Page 28 of Kissing the Villain

I walked through the small living room and down a narrow hallway to my bedroom. “Is my grandfather in trouble?”

“Not if you come with me.”

“What did he do?”

Marcello tipped his head toward the stairs. “We have a flight to catch. Your grandfather can answer your questions when we get to Devil’s Creek.”

Pops was the reason I had the restoration gig with Madeline Laveau. He was the reason I had most of the things in my life. With Aiden’s whereabouts unknown, I only had Pops.

So I could not let him down.

Marcello’s eyes widened on the walls I painted for my brother. The mural spanned two walls. A mixture of reds, oranges, blacks, and whites swirled into a cityscape mirroring Devil’s Creek, except it was on fire and set in the underworld. All the devils were there, even Marcello.

He entered the walk-in closet and emerged with two Louis Vuitton suitcases and a matching leather satchel. “Pack your shit.”

I tugged on the hairband. Pieces of plaster fell to the floor like snow. “Do I have time to shower?”

“You have five minutes before I throw you over my shoulder and drag you out of this house. Do what you want with that time.”

I rolled my eyes. “So that’s a no.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “You can take a shower on the plane.”

I turned my back to Marcello and stuffed the sketchbooks and charcoal on my drafting table into the satchel. My art came first. It was the air I breathed and why I got out of bed in the morning. If I weren’t coming home soon, I’d have to take everything I cared about, which didn’t leave much room for clothing or other personal effects.

I rolled a suitcase over to my desk and lifted paint tubes from the shelves.

“You can buy more art supplies,” Marcello growled. “Pack something useful.”

I spun around with paint tubes in one hand and a few brushes in the other. “I can buy more clothes. I can’t replace the memories I made with these brushes.”

The brushes I used to paint the Many Faces of the Devil Series meant something to me, but they also reminded me of Luca. He was the devil in all of them.

The Devil I Know.

The Devil I Hate.

The Devil I Love.

The Devil I Fear.

As Marcello silently drove through the streets, adrenaline shot through my veins. I could hardly sit still without wanting to open the door and jump from the SUV. We arrived at the airport twenty minutes later. Only a few people were in the private hangar at this hour.

After my last encounter with Luca ended in pain and tears, I promised never to return to Devil’s Creek and never to put myself at the mercy of the cruel prince.

But Pops needed my help.

Aiden could still be alive.

I had to go through with this.

Marcello opened my door, his jaw set hard as he looked down at me. “I’ll get your bags. Get on the plane.”

14

ALEX

I boardedan airplane that saidSalvatore Globalon the side in gold letters. I’d never flown private. Instead of rows of seats, there was a long, white leather bench on the left side and a square wooden table with four comfy chairs on the right. The bedroom was at the back.

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