Page 42 of Devoted

DANTE

Istood on the terrace overlooking the private beach below the villa, one hand resting on the sun-warmed stone balustrade as I watched Ember and Nico, outlined by a swath of brilliant blue, my wife’s hair glowing in the afternoon sun. Beneath me, olive trees swayed in the breeze, their silver-green leaves whispering softly.

Every instinct I possessed screamed for me to do something.

Emberline was too close to him, her arms wrapped around his middle while he stared out over the water with that same emptiness in his face that had been there ever since last night.

Two days ago, I would have trusted Nico Draconi with my life.

Hell.

I had trusted him with my life… and with my wife’s.

We’d fought together. Bled together. Nearly died together. While I’d been a disgraced outcast clawing my way back from the dead, Nico stood staunchly beside me, calling me brother.

Now… I wasn’t sure I knew him at all.

My gut tightened at the memory of those… Drax. How my old friend froze up with fear. Nico’s flash of horrified recognition, the second he’d spotted them.

Then there was the list of damning evidence. His silence. The way his shadows were identical to Blackwood’s guards. The same godsdamned dark magic that birthed those soul-sucking monsters.

Yeah, Nico was hiding a secret. A big, fucking dangerous one.

I mean, part of me understood. Spending most of my life hiding my fire demon had acquainted me with how secrets took on a life of their own. But I was also well aware of the consequences of keeping them hidden.

In war, secrets got people killed.

A sudden breeze hit me with the smell of brine and fish, the faintest hint of my wife’s citrusy scent. She was trying to make a point to Nico, hands waving as she leaned closer.

Too close, considering I had no idea who Nico was anymore.

The Drax.

He even had a name for those creepy little fuckers, which meant he had inside knowledge of the things. All of this was leading me to make some pretty fucking big assumptions, and the asshole decided now was the time to keep his mouth shut. Normally, he couldn’t stop flapping his lips.

I gripped the baluster tighter.

No, Nico Draconi was somehow tangled up with Blackwood, and while I would never pry into another male’s business, where my wife was involved… I would rip Nico’s life apart to get to the truth.

A male could only carry so many secrets before they dragged him under.

My gaze drifted back toward Emberline.

The wind caught her dark hair, sending the strands dancing around her shoulders. My chest twisted, as if my heart was wrapped in scar tissue and couldn’t expand properly. Gods, I loved her, enough that I would burn down entire cities to keep her safe.

Enough that I would never ignore my own instincts.

Something was wrong with Nico, more than just Blackwood and his magic and those monsters. Even my demon sensed it. There was something deeper to whatever he was hiding, something that smelled of… death.

I dragged my hand down over my face, convinced I was losing my mind.

But the air around him seemed different today. Heavier. Darker. Like even the sun and the fresh smell of the sea couldn’t dilute the reek of brimstone.

“You’re staring. You should give them some privacy.”

Valeria stood several feet away, and for once, she wasn’t dressed in gold, as though she was about to step onto a ballroom floor. She had on a plain white blouse and black pants, her hair pulled back into a sedate bun. I couldn’t ever remember seeing her look so… natural.

“Am I?”