Page 199 of Filthy Royal

“That’s my sister, Alphahole.”

“Yeah, and I intend to make her happy for the rest of my life.”

Luc cursed. “I’m going to actually come to like you, aren’t I?”

“Happens to the worst of us. Give in now.”

Luc actually chuckled. If Damien hadn’t been standing next to a dead guy who’d betrayed him, with proof that Darvish’s obsession with Scarlett was extreme, he probably would have felt pleased with himself. Now all he felt was itchy. Like he was missing something. Big.

He watched the vid loop again.

Luc sighed. “Haven’t we seen enough?”

“I’m not trying to get my jollies. I’m trying to figure out why this bothers me.”

“Hells, I thought you just said—”

“Not that.” Damien studied the screen. “The angle, the background. Where was this recorded?”

Luc peered closer too. “Hard to say. It’s so dark, and they’ve blurred out the background.”

“Exactly, like it was done on purpose. Maxheim hasn’t mentioned them doing that with any of the others, which tells me Darvish has something to hide. So study it. Try to remember where this was recorded.”

Another curse from Luc, but this time, he watched carefully.

Suddenly, he shot up. “Shit. I do recognize that. See the barely there outline of that table?” Luc pointed to the screen. “It was hard for us to find places to meet. We were both under such scrutiny, so Kadon and I would sometimes get together at his father’s place. Fuck, we figured it was safer than the alleys or our rooms. I’d swear that’s the entranceway table at Andor’s vacation retreat.”

Damien went still.

His body locked while his mind moved at warp speed. Background blurred. Crex’s message:Close 2 U.Filmed at Kadon’s father’s place.

Where they’d left the others.

“We need to go.” Damien spun around. “Now!”

* * *

They reachedtheir hideout in record time.

Damien burst through the door, Luc right behind.

It was too late.

The place had been torn apart, the entranceway table shattered, and broken furniture lay strewn everywhere. The boot prints of several hulking Alphas stamped in the dust and debris.

But no Scarlett, Anya, Maddox, or Kadon.

Worse, the sleeping quarters where Damien had left Scarlett was crumpled in on itself, the ceiling caved in, the floor half gone.

Damien threw back his head and roared, “Scarlett!”

His comms beeped with an incoming message.

34

SCARLETT

“Where the fuck is she?”

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