Page 67 of Heart of a Devil
I lean into his big, solid body, allowing myself a moment of respite. I’m running on pure adrenaline after a day that emptied me out of all strength. It’s only the thought of that little boy out here alone, scared and suffering, that’s keeping me going.
I drop my forehead to his chest, feel the steady beat of his heart. Seb is here. Seb is real. Together, we’ll find him.
He strokes my hair with one hand and pulls me tight against him with the other. It gives me the courage and the energy I need to go on.
His body goes tense. “Did you hear that?”
I pull away, not daring to breathe.
“Nicky,” he shouts again. “It’s Seb and Lauren—you’re safe now.”
I listen intently, and I finally hear what Seb picked up on—a rustling and scraping sound a few yards away, deep inside an especially thick patch of oaks. We both react at once, scrambling over collapsed branches and tangled vegetation to follow the sound, but he gets there before me.
I catch up and find him on his knees next to a massive fallen tree trunk. He’s scooping dead leaves and twisted stems away with his bare hands. I shine my flashlight along the space he’s cleared and gasp. Small fingers have emerged from the end of the trunk, and an even smaller voice says, “Seb?”
“Yeah, it’s me, buddy.” His voice cracks with emotion. “You’re okay now.”
He scooches down and pulls Nicky from the hollowed-out trunk he was hiding in. The poor kid looks dreadful, pale skin marred by scratches, his injured arm dangling lifelessly at his side, eyes wide and drained.
I rub the traces of the forest from his face, grimacing at how cold his skin is to the touch. Seb encloses him in his arms for warmth, and I tuck my jacket around his skinny shoulders, alarmed at how quiet he is.
“How long have you been there, Nicky?” I hand him my water bottle and stop him when he glugs too greedily.
“Um… I think maybe three nights?” His voice is croaky, likely from a combination of dehydration and being silent for too long. “It was all my fault. Everything was my fault.”
Seb passes him to me and goes off to use his phone, and I cuddle him close. His clothes are soaked through, and he’s shivering.
“No, it wasn’t, sweetie. Whatever happened wasn’t your fault, okay?”
He clings to me, his body racked with silent sobs, and my heart breaks for him. “He came home early. My dad. I was making noise. I was just playing soldiers. But he was so mad. He put us in the car and brought us here. He locked us up in that horrible room. My mum made me promise to run. So I did.”
His face crumples at the memory.
“Then he came back. He was angry. He called her horrible names. He hit her. And then he punched me in the tummy and made me be sick. He said if she didn’t tell him everything, he’d carry on hurting me. I should have protected her instead of running away.”
My heart breaks wide open. “Darling, no. She wouldn’t have wanted that. Your mom loved you more than anything in the whole world.”
He gazes up at me with hollow eyes. “She’s dead, isn’t she? He killed her while I ran away like a baby. She told me to, she screamed it at me, but I shouldn’t have listened. I should have stayed with her.”
Seb has finished his phone call and clearly overheard the last sentence, and a twitch of his jaw betrays the effort it takes him to stay calm. “You did the right thing, Nicky, and I want you to always know that. You did exactly what you should have done—you found a safe space, and you hid. That is all your mum wanted you to do. You did her proud. Now, do you remember what else I told you?”
Nicky frowns. “You told me I needed to survive and get stronger, and then I could get my revenge.”
“That’s right, son. And you did survive, because you did what you needed to do. What your mum wanted you to do. Look, we can talk about it all more soon, but for now we need to get you warm, get you fed. Get you somewhere safe. How does that sound?”
Nicky’s lip trembles. “Will you stay with me?”
“We’ll never leave your side, mate. Never.” Seb carries the boy out of the clearing, and it is no wonder at all that my heart follows.
Chapter
Thirty-Nine
SEBASTIAN
We take Nicky to the same hospital we took Taylor. It’s a fucking amazing place, a private facility hiding in plain sight in central London. From the minimal amount of form-filling and lack of personal questions, it’s obvious this hospital is for people who want to stay beneath the radar while also receiving the best medical care. It crosses my mind that it’s exactly this type of establishment that would have ignored Caroline’s injuries at the hands of Volkov and his pals, but I have to put that out of my mind so the people I care about can reap the benefits.
We were able to get Taylor here fast and without any awkward conversations about bullet wounds. Lauren called her cousin, and the Montoyas provided cleanup back at my cabin. I could have sorted it myself in time, but making seven bodies disappear isn’t easy, even if you could bury them where they lie. There were loose ends to be tied up, like their vehicles and their phones, and I was happy to let someone else take charge. I have no doubt that Alejandro Montoya knows the right people to make it all go away.
