Page 25 of Demon's Angel

For fuck’s sake!My eyes go wide. My fingers pinch my nasal bones and I bow my head for a moment. A burst of anger has risen as I realise he’s not letting Hellfire’s suggestion drop.Nope. Not doing that.No way. Never.Trying to tamp my sudden rage back down, I snarl, “Moving on to other business, or back to where we started, when are we signing the contract for the tattoo parlour,Treasurer?”

My voice, which, when I want it to, can be every bit as scary as Hell’s, gets Buzz to focus. It’s not long before we agree on some dates. Devil’s Ink is going to be moving premises soon.

The decisions we’ve made, a meet with the Silvestri and progress on Liz’s new business venture, are recorded, then I can bang the gavel and bring this uncomfortable meeting to a close. At fucking last.

Why am I not surprised when the others file out, Hellfire stays in his seat at the end of the table?

“You got something to say?” I’d be surprised if he hadn’t. Not that I expect him to interfere with the way I run the club. He’d made it clear from the moment he stepped down it was mine now. I’d prefer his comments to be about club business, but I doubt they will be.

“What are you going to do about sleeping arrangements?”

Well, not quite where I thought he was going to start. We’re full to the seams already, and he’s right, I hadn’t considered where Violet and the baby would bed down. Or more to the point, where I would go. I wouldn’t be staying with them, and if anyone was sleeping on a couch, it wouldn’t be her.

“They can have my room,” I tell him, as though it had already been decided.

“Nah. You stay where you are. Not much point when there’s my old bedroom staying empty.”

When Hell had been the Prez, he’d slept there more often than not. While I don’t know the details, for some reason he’d avoided sleeping at home over the past year or so. Since he and Moira have gotten on the same page though, he’s right, the room has rarely been used.

“If she’s going to be stayin’ a while, and my suspicions are that she will be, tell her to get it set up as she wants. Or,” he pauses, and his eyes land firmly on my face, “she could move in with me and Mo. Your mom would love having a kid to fuss over.”

Yeah, she would. I haven’t provided her with grandkids, nor have any inclination to do so in the future, a pronouncement which hadn’t gone down well. It’s a good suggestion, but if Mo got a whiff of what Hell’s been suggesting, she might take a hold of the idea and not want to give it up. There’s also a valid reason why I should turn the offer down.

“I’m not easy with bringing Mom into it, Hell. Sure, your house might be more comfortable for Violet, but what if Angel finds out where she’s staying? Mom could end up right in the firing line. He’s going to be angry she’s dropped out of sight as it is.”

“It wasn’t picked up on in church, but how did he know she was pregnant? Just luckily spotted her and put two and two together, or has he got eyes on her? And if so, why?”

Hell’s as sharp as he ever was.

I rub my nose. “Can’t deny I’m not worried about that.”

“So he might already know exactly where she is.”

Yeah. He might. “I think, if he does, we’ll soon hear about it. As far as the Silvestri know there’s no connection between us and the Palmers, no reason for loyalty to Violet. I’d put money on him talking rather than an attack on the compound to try to take her.”

“You don’t think we need to be prepared?”

“What would you do, Hell?” I’ve taken his place; doesn’t mean I’m not going to take his advice on the direction I’m steering.

He bows his head, his hands pushing back through the hair that’s more silver than black nowadays. “They outnumber us, that’s the problem. They have the muscle, but we have the brains. We co-exist because we’re useful to each other. We control this part of town and they know it. Angel might want his son, but what benefit is it to the family to take us out? He might end up with the kid, but the fallback would mean they left bodies stacked up to achieve it.”

I agree. I can’t see how Theo can be that important, to anyone other than Angel.

Hell resumes, “Meeting with the don is the right way to go about it. I think the odds are low he has eyes on them, otherwise they’d have taken the kid when Violet had handed him over. That’s where the fight would have been. Could he track her by her phone? Might need Cad to look into that.”

“She got rid of it, changed her number and bought a new one.”

His lips press together as he nods. “Then that’s one less thing to worry about.”

“We play the meeting by ear, Hell. See if they show us their cards.”

“You going to be okay with that, Demon? You going to be able to keep your hands off Angel when you see him, knowing what he did to Vi? If you can’t control yourself, you’re going to have to step away and let someone else go.”

“I can keep myself in check. Yeah, so it’s not right what he did. But he’s not the first to date rape a woman and won’t be the last.” I shrug, trying to brush off the fact it was Violet who’d been his victim. “Can’t go around offing all such bastards, I’m no fuckin’ Robin Hood.”

A glance at Hell’s face shows he’s not buying it. An indrawn breath let out as a sigh shows a father’s exasperation. “Demon, I know you didn’t like my suggestion. Can appreciate you have reasons. We have a few days before we can get a meet with them; don’t dismiss the option out of hand. I still think you putting your name on her is a good way to get Silvestri to back off. Without DNA evidence he can’t claim the kid. You claiming her puts her under our protection, it will be them declaring war if they want to object. Might not be important enough to them. Angel might be out on his own with no support.”

“He’s clearly not frightened of the courts, Hell. They’ve decided twice in his favour so far. He can go back and demand DNA testing. Don’t forget he’s already been cleared of rape and has been given co-parenting rights.”

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