Cruel War: Gilded Sovereign Read online

  Cruel War

  Gilded Sovereign

  Dani René

  Contents

  Also by Dani René

  Foreword

  Playlist

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Epilogue

  Bonus Scene

  COMING SOON!

  Stalk Links

  About the Author

  Copyright © 2019 by Dani René

  Published by Dani René

  Cover Design by Jay Aheer, Simply Defined Art

  Edited by Becky, The Fairest of All Book Reviews

  Proofed by Illuminate Author Services

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

  The following story contains mature themes, strong language, and sexual situations. It is intended for adult readers.

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your enjoyment only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in the work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owner.

  Also by Dani René

  Stand Alones

  Choosing the Hart

  Love Beyond Words

  Cuffed

  Fragile Innocence

  Perfectly Flawed

  Black Light: Obsessed

  Among Ash and Ember

  Within Me (Limited Time)

  Cursed in Love (collaboration with Cora Kenborn)

  Beautifully Brutal (Cavalieri Della Morte)

  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)

  Virulent (collaboration with Yolanda Olson)

  Tempting Grayson

  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 Stolen Series

  Stolen

  Severed

  TBC

  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)

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  Thank you for supporting me in a new venture, a new genre, and for taking a chance on Ares and Dahlia. I’m humbled by the love that this community has shown me.

  I wouldn’t be doing this without you.

  Mad love xo

  Dani

  History has a way of repeating itself.

  Long ago, the world was ravaged by men who believed they were gods. They knew that with wealth would come supremacy and the possibility to reign, creating a society with limitless power.

  A chosen handful of self-proclaimed rulers, who wanted more, took it upon themselves to band together.

  Hungry for the privilege and influence that came with being one of the men who would sit at the table within the society aptly named, the Gilded Sovereign.

  The men, who became known as the Crowns, would be succeeded by their first-born sons on their twenty-first birthday, walking the halls of Tynewood University as if they’re paved in gold.

  Whispered about by mere mortals.

  The Sovereign reveled in the domination afforded to them.

  They wanted people to bow down to them. To fear them. They believed that when fear was present, respect would inadvertently come with it.

  With every year that passed and each new generation claimed their seat at the table, the darkness took over. When mortals hold the future in their hands the way the Sovereign do, only bad things can happen.

  Men hunger for more. They crave it like an addict hungers for his next fix. But they didn’t realize that the one thing that gifted them the power could also bring them to their knees.

  All their secrets are kept locked up tight.

  They not only rule their town but the country. There is one rule they vow to hold till death—never speak of the society drenched in money and power.

  War. Love. Life. Death.

  Wealthy. Stylish. Powerful. Regal.

  Deviant. Destructive. Dangerous. Deadly.

  By blood. By oath.

  Four young men will take charge as their fathers step down. They’ll be the future leaders—heartless and cold. Nothing can change their fate, and nobody can stop their path. This is their destiny.

  The town of Tynewood is their playground. A place where the rich and famous come to hide their most depraved acts within the small, almost forgotten town.

  Darkness lurks within the walls of Tynewood University, and danger simmers just beneath the surface. If you look closely, you’ll see the depravity that reigns supreme.

  Welcome to the inner sanctum.

  A society of gods.

  Welcome to the Gilded Sovereign.

  Foreword

  Revenge, like power and greed, is insatiable.

  It craves, it poisons, and it infests you like an addiction, and you’ll never be free.

  Playlist

  Centuries - Fall Out Boy

  My Songs Know What you Did in the Dark - Fall Out Boy

  Save Tonight - Eagle-Eye Cherry

  Kryptonite - 3
Doors Down

  Fourth of July - Fall Out Boy

  Ghetto - August Alsina

  I Fall Apart - Post Malone

  Gansta - Kat Dahlia

  Dangerous - Shaman’s Harvest

  Him & I - G-Eazy & Halsey

  Sick Like Me - In This Moment

  Bad guy - Billy Eilish

  Swing - Savage & Soulja Boy

  Find the playlist here

  Prologue

  I’m pacing a pathway in the carpet of my office as I think about the future. My youngest son’s sixteenth birthday is coming up, and I know I’m going to have to tell him about the Sovereign. But I have a feeling he already knows.

  Glancing at the clock on the wall above the fireplace, I note it’s almost midnight. My plan is in place for next week. It took me years to make sure I had the right people in my corner. And it’s finally time.

  My office door clicks open, and Philipe saunters in with a smile on his face. My eldest son, who is eighteen now, is like me: cold and ruthless, and he doesn’t care for anyone outside our family. That’s what a true Sovereign is, but Ares, I worry about him. I don’t know if he has it in him to join us.

  “The job is done,” Philipe tells me, satisfaction on his face at the admission. The blood splattered on his shirt is evidence that he’s finished the job correctly.

