Her Witch, Her Demon: Book 1 of Hers Trilogy [WxW]

5. The Durug

The week passed quickly, and soon the day of the Durug meeting arrived.

Following Jakubs's direction, Rexadan drove for what seemed like hours to Down Tide. They could have simply teleported to the location, but Rexadan insisted they had to blend in so they wouldn't raise any suspicions from the lower echelons of the Durug. Teleportation was a high-level skill only royal demons and some greater demons possessed.

Winding through the long, dark road, a mansion soon appeared in the distance, and they headed straight for it. The closer they got, the larger the mansion became. The massive black gates automatically opened for them as they pulled up into a compound full of luxurious cars and stylishly-clad demons. Rexadan parked his black Bugatti next to a silver Cadillac convertible.

"Tag," said one of the security men in black suits when Rexadan and Nyx reached the front door.

Fumbling through the pocket of his blazer, Rexadan fished out the thin plastic card Jakubs had given him after spilling everything he knew about the Durug. He'd probably hoped that Rexadan would spare his life after that. He'd hoped wrong.

Nyx hadn't expected that the Durug would be very high on security. Then again, they were an outlawed society. Even if most demons held their extremist views, they still couldn't do that in the open without any repercussions from the Witch Council and Demon Circle. The Witch Council and Demon Circle had been bitter enemies for thousands of years. But if there was something they both agreed on, it was that the Durug was bad news.

Their hatred extended not only to witches and demons who loved witches but also to humans. For centuries the Durug murdered and pillaged, turning Rorel into their playground of savagery, and no one could stop them because the most powerful demons in this realm backed them. The evils perpetrated by this society forced the humans to create the Hunter Guild, dedicating their lives solely to the destruction of the entire magical world. Humans didn't have magic or abnormal physical strength, but they had technology. And over the years they'd gotten better at using it to kill non-humans. All thanks to the Durug.

Perhaps, certain that the tag was genuine, the bouncer returned Rexadan's tag with a nod, then looked at Nyx expectantly. She waited with bated breath, wondering if the bouncer would see through her disguise. If someone like Jakubs in the lower ranks of the Durug had recognized her, then everyone else must already know what she looked like. To avoid being recognized, Nyx braided her long curly hair into cornrows and wore a mask of a skeleton on the lower half of her face. She would have shape-shifted into someone else, but she didn't think such extreme measures were necessary.

"Your tag," said the bouncer, now glaring at Nyx with dark red eyes.

"She's with me," said Rexadan.

The bouncer raised a brow.

Rexadan smirked. "She's new." Then in a serious, yet sarcastic tone, he added, "She abhors witches. Truly can't stand them. Wants them all dead."

Nyx almost rolled her eyes.

The bouncer, completely clueless seemed impressed. His smile widened. "You're here to join us?"

"Yes," said Nyx.

"You're in luck then. Today's a very special day. You'll love it."

Not waiting to ask what the bouncer meant, Nyx followed Rexadan into the mansion. It was even grander on the inside. A large ballroom full of demons awaited them. Most of them were in their demonic form. Lesser demons couldn't take on human forms and had to depend on their concealment skill to hide their true form. But here, everyone could be themselves, it seemed.

"Damn," Rexadan whispered. "This place is huge."

Nyx had a lot of questions. However, she knew better than to discuss things with Rexadan in a room full of demons. Not even vampires or werewolves had hearing as sharp as demons.