Prologue: The Devil’s Game
The room reeked of blood and betrayal. The air was thick with smoke, the muffled cries of the man kneeling in front of Lucien D’Amato barely registering in his mind. He was no longer the boy who hesitated to pull the trigger. That boy had died years ago, in a cold, dimly lit alley, clutching his mother’s lifeless hand.
Lucien stepped closer, his polished leather shoes stopping in the growing pool of blood on the floor. The man whimpered, but Lucien didn’t flinch. Fear was the first thing he’d learned to control. Mercy was the first thing he’d learned to forget.
“You know what happens when you cross me,” Lucien said, his voice low and cold. He tilted his head slightly, studying the man’s terrified face. “You thought I wouldn’t find out, didn’t you? That I wouldn’t notice the missing shipments?”
“I-it wasn’t me!” the man stammered, his voice trembling. “I swear—”
Lucien crouched in front of him, his piercing eyes locking onto the man’s. “Lies don’t save lives.”
The silencer on his gun barely made a sound as he pulled the trigger.
Lucien stood, slipping the gun back into his holster with practiced ease. His men moved in behind him, dragging the lifeless body away without a word. The mess would be cleaned, the loose ends tied, and the world would keep spinning—just as Lucien commanded.
As he walked out of the dim warehouse, the weight of his empire rested heavily on his shoulders, but his face betrayed nothing. This was his life, built on power, fear, and control. There was no room for weakness, no room for distraction.
Yet even as he told himself this, his thoughts drifted to Haven. To the sharp-tongued, defiant woman who owned it.
Vivienne Kane.
She didn’t know it yet, but she was about to enter his world. And in his world, nothing came without a price.
Lucien lit a cigarette, the orange glow briefly illuminating his chiseled features before he exhaled a plume of smoke into the night. A slow, dark smile spread across his lips.
He always got what he wanted.
And now, he wanted her.
