The Devil's Masquerade: The Remedy (The Devil's Eyes) (22 page)

“What?” she asks.

“I feel like I have done this with you before,” I say, dismissing the notion.

Kayla promptly sits up and looks down at me with wide eyes, “Do you remember me?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about. I just have these images, like déjà vu or something. That happens.” She shakes her head at me. “Yes it does!”

“No, you’re remembering. You’re remembering me and your family, and you’re realizing your grandfather has been lying to you. The giraffe, you remembered using it to make Brayden feel better. You always used that giraffe to make him happy. You couldn’t stand to hear him cry.” I shake my head, but she places her lips on me again, and I fall back with even more images circling in my head. “Do you remember me working in your club? Do you remember rescuing me from those men who attacked me at the restaurant I worked at? Or when I told you I was pregnant with Nicky?” The more she talks, the more the images become clear, but it doesn’t make sense to me.

“Stop Kayla! I don’t understand why you are doing this to me.”

“I am not doing anything to you, Nick. He is, Savage, your grandfather, he is trying to poison you against your family so he can kill us and have you all to himself. To help him become stronger and more powerful. He is using you.” I get up, holding my head only to end up falling back to the ground. “Nick!” Kayla rushes to my side and looks over me with concern, but I don’t trust her concern.

“You are trying to kill me. Don’t deny it. Get away from me.” I force myself up again and fall backwards into the bed, smashing my face into one of the pillows in an effort to block the images rushing through my head. “Stop! Why are you doing this to me?” My mind continues to spin more and more until nothing.

I wake up to the small one hovering over me and holding my hand. “What are you doing?” I snap.

“Waiting for you to wake up,” he says, sitting back away from me. “You are okay now. Don’t worry, I helped you. I will go tell Mommy you are awake now.” He sits up and wraps his arms around my neck. “I am so glad you are coming home, Daddy. I have so much to tell you.” He jumps down off the bed and runs out of the room.

Not long after he leaves, Kayla walks back into the room. I quickly get up and find my clothes. “Are you leaving?”

“Yes, I should have never come over here,” I say, avoiding looking at her.

“Why? It is your home, you did build it. You had it designed after a house you saw in a magazine once when you were a child. You thought the family looked so happy that lived there that it must be a magical home. You asked your dad if you could live there, and he told you one day you could and bought the magazine for you to keep. He said he wanted you to stay focused on your future, on the happy future that was ahead of you. This is your home, Nick. Why shouldn’t you be here?” I look around the room as objects start to take on new meaning and familiarity. I shake off the notions and continue to dress and head for the door. Kayla grabs my arm, and instinctively, I grab her throat, leaving her little to room to breathe, but again, she stops me somehow. I cringe, dropping my hands and fisting them before racing out of the house and towards home. My head spins and spins, and my hearts speeds so much so that I have to stop my car and get out to gain some air. I feel like she is choking the life out of me, and I can’t figure out why.
Why?
Why do I desire to be near her so much, to touch her, to feel her skin against mine? Why do I yearn to simply inhale the breath she breathes? Why do I believe her to be mine and I hers when she is supposed to be my enemy?

Chapter 25

Nick

After some powerful negotiations between my grandfather and Mayor Powell, we find out he is eager to make some money on the side and is more than willing to give up some valuable city land for our needs. Grandfather sends me to handle the final details of the deal because he believes I have a better face for the cameras and the media won’t be in such an uproar with me shaking hands with the mayor as they would be with him. He is probably correct, but it isn’t something I am in the mood to deal with especially when Powell asks to meet me before the announcement to the media.

Powell’s smug look when I first walk into our secret meeting place is not appreciated, and I am already starting the meeting off in a bad mood. Powell immediately begins discussing our arrangement to make sure he is clear and then tries to renegotiate our deal. He asks for more from us. It is all that I can do to contain my rage as I realize this fuck thinks he can change the deal on us at the last minute?

“What did you say?” I ask him.

“I said I think I am taking a huge risk making this deal with your family, and I believe I am owed more for taking that risk.”

“You want more money after we already had an agreement? I made this deal myself. I know what’s at stake. But now, at the last second when we have few options left, you want to change the terms of our agreement?

He sticks his chest out and glances towards each of his guards before nodding. “I demand to be paid what I want or else I will make you regret it,” he boldly says to me.

Ro makes a gasping sound. “Oh, you should not have said that,” he says, shaking his head next to me.

“I have every right to ask for more, and as I see it … you have no choice.” Powell breathes in proudly, and Ro takes a huge step back from me while I move towards Powell with my eyes swirling.

I reach out and grab hold of him, and he meets my swirling eyes with his suddenly fearful wide eyes. His guards make a move towards me, but Delin blocks every effort they make towards their boss. “I don’t like being told I don’t have a choice. Nor do I like anyone demanding me to do anything,” I snarl at him. “Do you understand me?” He nods excessively. “Good, now make sure you stick to the original deal … or else I won’t be happy, and you don’t want me to be unhappy. I promise.”

“I understand. I do. I will do exactly as we planned. I will even take a little less money if that would make you happy?”

I let go of him and step back, adjusting my sleeves back into place. “That sounds good, I suppose.”

Powell’s phone beeps suddenly. He takes it out and reads the obvious text he received. “You know what? I can even offer you something more.” He nods towards me. “You are going to love this,” he says. “I had a conversation with your grandfather about a certain person, and so I took the initiative and invited her to a meeting to discuss the same deal I am with you.”

“You made the same deal with someone else?” I bark at him.

He holds both of his hands up at me, “Oh wait, wait. I wasn’t going to follow through with it. I only wanted to do the favor your grandfather asked for. He said he would pay richly if I did this for him, true right?”

