Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Giana
“How are you doing?” Eve asked, flipping her long black hair over her shoulder as she slid me a limoncello La Croix across the bar.
I wasn’t sure how she discovered my favorite flavor of sparkling water, but she started to stock it ever since the night Mike drugged me and took me to Tommaso.
One of the guys probably told her, but I was grateful either way.
Even with Tommaso gone, it would be a while until I trusted a drink that I didn’t see opened in front of me.
“The doctor gave me the all clear today, so I’m excited to get back to work.
” I winked at her and cracked open the drink, allowing the bubbles to slide soothingly down my throat, the subtly sweet flavor sparking a giddy delight in my chest. I was so used to tea and soup, the cold liquid almost seemed like a treat after the last week.
“How are you really doing?” She eyed me skeptically, cocking a challenging brow.
Well, damn. Eve wasn’t pulling any punches today.
I glanced around the bar, spotting a few familiar faces taking their places at the surrounding tables.
I didn’t know the men and women of the Devil’s Demons well, not all of them, and the unease niggling at my gut wasn’t something that I wanted to broadcast. Especially when we needed to appear confident and bloodthirsty.
I was definitely ready to shed more of the Barones’ blood, but any sign of weakness would destroy the trust my guys had worked so hard to establish between them and the rest of the Demons.
“Ready to spill more blood.” I grinned, mirroring her lifted brow. Judging by the way she blanched, my grin was more of a baring of teeth—exactly what I was going for.
“I can see it. The first time we met, you seemed almost meek compared to now. I couldn’t picture you fighting alongside the three of them.” Eve shuddered. “But you’re just as savage as they are, aren’t you?”
“If not more so.” I fluttered my lashes in a faux show of innocence.
Eve’s throat bobbed, as if she were swallowing down her fear, since in the next moment it all but vanished from her face. “Well, I guess I’m glad you’re on our side then.”
“The Barones won’t be around much longer to terrorize the town, if I have anything to say about it.”
She nodded, hope brimming in her eyes, before she turned to hand out drinks to a few men who’d gathered at the other end of the bar. They also inclined their heads in respect to me, clearly having heard at least the latter part of our conversation.
I finished the water as Spade’s leather-clad arm wrapped around my shoulders.
“Sugar.” The low rumble of his voice elicited a wave of goosebumps up my arms. The one word was so filled with desire and worship, I had to close my eyes to push back the shivers of lust racing up my spine. “Have I told you how hard it makes me when you threaten our enemies?”
He pressed into me, letting me feel just how excited he was as his teeth closed around my earlobe and gently nibbled on the sensitive flesh.
“Spade.” His name sounded pleading and breathy with desire rather than the chastisement I meant it as.
“Yes, love?” His hot breath licked across my skin, causing a flood of heat in my belly. My lips thinned into a line, holding back the whimper begging to slip out.
“Spade,” Kellan barked, tugging me out of Spade’s hold and effectively breaking the lulling trance he’d placed me under. “Do you really want the rest of the guys watching this?”
Spade’s jaw ticked as he surveyed the rest of the bar, and a few gazes anxiously shifted away.
“Fine.” He sighed, a glimmer of grief slipping away as he stepped back. I couldn’t help the bereft pang clanging in my chest as he put space between us like it was more than physical distance.
But we had to get to business if we wanted to have any chance at the plan working.
The funeral would be the perfect place for not only us but also the town to take a stand against the oppressive force that had been holding us down for so long.
We’d need the cooperation of all our allies for any of this to work.
Kellan took my hand, letting his warm grip surround my smaller palm as his sable eyes bored into mine. “Are you ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be.” I grinned up at him, taking a moment to soak in his affection.
His smile was tentative, as though a dark cloud still hung over him.
I knew he saved me from the fire, but we hadn’t had a chance to really get into it other than the brief moments when I first woke up and they pleaded for me to never ask them to leave again.
Kellan’s soul was just as dark as the rest of ours, but he rarely let it show.
Now I could spot the inner turmoil just as easily as he could read mine.
