Page 126 of Devil Owned
“I get that. But listen, Damien. You have a message. No. Three messages.”
“I said, fuck off.”
“On your cell phone. I think… I think you need to look at this.”
“In a minute.”
“Damien, please. Just… just tell me. Where did you leave Seraphina?”
I tear my eyes away from Logan, a strange feeling, something like dread, suddenly constricting my chest. “What do you mean?”
“Where did you say you left her?” he repeats, his voice urgent.
“In my apartment. Why?”
“I think they have her,” he blurts out. “Angel.”
Time suddenly comes to a standstill. I stare at him for I don’t know how long, my arm still rigid in front of me, hanging on limply to the gun.
Everest hands me my phone, and I look down numbly at the three messages.
Three messages, and an image attachment.
The first one reads:
You killed my brother. You really think that was the end of it?
The second one:
You murdered the person who meant everything to me. Now I’m going to return the favor.
And the third one:
Got her, fucker.
The image gives me a horrible sense of déjà-vu. My pet, bound, gagged and naked. Only this time, she’s kneeling in muddy grass, an empty coffin a few steps away and a gaping hole visible just in front of her. A gun is pointed at the back of her head, execution-style.
I let my own gun fall to the ground.
There’s a long, stifling silence, broken at last by Logan’s trembling voice.
“We’ll get her back, Damien. I swear it to you on everything I have, on our brotherhood, with God as my witness, we’ll get her back. I won’t rest until I find her for you, and I will bring her home. Okay?”
I fall down heavily on my chair, pressing my head to the table. I’m absolutely drained of energy.
“I think… I think it’s too late,” breathes Everest.
The everlasting optimist has capitulated. But his words give me a sudden surge of resolve.
“I am going to find every last one of those fuckers,” I snarl. “I am going to find them, and I am going to kill them. They will each die a slow, horrific death. They don’t realize what they’ve done. They’ve just declared war on Devil. Motherfucking war. And with their final breath, they’ll look at me and understand. No one beats me. The Devil always wins.”
