The Devil's Masquerade: The Poison

by Jennifer Loren

  “Why not? We have known each other for a long time, and he knows I find all this fascinating. I have been helping him do research ever since he found out that his mother has been sharing valuable information with me.”

  “Nick’s mother told you all about Savage?”

  “His mother and I talked a lot, and though I thought she was delusional when she talked of Nick’s father and Savage, it turns out she wasn’t as delusional as I thought. Some of it stills seems unbelievable, but with what we have confirmed, who knows what could be true.”

  I glance over at her with a strange feeling coming over me. There is something about her that doesn’t fit. “You know, most normal people would run away from us if they knew any of this to be true. Hell, Nick and I both would like to run away from it. Why are you running towards it?”

  She sits up and gently caresses my face before replying, “Sometimes, you just feel that you belong, and I feel I belong here, with you. I think I was meant to be here to help you. Help you find your love. Help you find your bright shadow again,” she says, pushing me to crave Sam. My head becomes dizzy, but I smile wide when Sam finds her way back into my arms and allows me to tell our story again.

  “I love you so much, Sam.”

  “And I love you,” she whispers back.

  Chapter 22

  Nick

  Ryan opens his bedroom door, and Franky walks right in, the two of them together does not make me happy in the least. I don’t understand what he is doing, but if she is able to keep him from doing something crazy, then maybe it is a good thing. Maybe. I begin to wonder about what my mother said and decide the best thing for me to do is to investigate Franky a little further and her friend, the man she continuously sneaks off with. I have one of my men search out information on her father’s death and see if there is anything that will help me understand where she has been. Surely he was buried wherever she was. Until I find out more about her, I will honor Ryan’s request for Franky to continue staying here a little longer, despite my mother being gone and she having no reason to be around here anymore. I haven’t talked to Kayla about it, but I am sure it will come up soon. For now, I avoid the conversation and the trouble by paying attention to Kayla and giving her no reason to think of anything else but me.

  I fall asleep with Kayla in my arms, but it isn’t long before my peaceful sleep is interrupted. I don’t know what it is exactly, but I sit up in bed and listen carefully. Kayla takes a hold of my arm with a look of concern. “Get the boys and stay with them in the safe room,” I say to her before cautiously moving down the stairs. I listen and focus. Instantly, a man appears out of nowhere and another and another. I quickly realize that fighting these men off is not going to happen the usual way. No, these intruders are part of an army that has prepared to fight me. My stance needs to change in order to protect my family, and it does so quickly. I don’t bother speaking. I simply make my displeasure known from the depth of my core.

  “Look boys. This dumbass is going to fight us off in his boxers,” the bold moron laughs but still avoids my eyes. “What? You couldn’t at least find some pants stud?” I don’t speak. “What was that? Did you say something?” he says, nearing me with a single step and a defensive eye, but no more. “Okay, I see you want to listen. So listen here. If you go quietly, we will make it painless for you and your whole family. Otherwise, we will have to force you to hear them scream to their deaths. You won’t possibly be able to save them all.” He steps forward again as his friends take a strong stance near him. “So, what’s it going to be stud? And please, don’t make this any harder than it has to be. You work for Savage, and we just can’t take any chances that you might make him any stronger than he already is.”

  “You don’t think I can take you all on and save my entire family at the same time? You don’t know me that well do you?” I growl, causing the whole group to step backwards at once. I take one step forward, and they back up five. My body is so tense that I can feel nothing but fire burning from my heart to the tips of my fingers. They quickly scramble and decide to attack me all at once. That might have been their best chance to get me, but it wasn’t their best decision. These are no ordinary intruders. They don’t attack me with guns or fists but with a force like I have never seen before, an attack that is pointed as if they are searching for a weak spot in my body. Despite their precise attack, I still feel their breaths fade as I flex and kill. One after the other, they die at my feet. I demand them to surrender, yet they keep coming and coming, and I keep killing. Their faces become blended and nonexistent to me. I stop asking who they are, who they work for, and begin to enjoy the slaughter. I have never felt so strong and so powerful. The rush of adrenaline causes such a great satisfaction within me, I don’t want to stop.

