Devil’s Revenge (The Devil’s Demons #3)

Prologue

Kellan

The seconds passed like minutes as Tommaso lifted the gun, yet I was powerless to do anything to stop him from pressing the trigger. Desperation clung to my skin like a sheen of cold sweat. I tried to lunge forward, to get Giana out of the way, to take her place.

The feet between us seemed like miles as my pulse thundered in my ears.

It wasn’t supposed to end like this. Maybe Spade could get to them first.

Tommaso’s stance shifted slightly, but too late did I notice the barrel of his pistol pointed at us instead.

The crack of gunfire reverberated against the walls as icy fear gripped my chest.

I waited for the slice of pain to tear through me, but it didn’t come. Instead, a pained cry echoed from the other side of the room. Tommaso.

But—

An agonized grunt sounded from behind me, jolting me into action.

My feet crashed down upon the marble steps, and I raced back up the few stairs that separated us.

Merrick pressed his hand against his chest, attempting to stop the bleeding, but crimson liquid poured out between his fingers.

I blocked out everything else as I focused on the wound, doing whatever I could to keep him from bleeding out.

His legs gave out, but Sophia held on to him, desperately trying to stop him from colliding with the unforgiving marble beneath us.

I flung off my jacket and pressed it against him, replacing his hand with mine and applying as much pressure as I could muster.

He gritted his teeth, sweat beading on his brow while he bit back a pained gasp.

Good. I could get him out of here while Spade helped—

“No. I can handle this.”

My jaw tightened at her wavering voice, but I did my best to focus on Merrick despite the panic clawing its way out of my chest.

“Don’t you dare,” Merrick growled, attempting to hide his pain despite the way his body shuddered.

We needed to get him medical attention. Now.

I blocked out everything else around me, knowing Spade would protect our devil with his life. I just had to worry about getting Merrick and Sophia to safety.

Sophia didn’t miss a beat as I slung Merrick’s arm over my shoulder. She moved in close to help me support his weight. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, my pulse pumping so hard that I almost missed the heated words leaving Giana’s lips.

“Get them out of here, Spade, or I’ll never forgive you.”

I forced one foot in front of the other, barely keeping us upright as shock struck me like a freight train.

“Giana.” Her name rolled off my tongue, like saying it was as easy as breathing. My questioning plea was all I could muster as my breath came in uneven gasps. Every muscle in my body tightened at the thought of leaving her alone.

She winced as her eyes met mine for the briefest second. I knew her mind was made up the moment she turned her back on us to focus on the monster before her.

“If he dies, I will never forgive any of you.” Her words pierced through my skin as if it were me who had been shot. A hole tore through my chest, so wide that I wasn’t sure if I was still alive until Merrick’s wild thrashing interrupted my thoughts.

“Trust me.”

Trust me.

Hadn’t we just said the same thing to her? Hadn’t we begged her to let us in, to not sneak off on her own and trust that we had a plan to help get her friend back?

How could we not do the same when she asked it?

Spade came to the same realization. He stumbled back, eyes wide and haunted. Arguing would only steal precious time from us, which none of us had.

Determination pushed me forward, my stomach sinking with each step as if I were walking toward my execution.

Every fiber of my being told me not to leave the woman I loved here alone, but I knew by the steel coating her words that she would never forgive any of us if we stayed here and Merrick ended up not making it through.

A piece of her would die with him, just like it would if it were either Spade or me in his place right now.

Merrick was thrashing so hard, as unintelligible pleas tore from his lips; I knew if we didn’t get him out of here now, he would end up bleeding out in his attempt to get to her.

Tears streamed down Sophia’s cheeks. She tried her hardest to keep Merrick still as sobs wracked her chest, and I numbly pressed the elevator button.

Giana had made up her mind, and now we would just be a distraction. Every second we gave Tommaso to heal put Giana in even greater danger.

Every muscle in my body groaned in protest as I heaved Merrick into the elevator, but we had to go.

Giana trusted us to help her with this plan, and I had to trust her now. She knew what she was doing. Tommaso no longer held any power over her. She wasn’t the same woman who came to my tattoo shop, hiding the evidence of his abuse. There was a fire in her that refused to be extinguished.

I held on to that as Merrick slumped against me and the doors rolled shut, blocking my view of the penthouse and my little devil.

My heart sank as though she’d torn it out the moment she’d told us to leave, and it was still there in her palm.

