Page 21 of Devil's Game

“Can you fuck off?” Merrick growled, tearing his gaze away from the road to glare at me.

His voice was muffled, though, the words barely piercing through my mind. I was going to track Tommaso down and pin him to the ground as my sugar plunged a dagger into his chest, just like she’d done to Mike.

A grin tugged at my lips, the rhythm of the tapping increasing as I pictured the crimson blood flowing from the wound, his death like a balm to our souls.

“Spade.” My name was a sharp bark on Merrick’s lips.

My jaw clenched, and I snapped my hand back, barely keeping a snarl of rage at bay.

This was Merrick. He was just as worried and enraged as I was.

I pushed aside the acidic memories threatening to corrode through my reality.

They’re dead.

Some of the buzzing ebbed at the reminder, and I refocused on the buildings flashing by, the car’s speed making it impossible to focus on any one of them for too long.

We were almost there.

Instead of coming after us, the bastard tried to shake our girl.

“Get here now.”Kellan’s sharp command echoed in my mind.

I’d demanded to hear Giana’s voice before hanging up, needing the sweet melody of her voice to quell the storm savaging its way through my mind. I knew she was physically safe, but I had to make sure this didn’t rattle her; I had to make sure I didn’t slip back into that place of self-doubt.

Red and blue lights flashed, pulling me from my thoughts.

Merrick slowed, attempting to find a place to park, but I couldn’t wait.

“What the—” The rest of Merrick’s curse was cut off as I hopped out of the moving SUV, using the momentum to propel myself forward. “You’re fucking insane,” Merrick shouted out the still-open door as he slammed on the brakes, but I was already gone.

Shattered glass blanketed the sidewalk, a thick yellow band of crime scene tape cordoning off the area for curious onlookers.

“Hey.” A shout echoed from my left as I ducked under the sad excuse for a barrier, but a muffled voice quickly interrupted whatever else the officer was about to say.

I could feel my leash on my sanity weaken as malice rippled off me, my unhinged glare focused on the officers interviewing my family. It pulled taut, threatening to snap until I laid eyes on—

There.

Giana’s eyes locked on mine, relief softening them as her shoulders slumped slightly. Her arm was tightly bound around Sophia’s while another officer questioned her.

Fighting the urge to throw Giana over my shoulder and get her the hell out of here, I felt my control lock back into place as I gave her a sly grin. There wasn’t any of that doubt guarding her gaze that had been there when I first met her. No, there was a steely resolve straightening her spine.

My fucking devil was ready, and I’d be at her side every step of the way, delighting in her violence and lining up her victims for the slaughter.

“Spade,” Kellan said, the warning doing nothing to quell the murderous rage burning in my chest.

The cop interviewing him paused, his features slackening as he laid eyes on me. He fumbled for his radio, but before he could get a word out, Merrick’s footsteps crashed behind me. His thick boots thudded on the pavement, the glass shards cracking beneath him, as though not even they wanted to be in his path of destruction.

Tires squealed, and my hand immediately tugged on the edge of my jacket, ready to pull my gun at a moment’s notice, even if I ended up in a shoot-out with the cops, but I stopped short at the red and blue lights flashing on the roof of the SUV.

“We have enough,” the new arrival said, his door slamming behind him. He marched into the fray, drawing the other officers’ attention as he nodded at Merrick. Merrick’s eyes narrowed on him slowly, like a lion watching his prey, before he gave him a sharp jerk of the head in return.

As though the gesture had broken a spell on them, the rest of the officers followed his command, scrambling to gather their traffic cones before scurrying into their cruisers with their tails tucked between their legs.

Fucking cowards. It was because of them that this town had been run by gangs for so long, and why we’d had to step in. The irony wasn’t lost on me that a gang was left with the task, but that was what happened in a world with corrupt officials.

“Idiots,” Francine hissed, her small, frail form vibrating with rage as she glared at the officers hidden safely in their cruisers. “I told them to check the cameras at my shop for proof of where you three had been, but apparently, that would’ve been too easy and made too much sense.”

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