Once again, Remi found herself scowling each time she was accidentally bumped into or touched, and every perverted leer that came her way only reminded her of why she hated people.

They were so annoying, doing everything in their power to make themselves happy and achieve their own goals without considering who they might hurt in the process. No one placed any value on life unless it was their own.

They couldn't even watch where they were going. Surely it wasn't so hard to step to the side and avoid ramming their shoulders into her. She was small, after all. For a brief, bitter moment, Remi wondered if they were bumping into her on purpose. It sure seemed like it at times.

Her blood boiled in her veins, and she itched to jam her elbow into every person that knocked into her. However, she was able to keep her composure by keeping her arms pinned to her sides, hands clenched in fists so tight that her fingernails were probably making crescent shapes on her palms.

The deafening buzzing of chatter also irritated her. They reminded her of bugs with their incessant talking. Remi wanted to slap her hands over her ears and block out the noise, but she doubted even that would work. She'd probably only succeed in ever so slightly muting the noise. It would still scream quietly, playing as background music for her thoughts. Terrible, grinding background music that made her want to scream.

Why did she come out here again?

Oh, right. Killure.

She still hadn't seen any sign of him, and she'd been looking high and low.

Once they'd rode their horses into the city, they left them at a trustworthy boarding centre. Riding through the crowded streets on creatures as large as horses would be difficult—someone would probably try hurt the horses for fun, or taunt them by throwing rocks. Remi wouldn't allow that. They'd come back for them later in the day when they were ready to head home.

Faye and Caede had grown bored long ago, and convinced her to head over to Lord Gallanthus's house so Faye could visit her fiancé. Remi tried to protest, but when they simply went on ahead of her, she had no choice but to follow. The last thing she wanted was to get kidnapped again, or worse—raped.

She knew her body was only temporary, and that no one could take away her soul and essence unless she let them, but what irritated her was the mindset of men who held no qualms about taking an unwilling woman and raping her.

They were so arrogant that they thought they could take whatever they want, and treated women like mere objects they could get off on.

Remi wondered how they would feel if the rolls were reversed and women were the ones who had a dick. They probably wouldn't feel too happy about the arrangement.

She hadn't told anyone about what had almost happened, despite the fact that she'd been waking up in a cold sweat nearly every night since, and jumped at every little thing. Rape was such a common thing in society that Remi was sure everyone would think she was making a big deal over nothing and simply being dramatic if she were to tell anyone.

Faye was practically skipping ahead of Remi, at Caede's side. He didn't seem near as excited, and a small scowl even twisted his features. His flaxen hair absorbed the sun.

Remi couldn't help but scowl at the joy radiating off her vain sister. She didn't feel happy right now, and selfishly wished no one else around her did, either.

Remi kept glancing across the skyline, in hopes she'd see Killure somewhere. Perhaps his silhouette would be flying across the sky, or he'd step out from behind the tree he'd been silently hiding behind.

Nope.

Killure should have come back by now. He could always easily find her, not only through his incredible sense of smell, but also because he could tell which direction she was in contrast to him through the bonding, by simply feeling which directions made his body feel weak, and the one that made him feel more energized and strong.

The sun was already beginning to drop towards the horizon, though it was still a few hours away from setting.

The mood of the crowd quickly began to shift. They became more excited, and everyone began bumping into Remi. This time, she couldn't help but jab her elbows into the sides of some of the people who guiltlessly shoved her out of the way in their rush to see whatever was going on.

Remi quickened her pace. She just wanted to get to Lord Gallanthus's house and get the visit over with so that she could trudge on home. Unfortunately the crowd seemed to be heading in the same direction as them, for now.

Her lenience was probably the reason why Killure had possibly ran away. And yet, she didn't regret it for a moment. She would rather show him kindness and be humiliated by the disappearance of her slave, than treat him like she was expected to—like she was above him and he deserved to be beat into submission. That was not how she did things—she would never do it that way, no matter what the consequence.

She already knew that once her uncle Fahrem heard of her missing slave, he would suggest that Remi kill herself in some painful way so that her slave would also die gruesomely, and then of course she would be revived by her family. Her uncles and father had done this many times whenever a slave crossed them, or did something that wasn't to their liking. They'd become almost masochistic by now.

"Ooh, I wonder what's going on!" Faye mused, latching onto Caede's arm and pulling him ahead.

Remi tried to stay close to them so that she wouldn't lose her way. She doubted they'd notice even if someone did take her, but it was better to trail them than to lose them—Faye was much more familiar with the route.

The chaotic shouting of the crowd began to grow as they neared whatever spectacle everyone was crowding around.

Remi paused for a moment and stood on her tip toes in an effort to see what was going on, but even then she was still shorter than everyone.

Curious now, she pushed through the people in her way, ignoring the annoyed grunts and angry shouts in her wake.

Remi felt dread pooling in her stomach. She knew that whatever these crazy people were getting so worked up over would probably be something she didn't want to see.

And yet, something was stopping Remi from simply walking away. She tried to turn around and walk back, but the crowd behind her was even more dense than those ahead of her, and besides, her curiosity was getting the better of her.

Remi glanced around, only to find that Faye and Caede were nowhere to be seen. She let out an annoyed growl. They only cared about themselves.

Remi continued pushing her way through the crowd. Her head and ears began to hurt from how loud the shouting was, and the amount of people touching her was enough to make her feel sick.

Her stomach churched, and she felt like throwing up. The rays of sun pelting down on her only made her feel worse.

However, none of the thoughts in Remi's mind could have prepared her for the sight she saw when she finally got close enough to the front of the crowd to see what was happening.

There, tied to a tall, wooden stake, was Killure. His wings were bent and broken, but the rest of him seemed fine.

Other than the fact that he was unconscious and seemed to have no strength left in him. His head was hung low, and the only reason why he hadn't collapsed onto the straw at his feet was because of the thick ropes wound tightly around him, holding him upright.

Remi let out an involuntary gasp of surprise. She couldn't believe her eyes.

She had resigned herself to the idea that Killure had run away, just far enough that they wouldn't be able to find him, but close enough that the bonding wouldn't siphon away his energy.

And yet, here he was. All his energy had been drained, but he was in front of her.

Had he truly run away?

What was going on here?

A young man, perhaps in his early thirties, whooped and shouted at the crowd. He alone stood in the clearing, near where Killure was tied to the stake. He waved around a torch as he spoke.

"—to think that this disgusting creature snuck past the patrols into my home, uninvited, and murdered my little brother in cold blood is truly unthinkable!" the shaggy man shrieked, his torch coming awfully close to the straw by Killure's feet.

Remi found herself frozen in place. She glanced at the Icix's clawed hands, and only now noticed how they were covered in sticky, half-dry blood.

Remi tapped the shoulder of a screaming lady beside her and asked who had been killed.

She wasn't prepared for the answer.

The lady stopped just long enough to shout "Lord Darium Gallanthus" before going back to her whooping and hollering.