Page 71 of Demon's Angel

I remember the voices I heard yesterday. The shots. That Angelino’s here makes me think he was the one pulling the trigger. He’d mentioned the don. Is that where he’s been? Is ‘retiring’an euphemism for assassination? “What about your father? Did you kill him?” Maybe if I remind him he’s a murderer too he won’t keep blaming my dad.

“Kill my father? Oh, no, I didn’t do that.” He exchanges a strange look with his wife. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he looked satisfied. “No, but yesterday I did have to dispose of acapowho did not see things my way.”

Such cold words delivered in such a chilling tone. I shiver, realising I can’t call on his better nature: he doesn’t have one. Instead I voice my hope out loud, framing it as a certainty.

“Demon won’t stop looking for me.”

My words don’t faze him at all. “He won’t find you. You won’t be here long and then you’ll be moved. Once I know you’re pregnant with mychild, you’ll be sent to another location until you give birth. Then you’ll have outlived your usefulness to me. But I’ll still get my money’s worth. You see, I have an interest in another trade, and I’m sure to find a buyer for you.”

It’s not as though I hadn’t suspected when he first indicated I only had one purpose as far as he was concerned. But I’d prefer death to what he has planned. I shiver again. Despite the warmth of the room, goosebumps arise.

I have to convince him I don’t deserve the fate he has planned.“You’re wrong. Daddy would never hurt anyone. He wouldn’t, he couldn’t. If he was involved in the death of your brother, it was an accident of some sort.”

“My brother was tortured and killed.”

I can’t hold back my gasp. “Daddy would never…”

He gives an incredulous laugh. “Just because he might not have wielded the knife doesn’t mean he wasn’t responsible.”

His fingers have relaxed. Taking the opportunity I pull away, moving around the sofa, putting it between him and myself.

“You’re wrong,” I tell him again. “All this is a great big mistake. And I’m not going to pay the price for a crime that was never committed, or at least, not by the man you’re accusing.”

Angelino tilts his head, his eyes narrow. “I’ll make a bargain with you, Violet. If I show you the proof that you never knew dear daddy at all, will you come to me willingly? Or at least, not fight. I’d prefer not to drug you again. You were, shall we say, not an active participant last time.”

He can’t have proof. But if he shows me what has misled him, I’m sure I’ll be able to prove it’s untrue. There has to be some way to get out of this. Maybe stringing him along will buy me some time. Time for Demon to find me.

There’s nothing that could make me voluntarily agree to let him violate me again. If I were to refuse to even consider it, he might just go ahead and rape me. I turn away, but watch him out of the corner of my eye. He’s smirking. He knows he’s going to get me anyway. He thinks no one is going to find me. He could be right. Demon might never discover where I am, but there’s always the chance. A possibility I need to hold onto or I’ll go crazy with grief.

Turning back around, feeling like I’m making a deal with the Devil, while knowing what’s coming out of my mouth is a lie, I take a breath, then agree, “Yes.”

It’s childish, but I have my fingers crossed behind me.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Demon

My phone vibrates. Cad’s sent me instructions, I follow them religiously with the result that I and the other prez’s can talk to each other. If we’re to keep getting into situations like this, I’m going to have to invest in some of those earpieces the feds use. Cad had warned me you can only have five people on one iPhone call. He’d called it old-fashioned. I hope we won’t be doing this shit again, but maybe we should be prepared and have a better way to keep in communication. I must have said some of my thoughts aloud, as someone responds.

“Get Cad to talk to Mouse,” Drummer suggests. “He knows about that shit.” I’d forgotten we’re now all on the same call.

“Everyone in place?”

“Yeah, but I’m taking over from Snatcher, he’s just been sick,” Thor informs us.

Damn, I’d suspected he had a concussion from being knocked off his bike. Now is not a good time to have it confirmed.

“I’m all right,” Snatcher himself informs us. “But yeah, to be on the safe side, deal with the VP. Don’t want to keel over when it’s all going down.”

“Explosives in place,” says Red, his statement copied by two other voices.

“On your count, Demon.”

“Five,” I start, and continue, “four, three, two, one.”

Three explosions go off at once. Guards flood out of the house, unsure which way to run, rifles held across bodies. Well, I say ‘flood’, but I can see only four. Immediately they start gesticulating, and one’s on his radio.

“How many coming your way?”

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