Page 20 of The Villain

I watched as my men killed the flames. The shed was mostly a charred ruin now, smoke billowing into the night sky and blotting out the stars. Rhys strode over to my side, his gaze dropping to me as I crouched with Devlin propped between my legs.

“Won’t have to call the fire department.”

“Thank fuck,” I muttered. In the background, Jace cackled and wedged the hose between his legs as he sprayed the shed. “What happened?”

Rhys shrugged. “I was in my room. Looked out the window and saw flames. Called you. Woke up a few guys I trust on my way out here.” Rhys didn’t sleep much, so it wasn’t a surprise that he was awake at three in the morning.

I looked over the men he’d chosen—Jace, Hack, Mads, and a few others loyal to me. “I’m glad you saw the fire. If not…” I clenched my jaw.

Devlin trembled so hard the chain connected to his cuffs rattled. I hadn’t even been holding it—not that he was in any condition to run away. I tugged his head back with a firm grip on his hair and looked into his eyes. He was doing a little better now, though the wheeze in his breathing still unnerved me.

“He okay?” Rhys asked.

When I glanced up, he was studying me. And I didn’t like the careful attention. I was suddenly very aware of how intimate my position was with the man I was supposed to hate.

That Ididhate.

Yes, of course. I hated Devlin. A lot. With my whole being, even. I didn’t hold any affection for him atall.And we certainly hadn’t had some kind of… moment… over a frog. I abruptly shoved Devlin away, and he fell back into the grass. I stood up, the breeze ruffling the sides of my unbuttoned shirt.

“He’ll live,” I said as I stared at the smoking shed. “But it definitely won’t be in there anymore.”

The door was busted through. Half the roof had caved in. The shed was nothing but kindling now.

“What’re you gonna do with him?” Rhys asked.

Before I could answer, Jace materialized beside us like some half-naked ghost. Which meant my night had just gotten a wholelot worse. And of course, he only had eyes for Devlin, who was slumped onto his side next to me. I sighed, then grabbed his cuffs and yanked him to his feet. He swayed before righting himself.

Jace stepped up to him like he wasn’t just wearing tight boxer briefs. “If it had been up to me, I’d have let you burn in there, motherfucker.”

Devlin curled his lip and slid his eyes in my direction. He seemed to be coming back to himself with each passing second. “Why is this child talking to me?”

Jace let out a low growl and prepared to lunge, but I shoved him back. “Knock it off.”

My brother’s eyes flashed. “Are you fucking serious? I can’t even punch him?”

I clenched my jaw. “I need to think, and you acting like an idiot isn’t helping.”

He took a deep breath, then exhaled through his nose, nostrils flaring. He crossed his arms over his chest and stuck his chin out, but blissfully kept his mouth shut. I scrubbed a hand over my head, coming back to Rhys’s question.

WhatwasI going to do with Devlin?

Rhys’s eyes were on him now, the two of them locked in a stare down. Something about it made me jerk Devlin’s chain, and he bumped into my side. “I’ll keep him with me,” I said to Rhys.

Which… was madness. Absolute madness. But the words were out now. Rhys’s head cocked, and Jace made a strangled sound in his throat.

Rhys squinted at me. “Withyou?”

I didn’t want to admit in front of Jace and Devlin that I thought one of the crew—likely one of the older members—had set the shed on fire. That my order to leave Devlin to me had been disobeyed, and someone had tried to burn him alive.Suddenly, the entire compound felt like it was full of snakes, and my apartment was the only safe place left.

“Yes,” I answered simply.

The men who’d helped put out the fire now stood around kicking at the debris and chatting, but it was clear they were just trying to catch glimpses of the Detroit Devil. What an absolute shitshow this was turning out to be. Patrick was probably laughing in his grave.

Of course, the easiest way to solve most of my problems was to put a bullet between Devlin’s eyes. But I didn’t want to. I’d finally made a crack in his veneer. He’d already given up valuable information—what else would he tell me with time?

And what else would he let me do to him?

Fuck I was sick.