Griselda patiently waited outside the kind man's stable, but he wasn't there. While Rosalia and I approached with caution, Sophie threw it to the wind. Her flurry of giggles hit the air as she rushed over to the horse. Her hands passed over its long black mane. Its dark eyes, black like obsidian stone, peered at us as Sophie nestled its neck. "Oh, this animal is beautiful," she sang.

"Is this the horse we are supposed to buy?" Rosalia whispered.

I shrugged. The man had said he would be here, hadn't he? I was supposed to give him fifty coins to take the animal.

Sophie drew back from the as she pulled a paper from its neck. She frowned at the note and it flipped it over. After reading what it said, her jaw dropped. "Gluttony," she looked at me, "I think this is for you?"

My brows shot up. "Me?"

She nodded.

As I took the paper from her hand, I noticed the name scrawled across the top with black fresh ink. A drop of it smeared from the letter n in my name: John.

My eyes widened as I read: Honesty is a trait that strays away from darkness. Humbled humility is a gift to those who find it.

I looked at Rosalia. "This man knew who I was," I whispered.

She covered her mouth with both hands. "No... was it the other demons? Have they found us that quickly?" Her cheeks darkened as she shook her head. Her breath quickened. Tears welled in her eyes as her shoulders trembled. "It hasn't been a full day and they've found us, they'll kill us, and—"

I frowned, dropped the paper, and grabbed her. "Breathe, Rosalia," I whispered as I cupped the back of her head, rubbing my fingers against her scalp. Glancing down at the paper sitting on top of my shoe, I sighed. "This isn't the Seven. They wouldn't help me this way and there is no way to possess animals to trick us."

She peered up at me as tears slid down her cheeks. "Then how would he know you? John, you've lived in secret for so long. Are we not safe?"

I chewed on my bottom lip. The message in the letter made me believe in a power I'd never seen, so my natural response was to discredit it. Hundreds of years living within the demons, and no one stopped me; invincibility was a belief I carried with me for as long as I could remember.

Yet, the past few years showed me weakness strangled me and in loneliness, I craved death. The past few months reminded me that I was a man, though swallowed by darkness, I desired the beauty of the world that had been taken from me. And the past few days reminded me I wasn't invincible and everything I loved could be destroyed with just a snap of one's fingers.

Humbled humility is a gift to those who find it.

Reaching for the paper, I pocketed it. "I believe someone is helping me," I whispered as I looked back at Rosalia. "I will take their kindness and we will run."

"To where?"

I pulled her back into a tight hug, and I spoke into her hair, "Anywhere."

***

For weeks, we traveled by horse through the roads of Spain. We made stops at stores for various supplies—food, blankets, tarps for tents, and shelter. When we reached Oros, a town just beside the Azules River, I found a merchant selling his wagon. I knew it made us visible but a sturdy roof over our heads gave us a stronger sense of safety. Not for me, but the family I brought with me.

With the wagon filled with all we needed, Azules felt like a place to rest for the day. I organized the interior, and set up blankets so we could sleep, but after an hour of work, I realized I was alone.

Sophie had made herself comfortable under a tree. She'd taken a book before we ran and I didn't blame her; traveling required entertainment. Yet, while she lost herself in the dark magic book of Loros and Meade, the first Lust and Wrath, Rosalia stayed within the light beside the water. The wind blew through her hair as she stared off into the distance. Her dress swayed, matching the rhythm of the river's current. As I watched her, admiring her beauty from afar, she didn't look at me. Not once.

I pulled my bottom lip into my lip as I approached her.

"Rosalia," I whispered as I wrapped an arm lovingly around her waist, "you seem lost, my love."

"I am," she whispered.

With a finger, I turned her head by her chin, so she looked at me. I frowned. She'd be crying and the tears dampened her cheeks. "What's wrong?" As soon as the question left my lips, I shook my head because it wasn't something to ask. I knew what was wrong; running for our lives wasn't easy on the heart, not even for a demon like me.

Inhaling slowly, I leaned in to kiss her, to let my love remind her that we were okay, even if at times it didn't feel like it.

But she looked away and focused on the water again.

"Rosalia?" I whispered.

"How long have we been traveling now?" She looked back at me.

I pursed my lips and hummed. "Three weeks," I said. "Maybe a month. I'm sorry. This is difficult and I know it is hard, and Rosalia, as much as I love you, I will not hate it if you choose to leave. Just know I—"

"I'm with child," she said. Suddenly. Quickly. Tears formed in her eyes as soon as she spoke.

My heart stopped. I couldn't breathe. My mind raced with the possibilities because I'd never heard of a demon bearing a child with a human. Then again, none of us kept a partner long enough to know if it could happen. Rosalia had been my first lover in hundreds of years, and before her, it was women at brothels if the night felt right.

After a minute, a trembling breath slipped past my lips. "Are you sure?"

She scoffed and squeezed her eyes shut as she growled in frustration. "John, you are the only man I've had sex with... in months. I laid with you numerous nights, and I, and you question—"

"I am not questioning if the child is mine," I whispered. "I was just... I was unaware this could happen."

"Well, it's happened." She sniffed and rubbed her face. "I am carrying a demon's child, and I, I..." Her voice trailed off as her beautiful brown eyes peered up at me.

I couldn't lie to her, but I wouldn't say it—this situation is terrifying. The Seven would kill us when they found us. Our lives were on the line. If the child was born, would the hunting stop? Would they be running, too?

But despite the horror, the danger of all of this, it excited me. For hundreds of years, I believed beauty and life weren't a gift for a monster like me, but Rosalia changed that. At first, she was my chance at death, but rather, she gave me life, love, and the desire to exist. With the news that she carried my child, how could I deny her? I would love this child with every fiber of my being. Rosalia had given me the chance to excel as a man, as a husband, and father.

I gently stroked her cheek. "If you're okay with this," I whispered, "but if this isn't something you want, we can try to find a way, a safe way. There would be an herb or—"

"John," quietly crying, she placed her hand on my chest, "I would never ever think of killing a child, of a soul created by our love, but our situation scares me," she whispered. "Can we raise a child? Can we keep this life?"

Her fears were justifiable, and I wouldn't take that from her. I only needed to remind her. "Love," I brushed my thumb over her bottom lip, "I will protect our child, I will give my immortal life to ensure you and this baby are safe, and Sophia." Pulling her against me, I held her as I kissed her forehead. "You and your sister are my family, and with our child, this makes you my wife," with a finger, I lifted her chin to look into my eyes, "if you will have me."

A tear slowly fell down her cheek. "Are we allowed that happiness?" she whispered.

"We are if we take it." I kissed her softly. "No one will take you, your sister, or our child from me. I will ensure that."