by Dani René
I rise, turning away from her, and head into the bathroom. I don’t need this. I really can’t lose my shit so close to Philipe’s inking. The moment my eldest son wears the mark of the Sovereign, I can take a back seat on the day to day running of the society.
“Don’t walk away from me,” she retorts, her voice shrill and angry.
“Darling, I suggest you go to bed.”
“Like fuck, this is ridiculous. What are you not telling me? You’ve hidden enough from me over the years, Abner. The women, the killing, I see the blood on your clothes; I’m not stupid.”
One rule of the Sovereign is to never speak of it with those outside the society. Even our partners. The only people who know about it are the children who will step up to the table.
No females.
No outsiders.
It may sound misogynistic, but that’s what the ancestors wanted, and that’s what they’ll get. We observe their rituals, their way of life.
“Abner.”
“Lilian. Go. To. Bed.” My voice is low, a warning tone that makes her stop for a moment. I feel her. Every part of me knows what she feels because I can feel it, too. I sense every argument she has raging around in her mind.
I glance over my shoulder, meeting her questioning gaze before she shakes her head and turns away from me. I watch her slip under the sheet and curl into a ball. Her shoulders shake, but I don’t go to her. I’m not that type of man.
Closing my eyes, I quell the urges inside me, and I calm my erratic heartbeat. My sons don’t know about me; they have no idea who their father truly is, and I refuse to let them find out by me ripping their mother to shreds in a fit of fury.
Once I step down, my secrets will be safe.
I’ll make sure of it.
Ares
Five years later
The air in Tynewood is alive with electricity and promise. A new school term is starting. Senior year at Tynewood University, and I can’t wait to see what the next few months hold. This small town that sits a stone’s throw away from the Olympic National Forest is picturesque, yet it’s filled with secrets because of the Gilded Sovereign secret society, which has educated the most influential people in the country.
I’m not sure why the ancestors, my ancestors chose this town to start the Sovereign, but all the whispers I’ve heard about it have confirmed the founding families are born of European royalty. Before I was born, even before my father or grandfather.
The university has given birth to presidents, statesmen, and the families who live in Tynewood all come from blue blood. Royalty. Which explains more or less how the Gilded Sovereign got its name.
My mind is on the upcoming initiation. I haven’t been officially welcomed into the society yet, but in a week, on my twenty-first birthday, I’ll be given the cloak, crown, and tattoo, along with access to contacts around the world. Each one is a connection to more money and power.
Inked on my flesh forever will be the royal symbol of the Gilded Sovereign. My ancestors created it and the legacy will soon be mine. My future is held in the hands of a secret society. And I have plans. The moment I’m sworn in, I’ll seek my revenge.
With the power the Sovereign allows me, I’ll be able to finally get vengeance on the asshole who’s haunted my dreams since I was sixteen. I wanted to find him then, to make him pay, but my father assured me that nothing good would come of it.
I had to wait.
But patience is not my virtue.
I pull up to the university and take note of the new students all milling around the entrance. It’s as if they’re afraid to step inside and rightly so. This place is haunted with ghosts of the ancestors who built it. At least, that’s what the residents of Tynewood tell anyone new who moves here.
Fear is one emotion that’s been eradicated from me. Forced out of me since I was a child. At sixteen, I bore witness to my mother’s murder, which has desensitized me from the violence of the world. Perhaps it’s the blood that runs through my veins—blue blood.
As a Lancaster, our family has a history in this town, and it goes back all the way to the fucking eighteen hundreds. I can never escape who I am, or what I am, but that’s where the beauty lies, I never want to. I’ve accepted the man I am.
When I turned eighteen, my father finally explained it all, told me the truth about what will be expected of me. He knew I wouldn’t refuse. The night my mother was murdered, I vowed I’d kill the man who did it, and Dad promised he’d help me. I want to make him proud.
The only way to get my revenge is to have the backing of the society. They can sweep anything under the rug, whether it’s violence, bribery, or an illicit affair.
The Lancaster name will always be whispered throughout the town, throughout the hallways of Tynewood University. I’m proud of my heritage, no matter how bloody and violent it is, it’s who I am. It’s my birthright.
