All Chapters of The Devil Who Claimed Me (M x M): Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

125 Chapters

CHAPTER ELEVEN

NIKOLAIAnother click.This time, blurry photos of terrified faces of children, teenagers.Something cold settles in my chest.It’s not rage. No. As Derek says, rage is a useless emotion.I can only describe it as focus. Determination. I’m already imagining the different ways I can bring this man pain. The different ways I can make it last. Let him feel the same pain he has no problem dishing out to helpless children.“Security?” River asks, his voice calm.Caleb beams. “Glad you asked.” He pulls up a blueprint. “Primary residence is heavily guarded. Private security, rotating shifts, cameras in all the obvious— and not so obvious— places.” He gestures to specific points on the layout. “But that’s not where we want him.”It’s Derek that speaks this time. “Where, then?”Caleb’s grin widens. “He has a routine. On a Thursday of every month, he visits one of his ‘off-the-books’ locations. It’s smaller. Has less security. He thinks it’s safe because it’s under the radar.”He presses a butt

CHAPTER TWELVE

JULIANI wipe my sweaty hands on my jeans as I stare at Nikolai standing a few feet ahead, my heart pounding.I don’t think I can do this.I don’t think I can make him fall in love with me.Even after the ‘prep’ Theo has given me over the week, complete with whiteboards and pointers and all, I don’t feel confident I can succeed.Theo didn’t have much information to give me about him anyway. Just that Nikolai preferred to chase and I shouldn’t be so obvious. He also told me to be less awkward and be more confident.Yeah, I have a feeling I’m going to fuck that one up.My chest tightens the longer I stare at him.I’m feeling the exact way I felt on the two occasions I’ve seen him now.There’s this awareness I have around him. It’s almost like instinct. Like something deep inside me is already bracing for impact.Nikolai stands near the edge of the Arts building, speaking to someone I don’t recognize. His posture is relaxed, one hand tucked into his pocket, the other loosely holding his

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

JULIANI force my voice to remain steady and try again. “I just wanted to apologize. For what I said at the party. I didn’t mean to call you arrogant and all that. I guess I was a little tipsy.”This was Theo’s idea, me apologizing. After I told him everything that happened at the party, Theo thought I was a little too rude for Nikolai’s tastes. He said Nikolai likes his men well-behaved.Well-behaved. Like I’m a robot. Or a doll he can mold to his liking.Ugh.But Theo wants this, so…Nikolai folds his arms, the action making his biceps bulge through the tight, black T-shirt he’s wearing.“You don’t have to apologize,” he says calmly. “I thought it was fun.”Fun. Like I’d been putting on a comedy show.I want to snap at him and ask him who the hell he thinks he is to be so patronizing but I resist. Barely. My smile widens instead.“Still, I feel like we got off on the wrong foot.” I stretch out a hand. “Julian. That’s my name.”He tilts his head, ignoring my outstretched hand. “I al

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

JULIAN My breath stutters. “I’m not—” “You are. You don’t like me,” he says simply. There’s no offense in his tone. He just sounds certain. Like he's figured it all out. It throws me off slightly. Because he’s right. I shouldn’t like him. I don’t like him. He hurt Theo. He’s cold. Detached. Dangerous. Everything about him pushes me away. “That doesn’t mean I can’t talk to you,” I combat, lifting my chin. I can quit and run right now but I’m not going to. I’m stronger than that. His gaze sharpens. “Why?” There it is again. Another question. Direct and unavoidable. He asks a lot of questions, doesn’t he? It’s always what or why with him. Why? Because Theo asked me to. Because I need to make you fall for me. Because I’m supposed to break you. The answers pile up in my head, heavy and suffocating. I can’t say any of them. So I say the only thing I can. “I don’t know.” And it’s partly the truth. Because as much as everything about Nikolai p

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

NIKOLAIControl.It’s a word that has been ingrained in me for years. A word Derek never fails to mention.It’s a language I’m very fluent in.I pride myself on control. On not letting anything affect me.It’s the only thing that matters. I learned that early on, before I even had a name for the sharp, suffocating feeling that came with losing it. Back when everything was louder, messier, unpredictable in ways that left irrevocable damage behind.Now I know better.Control isn't a restriction. It’s freedom.It’s not just about restraint, it’s about precision. Choosing exactly what to show and what to withhold. Knowing that silence can be louder than words, that stillness can draw more attention than movement.That people can fill in the gaps themselves.And when they do, they hand you power. Over themselves, over everything.People like to pretend that their impulses make them real, honest. That giving in to whatever they feel in the moment is somehow admirable.It isn’t.It makes the

