Chapter 22
ALEX
As I entered the great hall, a tall blond approached me. His thick chest and muscular arms bulged beneath his black suit. Shane “Sonny” Cormac IV was Marcello’s best friend and the oldest son of a shipping tycoon. And he wasn’t afraid to tell you about his family’s billions.
“I know your secret.” Sonny bent down to my height, a smirk tugging at his mouth. “Secrets are commodities in Devil’s Creek. You’d be smart to collect as many as you can.”
“You don’t know me,” I challenged.
“Oh, but I do.” He clicked his tongue. “You’re here for revenge.”
I avoided his gaze, afraid he would read the lie on my face. “I’m here to marry Luca, nothing more.”
“You’re playing a dangerous game, Little Wellington.”
“We don’t know each other well enough to have nicknames.”
“That’s because Luca always kept you to himself. But we could get to know each other.” He waggled his eyebrows, shoving a hand through his hair. “I own the biggest yacht in the marina. Take a ride with me next weekend.”
I laughed. “Does that pickup line work on girls?”
He lifted his black and silver mask and winked. “Wait until you see my yacht.”
“Is that a metaphor for what’s in your pants?”
Sonny snorted with laughter.
Shaking my head, I smacked his muscular biceps. “Stop flirting with me.”
“You have the eye of every man in this room.” He tugged on the thin spaghetti strap on my shoulder. “And this dress is stunning.”
“Luca chose my dress.”
His fingers trailed down my bare arm, making me shiver. “But you painted your body with glitter. I’m guessing the fingerprints on your skin are from Luca. Or did you let Marcello touch you? Hmm? You know, he tells me everything.”
“So,” I said to change the conversation. “Where’s your girlfriend?”
Sonny sipped from the highball glass in his hand, scanning the crowded room. “I’m currently unattached.”
“Afraid of commitment?”
His eyes found mine. “Haven’t met the right person.”
“Your parents don’t meddle in your love life?”
“We’re Irish,” he said as if that explained everything.
Bastian and Damian Salvatore entered the room from the private entrance. They both had hair like a raven’s feathers and lean muscular bodies hidden beneath their expensive designer suits. I hadn’t seen them since Aiden disappeared.
Time had served them well.
They made a beeline toward Luca, whose stony demeanor shifted when he saw them. Flanked by Bastian and Damian, Luca looked like a king, leaning against the wall as if his shoulders were holding up the damn thing. Everyone wore a mask except for Luca and his brothers.
The Salvatore men were so delicious my heart raced as I examined each of them.
Bastian’s hair was messy, like he’d rolled out of bed and still looked hot.
He scrolled through his cell phone with a smug expression on his gorgeous face.
What was with all of them? None of them ever smiled.
Smirked, yes, but never anything that resembled a genuine smile.
Damian’s shirt was untucked, a few buttons open, revealing the dark tattoos on his chest. A red lipstick stain was on his collar, and his gold silk tie hung around his neck.
I glanced up at Sonny. “What’s their deal?”
“Damian’s a fucking psychopath,” he said, raising a glass to his lips. “He’s into some sick and twisted shit.”
He said it so casually that it came across as Damian likes to golf nine holes on Sundays . Unlike most people in Devil’s Creek, Sonny made you feel at ease.
“Are we talking Dexter-level psycho?”
He bobbed his head. “As a matter of speaking, yes.”
A chill rolled down my bare shoulders. Sonny’s declaration should have creeped me out, but it was no surprise with Arlo as their father.
“Word of advice,” Sonny said, a warning in his tone. “Never put yourself in a position where you’re alone with Damian. He has a thing for blood.”
“Good to know.”
At the Salvatore table, Luca’s brothers huddled around him. They seemed to gravitate to him like he was the center of their universe. Even Marcello followed his older brother’s orders.
I nudged Sonny with my elbow, and he looked down at me. “What about Bastian? Does he have any scary kinks I need to know about, seeing as I’m living under the same roof as these weirdos?”
“Bash is a sadist. He’s into bondage. I taught him a thing or two about tying proper knots.”
A haunting smile tugged at his mouth, giving me serial killer vibes. He seemed delighted by the idea of binding someone. These men… and the weird shit they liked.
“Can’t be any worse than what Luca has done to me,” I offered since we were spilling our secrets.
Sonny laughed. “We’re all sick fucks.”
Taking in the scenery, he moved from one woman to another, hunting for his next victim. Despite his killer looks and charm, Sonny was like his friends. The founders’ children threw their wealth and power around like they ruled the world—because one day they would.
“Your bestie drugged me on my second night in the house,” I told him. “And locked me in a room for two days.”
Sonny scrubbed a hand over his jaw. “Marcello told me. Don’t hold it against him. He’s loyal and will do anything for his family.”
“He does whatever Luca tells him.”
“Marcello likes order. After growing up in this house, he’s not used to freedom. He needs things to be a certain way.”
“Seems we have that in common,” I commented, wondering if Marcello was as innocent as Sonny claimed.
I didn’t know Marcello well and had much to learn about the Salvatores and their world. I would always be an outsider—the girl from the Midwest with a secret family legacy that forced her to marry a cruel prince.
“Now, Luca,” Sonny intoned. “He thrives in chaos.”
“How do you figure? Luca is always in control. I’ve never seen him lose it.”
