Novels by Ivy Lanee

THE COLLISIONSOFIA POVThe car flips.Glass explodes. Metal screams. My head slams against something hard.Then everything stops.I’m upside down. Seatbelt cutting into my chest. Blood dripped from my hairline.“Sofia.” Alessio’s voice. Rough. Urgent. “Can you move?”I will try. Everything hurts.“I think so.”He cuts my seatbelt. Catch me before I fall. We crawl out through the shattered window.Nikolai’s already out. Gun drawn. Bleeding from his temple.“They’re coming,” he says.The three SUVs screech to a stop. Doors open. Men pour out.Not Luca’s men. These are different. Tattooed. Military precision.Russians.The leader steps forward. Tall. Scarred face. Dead eyes.“Alessio Volkov,” he says. Heavy accent. “Your father sends his regards.”I freeze.Alessio goes completely still beside me.“My father is dead.”The Russian smiles. “Is he?”What?“He faked his death fifteen years ago,” the man continues. “Went into hiding. Built a new empire in Moscow.” He gestures to his men. “An

THE HARBORSOFIA POVI couldn’t sleep.Every time I close my eyes, I see Luca’s face when he touches my neck. The way he looked at the mark Alessio left.He knows something. I’m sure of it.The tracker is in my purse. Small. Black. Innocent-looking.Tomorrow night I will betray my family.My phone buzzes at 6 AM.Unknown: Wear something that won’t stand out. Blend in. And Sofia? Don’t get caught.Like that helps.I drag myself to breakfast. Luca’s already there, reading the paper. He looks up when I enter.“Good morning, sister.”His voice is warm. Normal.Too normal.“Morning.” I pour coffee. My hands shake.“Big day today,” he says casually. “I have a meeting at the harbor tonight. Important clients.”I freeze.He’s telling me. Why is he telling me?“Oh?”“Yes. Very lucrative deal.” He folds the paper. Look directly at me. “You should come.”My heart stops.“What?”“You’re always saying you want to understand the business. Here’s your chance.” He smiles. “Consider it an education.”

THE FIRST MISSIONSOFIA POVI came back to the tunnel at 12:47 AM.My dress is torn. My thighs are a little bit sticky. I can still feel him inside me.I climb through my bedroom window and freeze.Someone’s in my room.“Where were you?”Luca.He’s sitting in the chair by my vanity. Still dressed. Arms crossed. Face blank.My heart stops.“I…I couldn’t sleep. I went to the garden.”“In that dress?” His eyes drag down my body. Slow. Lingering on the torn hem. The marks on my neck. “Interesting choice for a midnight stroll.”Think. Think.“I was going to change but”“But what, Sofia?” He stands. Walk toward me. “You decided to climb out your window instead? Crawl through dirt? Ruin a two-thousand-dollar dress?”He’s three feet away now. I can smell his cologne. The whiskey on his breath.“Tell me the truth.”“I am.”His hand shoots out. Grabs my jaw. Not hard enough to hurt. Hard enough to warn.“You’re lying.” His thumb brushes my bottom lip. Presses. “Your pulse always speeds up when

THE VIPER’S MARKSOFIA POVI couldn’t move.My legs are still shaking. His cum is dripping down my thighs. Yet, I stared at the man who could get me killed.Alessio Volkov adjusts his cuffs like he didn’t just fuck me into heaven. Like he doesn’t know I’ve figured out who he is.But he does know. I can tell by the way he’s watching me. Waiting.“You should get going,” he says. Voice calm. Too calm.I grab my ruined panties off the floor. Try to stand. My knees almost give out.He catches my elbow. Steadies me.“Careful, little girl. Wouldn’t want you to fall.”The nickname makes my stomach flip. Lord have mercy. I removed my arm.“Don’t touch me.”His smile is slow. Dangerous. “You weren’t saying that five minutes ago.”Heat floods my face. I hate him. I hate that he’s right.I moved toward the door. My hand is on the handle when he speaks again.“Sofia.”I freeze.Damn.He knows my name.I turn slowly. He’s leaning against the couch, arms crossed, looking at me like I’m a puzzle he

CAGEDSOFIA POVThe bedroom door locks at exactly 10 PM. Every night. Same sound. Same time. Same cage.I put my ear against the wood and count Luca’s footsteps as he walks down the hallway. Suddenly, I heard his door close.Now I can finally breathe.I’ve lived in this mansion for twenty-three years and I’ve never seen the city up close. So sad. Not without guards. Not without “him” watching.My brother thinks he’s protecting me. I’ve known the truth for years, ever since I caught him standing outside my bathroom door, breathing hard, his hand down his pants.I was seventeen. He was twenty-two. I wasn’t stupid.Tonight, I’m done with this b.s.I strip out of the white silk nightgown Luca bought me and pull on the black dress hidden in my closet. It’s tight. Feeling kind of sneaky I guess. The kind of thing that would make my brother lose his mind.The thought makes me smile.Red lipstick. The color of freedom.The tunnel behind the wine cellar is exactly where the guard said it woul