"Breathe." He dipped his head down so that his lips were right at my ear, his strong arm wrapped securely around my waist, molding my body into his. "If you're going to fall apart,." He starts, teeth gritted. "Now's the time. I'll be here to put you back together when it's over." I squeezed my eyes shut again, and I did just that. I fell apart. ******* Secrets. Lies. Deception. Murder. I'd seen and done it all. And not willingly. So I left. I sacrificed my freedom to save myself, and the only way to ensure my own safety was to start over. Clean slate. New people. New me. But the last thing I expected when I arrived at Manonwell Prep Academy was to be bombarded by a boy-no, a man who held some unknown vendetta against me. Call it obsession, infatuation, hatred. To me it was all one in the same. He was everywhere I turned, like a shadow. Watching me. Taunting me. Haunting me. And it was all because of something I did to him a long time ago. It was something so bad that he couldn't stand me, that he wanted me dead, and the idea of making my life a living hell was something that he took pride in. But I didn't remember. I had no clue what I could've done to him in the past, but he was hellbent on pushing me until I did. My plans on starting over were shattered the minute I stepped inside that school. He was the type of person that demanded your attention without having to speak. He was untamed and wild and unhinged. But what he didn't know was that the Winter Travers that he knew in past, the one I didn't remember, was no longer alive. I was different. She was gone and I was here. And he was everything I should've been afraid of. Sinister, quiet, manipulative, but I knew it would be a cold day in hell before I let him win. Ronan was like gasoline waiting to be doused on the fire that inside me, and if he was ready to burn, then so was I.

Book two of the serpents series. What's worse than losing three family members in the span of 16 years? Finding out there's more to the story. When Valeria de Vinci ends up dead due to a provoked arson attack, what will Lucian make of the trust he once had for his allies. Family was his priority, but someone isn't who they claim to be. Lurking within the de Vinci estate is a mole who would do anything to find out the truth about this family, whether it may be hurting their beloveds in the process. On the other side of Italy, Killian Scuderi is pulled into the chaotic world of the de Vinci's, exposed to what he thought was the perfect family and forced to hide his identity. Ezekiel Morozov would do anything to find out the truth of Valeria's death, and the first thing he needs to do is infiltrate every enemy base the Bratva has known, starting with the Egyptians. Valeria may have been insignificant during her time alive, but the impact she left on the World was enough to cause a Mafia War between all the allies. The Underworld is going through it, with the sudden loss of a de Vinci and the withdrawal of the family's contributions to the Underworld, they are fixed on forcing the de Vinci's back onto their feet. However, their mistake of failing to notice the new Empire that is slowly making its way to the top of the Underworld will potentially cost them everything.

"𝕽𝖊𝖒𝖊𝖒𝖇𝖊𝖗 𝖒𝖞 𝖓𝖆𝖒𝖊 𝖆𝖘 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖜𝖔𝖗𝖑𝖉 𝖘𝖑𝖎𝖕𝖘 𝖋𝖗𝖔𝖒 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖙𝖔𝖚𝖈𝖍, 𝖇𝖊𝖈𝖆𝖚𝖘𝖊 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙'𝖑𝖑 𝖇𝖊 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖔𝖓𝖑𝖞 𝖇𝖑𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖉 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙'𝖑𝖑 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖛𝖔𝖐𝖊 𝕲𝖔𝖉 𝖎𝖓𝖙𝖔 𝖙𝖆𝖐𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖚𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗 𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖜𝖎𝖓𝖌, 𝖗𝖆𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖓 𝖋𝖆𝖈𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝕾𝖆𝖙𝖆𝖓'𝖘 𝖜𝖗𝖆𝖙𝖍." __________________________________ A Girl bearing the last name of a powerful family and an empire passed from generation to generation. Power is all that matters in this world, those who are starved of it are at the bottom of the hierarchy, but then there are those who bathe in it. Being born with a golden spoon in her mouth, Valeria has been accustomed to having people at her feet. When certain events intervene with her trust in her family, Valeria begins to notice things the press failed to. As more and more clues emerge from the shadows, as more people become apart of this mess, Valeria makes it her mission to get to the bottom of all the lies she's grew up with. Secrets. Deception. Illusions. Would Valeria be able to push past the truth that her family was feeding her or will she herself take down anyone who gets in her way? -------------------------- This is book 1 in the SERPENTS' series.This book contains extreme themes that may not be suitable for specific audiences, I've warned you. The love interest is violent, and the stereotypical Made Man, meaning this book will have non-consensual relationships, where the male lead is quite literally the incarnation of the devil himself.