Page 8 of Cruel Devil

I drink the sake.

Matty and Sammy stare over at me for so long without blinking, their eyeballs should have shriveled like raisins.

I eat the sushi.

I was hoping they'd grow bored with their surveillance gig but I guess when you hire guys like them, you set them down in front of a freshly painted wall, and only hire them if they're still awake after a few hours of watching it dry.

Five minutes becomes ten. Then fifteen.

Viv's been doing all the heavy lifting, conversation wise. I've barely been paying attention, rather focusing on setting Matty's hair on fire using telepathy.

It hasn't been going well.

"Ooh, I'm going to send Andy a pic of that fountain," Viv says. "She'll love that."

I force my attention back to Bryan's mistress, if only so my brain can catch a break. Psychic arson is hard work. There's a delighted crinkle at the corner of her eyes when she snaps a photo with her phone.

My heart fucking pangs for her.

"Has she read your messages yet?"

Viv's been sending dozens of pictures to her daughter since we set foot in this place. It was hard to miss her enthusiastic camera work, even while I was plotting escape. The fact that this garden is completely surrounded by a thick, tall hedge makes disappearing a little trickier. The only other exit is through the restaurant's main building, where I assume the kitchen, restrooms, and indoor seating are.

"She's probably busy. Maybe she had to start working straight away." Sighing, Viv takes a tiny sip from her tiny sake cup, and then taps her red nails against the thin porcelain.

"She'll fall in love one day," Viv says quietly, giving me a sad glance. "Then she'll understand why I did what I did. Love is a terrible beast. You can't just stop loving someone one day—" she snaps her fingers "—just like that."

Old me, pre-cartel wife me, would have argued. But the day I met Savage, he sunk his teeth into my heart, and to this day has refused to let go. Like a dog with lockjaw.

"Yeah," I say, draining my cup. I've never really liked sake, but it does the job. My shoulders aren't drawn up to my ears anymore with tension. I have half a mind to just sit here, finish lunch, and go back to the villa for a nap.

But that's a ridiculous thought, because I need to speak to Donny. He's the only link between me and whoever took my sisters. Well, him and the three men who actually abducted Phoebe and Athena. But Savage says those guys disappeared like puffs of smoke.

Or, maybe, he hasn't even bothered looking for them yet. S 'n M didn't even know my sisters had been kidnapped. Kinda makes me wonder just how serious Savage was when he swore to find them.

"—haven't felt this way about anyone before," Viv is saying.

"Bryan?"

She nods, poking at a piece of sushi with her chopsticks. "I'm so worried about him. He's always been so vital, so full of life."

"He did just get shot."

"I know, Nicky, but it's different this time. It's like he's been crippled." She lays that same hand over her heart, giving me a wan smile. "I know we're both getting on in years, but this isn't like my Bryan." She pats her chest softly, eyes unfocused. "It's like he's given up."

"I told Andy it's not right. She doesn't care. I can't blame her—she's never had nothing but trouble with men. But I'm looking after him. I'll make sure he pulls through." She leans in so fast that I almost punch her in the nose in sheer instinctual self defense.

"Did you know they were giving him dairy?" She scoffs, shaking her head so hard that her earrings clatter.

"Dairy?" I whisper, confused as fuck.

"No one told them he's lactose intolerant. Thank God I noticed. No, no. It's only almond milk and vegan cheese for my Bryan. And the best part is, he can't tell me how yuck it tastes." Viv says happily, and then decides to eat the piece of sushi she'd been toying with, groaning as soon as it vanishes down her throat.

I take it back. She's the sweetest, craziest person in the cartel.

Movement in the corner of my eye makes me turn to where my surveillance team is camped out. Matty is showing Sammy his cellphone, a big fat frown on his big fat face. Sam flicks his fingers, as if telling him to answer the damn thing already.

Such a cute couple. I keep an eye on them as Viv starts chatting about a boutique she wants to take me to when all the 'drama' has blown over. Someplace in Manhattan that I've just got to see with my own eyes. I listen with half an ear as Matty has a short, intense phone call.

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