“If my grandfather promised you something, then I assure you, he will reward you like he said,” I say, wondering what the favor was.

“Good,” he sighs before typing on his phone. “My men are forcing her guards to stay outside so you can watch me kill her. You can report back to your grandfather that I did just as he asked.” He laughs as I look up and see Kayla escorted in and obviously completely unaware of why she is really here. “Bring her over here,” Powell demands as men jump on her and drag her, kicking and screaming, to him. “Your grandfather told me how much trouble she has caused you, and how badly you want to make her suffer for it, so you are going to enjoy this.”

“Do something, Nick.” I feel Ro tense at my side as Kayla is overwhelmed by men. They try to hold her down and tie her up, but she breaks away from them long enough to scream my name, causing an instant reaction in me. I begin to fear for her, fear what they will do, fear that they may hurt her, or actually kill her.

“Nick! Nick, please,” she whimpers as they force her back to them. One climbs on top of her, telling her what all they plan to do to her. A rage begins to escalate out of control within me, taking over every part of me, and with a single deep breath, I step towards them and roar my anger. They turn towards me and looked shocked at my reaction. I go at them with not an ounce of give or reasoning within me. I take hold of one neck, breaking it in two. I take hold of another, and then two more jump me from behind, but they are doomed before they even start. When one raises a knife to me, I meet his eyes and crush his heart with a flick of my finger. The one left, Powell, shivers in place while holding a knife to Kayla’s throat, threatening me with her life.

“And what will you do after you kill her?” I argue simply. He looks around, searching for an escape when Kayla forces the knife out of his hands. I quickly grab him. “You should have run,” I say to him before killing him. Turning towards her, she holds out her hand to me, I take it and lift her off the ground. She is a mess, cut and bruised. Her dress is torn and barely holding on to her body. She falls against my chest and wraps her arms around me, calming my raging emotions instantly. I hold her close to me, not caring about the mess I just made. I look up at Ro who nods, but Delin looks on with wide-eyes.
Shit!
“Are you okay?” I whisper to her. She nods with a smile. “I have just killed the man we were making a huge deal with. Fuck. I don’t know how I am going to explain this.” I enjoy my moment with Kayla a little longer while I figure out a way out of this. I make a decision, let go of her, and walk over to the bindings they had for Kayla. They seem like they will do. “Delin, come here.”

He does as I ask but not without plenty of questions. “You should not have done that. Your grandfather is going to be very angry with you, and he will want her brought to him immediately.” He continues on, and I nod in agreement with every word.

“Sit down,” I say as he keeps telling me everything I should do. I bind him with every possible restraint and then step away and look him over. “I think that will work.”

“Good idea, Nick,” Ro says.

“Thanks,” I say proudly.

“Can someone fill me in please?” Kayla asks.

“Delin here has volunteered to be your prisoner. The one you captured when you busted into our meeting and came after me with everything you had. You killed Powell and his men in the process, but thankfully, Ro and I were able to escape.”

“Can I be her prisoner too?” Ro asks.

“No, you were the one that snuck out and stole the car we were able to get away in,” I say, satisfied with my plan.

“Good idea, Nick, except how are you going to get past my guards? Amery is with me today, and he is not going to let you get away easily.”

Oh wonderful, Amery. I am well aware of his disgust for me every time I sit in front of him at the Meeting of the Lords.
“Alright you make a mad dash to the door you came in and call desperately for your guards while Ro and I sneak out the other door. The only ones back there are Powell’s guards, and they won’t bother us.”

“Won’t Delin tell my people what really happened? I can’t allow him to do that because then they will know that I am meeting with you.” Kayla says.

“No, Delin is trained to never talk to our enemies and knows damn well you are our enemy. Your people will have nothing but frustration trying to get him to talk. Tell Amery and the rest of your men that we snuck in out of nowhere and killed Powell’s men while you handled Delin. Ro and I ran when we realized you got free and went for help,” I say, pulling her back to me and stealing a kiss before I have to leave her. “Now, stop bewitching me like you do and go.” I smile, smacking her on her ass and run out the side door with Ro.

When Ro and I make it to a car, he looks at it and then looks at me with his hands out. “There are no keys in it?”

“Don’t you know how to hotwire a car?” I ask him.

“I’m not that kind of criminal, Nick!” I roll my eyes. I stare at the car and then think of something. I work my way into the car, and sure enough, I am able to get the car going. Ro jumps into the passenger seat and we drive off. “Uh-huh, apparently you are this kind of criminal,” he says, shaking his head at me.

“Don’t judge me. You steal watches from people,” I say, although I don’t know where I learned how to steal a car, but apparently I learned it somehow. I drive out and go by Kayla and her men as they are getting into their cars. She is safe and well-guarded. In fact, Amery looks up at me and watches closely as I drive off.

Grandfather is furious with the outcome; I have never felt this kind of rage from him before. Ro stands back against the wall, trembling. “I don’t understand how this could happen!” he yells at me.

“Someone obviously alerted them to our meeting. I believe it to be Powell because just before they arrived, he asked for more money. He felt he deserved it for taking such a risk for us,” I say to him, leaning back away from his rage.

“He actually demanded it. But Nick and I both said,
oh hell naw
… and … yeah, I am just going to stand over here out of the way and be quiet.” Ro sinks back against the wall when Grandfather stares at him hard.

“That moronic fuck! I should have known. I should have never asked him to help me with that woman; it gave him leverage. He was such a fool that he invited people in to kill him.” Grandfather walks away from me and towards his study. “Go somewhere, Nicholas. I need to be alone to think.”