Page 145 of Ink Deep Devotion

Oh god!“I feel like I’m going to pass out.” I grab my paint box and lean over it. I’m not made for this spy shit!

“Calm the fuck down, then.” Avery snaps.

“Helpful,” I hiss.Breathe in your nose; that’s it. Exhale. Again.

“I’m going to talk a lot, so I need you to listen and keep painting.”

“Okay.” My exhale has enough air in it to dry the paint on my canvas.

“Mila,” Blaze moans.“I don’t like this.”

“Just paint, please.”

“You’re going to run.” Blaze pulls his brush from the water and then grabs a cloth to dry it. He looks ahead at his canvas with a stern, clenched jaw.“Please don’t.” It’s more order than plea.“I’ve seen girls run, and they never get far.”

“Ignore him,” Avery growls.

“I would rather taste freedom than the stale air of this cage, Blaze.”

“I know you love Dash.”

“But I don’t love myself.” If my words could produce tears, they would be filling the air with moisture.“I need to learn how to love myself, Blaze. I need to find myself.”

He raises his hand over his mouth as if to stop his next breath.

I grab the tube of bright yellow paint and squeeze it out onto my palate.“I can try to help you.” Blaze offers.

My lips begin to curve upward.“I know you would, but I’d never risk your life to save mine.”

“Enough.” Avery interrupts.“At this very moment, Dash is finding out that his last two uncles are dead, and no, this isn’t a joke.”

“What?” My muscles turn to concrete. I can’t react, so I pivot my back to my guards and act like I’m talking to Blaze. Eyes wide, mouth parted as a tear slips free.

His neck tenses,“Are you being threatened?”

“No,” I breathe too quickly.

Dash’s uncles are dead! Titan and Damian just lost their fathers.

Oh god! I know they didn’t get along with their fathers, but sometimes losing your enemy is as gut-wrenching as losing your hero. Enemies give you motivation and rules to live by. You never aspire to be worse than your enemy.

So, will Titan and Damian become more villainous without an example?

“Please, Blaze, keep painting, so it looks like I’m watching you.” My lips tremble as Blaze begins to paint slowly, but his hand is stiff, and he’s not pushing the bristles onto the canvas.

“Dash’s uncles are dead, and that means the power is going to be handed down to him and his cousins. Everything you thought you knew is about to change.”

“How do you know this?” I ask. Blaze moves closer, but he’s only hearing fragments of the conversation.

“Dash and his cousins were born into a powerful organization. There is no escaping, no running; you serve, or you die.” Sounds like she’s speaking from experience.“Eachfounding family gets a seat on the ruling council. They call them kings or queens. This generation is all kings; no firstborns were female. Titan is the eldest, so he has the seat of the King family. Damian and Dash will be his generals of sorts; they will act as Titan’s eyes and ears.”

“Do…” should I tell her? Fuck it.“Are you referring to the group he and his friends have?” I know Dash slips away to hold meetings with Damian, Titan, Dante, Cillian, Anders, and Leo.

“No. That group was a way to ensure they all met and formed a bond. Everything in Dash’s life has been pre-planned, even you, Mila. Your father’s entry into society was arranged, but he wanted more; Titan’s wife was picked out already, and no offense, but they would never let a new member like your father marry a ruling seat member, so it was between Damian, Dash, and Nico.”

Nico? I know that name. Dante’s younger brother! That means Dante has a ruling seat, too.

“What is this group called?”

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