Page 26 of Devoted

“She was assassinated,” I said quietly, trying to pull Blackwood’s attention back to me.

“Assassinated?” His lips quirked up in a way that made me want to murder him where he sat.

“Surely you can do better than that. After all, you simply relished the story you told about your uncle losing the Basin.” He leaned forward, all sense of humor gone. “Tell me what happened to your mother, Emberline. Every bloody detail.”

I thought I’d grown accustomed to cruelty. After all, vampires were renowned for their creativity when it came to such things, but this…

“You really are a heartless bastard, aren’t you?” Beside me, Luca made a small sound in his throat, but finally, I nodded.

I would give this bastard what he wanted.

Our suffering. Or rather, the pleasure of watching someone else’s suffering. My only regret was that my brother would have to suffer with me.

I dropped my hand to the hilt of my blade and made myself a promise—to make this bastard pay for the pain of these next few minutes.

“Enzo was many things, but he was a good businessman, so when the Basilio Family—allies of yours, I believe—threatened to cut into his banking operations in the south, he enthusiastically protected his business interests.”

“Naturally. Go on.”

“The Basilio Family was strongly urged to abandon their pursuit of my father’s empire, and in retaliation, they decided Enzo should be removed altogether. Whoever they sent to plant the bomb was good; our family never found the assassin, but they got past our security and planted a bomb inside my father’s desk.”

Beside me, Luca was still, staring at Blackwood like he was considering ripping his face off.

“My mother opened the desk drawer, looking for something. The explosion leveled that room and half the palazzo… and her. There was nothing left to burn on the pyre. Enzo was never the same, or so they say. We were very young, and I barely remember her.”

She was pretty, Luca murmured inside my head. That’s all I can picture.

“A virtual Shakespearean tragedy.” Blackwood’s flippant tone had Luca lunging forward, gun in hand. Me, throwing my arm across his chest to stop him.

The fact Blackwood left us armed made it perfectly clear we presented no threat, and I wondered just how egotistical this fucker was.

Even his silver-haired henchman didn’t flinch, face so blank I wondered if he was breathing.

“You could say that. Any particular reason you asked for a story? Is it nearing your bedtime? I heard you’re old as fuck, maybe you’re ready for your nap?”

I mean, not my best work, but seriously, fuck this asshole.

“Firstly, I think you can deduce who planted the bomb. Or are you still blind when it comes to your uncle?”

“And secondly?” I whispered through numb lips, shock stealing my ability to think straight. Giovanni. Of course he’d killed my mother. Ottavia had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. One final betrayal and anything I’d ever felt for my uncle crumbled.

Shock bled into something deeper, colder, sharper.

Just when I thought I couldn’t hate any harder, Blackwood kept talking.

“And secondly, your dear mama survived the blast. Moreover, your father could have saved her. But Enzo let her die.” Blackwood’s smile turned vicious. “All this time, growing up motherless, when he could have given you the one thing you never had.”

She could have been saved.

True or not, the words landed like a blade between my ribs. But my heart was steady in one thing. Enzo loved my mother with every last piece of himself. And while there was magic strong enough to raise someone from the dead—I should know—not everyone should come back.

“My mother was killed in that blast. Whatever was left of her… I would never blame my father for choosing mercy over greed.”

“Well, I suppose we’ll never know for sure, will we, since she’s dead.” A smile curved his lips, one that sent dread shivering through me. “It’s not like you could… go to the Underworld and ask her, is it?”

I kept my expression blank. “Like you said, we’ll never know.”

Lord Blackwood had to be reaching about me going to the Underworld. About talking to Ottavia. There was no possible way he could… unless he could see inside my mind. I raised every single mental protection I possessed and locked them into place.