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

NIKOLAIThe door to my room bursts open.I don’t look up from my sketchbook even as irritation rises in my chest, sharp and fast. I already know who it is.It’s the lavender. It always gives him away. His ex-girlfriend gifted him that shampoo but they broke up years ago. I still don’t know why he refuses to let it go and keeps buying more.It’s not love— I don’t think Caleb is capable of it. It’s something else. Something he refuses to tell me anytime I ask him about it.Which is surprising. Caleb doesn’t keep secrets. I sigh. “Do you ever knock?”Caleb jumps on my bed, jostling me slightly. “Why would I? You should know me already, dear brother.”He lays on the bed, resting on his elbows, his legs swinging in the air behind him.I rub my hands along my temples, feeling the beginnings of a headache. Caleb always has that effect.Sometimes, I wish I could trade him for someone else. Another brother, maybe.“Yes, I do know. I know you’re annoying, insufferable—”“Wow. Don’t complimen

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

NIKOLAIHe shrugs. “Why do that when you always deliver?” There’s a slight pause. “Until now, anyway.”He glances at the sketchbook on my desk.This time, his expression shifts slightly into something less teasing and more thoughtful.“Be careful,” he says lightly, though there’s something under it. “You’re starting to look a little… invested.”“I’m not,” I reply immediately.It’s too quick and his lips twitch.“I didn’t say you were,” he says. “I said you’re starting to look like it.”He hesitates for a second before he goes on, “I just don’t want you getting obsessed. You know what happens when you do. I don’t want a repeat of last time.”I tense slightly. “Drop it, Caleb.”“All I’m saying is, I don’t want to have to handle another dead body—”I grit my teeth. “I. Said. Drop. It.”Something in my tone must get to him because he finally shuts up.He watches me for a second longer while I try to ignore the burning sensation in my chest. How dare he even bring that up?My fingers curl

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

JULIANCrazy.It’s not a word I think I’d ever use when it comes to Theo, but as I step into his room in our shared condo, it’s exactly the word that comes to mind.Crazy. Obsessive. Completely unhinged.I could go with a lot more.But those are the only words that fill my mind as I take in the chaos.Theo’s room that is normally filled with flowers and beautiful lights and random pictures of us has been totally transformed into something else.Something that makes it look like Theo’s been obsessed and a crazy demon has taken over his body.Even his room smells different. It no longer smells of vanilla and the subtle floral scent he always carries with him.Now it smells of desperation, obsession and chaos.I look around in shock. It’s even worse than the last time we did this.Whiteboards— plural this time. Markers scattered across the coffee table. Sticky notes lining the walls. Printed pictures taped in uneven clusters. Red string— actual red string —connecting some of them like we

CHAPTER NINETEEN

JULIANSilence falls for a moment.Then Theo turns, grabbing a marker and writing something new on the board.CONTROL THE SETTING.I watch as he underlines it.“What does that mean?” I ask.“It means,” he says, glancing back at me, “we stop playing on his terms.”“And start playing on… yours?”“On ours.”That doesn’t exactly make me feel better.Theo sets the marker down and walks over to the coffee table, picking up his phone.“There’s a bar he frequents,” he says.I freeze. “No.”He looks up. “Yes.”“No,” I repeat, shaking my head. “Absolutely not.”“It’s perfect.”“It’s a terrible idea,” I snap. “I’m going to make a total fool of myself. I don’t even go to bars.”“Exactly.”“That’s not a good thing.”“It is,” he insists. “It puts you out of your usual environment. It makes you unpredictable.”“Or it makes me look like an idiot who doesn’t belong there.”Theo tilts his head. “Only if you act like one.”I glare at him.He ignores it, already pulling up something on his phone before t

CHAPTER TWENTY

NIKOLAIThe bar is dimly lit, intentionally so. Low golden lights line the walls, casting everything in a soft glow that makes people look better than they actually are. Shadows cling to corners, stretch across polished floors, settle into the spaces between bodies.It’s not dark enough to hide in, just enough to blur details. To make people feel less seen than they actually are.It’s designed for illusion. For anonymity.For people who don’t want to be seen too clearly.Which is exactly why I like it.I sit at my usual booth at the far end of the bar, where the light barely reaches, a glass of liquor resting untouched between my fingers.The scent of smoke and expensive liquor lingers in the air, layered over expensive cologne and desperation.I’m not supposed to be here, legally speaking. I’m not twenty-one after all. But rules— and the law apparently— don’t matter when your brother owns the bar.Caleb lounges beside me, his posture relaxed. With his piercings and his tattoos catchi

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