The Price Of Us
Bruises.
That’s all Louis has ever known.
At twenty-seven, you’d think he’d have escaped the violent grip of his abusive father—but breaking free from the man who raised you, no matter how monstrous, is never simple. Life has never gone easy on Louis, and now, he carries a secret that’ll finally get him killed by his father: his sexuality.
He hides it, suffocates it, tries to erase it—but it never leaves him.
All he needs is a savior. Someone to pull him from the dark hole he’s sinking in. But hope has never been more than a cruel fantasy—and he’s long since stopped believing in rescue.
Then comes Elias Montgomery.
The most feared and ruthless Don in the Midwest.
Silent. Disciplined. Calculating. And utterly alone.
No one dares cross Elias. He keeps his enemies close, and the traitors? Six feet under.
Love has never been part of the equation, not after what happened the last time.
So, what happens when, against all odds, Elias crosses paths with Louis?
Will he bury the tension—and the dangerous spark between them—for the sake of his image and empire.
Or will he risk it all for a boy who’s known nothing but pain?
Read
Chapter: Chapter 84LOUIS"Tell me this a fucking joke."Elaine tensed where she stood, her hand still on the doorknob. "What?"I shoved the tablet across the desk to her. "This. Tell me it's not true."Cathan leaned over my shoulder, his face impassive. "Where did you get it?""It's everywhere," I growled. My throat ached, and it felt like my heart was about to rip out of my chest. "Twitter, blogs, Insta, you fucking name it. The journalist, Davis, he's back. Somebody leaked the bloody footage."The screen ran again. Elias's hand around an Elder's head, the bullet ringing out in the room, and blood splattering across the highly polished wood.And Elias didn't even flinch.Elaine swore under her breath. "Christ.""Fucking tell me something!" I growled.She finally tore her eyes away from the video. "It's bad.""No shit."Cathan took out his phone, already hitting speed dial. "We have to take this down—""How? By shutting down the internet?" I snarled, hitting my fist on the desk. "Listen to me? It's done
Last Updated: 2025-10-14
Chapter: Chapter 83ELIAS"Don't stop walking," I snarled, pushing through the gates with Cathan and Luciano flanking me. My voice didn't shake, but my hand on the pistol at my hip did."Elias—" Cathan started."They think they can shut me out of my own empire?" I cut him off. "Over my dead body."The iron doors loomed before us. Two guards stepped forward, their rifles barred across their chests. Their boots screeched on stone as they stopped in front of us."Not tonight, Montgomery," snarled the taller of the two. "You weren't summoned."I stepped close enough that I could smell his foul breath. "Move out of the way."The man leered. "Orders are orders."Luciano shifted restlessly beside me, worried. "Don—"I drew my gun faster than the guard could blink and shoved it under his chin. "And my orders override theirs."The other guard went for his gun, and Cathan's dagger came free, the blade glinting in the light. He pressed it against the man's wrist until blood flowed."Do it," Cathan said icily. "Let'
Last Updated: 2025-10-08
Chapter: Chapter 82ELIAS"Run that by me again," I said, my voice coming out low and threatening.Cathan's jaw was set, and he held the phone to me. "Louis was ambushed on the docks."Luciano's eyes didn't leave the floor. "Elaine came just in time to save him."I tightened my fist around the desk. "Ambushed. In my city. And I'm only hearing about it now?""We just got the report," Cathan said warily.I slammed my fist on the wood, causing the desk to shake. "Minutes too fucking late,” I seethed. “Where were you when he was being attacked?"Luciano flinched. "I should have stopped him.""You should have chained him to the floor if you had to," I growled. "Instead, he walked into a goddamn trap."Cathan leaned forward, tense but alert. "He went there because you pushed him away,” he said, a hardened look on his face. “Don't blame us for this."I glared at him. "Don't start.""No, Elias," he snapped, voice burning. "You hold your secrets, you shut him out, and you're shocked when he goes hunting for them
Last Updated: 2025-10-06
Chapter: Chapter 81LOUIS"Where?" I asked sharply.The man that stood in front of me flinched. He was a skinny thing, one of Rosseti's discarded errand boys Elaine had previously hired for scraps of information. He reeked of sweat and cocaine, his back pressed against the underground hallway of the casino."Louis—Mr. Durant—look,” he started. “I don't want no trouble," he stammered."Then stop wasting my time," I snapped. My arm shot out, and I placed my forearm against his cheek, pinning him to the wall. His eyes went wide as the edge of my watch dug into his throat. "Where is he?""I… I don't know—"I pressed down harder cutting him off. "Wrong answer."His breath came in shallow gasps. "I swear, I don't know exact—"I leaned in, my voice sharp enough to cut. "You know enough,” I hissed. “So talk."His eyes looked down the hallway, desperation shining in their depths. Finally, he muttered, "Dockside. Warehouse Fourteen. People say they've seen him there.""Jean," I stated more than asked.The man nod
Last Updated: 2025-09-09
Chapter: Chapter 80LOUIS“That's it, isn’t it? I snarled, crashing into the study. "You negotiate, vote, and leave me out of it as if I'm just a mere furniture in your own home?"Elias's expression didn't change. He stood behind the table, papers and maps spread out on its surface, Cathan and Luciano flanking him.His voice was detached and almost indifferent when he finally decided to speak. "Who said?”“That’s all you have to say to what I just said right now?" I hammered my fist on the wood. "You voted Rosseti out. You took that choice away from me. You chose for me."Elias's expression hardened. "It wasn't your burden to bear, Louis.""My burden?" I laughed harshly. "Do you hear yourself at all? You brought me into this. You included me. I’ve already bled for you countless times, Elias, so you don't get to tell me whether or not it's my burden."He finally looked at me, and his eyes were hard and cold. "You don't know what it is to vote a man off the board,” he seethed. “It's not a game. It's death.
Last Updated: 2025-09-03
Chapter: Chapter 79ELIAS“Do you even know what you've done?" I barked, slamming the picture on the desk.Cathan barely winced. "It's not me you should be asking that question," he said, looking me in the eye."Then who the hell do you think I should ask?" My voice was colder than the air in the room. I was fucking livid right now. "Jean Durant is hiding behind Louis like some ghost that crawled out of a grave, and I'm staring at proof that the man I put six feet under is very much alive."Luciano coughed, hesitantly, as if weighing each word. "It means he's been working under our noses for a while now, Don. And that doesn't happen without help."I narrowed my eyes. "You're telling me I've got rats in my own house?" I knew that was a possibility. In fact, I’d put people in place to check for those ‘rats’ but my God did it sting knowing it.Luciano nodded his head. "I'm trying t say that Jean didn't creep back on his own.""Jesus Christ." I ran a hand over my face. "He wasn't supposed to be anywhere near
Last Updated: 2025-09-01
LOGIN
