Page 67 of Devour
Some of the diamond droplets had come loose during our scuffle. I couldn’t wear this for my wedding, not like this—but I’d have to buy it now. It looked incredibly expensive, with all the detailing and diamonds.
Well, it’s a good thing Luca’s paying. He ruined it, after all. I was still distracted, fumbling with the zipper, when the curtain suddenly opened. I thought it was Luca again. I was ready to apologize for what I said but not now.
“Luca, I need—” I couldn’t finish the words. A cloth was pressed over my nose and mouth muffling my screams. I struggled in the person’s grip, trying not to breathe.
I held my breath for as long as I could, but eventually, it became a choice between inhaling or suffocating.
The moment I took a breath, the sharp, chemical sting of chloroform filled my lungs. My vision blurred.
My limbs grew heavy. The last thing that flashed through my mind before the darkness took over was Luca… and Noah.
CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT
Luca
Something felt wrong the moment I walked back into the store. It was eerily quiet—too quiet. Ariel and the woman that doctor came with were the only customers earlier, but I saw them drive off when I stormed out of the store earlier. Still, something was off.
There should’ve been attendants coming forward as soon as I stepped in. I head straight for the dressing room where I left Ariel.
The moment I reach the area, my heart stops. Rose, the one that attended to Ariel, is lying unconscious on the floor, close to the curtain. It’s half open. “Shit,” I curse, rushing forward. I yank the curtain all the way back—but Ariel isn’t there.
“Ariel!” I call out, kneeling to check Rose pulse. She’s alive. Just out cold. I grab my phone and immediately call my security team waiting outside. “Secure the perimeter. Now.”
Adrian, my head of security, bursts in with two guards, and we sweep through the store together. We find four store employees unconscious in different areas. I remember seeing only five workers when I came in earlier—so none are missing. Except Ariel.
“Someone wiped the CCTV twenty minutes ago,” Adrian says grimly.
“They can’t have gone far,” I gritted out.
At the back of the store, I find an exit door—slightly ajar. On the pavement outside, fresh skid marks. “They escaped through here.”
I take off running down the alley, chest tight with panic, hoping—praying—I might still spot the vehicle. I can’t think straight. I messed up. I shouldn’t have left her side. I never should’ve let her out of the house in the first place.
I don’t stop running until I reach the main road, drenched in sweat and gasping for air. People pass by, oblivious. I rake a trembling hand through my hair as fear pulses through every vein.
“Boss, we found something.”
Adrian holds out a phone. My hands are clammy, but I take it. The video plays. It’s footage from a pastry shop’s hidden camera near the intersection, just before the road merges with Main Street.
A white van pulls into traffic. The timestamp matches the window of the abduction.
“We’re running the plates through the system now,” Adrian says.
Another guard approaches.
“Sir,” he nods, addressing Adrian.
“The plates are fake, but they were able to trace the van’s last known location to an industrial area near the old rail yard. After that… nothing. No cameras beyond that point.”
A phone rings. The sound slices through the silence like a blade. Adrian’s voice cuts in.
“Boss, it’s your phone.”
I pull it from my pocket. The moment I glance at the screen, my heart plummets. Unknown number. With a sinking feeling in my gut, I swipe to answer.
“Nephew.”
That grating, familiar voice slithers through the speaker.Vito. I take a breath, steadying myself as I inject every ounce of loathing and fury I feel into my tone.