His nod was jerky as he led me to the front of the room, where Spade was already waiting, his crestfallen expression making me wish I could drag him outside and kiss away every dark thought clinging to his mind.
The Demons fell silent at our approach, my men flanking me on each side like supporting walls, ready to hold me up if I were to fall.
A chill ran up my spine, reminding me that I was missing Merrick’s steely support at my back.
He should be here right now to see this through, but his health was far more important.
He built this team from the ground up, fought and sacrificed in order for it to happen.
So I had to make him proud today. I had to take the torch and make sure everything he battled for wasn’t for nothing.
“I’m sure that most of you have noticed Merrick is missing today.
” I swept my gaze over the Demons on the edge of their seats, pausing on a few members like Nicolas, who had helped a woman get home safely after the Barone’s men had targeted her.
“Tommaso took one of ours last week. He abducted her from the fight club in our town, an action that we couldn’t let go unanswered. ”
Rage practically vibrated from each of them as growled exclamations rang out through the room, but they quieted the moment I continued.
“Tommaso shot him as Merrick, Spade, and Kellan were getting her to safety, but I’m overjoyed to announce the Barones did not take another one of our Demons down with him.
Merrick is safely recovering at home, and if we hadn’t forced him to stay there and rest, he’d be right here standing next to us. ”
Cheers and applause echoed around the room, and even Eve slapped her palms against the bar, rousing everyone.
“That isn’t the only good news we have,” Kellan interjected, quieting the crowd once more. “Every one of our team survived the rescue, while our own little devil here took out the second-in-command of the Barone’s empire.”
Feet stamped the floor in a thunderous applause as members roared even louder. These men and women had been organizing for so long, biding their time for the perfect opportunity to stand against the crime family, and now the dominoes were falling one at a time, foretelling their eventual demise.
“Spade gathered some intel for us,” I interrupted them, my pulse quickening as I flexed my fingers. “The funeral will take place at the cathedral in East Haven, right in the downtown core. We need your help and the help of the shop owners to send them a message that Tommaso was only the beginning.”
An eerie silence washed over the group, each of them hanging on my every word.
“We have to cut their power off one thread at a time, and the first act we need to do is to dispel the control and fear they hold over the town. The best way to do that is at the funeral tomorrow. We need them to realize they aren’t untouchable, and for the town to know we’re a force just as powerful as the Barones, except we’re fighting for them. ”
“We’ll break you into your teams and give you your tasks,” Kellan said and gestured at Spade.
“Spade scoped out the cathedral today and found a few weak areas we can exploit. We won’t be able to move in until the last minute, otherwise, they’ll know we have a plan, and they’ll either be ready for us, or they’ll move the funeral elsewhere. ”
Excitement buzzed around the room at the dismissal, and they gathered into their groups.
“We’ll give them their tasks. I think your meeting is about to start earlier than expected.” Kellan nodded to the door before placing a sweet kiss on my forehead, holding himself back in front of the others, but I could tell from his heated gaze he wanted to do a lot more than kiss me.
Spade didn’t have the same qualms. He spun me to him, his mouth slamming against mine, his lips thoroughly devouring me as though he was staking his claim on me.
He clasped the back of my head to him, his fingers desperately threading through my loose waves like he never wanted to let me go.
I was breathless as he reluctantly released me, my knees trembling as I tried and failed to balance on my own.
Spade’s eyes sparkled with mirth as he winked at me, making sure I’d regained my footing before letting go. His grin brimmed with smug satisfaction as he backed away, refusing to tear his gaze off me until he absolutely had to.
“I haven’t seen love like that in a long time.
” Francine’s voice snapped me out of the lust-filled haze clouding my mind.
Shaking my head to dispel the lingering desire, I turned on my heel, taking in the older woman’s hunched form.
She frowned down at the sticky varnish on the floor, her nose scrunching up as she took in the aging bar around her.
“I’ll have to speak with Merrick about this place. ”
I cringed, hoping I wouldn’t be around for that conversation. If there was anyone able to cow Merrick, it was Francine.