Page 67 of The Devil's Hunt

"The Ceremony requires it. You know this."

"Fuck the ritual. She's mine and only mine." I glared at Kai, my knuckles turning white as I gripped the armrest of my chair. He had no right to tell me about what The Ceremony called for.

Kai let out a low laugh, shaking his head. "I've seen the way you look at her, the way you touch her, the way you possess her in your mind. I think that the mighty Archer King has finally met his match. While I would love to have a taste of that sweet pussy, if she's the one, I think we can bend the rules this once, even if The Ceremony calls for us to shareeverything.At the same time, I saw what she did to that dumb redheaded slut to be with you. I don't want Mila to bite my dick off if she is forced to do something she doesn't want to."

"I know," I sighed, rubbing my forehead. I stared at Kai, a mixtureof annoyance and curiosity in my eyes. I knew The Ceremony was holy and that deviation from the rules was unheard of. However, the thought of bending them for Mila's sake was a tempting proposition.

"What do you propose?" I asked, my voice shaking in anger.

"Well, Archer King," Kai began, grinning widely, "I propose we give Mila the choice. After all, it's her vagina. For your sake, you better hope she says no because if she gets a taste of what Theo and I have to offer, we may not be able to keep her off us. She'll follow us with her mouth open, begging for a taste of our baby gravy."

Anger boiled inside me at the thought of anyone else touching my mate. But deep down, a sick and twisted part of me was curious to see how far Mila's desires would take her. And that terrified me more than anything else.

I forced a chuckle, playing along with Kai's game even though I wanted nothing more than to bash his skull against the wall.

"Anyway, our daddies want us presentable for The Carnival of Love Charity Event tonight. Might be a good time to make an appearance with your lady since her daddy is on our hit list." Kai gave me an apologetic smile.

He saw that Mila meant more to me, and what started as a task set forth by our fathers as an act of revenge for betraying The Brotherhood had suddenly become complicated the minute I caught feelings. My heart pounded in my chest as I thought about Mila, her innocence caught in the crossfire of our fathers' twisted game. But she meant more to me than any mission could, and I couldn't let her get hurt. Kai may be an asshole, but the fucker was loyal to me. The three of us were brothers. To hell with blood. We had been through Hell and back with each other, but the tides were turning. We felt the shift, even if we didn't talk about it. If I becameking,I would have his and Theo's full support and loyalty. In the world we lived in, that was a rarity. Loyalty and respect were bought, not earned through fear, not given freely and with no expectations.

"Yeah," I sighed. "Have the men plan on doubling up security. I don't want any surprises while we are there. With that shady fuckerand his friends, you never know who else might be there planning to cause a scene."

"You think The Collectors would be stupid enough to show their faces?"

"After we hit their warehouse, I'm not taking any chances. Her father's a coward. I wouldn't put anything past him. He would flaunt his power in front of us to see if we would break our agreement. And I'm not putting Mila in danger because of it."

Kai nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. As he left to make arrangements, I angrily slammed my fists down on my desk. Time was running out, and soon, I would hurt Mila, betray her trust, and potentially lose her forever. I didn't expect to become consumed by her. The thought overwhelmed me, and I couldn't bear the thought of living without her. She had opened up to me, allowed me to touch her soul, and now she held the power to destroy me. I had set out to ruin her, but she ended up destroying me instead. I couldn't lose her. I wouldn't survive it.

27

TWENTY-SEVEN

MILA

The shrill and persistent ring of my cell phone jolted me awake from my deep slumber. Groggily, I blindly extended my arm in the darkness, searching for my phone. Finally, my fingers found the familiar shape, and I answered with a scratchy voice.

"Hello?" I mumbled, not bothering to check the caller ID.

"Mila? It's your dad."

"Daddy? Hey, what's going on?" I asked, still groggy and trying to shake off the remnants of sleep.

"What time will you be leaving to head to the charity event tonight?"

"That charity event?"

"Come on, Mila. The Carnival of Love. I told you about it over a month ago. Please tell me you didn't forget." His voice was filled with annoyance.

I sat up abruptly, instantly wide awake. How could I have forgotten about the Carnival of Love? It was my father's company's most anticipated charity event of the year. He needed all the support he could get with him running for governor. As his daughter, it was expected that I would be there to represent the family and help himpad his ballet by flirting with the other rich people, convincing them that my father was worthy of their monetary donations.

"Of course not. I'm actually on the way to pick up my dress now," I stammered, panic creeping into my voice as I glanced at the clock. It was already late afternoon.

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line before my dad replied, his voice softer this time. "Mila, don't be late. This is a very important night for me. I need you by my side. Don’t forget your speech."

"I understand, Daddy," I replied, my heart sinking further with every word.

"Okay, princess. I'll see you tonight at 7 p.m. sharp."

"See you then."

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