A heavy weight settled over all four of us, and I knew without words they felt the same way I did.

Spade stared vacantly at the doors, his body so still I could barely tell whether he was breathing or not.

Merrick’s strength drained from him as he lost sight of our woman, his eyes fluttering closed.

“Stay with us.” I shook him, gritting my teeth.

That jerked Spade from his shock. He pressed the lobby button and rushed to take Sophia’s side, supporting Merrick’s weight.

“Giana,” Merrick growled, his protest weaker than before.

Sophia’s lips tightened, and she patted her dress like she was looking for her phone.

“Give her your phone, Spade, so she can call Zane.” I pressed my jacket harder into Merrick’s chest, hoping I was keeping the wound sealed tightly enough and that the bite of pain would keep him conscious.

Merrick’s eyes flickered open, a groan tearing from his lips.

“Why—” Sophia blinked as she took the phone, glancing down at the screen that was already open to Zane’s contact. “I mean, shouldn’t we call an ambulance instead?”

“He and Sebastian are outside waiting nearby with a medical team,” I explained, barely keeping the tension out of my voice. An ambulance and cops were not something we needed to deal with, especially when I was struggling to stop myself from going back up there.

Her eyes widened, and she nodded, putting the call on speakerphone. Seconds ticked by as we waited with bated breath for the call to connect, the floor numbers slowly lighting up on our descent.

“You have her?” Zane barked.

Relief flooded my veins at his terse words, but it was sucked away into the cavernous hole in my chest as Merrick’s legs gave out.

“We need a stretcher or a medic or something.” Sophia’s heels tapped against the tiled floor, the sound only adding to the pressure mounting in my veins. “Merrick’s been shot, and Giana—” Her gaze drifted to the floor, refusing to meet ours.

“Sophia?” Zane’s voice softened for only a moment before he cleared his throat. “I’ll bring them through the back.”

The call cut off abruptly, leaving Sophia to blink down at the phone before snapping back into focus.

There were only ten more floors between us and the lobby now, but every second seemed to take an eternity.

“Please tell me one of you has a plan.” Sophia chewed at her bottom lip, her eyes flicking between Spade and me before settling on Merrick with a wince.

I pressed the jacket tighter into his chest, sighing in relief as he let loose a pained groan.

“We get him to the medics the second those doors open.”

It was simple, but it was the only thought my mind could form because if I let it wander—

No. I had to stay in the present for Merrick, for Giana.

Sophia nodded and stepped to the side, her foot still anxiously tapping away. Normally the sound would’ve annoyed me; instead, it reassured me we all knew what was at stake right now.

Giana was right about one thing: Spade and I both needed to be here to support Merrick as his strength slipped away bit by bit.

But she was out of her mind if she thought I wouldn’t be right there the moment we got him to safety.

I knew Spade had the same thought, but with the eerie quiet that settled over him and the vacant stare that kept slipping in, there wasn’t a chance I was going to let him be the one to go back up our little devil.

Some of the tension eased from my chest as the elevator dinged, signaling we’d finally made it. My muscles were taut and ready to launch into motion.

The doors opened to Sebastian’s smiling face. He tipped his doorman hat at Sophia with a wink, but as he surveyed our group, the playful expression vanished.

At least everything had gone to plan down here.

We wasted no time breezing past him, Merrick’s boots squeaking along the marble floor as we heaved him alongside us.

Zane, Sebastian, and his men had cleared out the lobby and the security room after Giana had gone up. Thankfully they didn’t run into too many problems; otherwise this would’ve been a lot more difficult.

“You’re okay?” Sebastian asked, his voice echoing off the cavernous walls of the lobby from behind us before he slipped back into his role. He jogged ahead of us, his gun out as he led us toward the service entrance we’d staked out earlier.

Just as he rounded the corner, the smash of the rear door had us slamming our backs into the wall and taking cover. The impact caused my hand to shift slightly, and I cursed under my breath as I reapplied pressure.

If we didn’t get him out of here soon—

“It’s Zane,” Sebastian said, keeping his gun at his side as he ushered us forward.

My pulse pounded with each step, anxiety vibrating through me both for my friend and the woman we both loved.

The medics rushed forward the moment we rounded the corner, their brows drawn as they assessed the damage. Zane strode down the hall, pushing the stretcher with him, and helped us maneuver Merrick onto it.