  “Nick! Nick …” Kayla’s voice begins to surround me. I won’t let them get to her or my boys. The sound of my wife’s voice only makes me more determined to kill. I believe them to be all gone when I feel another presence at my back. I spin around, grab them, and lick my lips, waiting for their beating heart to burst.

  “Nick!” Ryan screams at me as he grabs my hand and tries to force my release. He manages to loosen my grip, but I don’t understand why he fights me. “Nick you are going to kill her!” Ryan strikes me and strikes me again until I let go and turn to him, enraged.

  “What are you doing?” I yell at him. He ignores me and leans down to the person at my feet. “Kayla!” Ryan yells before breathing into her mouth to try and revive her. No. NO. I did not do that? Ryan screams at me to help him, to help her, but I am still tense with anger, and I am afraid to touch her. “Nick!” he yells again, pulling me down to my knees. I lay my hands on my wife, and instantly begin trying to breathe life back into her. “I’m sorry. Please Kayla, I’m sorry,” I cry to her. I try again to revive her while Ryan calls for help. Oh God, please …

  “Mommy!” Nicky screams, racing towards his mother. I tell him to stay back, but he doesn’t listen. He calls to her and wraps his little arms around her neck. “Mommy. What happened, Mommy? Wake up Mommy. Wake up!” my son cries, ignoring my attempts to revive her. I grip my face with my bloody hands and pray for this nightmare to be over.

  The sudden gasp of breath from the air causes us all to stop breathing. I look down and watch her eyes open. “Oh my God, Kayla.” I lean down and kiss her. “I love you,” I say, smiling down at her. She wraps an arm around Nicky and kisses him weakly but looks at me with fear.

  Ryan rushes over and helps her sit up. “Are you okay?!? Can you breathe?” he asks her. She nods. I want to touch her, to hold her, but somehow I think that would only make things worse. “Nick, I think you should help her to bed and let her rest until the doctor can get here.” Kayla’s lip immediately begins to quiver as she takes his hand over mine. “Okay, I’ll take you. Nick, you stay here and … and calm down.” I nod and fall into my hands, not understanding what happened. Franky leans down and put her arms around me.

  “It’s okay, Nick. Everyone is okay now.”

  “I nearly killed my own wife,” I say, pushing her away from me. Why would she want to be near me? Did she not see what just happened?

  “She got in the way. She should have given you a chance to calm first. It’s dark, you were surrounded by attackers. It wasn’t your fault. You were amazing. Absolutely amazing.”

  “I’m a monster.”

  “No, you’re not …” she says against my ear, rubbing her hands on my bare chest.

  “Franky, I am covered in blood. I just nearly killed my wife. Please stay away from me,” I urge.

  “I don’t mind, and you’re in pain. Let me comfort you.” She kisses my cheek. “You need to relax. Take a hot shower, clean up, and calm down.”

  “Kayla’s in bed. I don’t want to disturb her right now. I can’t imagine she wants me anywhere near her.”

  “You have more than one shower, don’t you? Use mine. It will help you feel better before you approach Kayla again,” Franky says, taking
my hands.

  I finally agree to step into a hot shower, but before I do, I stare at myself in the mirror, looking over the bloody monster staring back at me. The shower eases my pain some and my nerves, but I don’t know that anything can fix my marriage right now. I step out of the shower and wrap a towel around my waist, breathing a little easier but exhausted. “Thanks for letting me use your shower,” I say to Franky before noticing her naked body across the bed. She tries to entice me before running between me and the door. “Get out of the way, Franky. I don’t know what is wrong with you, but you are not the girl I used to know.”

  “You’re right. I’m a woman now. A woman that can ease your pain.”