Shoving the door of my Maserati open, I exit the vehicle and glance around. It’s fall, and the air is heavy with the promise of winter. I enjoy the cold, the rain… it calms me.
“There he is.” My best friend and confidante, Etienne Durand, saunters up to me with his confident swagger. His ancestors, like mine, are one of the founding families in this town. And he’ll soon be beside me as we’re initiated into the Gilded Sovereign.
“I see the fresh meat has arrived,” I remark, taking in the freshmen all huddled in the corner of the quad. Blondes, brunettes, redheads, even blue-haired beauties fill the space.
“Fuck yeah, man,” Etienne chuckles, slapping me on the shoulder in camaraderie. “And this weekend we’re going to party,” he informs me, with a grin of mischievousness. Every year, we throw a welcome party for the new students. And every year, I make sure I have one pretty girl, in particular, I focus on.
They all fall into the trap I set—taunting and teasing them—and when I break their hearts, the pleasure is all mine. It’s a sick game I play, but I can’t bring myself to stop.
It’s all part of being royalty.
I can do whatever I want.
“Who’s that?” Tarian, the third in our trio, saunters up beside me, nudging his chin in the direction of a pretty dark-haired vixen. She’s a head shorter than me, her hair hangs down to her tailbone, and she’s dressed like a tomboy. Chucks, a pair of skinny jeans, and a too-big tee.
But it’s her full, pouty lips that grab my attention. She’s smiling at her friend, a pretty blonde. Even though she looks like she’s happy, her stance is rigid, as if she’s tense about something. We could put it down to first day nerves, or could it be something else?
“I want to find out,” I tell him, still eyeing up the beauty that’s caught my attention. “Let’s go, I have to get to class before that asshole, Harding loses his shit.” My sneer is evident, and the frustration in my tone is clear. Professor Harding is one of the history professors who heads up the department. And he’s also one of the Elder Crowns, one of the men I have to keep happy.
I’m spending the year as his Teaching Assistant when he needs me. Even though I have classes of my own to attend, I’ll be offering my free time to Harding because Dad has made sure I behave this year.
Last year, I rebelled, I fought back at every turn, but when he told me I would step up as a Crown of the Sovereign, I tampered down my rage and focused on revenge instead.
Etienne, Tarian, and I need to prove ourselves to the Elder Crowns who will initiate us and vote us in. We need to show them we’re capable of running the society. The age to join used to be eighteen, but they changed it two years ago because of young, hotheaded assholes who caused some shit by spewing information about the society in a Vegas strip club breaking the society's most absolute law—never speak of the Sovereign to any outsiders.
Harding doesn’t like me very much, and the feeling is mutual. I wasn’t meant to be one of the Crowns, but as the rules stand, since he doesn't have a son, I’ll take a seat at the table. The Sovereign is rigid in the no women rule.
�
��We’ll do a walkthrough later, get some introductions done,” I tell my best friends. Both understand why I want this so badly. They’re both firstborn sons, which means they automatically get in, I have a bit of extra work to do to take my rightful place in the Sovereign.
“I’ll see you tonight,” Etienne tells me as he heads off to his class, leaving me with Tar.
After offering Etienne a nod before he disappears, I turn to my left. “You coming tonight?”
Tarian glances at me with bright blue eyes that match the sky today. “What’s happening tonight?” He questions as he pulls out a packet of smokes, tapping one out before placing it between his lips.
“We’re meeting down at the lake house,” I tell him, “I’m thinking of having a little get together. The calm before the storm.”
Orientation week is one of the busiest at the school, especially for the freshmen. The seniors tend to hide out at the Lancaster lake house, which sits on the edge of town behind the forest. It’s secluded and tranquil, something I think I’ll be needing before my rigorous course load begins.
“Yeah.” Tar grins. “Let’s get a few girls out there. I need to get my dick wet.” This time, he chuckles, and I just shake my head.
“You know it,” I respond, fist-bumping him before making it up the stairs and toward my class. Even though I settle in my chair, attempting to focus, my mind is still on the fresh meat that’s arrived. The one with hair the color of night. Something about her has me intrigued.
“Welcome back, minions,” Professor Harding greets us. In his late fifties, he’s one of the oldest staff members at the school. Also, one of the Crowns of the Sovereign.
