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The Deal With The Devil 52
StefanShe thought she loved me.Moriarty's rage was real. His hatred for me, it was because I was my father's son. He didn't care about the money he felt he was owed. That didn't matter. What he wanted was the decimation of my family. Because that was the only way he could have his revenge. Revenge against my mother for not having chosen him. Revenge against my father for being the one she had loved. The one she had chosen.He wanted the house, the land, to destroy it.I knew now he would stop at nothing. My life, it was forfeit. But hers? I couldn't let him destroy her because of me.I watched Veronica's sweet face, her trusting, innocent, hopeful eyes. She believed she loved me. The thing was, the moment she'd said it, I'd known it too. I'd loved her for a long time now.And that was exactly why I had to let her go.I hardened my face and stood.She remained kneeling at my feet."There's just one problem, Veronica. I don't love you." How my voice carried the power it did, I had no
The Deal With The Devil 53
VeronicaI don't know how long I sat in the chapel like that, but by the time I got back to the house, a single light was left on over the stove and Stefan's car was gone. Charlie was the only one waiting for me. The moment I opened the door, he nudged his little nose around the corner, and I bent to pick him up and hug him to me.What had happened in the last three weeks? Had it been in those weeks that Stefan had come to the realization he didn't want this? Didn't want me? Or was this the truth all along? Was I just blind?I really thought he'd cared about me.No, more than that.I thought he loved me.A sudden chill made me shudder, and I carried Charlie up to my bedroom.When Stefan had stood like he had, with me kneeling at his feet, when he'd looked at me, I'd seen something so strange in his eyes. So at odds with what he was saying. At least for one single and very fleeting moment.Once inside my room, I set Charlie down. He circled my legs twice then looked up at me with his b
The Deal With The Devil 54
StefanIt was close to midnight by the time I got home. My attorney had worked overtime, getting the paperwork for the sale of the house in order. I'd been ready to sign, but we'd hit a snag. A document the buyer had to provide, and he hadn't. I guessed the holdup was the fact that it was the weekend, and Italians didn't like working weekends. I'd hoped to get everything signed and finished today. The less I had to think about it, the better. And the faster I could do what I'd told Veronica I'd do—let go of the past.And once I'd signed, I couldn't change my mind.Selling the house was my last resort. I hated to do it. Stephen hated me having to do it. But there was no other way. Moriarty wasn't fucking around. I couldn't take a chance he'd hurt my family over this. It wasn't worth it.As I walked past her room, I tried hard not to think about her at the chapel. Not to see her face when she'd knelt at my feet, looking up at me when I told her I didn't love her. I just needed to rememb
The Deal With The Devil 55
StefanIt felt like a trapdoor had opened up underneath me. I stood there holding the phone to my ear, trying to make sense of what she'd just said.The buyer had a representative, and all the paperwork was being done over wires and faxes—as old-fashioned as the latter sounded. The buyer had been missing one legal document that was necessary for the sale to be acknowledged by Italian law. That holdup was the only reason I hadn't signed over the property today.I'd tried to find information on the buyer, so had my lawyer, but everything pointed to a company in southern Germany. It hadn't occurred to me once that would be a front. The offer had been above the value of the land. Why in hell would Marcus Kingston want to buy this house? This dead land?"Are you still there?" Robyn asked."I need to find your sister. Robyn, does your grandfather know you know?""No. I overheard something he said, and I snuck into his study when he went out for dinner. I just knew something wasn't right.""
The Deal With The Devil 56
Stefan"Veronica!"I tore my shirt off to cover my mouth and nose and ran to the stairs. Thick smoke made it impossible to see."Veronica, where are you?"Nothing. Not from her.But a bark.I stood at the top of the stairs and looked down the hall at the last door. The one farthest from me. More barking. It was Charlie.The hallway seemed to grow longer as I moved, too slowly even as I charged, battling the nightmare, the demons who kept replaying that reel, over and over and fucking over again."Veronica!"Something crashed behind me, a beam falling, the ceiling opening to the sky. Choking, I went forward, reaching the door. Charlie's barking was continuous now."Veronica. I'm here." I touched the door handle. It burned. Wrapping my T-shirt around it, I turned it.In the nightmare, it was locked. It was always locked, and I had to break the door down. That's what always slowed me down. I could never reach her in the nightmare. Not when it was my mother. Not when it was Veronica. But
The Deal With The Devil 57
VeronicaArson.Somebody had deliberately set the fire that destroyed Kingston Winery.Two weeks had passed, and the information Stefan had received from his source was confirmed by the official investigator. My grandfather had arrived the day following the incident. He hadn't brought Lina with him. I hadn't seen him yet, although I would later today. I wasn't sure how I'd be able to look at him, knowing what Lina had told me. What she'd found. Evidence of what Stefan had told me about Grandfather's transfers of money. More than that, more information that would leave the business vulnerable if it ever got out.I didn't tell Stefan what Lina told me. He took good care of me while I recovered, spending time with me during the day, having dinners in my room sitting beside me on the bed. When he touched me, it was tenderly, but nothing more than that. Not once did we talk about what had happened at the chapel. It felt like the elephant in the room, but neither of us brought it up. As muc
The Deal With The Devil 58
VeronicaStefan shifted his gaze from my grandfather to me, but his eyes revealed nothing. My hand rested in his. His thumb drew circles in my palm.The longer he took, the heavier the silence grew, the more tears welled in my eyes.This was it.Stefan and I were finished.My grandfather cleared his throat and rose from his seat. "Five minutes, or the offer expires, and you can take your chances on the payout." He buttoned his jacket. "I'll be outside."We didn't watch him go, and we didn't speak for an eternity after the door closed.Stefan stood and went to one of the two windows. "I thought you were dead," he said, his back to me."What?" I started, swallowing the lump in my throat.He faced me but remained where he was. "I have this nightmare—I've had it for six years now—where I keep seeing the fire at the house, keep running inside to save my mother, and keep finding her too late."A weight heavy as a pile of bricks settled in the room with us."Well, it changed over the last fe
The Deal With The Devil 59
VeronicaAfter Stefan left the office, I stood in the room, staring after him. Staring at the space where he'd just been before falling back into my chair, my legs unable to support me.I wasn't sure what would be easier, thinking he didn't love me or knowing the truth. Although I guess I knew there was no easy. This would hurt. It would hurt for a very long time.My grandfather and the attorneys walked back into the room. No one seemed to take notice of me. Grandfather set the ring and pen aside and checked the signature on the contract."It's done," he said, handing it to one of the men who slipped it into his briefcase then clicked it closed. No one sat back down. "Gentlemen, thank you. I'll be in touch."They were shaking hands, almost at the door, when I spoke. "Why did you want the marriage consummated?"They all stopped. Someone cleared their throat. My grandfather turned to me, a coldness in his eyes that chilled me, then shifted his attention back to them."Forward official c
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