The first time I killed for Valentina Romano, I was twenty-three.
She was eighteen, fresh-faced and innocent, standing in her father's study as he introduced us. Silver-blonde hair falling in waves past her shoulders. Wide eyes that didn't yet understand the darkness of our world.
"This is Kade," Romano had said, his hand heavy on my shoulder. "He'll be keeping an eye on you at college."
She'd rolled her eyes. Complained about not needing a babysitter.
If she'd known what I would become, she would have run.
That night, a man followed her from the campus library. Some entitled rich boy who thought her last name was an invitation instead of a warning. I watched from the shadows as he got closer and closer, his intention clear in every step.
I still remember the way his bones felt when they shattered beneath my hands.
The way his blood looked, black in the moonlight.
The way Valentina's laughter drifted down the street, completely unaware of the violence happening in her wake.
That should have been my first warning. The way my pulse raced as I disposed of the body. The satisfaction that burned in my chest knowing I'd eliminated a threat to her. The obsessive need to do it again.
And again.
And again.
Five years later, the bodies are piled high. Each death a love letter she'll never read. Each kill bringing me one step closer to the edge of sanity.
She thinks I'm just her father's enforcer. The cold-eyed monster who lurks in the background of her life.
She has no idea I'm drowning in her.
No idea that every breath she takes belongs to me.
No idea that I'd burn this whole city to ash just to make sure she's safe.
My beautiful farfalla, trapped in a web of her father's making. Soon she'll understand who the real predator is.
It's the one who's been watching.
Waiting.
Killing.
Soon she'll understand that there are worse things than monsters in the dark.
Me.
୧‿̩͙ ˖︵ ꕀ⠀ ♱⠀ ꕀ ︵˖ ‿̩͙୨
Release Date: December 1st.