His gaze lands on me within seconds of his greeting, his stare hardening into narrows slits before he turns his attention back to the rest of the students.
“This year, you’ll be obeying my every command because I’m not going easy on you.” His snark is clear. Asshole thinks he runs the world. “Since it’s the first day of your final year at Tynewood, I was thinking about taking it easy on you, but… I’m not that nice. Remember, I’m the one who makes sure you pass your finals. Anything less than an A in my class is a fail.”
A groan resounds in the room, and he smiles. The darkness this man exudes is worse than my father’s domineering demeanor. Harding is the same age as Dad, but he looks ten times older. He acts it, too.
“Now, let’s have a little fun and talk about what we remember from last year.” He grins before lifting a stack of pages, which makes me think we have a goddamn pop quiz.
Muffled complaints echo around me, but that only makes him happier. Sitting back in my seat, I pull out my cell phone and tap out a message to Dad, who I know is at work down the hall. As a history professor, he takes pride in his class, in his students, and I know I’m stirring shit between him and Harding, but that’s why I’m here—to shake up an age-old society that needs new blood.
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Acknowledgments
Thank you for reading Nesrin and Damien’s story. This was one of the most difficult books for me, because Nesrin’s journey isn’t easy. Delving into her mind was tough because her anxiety made mine spike. But if you’ve reached this part of the book, you’ve hopefully fallen in love with these characters as much as I have. And hopefully, you’re excited for Cassian’s book!
I want to thank my BETA reader, Michelle Myers (Digital Dirty Girl Book Blog) for falling in love with Damien and Nesrin the same way I did. Thank you for all your insight.
To my editor, Rebecca Barney (Rebecca’s Fairest Reviews), thank you for polishing these two characters and their journey to perfectly. Your advice and comments always ensure my book is shiny and ready for readers.
To my proofer, Brian (Illuminate Author Services), as always, a huge thank you for all your hard work on catching those final changes.
To my readers, the amazing ladies in my reader group, The Deviants, thank you for always being so incredible, and to my Captive Angels for pimping my ass out, you ladies ROCK!
To the author colleagues who read A Cut so Deep, and helped share and promote it, thank you so freaking much! I love you ladies!
And to the bloggers and bookstagrammers who were so excited to meet these characters. I truly hope the book lived up to your expectations. Thank you for always taking time out of your busy lives to help support and promote me. Your love is humbling.
Mad love,
Dani xo
Also by Dani René
Stand Alones
Choosing the Hart
Love Beyond Words
Cuffed
Fragile Innocence
Perfectly Flawed
Black Light: Obsessed
Among Ash and Ember
Cursed in Love (collaboration with Cora Kenborn)
Beautifully Brutal (Cavalieri Della Morte)
How the Mind Breaks
The Devil’s Plaything
Taboo Novellas
Sunshine and the Stalker (collaboration with K Webster)
His Temptation
Austin’s Christmas Shortcake
Crime and Punishment (Newsletter Exclusive)
Malignus (Inferno World Novella)
Tempting Grayson
Gilded Sovereign Series
Cruel War (Book #1)
Volatile Love (Book #2)
Sins of Seven Series
Kneel (Book #1)
Obey (Book #2)
Indulge (Book #3)
Ruthless (Book #4)
Bound (Book #5)
Envy (Book #6)
Vice (Book #7)
The Taken Series
Stolen
Severed
Four Fathers Series
Kingston
Four Sons Series
Brock
Carina Press Novellas
Pierced Ink
Madd Ink
Broken Series
Broken by Desire
Shattered by Love
The Backstage Series
Callum
Liam
Ryan
Forbidden Series
From the Ashes - A Prequel
Crave (Book #1)
Covet (Book #2)
About the Author
Dani is a USA Today Bestselling Author of a dark and deviant romance. She lives in the picturesque city of Cape Town where wine is plenty and the views are spectacular. She's also a proud member of the Romance Writer's Organization of South Africa (ROSA). When she's not writing, she can be found binge-watching the latest TV series, or working on graphic design.
She has a healthy addiction to reading, tattoos, coffee, and ice cream.
www.danirene.com | [email protected]
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