  “You should know better than anyone that acting this way doesn’t do anything for me. You should know that. The Franky I knew would know that,” I say, silencing her enough to move out my way.

  I step towards our bedroom and hesitate before going in when Ryan opens the door. “She’s fine, Nick. Come on in.” He takes hold of my arm and pulls me in. “She wants to see you, so go in.”

  I walk into the room, and she immediately looks up at me. The fear is gone from her eyes, but I don’t know if it has left her completely. “Kayla, are you okay? I’m so sorry, I … I don’t know why I … I,” I break down, trying to hide my tears.

  She rushes to me and grabs my hands from my face. “Nick, stop. That wasn’t you. I know it wasn’t, but somehow, we have to figure out how to control that.”

  “I don’t know if it can be controlled. Princess, this is … I craved it. I craved the killing. I couldn’t see you. All I could see was your beating heart, and I wanted to stop it. I heard you, but I couldn’t see you. The effect you have on me takes too long …” I stop myself and look away from her. If she knew she could calm me, she would endanger herself over and over to help me, until I killed her. I could never live with that.

  “What effect?”

  “Nothing, I just meant my love for you. It took too long for me to realize it.”

  “There are no more men to fight tonight. Ryan is going to stay on watch, so you can sleep. Come to bed, and show me that love you have for me, please.” I reluctantly agree to crawl into bed next to her, but the moment I feel her body next to me, I feel her calm wash over me. I cradle her in my arms and kiss her all over with tears in my eyes. The thought of losing her pains me to my core.

  Chapter 23

  Nick

  Savage seems to be more excited every time I come to his home. It makes me crazy to think he is happy that I am here, so much so that I can’t control myself. “Did you send them to my home?!” I scream at him.

  Suddenly, he looks surprised, not the usual man of complete control. “What are you talking about? Who came to your home, Nicholas?”

  “Don’t play stupid with me. You know damn well who I am talking about! Who are they? They are not normal. They have an ability about them, but it isn’t like …”

  “They knew how to defend themselves against your attack? They avoided looking into your eyes? They threatened you to try and draw you to them?” I stare at him, trying to decide if I believe him or not. Savage turns from me, humming his interest in my details. “You are lucky, Nicholas. You are lucky they didn’t understand your strength or your weaknesses. You shouldn’t have been there. You have no idea what you are doing against them.” He doesn’t bother to verify his questions as he simmers. “Those bastards will fry!” he suddenly screams, throwing his fists down on the desk in front of him.

  “Who? Who were they?” I demand.

  “You need to move in here now, Nicholas. I can’t protect you all the time, and I can’t have you wandering out there without knowing what you need to know to protect yourself.”

  “No, I can’t leave my family. They were going to kill them, too! I don’t even like leaving them behind now except I have Ryan to protect them.”

  “Your family will be fine, much better off without you there actually. If you leave them behind, then that will show our enemies that they mean nothing to you, and if they mean nothing, then there is no reason to bother with them. Ryan is plenty capable of detouring them. Not to mention, that boy of yours is plenty strong enough to handle those morons they sent last night. The real trouble wouldn’t come after you at your home, not without knowing who you truly are. However, they will now. Now that they know you are my grandson, and they surely know that now, no one else could have survived an attack like that. You have to leave and move in here where it is safe.”

  “Who were they?”

  “They are your competitors, other families looking to take over. Families of … similar backgrounds to yours,” he says as I grab my head and cringe. “Don’t be dramatic, Nicholas. That is one of the many things I like about you, the no drama. Your cousin was full of it, constant drama. Drove me insane. I didn’t think he would ever get the courage to actually take you on.”

