by Kaylee, Katy
“What?” I growled, finally starting to lose my patience with them. “What the fuck is it?”
“The d-devil of the d-d-docks.” Billy stuttered out, withering under my stare.
“Excuse me?” My voice was soft again, as quiet as a blade sliding out of a sheath. It was always a bad sign.
“The Devil of the Docks, boss. Sure you’ve heard of him. That place is haunted. I swear it is.” Remy added with a quick confirming nod towards Billy. “You can’t make us work there.”
I drew in another calming breath and held it, counting backwards in my head. Ten. Nine. Eight. It was a trick I’d learned as a kid, whenever I needed help keeping a reign on my temper. Slowly, I felt the irritation leave and the calm return.
Normally, I would have laughed in both their faces and told them to fuck off and get to their jobs, but it wasn’t the first time I’d heard the name, or the rumor.
For two weeks now, I’d been getting reports of someone tailing my men and every one was starting to get a little spooked. Even Luca, my second in command and most trusted confidant, had mentioned the god damned Devil of the Docks.
“Tell me what you heard.” I commanded, still pinching the bridge of my nose in the hopes of curing my head ache. I had a feeling whatever was about to come out of Billy and Remy’s mouths sure as hell wasn’t going to help it any.
“Well, we been hearing lots of stuff. Strange noises. Shadows moving in the dark. Then Carlos told me…”
“What, exactly, did Carlos tell you?” Christ, I really didn’t want to know. But I needed to.
“Carlos told me he saw it,” Billy said on a whisper, leaning forward, eyes wide as he nodded frantically, “Carlos said he was sitting at the docks, waiting for a shipment to come in and he heard a noise behind him. When he looked he saw…he saw it.”
“It?”
“The devil.” Billy answered, his voice barely audible before he made a cross in front of himself with one hand. Remy did the same. I barely held back the urge to grab these two by the scruff of their necks and slam their too-thick skulls together.
“Carlos saw the devil?” I arched one eyebrow, astounded at their superstition. “And what did this devil look like?”
“It was big, and dark. And red. Bright red. And had horns sticking out of his head and Carlos said it opened its mouth and let out this shrieking sound. He said it was the worst thing he’d ever heard in his life.”
“Yeah, he nearly pissed himself.” Remy added with a chuckle. Not that he had any room to be laughing.
I rolled my eyes, the ache in my temple pounding harder in direct relation to the ridiculousness of the situation. After a moment, I opened them again and faced the two men, remembering a piece of advice my father had given me once, long ago. Even rumors usually have a kernel of truth.
And the last thing I need as the moment is for these two assholes to botch another job because they were too scared to piss themselves.
I ran through my options silently. There weren’t many.
With a sigh, I got to my feet and the other men instantly rose with me. I shot them each another hard look, already regretting what I was about to say.
“Well? Let’s go find this demon of yours.”
Chapter 2
A car backfired from a distant road and Billy jumped so high his feet left the ground. I snorted in disgust as I glanced over at Remy who was standing a few feet away. He was little better off.
Both of the men looked terrified as their gazed skittered nervously around the dark, abandoned dock.
I shook my head inwardly cursing the both of them. How these two morons had managed to stay alive over the past few years, I would never know. It boggled my mind that they had even made it this far without doing something stupid enough to get them both killed.
I kept the thoughts to myself, being careful to where the mask of control that hid what was going on below. It was the mask I always wore. The only people who had seen me without it, never lived long enough to tell the tale.
I had arrived at the docks with Billy and Remy in tow nearly two hours before and with every little noise or disturbance, one of them would go off. Billy had even let out a frightened squeak when a garbage bag had washed up onto the dock, swearing that the shiny black mass was the devil of the docks come to eat their soul. I honestly wasn’t sure how much more of this I could take. Even with my vaunted self-control, my patience was starting to wear terribly thin.
The chill of the rainy spring night didn’t help at all. Winter was finally starting to leave after clinging desperately well past the date it should have gone, but the rain was still cold and uncomfortable.
I didn’t feel it. I just stood there looking a little bit like a devil myself in my long, shadowing black coat and boots. I was impervious to the elements as I scanned the dock for what felt like the hundredth time.
And just like all the other times, there wasn’t a fucking thing there. Sure as hell not some make believe demon just waiting to jump out of the water and eat them all.
But…there was something. I didn’t see anything out of place or unusual, but as the night wore on, a feeling grew in my gut. It was the type of feeling that I’d learned never to ignore. The same type of feeling that had sucker punched me the night I’d found out my father had been murdered and I was the new head of the Diorno famiglia, whether I was ready or not.
At barely nineteen, I sure as hell hadn’t been. It hadn’t mattered. Duty. Responsibility. And above all, family. Those were the tenants that I had recited over and over as a child until the words had been inscribed on my soul. Those were the only things that mattered. Nothing else. Nothing and no one.
The next hours ticked by like honey, slow and sticky. The rain was starting to fall even harder and I hitched the collar of my coat up to shield as much of myself as I could from the onslaught.
What a miserable fucking night.