“I beg to differ. He hasn’t been the same since you left Devil’s Creek. It seems you’ve finally gotten under his skin, Little Wellington.”
“I doubt that. Nothing bothers Luca.”
“You do,” he insisted. “You’re his only weakness.”
If Luca had weaknesses, I was not one of them. Most of the time, he barely tolerated me.
“The power dynamic has shifted within the Salvatore family.”
I wondered if he was telling me this to gain a reaction, and I didn’t let him see the effect this information had on me.
“How so?”
He nodded toward the Salvatore table. “Look at how close Luca and Marcello have grown in your absence.”
I glanced at the two of them. Luca propped his elbow up on Marcello’s chair, whispering as they stared in my direction, though their eyes never found mine.
“I thought they hated each other.”
“They did.” Sonny sipped from his glass. “But you brought them together.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond to his confession. Sonny didn’t strike me as the type of person who shared random tidbits to hold down a conversation. No, he wanted me to know these things for a reason.
“I guess having a common enemy united them.”
“No, you misunderstand. You are the one person who binds all of us. We’re at your disposal. Whatever you need, you only have to ask.”
Confused as hell, I narrowed my eyes. “Who’s we?”
“The Devil’s Knights.”
I was well aware of the secret society founded by Luca’s great-great-grandfather. The Knights were the bankers of the criminal underworld, which earned them many enemies with axes to grind.
“I want nothing to do with Luca’s billionaire boys’ club,” I tossed back at Sonny. “And I can take care of myself.”
Sonny frowned. “I see your grandfather hasn’t properly explained our organization.”
“Just the basics.”
“We need to rectify this,” Sonny said in a firm tone, his focus on the Salvatores. “I’ll talk to Luca.”
From across the hall, I could see Damian’s chest rise and fall as he studied a woman with long blonde hair spilling down her shoulders.
She wore a pale blue strapless dress that clung to her lithe body and stopped mid-thigh.
Damian looked at her like he wanted to throw her over his shoulder and drag her out of the hall.
But so did Bastian.
I inclined my head toward the blonde, and Sonny’s eyes followed. “Who is that woman?”
“Kali Marx,” he said with a sly smile. “Her father is Senator Marx. He’s running for governor of Connecticut next year. And guess who’s helping him?”
“Arlo Salvatore.”
He nodded. “She’s a prop piece for her father’s family values campaign.”
“She doesn’t look familiar.”
Sonny shook his head. “The two of you never crossed paths.”
“I don’t remember Kali coming to Arlo’s parties… or anyone talking about her.”
“She ran off a few months before you moved to Devil’s Creek.”
“Where did she go?”
He shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine. Even the Salvatores could never piece together how she evaded them.”
This gave me hope for Aiden.
Had he done the same thing?
I peeked up at Sonny. “Which Salvatore is she dating? Damian or Bastian.”
“Both.”
I wondered how one woman could handle the insane desires of Bastian and Damian. She had to be strong to deal with both of them.
Blood and bondage?
Luca was a lunatic, but at least his brand of torture didn’t involve ropes or cutting.
I spotted Pops across the room. He wore a tuxedo and a black and gold mask. His white hair hung over his forehead, styled to hide his receding hairline.
Blair drank champagne at his side, chatting with her friends. She dressed like a fairy peacock in various shades of purple and gold. The cold bitch stood ramrod straight like she had a pole shoved up her ass.
My mother was at my father’s side in a black mermaid gown. She threw glances in Arlo Salvatore’s direction, which piqued my curiosity when he returned her stare.
Knowing my mother, she needed more money. She would do just about anything to maintain her lifestyle. My father was an architect but made nothing of himself, content with living off my mother.
“I think it’s time you meet your new subjects,” Sonny said, latching onto my arm.
I chuckled. “Subjects?”
“Someday, you’ll be the Queen of The Devil’s Knights, which makes you a very powerful woman.”
His admission tugged at my emotions, but thankfully, my carnival mask hid the change in my demeanor. “I’m not interested in power.”
“Which will make you a good queen.”
Sonny offered his arm, and we moved throughout the ballroom. Everyone stopped to stare. Some people offered hellos and complimented my dress.
“My mom and Arlo were high school sweethearts,” I said as he led me through the crowd. “But what’s the real story? My grandfather doesn’t tell me much, and my parents don’t speak to me.”
“Before your mom ran away, she was supposed to marry Arlo. When she left, she embarrassed the Salvatores. The news of your mother’s betrayal rocked the town. It made Arlo look weak. The Founders Society rebelled against their family. But your grandfather did his part and handled the backlash.”
“I hate politics,” I groaned. “And all the bullshit in this town.”
Sonny bent down and whispered, “If you want out, there are ways to leave Devil’s Creek… if you know the right people.”
I tipped my head back to look at him. “And you’re the right person?”
He gave me one of his golden boy smiles and winked. “I have my ways.”
“No, I have to marry Luca.”
My voice sounded confident when I felt the complete opposite on the inside. A marriage to Luca only benefited him.
What the hell was I getting from the deal? That part was never clear. Not even Pops could explain it in any way that made sense to me.
“You’re a tough girl,” Sonny commented as he surveyed the room. “Most people would crack in your position. Your mom did.”
“Good thing I’m not most people.”