got used to people giving in to his every whim without hesitation. Juliet rolled her eyes before approaching the counter. One of the barmaids handed her a stein without saying a word. Well, this made things a little easier.

She made sure that no one was looking before taking a small bottle from her sleeve and empting it into the stein. Now she would just have to make the demon to drink it. She moved her cloak, exposing her neckline before approaching his table. Her face was still hidden under the hood. He already had a stein in front of him but she didn't think that would matter.

"Excuse me, my lord," she said shyly. "I would like to offer this stein to you."

He looked up and smirked.

"Well, well, what have we here? Did good old Angus sent you?"

Angus was a servant who looked for girls to entertain his master but at the moment he was taking a little nap. Juliet nodded.

"Yes, he did. May I join you?"

"Of course, darling, take a seat."

"Thank you, my lord."

Juliet knew that she had to be very careful now. She placed the stein in front of him before sitting down. His eyes were on her neckline, as she had suspected when he took a sip from the stein.

"Why don't you remove that hood and let me see your pretty face," he purred.

"I am a little shy, my lord," she said "This is my…my first time."

He grinned.

"Really? Well I must remember to thank Angus. But no need to worry, darling, I will take a good care of you. Did Angus pay you already?"

"Yes, my lord, everything is in order. I am all yours for tonight."

He took another sip out of his stein and smiled. She was praying that the potion she had added into the stein would start to affect soon. Since he was a demon, it wouldn't kill him but it would certainly knock him out.

"What is your name, my little shy girl?" he asked.

"Mary," she said trying her best to sound sweet and innocent.

"Hmm, I like that name. Why don't you come and sit on my lap so we can get to know each other a little better."

Was he serious? Apparently yes. Great. Juliet forced herself to move onto his lap. His hands were encircling her waist while his lips touched her neckline.

"Sweet little Mary," he muttered. "I am going to enjoy making you a woman."

Dream on, jerk.

"I can hardly wait, my lord," she replied shyly. Why wasn't that damn potion working? His other hand was caressing her back while the other one cupped her breast. She would have to punch him soon. Suddenly he stopped and yawned. Finally.

"What…" he muttered before passing out. She grabbed his wrist and took his ring.

"Thank you," she said and stood up, placing his head on the table. She wrapped her cloak tighter around her before walking out. The night was a little chilly. She had no time to waste so she headed to the castle as fast as she could. Had she actually just pulled that off? Well, apparently it didn't matter if a man was a human or a demon, he still used something else than his brain for thinking. She placed the ring on her finger before approaching the main entrance. There were guards in front of it, as always.

"What is your business?" the other one asked. They both seemed rather bored.

"Master Kol sent me here to wait for him," she said softly. "He had something to take care of first and he wanted me to be in his chambers when he arrives."

Both guards looked suspicious before she lifted her hand.

"He told me to show you this if there is a problem."

Clearly they recognized the ring.

"He wasn't in a good mood so I should go and get myself ready for him. Or I can wait here with you until he arrives, I am sure that you can explain that to him…"

"No! You can go," the other guard said quickly. "You know where his chamber is?"

"Yes, I have been there before."

They opened the door for her and stepped aside.

"Thank you. Good night, gentlemen."

Juliet forced herself to stay calm when she walked into a demon's nest. Unfortunately that had been the easy part. She was still far from getting her sister and herself out.