In my mind’s eye, I was transported back to another stormy night, a lot like this one. Too much like this one.
The rain had pounded out a loud tattoo on the glass of the window panes. The sound had echoed like war drums in my ears, but I hadn’t recognized it yet, or what it would mean for me. Or my father.
I’d had the same feeling in my gut, telling me that all wasn’t as it seemed, but I hadn’t known what that meant either. I’d been so god damned young. I’d thought I understood what pain was. What loss was. Though I knew exactly what I was doing. I didn’t have a fucking clue.
Hell, I’d only been nineteen.
The rain had poured, and the phone had started ringing, shrieking in the night. I knew before I even answered it what the voice on the other end would say. That my father was gone. That the Diorno family mantle would be passed onto my unready shoulders.
That same instinct that had warned him that tragic night was roaring strong and insistent inside me now. I knew better than to ignore it. It had saved my ass more than a few times over the last ten years.
And now, it was screaming at me. Telling me there really was something going on.
I rolled my eyes over at the boys, which is how I’d come to think of them over that few hours forced to spend in their company, were more skittish than ever. Billy was hunched over on himself, his arms cross over his chest as if to ward off the rain, or the evil he was so sure was haunting the docks.
Remy’s head was on a swivel, constantly scanning the area, not for cops or rivals like he was supposed to be, but for the unknown devil of the god damned docks.
I stopped myself from shaking my head at them for the hundredth time, knowing it would do no good. At least they were fucking paying attention now. I snorted to myself. Maybe I should spread more rumors. It obviously worked to keep them alert and doing their jobs instead of wandering off to local bars for a beer or god forbid, falling asleep.
I glanced over at Billy who was practically trembling from fear. There was no way in hell he’d be falling asleep on the job anytime soon.
The sudden high pitched whine
of my ringtone split the heavy silence of the night and both men nearly shit their pants. I didn’t even bother to hold back my evil chuckle as I answered the cell phone.
“Talk.”
“Hey Aiden, It’s Luca. Just checking in.”
The sound of my second in command, and best friends, voice buoyed me a little and staved off some of the irritation. Some. Not nearly enough.
“How’s it going at the warehouse?”
“Everything’s quiet on my end.”
I let out a sigh of relief. Good. Quiet is what I like. Quiet is easy. It means no problems. No issues. Just smooth sailing. I scowled up at the dark clouds overhead just as thunder rumbled loudly across the river. Now, if only it would stop fucking raining.
“Was that thunder? Where the hell are you, Aiden?”
“I’m at the docks.” I said with another irritated sigh. If only the endless night would over so I could go home to my luxurious, and very dry, home.
“The docks? What the hell are you doing out there?”
“Checking on a rumor.”
“Ah. The Devil.” Luca said with a snicker, “Find the boogey man yet?”
“Fuck you.” I muttered, but there was no real heat behind it. I was way too damp for that. Hell, I was soaked all the way to my bones.
“Well, I’ll leave you to your hunt for ghosts.” Luca said with another snicker before hanging up. I just shook my head. No one else would talk to him like that. All the men in the family were too terrified of him, even his closest relatives, his cousin and uncle, kept their distance.
I shrugged off the thought. Not that it mattered. It made it easier to do my job when my men feared me. It meant they didn’t challenge my orders. Just did what I said.
Luca, though, was different. It was hard to be scared of someone you had shoved in the mud as a kid or played kick ball with in the dusty old field in the old park.
Luca was my oldest and most loyal friend. And I was just as loyal to him. We were more like brothers than friends. And sometimes we treated each other more like annoying brother’s than anything else.
I let the phone drop, scanning the rows of empty shipping containers behind us as I moved to slip it back into the pocket of my coat just as a flash of lightning split through the night with jagged edges, throwing its sharp light across he docks. If I hadn’t been looking in that direction, I would have missed it altogether, but a muffled noise drew my attention.
There it was again. The softest clatter. Coming from just beyond the nearest shipping container.
I grinned evilly to myself. It was the same expression that had terrified so many of my men, had convinced them that I really was as vicious and bloodthirsty as my reputation stated.
I didn’t care. I had him. Whoever or whatever this devil was, he was about to find out that he had no idea what a true demon looked like.
My hand waved Billy and Remy to stay where they were and stay silent. Not that they looked like they were willing to follow me. In fact, they were staring into the shadows as if their worst nightmare lurked there, just beyond the dim yellow light cast from the overhead light post.
Slowly, I crept over to where I had seen the shadow move, just the slightest bit, during the bright flash of lightning.
I waited for the next rumble of thunder before making my move. I pulled out my loaded revolver, took a step, and leapt.
Chapter 3
Beth
I held my breath, and the edges of my raincoat close around myself to ward off the chill. Not that it did anything to stop the trembles that were racking my body. I knew that had nothing to do with my soaking wet state and everything to do with what I was doing.
I must be insane. Leah was right all along. I really have lost my marbles. The thoughts flew through my head but I ignored them, like I’d learned to ignore many things over the past few weeks. Things like restraint, caution, and self-preservation. Don’t forget reality. You’ve been ignoring reality for some time now.