  “Good,” I nod, before turning to my desk to pick up the folder. Philipe will take over the head of the table from me when he turns twenty-one, but he’s been doing odd jobs for me since he came of age.

  Once he joins the Sovereign, he’ll have all the power I ensured for him. This is our legacy. I hand him the manila folder and watch him flip it open.

  “They voted this evening,” I tell him. “You’re taking my seat at the table, you’ll only be sworn in when you hit the age set out in our history. Ares will be the second chair once he’s old enough.”

  “I doubt Greg will be happy about this,” my son remarks. The second eldest member of the Crowns, Gregory Birchwood, wasn’t happy about two Lancasters at the table, but he can’t do anything about it. His daughter isn’t allowed to step up. Grecia Birchwood isn’t meant to wear the gilded crown.

  “He made his vote. There’s no going back. The oath was signed; blood was shed.” I make my way to the armoire, which sits in the corner of my office and pour myself and Philipe a shot of whiskey. Handing a tumbler to him, I lift my own. “To the Sovereign and the rule of the Lancasters.” I clink my glass on my son’s, and a smile beams from his face.

  It’s uncanny how much he looks just like his mother. There’s a soft golden hue to his light brown hair, and his eyes, the color of the freshly grown grass on a hot summer’s day, match hers almost identically. I watch him take a sip before he narrows his gaze on me.

  “I’m leaving,” he utters. “I’m ready to go to New York. It’s the one thing I’ve wanted, and it’s time. I’ll be back for my inking.”

  “I didn’t think you’d stay, but remember, if we need you…” I allow my words to trail into the heavy silence in the office. He doesn’t realize what being an Elder means, but he’ll learn.

  We still have time before Ares, Etienne Durand, and Tarian Calvert come of age, so Philipe will take the reins until the three younger boys step up and they form one entity.

  Philipe swallows down the amber liquid before offering me a grin. “I’ll be here whenever you need me.”

  “Go, I know you’re itching to get to your girl,” I tell him, shaking my head when he chuckles.

  “See you tomorrow.” He leaves me in the office with my thoughts. I’ve done things in my life that were needed to ensure my family are safe. Even though most wouldn’t agree with my actions, it is my choice, and I’ll never apologize.

  My phone rings shrilly on the desk; when I pick it up, I note the name before answering. “What?”

  “We found her. She’s a crown,” he tells me. I knew they would. The men I have around the country, around the world, would’ve tracked her down one way or another, and she knows it.

  “Good, we’ll keep an eye on her. The father?”

  “He’s around.”

  “Bring him in, the job I have for him is important. I want it done next week.” Hanging up, I smile when I pour myself another drink and savor the burn of the whiskey as it travels down my throat.

  I sit back and stare out the window. The full moon is high, reminding me of how small and insignificant we truly are in the grand scheme of things. But I also know that nothing can stop the events that will take place in the coming years.

  My sons will rule the Sovereign with iron fists.

  I gulp down the last of my drink as my office door opens, and my wife strolls in. She’s my life. I fell for her when I was a boy, and even though she knows of the darkness that resides inside me, she hasn’t run; she continues to love me even after all the shit I’ve put her through.

  “Are you coming to bed?”

  “I am. Philipe was just here to collect a docket,” I tell her, crooking my finger to call her closer. “Ares will know about his new role in this household. I plan to speak to him tomorrow.”

  “I don’t know if he’s ready,” she shakes her head, worry etched on her beautiful face. She voices my concerns out loud.

  Sighing, I stand and go to where she’s standing at the edge of my desk, pulling her into my arms. “He will be. He’s a Lancaster, it’s in our blood.”

  “This isn’t some supernatural occurrence, Abner. He’s not going to suddenly become powerful and grow wings,” she bites out in frustration. Our son may not be something from a comic book, but there are things about the four new Crowns who will take over that nobody would ever guess.

  Ares being one of them.

  But what she doesn’t know can’t hurt her, which is why I’m not the one to complete the task I’ve set in motion. So instead of saying anything, I scoop her up and make my way through the house and up to our suite.

  “I think it’s time we made love again,” I murmur in her ear, with my eyes shut, I pray she’ll calm the fuck down. The darkness grips me when I think of the violence to befall us.

  Her hands land on my shoulders, holding me away from her for a moment before she shakes her head. “Don’t push me away and treat me like I’m fragile.”

  “You are fragile.” I can easily overpower her, and she knows it. I could lift her with one hand, squeeze, and her breath will be stolen. I don’t. I do allow her to glower at me though because that will ensure our night in bed together will be short.

  “I’m not, Abner,” she bites out, and I can see this night isn’t going as planned. All I need, want, was a chance to feel her, but she’s not having it.

  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 f
rom 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.

  1

  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.