Page 51 of Devil's Embrace
"Ready to go?"I reached for my jacket."The neighborhood association starts the trick-or-treating route at seven."
Luca nodded, stepping back onto the porch to give us space.As I helped Mina with her light jacket—unicorns still needed to stay warm, I'd explained—I caught Luca's subtle nod toward the window.Following his gaze, I spotted one of his men across the street, positioned casually near a streetlamp.Always watching.Always protecting.
"I'm going to get so much candy."Mina clutched her bucket."And I'm going to share it with you and Luca.Even the chocolate ones."
"That's very generous, sweet pea."I smoothed her costume one last time.
As we stepped into the hallway, Luca's hand brushed against mine—a brief, deliberate contact that sent electricity up my arm.I looked up into his face, studying the scar that ran along his jaw, the slight shadows under his eyes that spoke of sleepless nights.He'd changed too, this past year.Softened in some ways, hardened in others.The weight of running his empire while carving out space for us in his life had left its mark.
"Thank you for coming."I hoped he knew I meant more than just tonight.
"Always."The simple word rang heavy with promise.
Mina skipped ahead of us, her unicorn tail bouncing with each step.I watched her go—my resilient, beautiful daughter who still believed in magic despite having seen the darkness of the world too early.
I met Luca's intense gaze and saw in it everything we never said aloud.The danger that still lurked beyond our carefully constructed safe haven.The impossibility of our situation.The undeniable pull between us that neither time nor circumstance had diminished.
I gave him a small smile, acknowledging it all without words.We'd survived a year.We'd built something neither of us had expected.And tonight, just for a few hours, we'd pretend to be normal—a little girl and the two adults who would die to protect her, walking through a world that had no idea who we really were or what we'd done to be standing here together.
Luca
I kept three paces behind Emory and Mina, close enough to reach them in an instant if needed, far enough to maintain a clear field of vision.The crowded streets of Havenview's historic district swarmed with costumed children and their parents, each group a potential cover for threats, each shadowed doorway a possible ambush point.Old habits.Necessary vigilance.The Devil goes trick-or-treating.The thought would have made Mateo turn in his watery grave.
"Look, Mama!A real haunted house!"Mina pointed excitedly toward an elaborate display where mechanical ghosts rose from behind tombstones and recorded howls played on a loop.
Emory nodded, her blonde hair catching the street lights as she bent to Mina's level."Do you want to go up there, sweet pea?It might be a little scary."
"I'm not scared."Mina’s chin lifted in a gesture so reminiscent of her mother that something tightened in my chest.
A year.One full year since I'd put a bullet in Mateo Senior’s and Junior's heads.Since I'd claimed what was left of his operation and folded it into mine.Since I'd made the decision that changed everything—to keep them in my life rather than erase them from it.My lieutenants had questioned my judgment at first.A few had paid for their doubts with their lives.The others had learned quickly that Emory and Mina were off-limits for discussion.
I scanned the crowd automatically, identifying Marco near the coffee shop entrance and Vincent across the street by the Italian bakery.Two more of my men were positioned at either end of the block.Overkill, perhaps, but I'd made too many enemies to risk anything less.
A small commotion to our left caught my attention.A young boy, maybe four years old, stood crying in his pirate costume, clearly separated from his parents.Before I could react, Emory was already moving toward him, kneeling down despite the dirty sidewalk.
"Hey there," she said, her voice gentle."Did you lose your mom and dad?"
The boy nodded, tears streaming down his face.
"We'll help you find them."She looked up to scan the crowd.
He sniffled."Mom was dressed like a witch."
I watched her with the child, something unfamiliar expanding in my chest.Compassion came so naturally to her, even after everything she'd experienced.The violence she'd witnessed.The blood on her own hands.She still stopped for a crying child without hesitation.
Emory spotted a frantic woman in a witch's hat pushing through the crowd and pointed her out to the boy.His face lit up as he ran toward his mother, who scooped him up with visible relief.
"Thank you," the woman called to Emory, who just smiled and waved it off.
When she returned to my side, I said quietly, "That was kind."
She shrugged."Any parent would do the same."
No, they wouldn't.My own mother wouldn't have.Mateo certainly wouldn't have.Kindness was rare in my world—a weakness to be exploited rather than a strength to be admired.Yet in Emory, it only made her more formidable in my eyes.
Mina had darted ahead toward the haunted house display, joining a small crowd of children admiring the moving skeletons and glowing pumpkins.I closed the distance between Emory and myself, sliding my hand to the small of her back as we followed.
She leaned into the touch, a subtle movement that spoke volumes.A year ago, she would have flinched, her body remembering the violence my hands were capable of.Now she pressed against me, her warmth seeping through the thin material of her sweater.