Shut up. I hissed at my inner voice. Normally I was more than willing to step back and analyze my actions, to think through every move logically, carefully weighing the pros and cons of each decision.
Yeah, that had all been thrown right out the window too. Right along with my sanity.
I ignored that barb too as I huddled deeper into the shadows behind the rusted metal shipping container. I had been hiding out there all night, waiting for my chance to see something, to overhear anything. But the damned rain wasn’t only inconvenient and uncomfortable as hell, it was also making it nearly impossible to see. I had to get closer.
As careful as I could not to make any more noise than a mouse, I crept around the edge of the metal container and ducked behind one in the next row. I squinted past the sheets of rain. I could see them there, three men who were little more than more shadows to me in their dark clothes.
But their words were still muffled. I couldn’t hear a damned thing that they were saying.
I bit my full lower lip, a habit I had whenever I was nervous or thinking deep about something. At the moment, though, it was definitely the former. Hell, nervous. More like scared out of my wits.
I forced my resolve to firm. I’d made it this far. I sure as hell wasn’t about to turn back now. I took a deep breath and crept around the final row. Now, there was only one big metal box separating me from the men.
I leaned forward, peering at them from the shadows as I tried to hear a word. But either they weren’t talking, or the rain and the rumbling thunder drowned out whatever it was they were saying. It didn’t matter. I wasn’t about to give up now. Not when I was so close to finally discovering the truth.
My heart stuttered with fear at the thought. It was strange. I had been researching for weeks now but I was still afraid. I wondered if my sister was afraid before – No! I violently cut off the thought. Leah had to be okay. My sister had to be okay. Somewhere. She just had to be. I wouldn’t accept anything else.
I drew in another deep, hitching breath, holding back the sobs that always seemed waiting just below the surface. An image of Leah rose unbidden in my mind. A ghost that would always haunt me.
Bright, happy, tough Leah. We were opposites, really. Always had been. Leah was outgoing and extroverted, always willing to speak her mind and give her opinion, no matter who she was standing up against.
I was more content to stay inside and read all day. I’d been the socially awkward nerdy one growing up. And I hadn’t minded in the least.
I had gone on to University, and then even further to get my doctorate in astrophysics. I had always loved outer space and theory. Working to discover the secrets of the universe. I spent most of my time in a lab, safely hidden away from the world but not Leah.
My sister had gotten out of our hometown as fast as she could and had headed straight for the city. That had always been her dream, ever since we were little girls.
I had always been wary of big crowds but Leah fed off the pulse of the place. She could read people, had always been able to. It was part of what made her such a great journalist. Well, that and her tenacity. She was like a dog with a bone once she got a story in her teeth. She never let go.
My stomach pitched uneasily at the thought. Not for the first time, I wondered if the story she’d been working on had gotten her in to more trouble than she could handle.
Of course it had! Why else would I be standing the middle of a freezing rain storm in the worst part of the city spying on a clandestine meeting? I huffed out an irritated breath, shielding my eyes from the droplets of water pouring from the sky and pierce the darkness. Trying to spy on a clandestine meeting, anyway.
And failing pretty miserably. The miserable part was right anyway. I was soaked all the way through and I still hadn’t been able to gather anything useful. I’d been so sure this would reveal…something. Anything.
But the three men just stood there, looking around. For hours. Doing nothing.
I grit my teeth in frustration, biting back
the desperation that had been my constant companion over these last few weeks. Id followed the breadcrumbs that Leah had left me and it had brought me here. Right here. To this rainy night on the docks. A place I should never be.
I should be at home, or back at the lab.
I’m here for a reason, I reminded myself fiercely, forcing back the fear. I was here for my sister.
I knew I had to get closer if I had any hopes of getting anything useful out of eavesdropping on this meeting. As carefully as I could, I pulled out my cellphone, thinking to take at least a couple of photos that I could enlarge and examine once safely back at the lab.
I leaned around the corner, the figures framed in the camera of my phone. And just as I was about to snap it, a bright white flash of lightning cut through the darkness, nearly blinding me.
I cursed silently as I lost my slippery grip on my phone and it clattered to the cement. For a second I froze. I held my breath, not moving, praying that the men hadn’t heard the noise. The thunder was rumbling so loudly it probably hadn’t even registered on their radar.
Slowly, I knelt down to pick it up just as another flash of lightning flickered across the night sky, illuminated the sodden docks.
I grabbed my phone, praying that none of the men noticed that I was standing way too close to the now. Hoping that they wouldn’t look in my direction.
Another growl of thunder roared through the darkness, masking the sound of footsteps drawing closer. By the time I looked up and saw the glint of lightning reflecting on deadly metal, it was too late as one of the men jumped towards me, crossing the distance in a single, graceful leap.
The next clap of thunder drowned out my screams entirely.
* * *
Aiden
I reached for the shadow, trying to hold him still beneath my not negligible weight. But the figure wrestled like a, well, like a devil. They were fighting so hard under my grasp that it took me longer than it should have to realize that it wasn’t a devil at all, but something much smaller, much softer, and a hell of a lot curvier.