  “You encouraged him? You encouraged him to try and kill me knowing …”

  “Knowing that you would kill him? Of course I did, especially when my suspicion confirmed that you killed his father and not your own father as we had originally suspected. I haven’t seen that kind of strength and power in … oh so long. I thought Adair’s father was incredibly powerful. I thought he was the one, but then, you. I sent him to kill your father, and I was angry when I was wrong, but I wasn’t wrong. I just didn’t have all the information. When I saw you, I knew you were special. I just didn’t know how much. I allowed Dante to live merely to protect you. I kept an eye on you of course, but I couldn’t get too close or our enemies would have surely killed you.” He laughs suddenly. “Well, they would have tried I guess. Little did I know that you were strong enough at six to take on a whole army by yourself. I wish I had; I could have trained you and prepared you already, rather than waiting until now.”

  “My family. I have to get back to them. They need me. You have all this to protect you, and they have nothing. My brother isn’t strong enough. He can’t do it by himself.”

  Savage exhales, exhaustively, “Nicholas, you need to stay here and train with me, there is no more time for this. If you stay here, we can speed up your training and have you ready to protect your family properly that much sooner. Ryan will be fine. I will send the right men to your home to help him. I assure you, they will be fine. As I said before, their interest is you, and if they can’t get to you through them, then they will not bother with them. You have to show no interest in them and leave them, only for now. Once we have our enemies beaten, then you can embrace your family again and live in peace. We can all live in peace. They are after you, not your family, Nicholas. Don’t give them any power to bring you down. You have a lot to learn before the war begins, and you can’t do that by visiting me at lunch,” he says, slamming his fists down in front of me.

  “War what war?” I ask, taken aback by this new knowledge.

  “The war between the families. Everyone wants to be in control. It is a burden at times, but it has been our family’s duty since the beginning, and there is no way in hell I am letting those bastards change that now. Oh have they tried, and now, they think they have these young ones who have new ideas and new strategies. The very idea makes me angry beyond words. Not to worry though, they have their young, and I have mine,” he says, grabbing my face and looking upon me with pride. “Don’t worry Nicholas. Your family will be fine as long as we win.”

  “As long as we win? What happens if we lose?”

  “Well they will kill us all and all of your offspring, and of course, I am sure that stubborn ass wife yours since she will surely do everything she can to protect her children. They won’t be kind either; they will torture your poor Kayla until they are assured there are no more of us. I have to say, their torture methods have become inventive. She will wish she was dead. They once …” He continues on telling me of their meticulous torture methods and how much the love of my life will be tortured for being with me and having my children. I saw it in their eyes
last night, and as much as I wanted to disbelieve everything he is saying, I felt it then and know it to be true. The agony is interrupted by my grandfather taking hold of my shoulders and looking me over with concern. “We will stop them. Don’t worry, Ma Joie,” he says as if he couldn’t be prouder to call me his own. “Together, Nicholas, we will protect our family. Our family. Trust me. They will never be able to harm your young ones or your beautiful wife. They will all be safe from their harm. All you have to do is trust me, fight with me, and push them back into hell where they belong. Don’t let them win and cause so much suffering to the ones you love so deeply.” He continues on, until tears emerge from the depths of my heart.

  “I would die for them,” I whisper, painfully acknowledging my deepest love for them.

  “Of course you would, Ma Joie, but better to fight for them,” my grandfather says, embracing me like his own and giving me another reason to stand and fight with him.

  Chapter 24

  Kayla

  “Where is Daddy going Mommy?” Nicky asks, resting his head against my side.

  I run my fingers through his hair, trying to put him at ease. I can always tell when Nicky and his father are upset about something. “He is going to go work out some details for work, honey. He will be back soon.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure,” Franky says, entering the room with an odd demeanor about her. I instantly take a stand in front of my son. “No, I wouldn’t expect to him to ever come back.”

  “What is wrong with you?” I ask calmly.

  “Nick, is not for you. Don’t you know that by now? He isn’t a Daddy or a husband type man. He is much more than that. He deserves much more than that. If he is anything, he is a Prince, and you’re a peasant. You should let him go, and you should be with someone of your own type. Someone of your own level. Nick is special, and you … and you are not.” She steps forward with a strange expression and a twist of her hand.