The Demon's Claim [House of Arcane #2]

The nerve of the woman!

I was looking at her retreating figure before I thought to myself that I had married a woman that was not known for her grace and politeness. And I was not sure if I wanted to have Nora be that way as well.

It just reminded me of Cornelia.

My heart ached before I was leaning against the wall as I was gasping for air. No, it cannot be! I thought I have more time before the symptoms were showing.

Apparently, I miscalculated.

‘My lord!’ my father called after me as I was dropping to my knees before Edgar was checking for me. I was breathing heavily before I was nodding at him.

‘It’s fine, I can handle it,’

‘No, you are not! You’re pale and you were shaking. We have to find Her Highness as soon as we could,’ Edgar said before I laughed. I fucking laughed at that statement before I coughed. Bloody fragile human body!

Edgar pulled me to my feet before he went to put me on the divan. I was looking around before I was focusing on the ceiling. I did not know what happened but suddenly I was back at that moment again.

A knife out of nowhere.

A scream that haunted my dreams.

Crimson red that stained my hands.

I shouted his name as he slit her throat.

Pain, so much pain!

I was gripping my heart before my head was throbbing very quickly. I was gasping even more before Edgar was mumbling some charms under his breath as he laid his hand on my head. I was closing it as I was trying to block the pain that was throbbing inside me before it subdued. I don’t know how long before another episode was coming for me.

‘I think we have to get you to lay with your wife, my lord. It was not ideal but it will subdue the call,’ Edgar said before I shook my head.

‘No, I will not laid with just anyone. I wanted my Cornelia. Only her can cure this pain,’ I said before I was leaning against the sofa. Edgar sighed before he was looking at me. His turquoise eyes were looking at me.

It reminded me how much I was related to this man as my father in this mortal form.

‘But where do we even know Her Highness is, my lord? We have been searching for her almost 21 years old of this mortal time,’ Edgar said before I was shaking my head. I closed my eyes as I can see her green eyes were staring at me without any soul inside them anymore.

I will make my brother pay for what he’s done to my wife. Just you wait for I am coming for you, Ezekiel.

‘Leave. I want you to make sure that Nora will not be leaving this mansion anytime soon,’ I said to Edgar as he was staring at me. ‘I cannot simple have her wondering around now before she knew all the secret of these double lives we’re having,’ I said before Edgar bowed to me.

‘As you wish, my lord,’ he said while bowing before leaving me alone with my thoughts. And it was the most dangerous thing to be done because just as Edgar left the room, I was immediately remembered how Nora reacted to my kiss.

My first kiss with my mortal wife.

I was touching my own lips as I was smiling like an idiot. I smirked before I was feeling some of the pain in my heart subdued as I thought of her.

What a strange reaction to have.

I rubbed my face before I was leaning against the divan and closed my eyes, thinking of the woman that has been dead for 500 years ago, long before I was reincarnated to take my revenge on Ezekiel.

Nora McCarthy’s POV

I was walking around the house as I was trying to figure out where I was. I did some exploring and later I was shown to my room that I will be sharing with Logan. What a mess!

The clothes were laying everywhere and the smell of it can make me throw my last dinner content in my stomach. This will not do for I thought about Logan that was supposed to be all sophisticated and clean but his room was…

Let’s just say that I might a rat in his clothes piles.

‘Was he raised in a barn? What a hot mess,’ I grimace before I took a basket and I was taking one by one of his dirty clothes before I was calling for housekeeper to take it to the laundry and clean it. I drew the curtains and I was looking at the sight in front of me.

The mansion was at the top of a mountain. That’s how rich Logan O’Sullivan was and I don’t think I will ever see such sight again in my life. I opened the window before the cool breeze was coming in and take away the bad odor of the room as I was sweeping the floor.

I was humming some music that I knew from my head before I was looking at the photos that were lined up on the dresser. There were too many photos but one in particular was grabbing my attention immediately.

I put the broom away for a moment as I took the frame into my hands. I was looking at the children that were smiling at the camera but one did not. I can make out his peculiar eyes and black hair.

It was Logan when he was 5 or 6 years old.

There were two other children as they were smiling at the camera. Only Logan did not but I can see a girl and a boy that could be twins. Or siblings for all I know with their brown hairs. But their eyes were different. The girl has violet orbs and the boy has uncanny (Maroon? Red?) eyes.

‘Huh, so he has always been brooding when he was younger. No wonder,’ I mumbled before I put it away again.

I pulled the broom again before I was knocking down the picture and I was looking at the mess that I just made.

‘Shit! Logan’s gonna kill me now,’ I whispered before I was looking at the shattered glass and the photo. As well as something that was stuck behind the photo. It looked like a drawing on a paper.

I scooped down to the floor as I was taking the drawing from the shattered glass. I was careful enough not to cut myself as I took the paper. It was old and creased a lot. I unfolded it and I was looking at the artistic drawing of a woman.

A very beautiful woman.

She has a very straight nose, high cheekbones and a sensual smile with her thin, small lips. I can see that she would attention stealer as her eyes were holding some depth to them. I felt like she was looking at me through the paper. Before I can touch it, someone took it from my hands as I turned to look at the person who stood behind me.

It was none other than Logan O’Sullivan himself.

‘I see that you like to be a snooper, wife,’ he said as he folded the paper and put it inside his pocket. I was still looking at the paper that he took from me before I was rolling my eyes. I stood up and I crossed my hands in front of my chest as I was stepping onto the shattered glass that I seemed for forget for a moment now.

‘I supposed that’s the woman you fancy right. What’s her name?’ I asked him nonchalantly as I was looking at his face. Logan kept it stoic before he shrugged at my question.

‘Would you like to know now?’ he asked me before I was rolling my eyes again and went to continue to brush the glasses.

‘No, don’t touch it. You will cut yourself,’ he said before I was picking the glasses. At the same time, I cut myself as I cursed underneath my breaths.

‘If you did not interrupt me, I will not be cutting myself now, would I?’ I asked him as Logan was taking my hand that my finger was cut. His turquoise eyes were looking at me before he was shaking his head.

‘We have a maid to do this kind of stuff. Not the ma’am of the house herself,’ he mumbled as I was arching my eyebrows.

‘Ma’am of the house, am I? Interesting,’ I said as Logan looked at me briefly before he was calling for the butler.

‘My lord?’ the old man with the penguin suit was showing at the door of our bedroom as Logan was instructing him to clean the thing up and brought the first aid kit to the room.

‘You are such a klutz,’ he said before I rolled my eyes.

‘You said that the first time we met, husband,’ I said before Logan washed my hand at the sink in the bathroom and then dried it up with a towel. Then, the butler was giving the kit and Logan got to work.

He applied some antiseptic first and it stung like hell. I hissed under my breaths as Logan was arching his eyebrows at me.

‘Cannot handle a little sting, are you?’

‘Cannot be gentle, are you?’ I mocked him before he worked on my finger. I was looking at his side profile before I noticed something that I never done before.

Even though we were forced to marry each other, Logan still treated me like I was the most precious thing in the world, and if that was not enough reason for my heart to beat so fast right now that I was sure he can hear it, then I don’t know what other reason was there.

For I was slowly, gradually starting to see Logan O’Sullivan in a different light and it was not as bad as I thought it would be.

I might get into trouble later on.