Page 9 of Blissful Devotion

“I really hope he isn’t going to get us killed,” I mumble, earning myself a glare from him and a huff from Vince that almost sounds like laughter.

“You're welcome to stay here instead,” Desmond snaps back, clearly having heard me.

I don’t respond, instead moving toward the car. Fighting amongst ourselves isn’t going to do anyone any good, and least of all Kat.

The drive isn’t long, but it’s uncomfortable. Vince usually drives us everywhere, and I can see how much he hates being a passenger. Not knowing our destination seems to have everyone a little more on edge.

Well, everyone but Father, who seems fine with it since the car has a mini fridge that appears to have whiskey.

The driveway is long and winding, uphill, and I know even before we see the building that it’s going to be large. Given that we appear to be in a neighborhood, I assume it’s someone's house.

The car goes through security without stopping, which tells me it was sent to collect us.

Just as I thought, the house is residential and very lavish, though those details don't help me know where we are.

The car stops, and the driver moves to open the door, but Desmond doesn’t give him the chance. He’s out of the car and headed toward the house like a man on a mission. I guess he is, but it might still be a good idea to be nice to the person offering to help us.

“Sorry about him,” I tell the man, feeling the need to apologize even if I don’t completely disagree with Desmond's one-track mind right now.

“No worries, Master Elio will meet you in the living room. Please follow the pool.”

He smiles and holds out an arm toward the house, and we follow the same path Desmond did.

Follow the pool… into the house?

We often overdo things, but that seems like a lot even for us. He wasn't joking or exaggerating, though. The pool begins in front of the house, passes through the glass windows that appear to be folded away, and opens into the living room.

Couches sit around the pool with a table between them and nothing else. The pool is clearly intended to be the center of attention, and while it normally would be, I can’t help but look past it right now.

Desmond sits beside a man in a dark suit that I’ve never met but I’ve seen before. He's not in our line of work, but he's a rather esteemed businessman in New York.

What was his name?

“Elio,” Nathan breathes, as if unsure, but the second he says it, I know he’s right. It was on the tip of my tongue, and now that he’s said it, I’m certain. I’m also very aware that this isn’t the first time I’ve heard his name in recent memory, though the last time was by a small girl with green hair and a deadly gaze.

I’m not sure if Elio heard Nathan or if he simply saw us coming, but he stands and comes around the couches to meet us just inside the room, his face serious and his lips turned down in a genuine frown.

“Ah, my friends, I’m so sorry to hear about your wife,” he says, his accent thick in a way that lets me know he was probably born here.

He pulls Nathan into a tight hug that not many would get away with, then does the same to Alex, Vince, and then me.

Elio steps back, sweeping out an arm toward the couches where Desmond sits.

“Please have a seat. Jade will be here soon. Until then, how about you tell me what happened?”

I watch Vince’s jaw clench, and I know the last thing he wants is to go over what happened again. In his mind, he’s the reason Kat was taken, as if he should have simply been able to take the damage from the accident and keep going. One that looked as if it was meant to kill him.

Though I have no doubt that very well might have been the case, the old asshole is just built tough.

“Thank you,” Nathan says, and I see the slightest dip in his shoulders as some of the weight leaves, knowing it’s not just us looking for her.

After all, Jade and her guys found Carter when he disappeared. If anyone can do it, I have a feeling it’s them.

I’m slipping; I can feel it, but I can’t seem to stop myself.

Kat is my reason; she was all the good that was left in the world for me, and now she's gone.

Just like that.