The Butcher's Bride
All Raven Caruso has ever known is blood, bullets, and betrayal.
Born into the infamous Caruso crime family, Raven was raised not with dolls or lullabies, but with guns, knives, and a ruthless code of silence. Trained from childhood to be an assassin, she became her father’s most dangerous weapon,and his greatest pride.
Jack Caruso doesn’t just want to rule the South. He wants the North, too. But the North belongs to his bitter rival, the Moretti mafia,and standing between Jack and total dominance is one man: Leon Vitali. They call him The Butcher. Cold. Calculated. Lethal.
Jack’s solution? A union of blood and power.
Raven will marry Leon Vitali. And when she bears his child, the Carusos will strike,wipe out the Vitali bloodline and rule using Ravens child.
Raven knows her mission. She's loyal. Deadly. And ready to make her father proud.
There’s just one problem.
Leon Vitali is supposed to be the enemy. But he’s also devastatingly charming, maddeningly confident, and far more complicated than she expected. With every stolen glance and dangerous kiss, he awakens something in her she doesn’t recognize,something soft. Something real.
Now Raven must decide: stay true to her blood... or betray it for love.
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Chapter: Chapter 17Chapter 17: Secrets and SinsRaven’s POVA beat passes. The tension thickens like storm clouds. He doesn’t respond.Instead, he takes one final sip from the glass… and then hurls it.The crystal tumbler shatters against the marble wall, amber liquid spraying like blood across bone-white.My pulse doesn’t spike.But my hand still twitches,trained and ready for the blade at my thigh.Just in case.His voice is a growl now, barely restrained.“Don’t lie to me, Raven.”I stare at the shattered glass, then back at him. My voice is cool silk.“I’m not lying.”He steps forward once, twice. His presence is molten and suffocating.“Then why the mask? Why La Rue Noire? Why the questions?”“Because I heard you,” I say finally.The words cut like a knife. They land harder than any bullet I’ve ever fired.His shoulders go still. His expression freezes.“You heard me,” he echoes.“At the party, you were in the balcony below me.”I swallow.“You said things. I don’t know what they meant. But I liste
Last Updated: 2025-07-24
Chapter: Chapter 16Chapter 16: Blood and VelvetRaven’s POVThe afternoon sun doesn’t warm me.It burns.Leon acts like nothing happened. He strolls around the mansion like he didn’t have another woman in his bed while I stood in the shadows listening. Like he didn’t spill betrayal from his lips before swallowing hers.But I smile at him.Soft. Sweet. Hollow.He doesn’t deserve my rage.Instead, I take my coffee into the courtyard where the vines grow too wild and call Sienna.She answers on the second ring, her voice still sleepy. “This better be important. I just got my lashes done.”“I need a favor.”She sighs. “You always do.”“I need access to La Rue Noire tonight.”A pause. Then a low whistle. “That kind of night?”I say nothing.“I’ll pull strings. You’ll need a mask.”“I already have one.”“Do I want to know why you’re going?”“No.”“Do I want to stop you?”I smile into my cup. “You’d die trying.”She chuckles. “Text me your alias. I’ll get you on the list.”By dusk, my alias is approved.Rosa V
Last Updated: 2025-07-24
Chapter: Chapter 15Chapter 15 : Velvet and KnivesRaven’s POVThe ride home is silent.Leon doesn’t speak. Doesn’t look at me. His fingers rest on the gear shift, tense and motionless. The blonde is still painted on the inside of my skull like a stain I can’t scrub out.I say nothing. I don’t need to.Because I have plans of my own.When we arrive at the mansion, he doesn’t even hold the door. Just stalks inside like the walls owe him something. I follow at a distance, heels silent against marble. The butler greets us with a stiff nod, and Leon waves him off with a flick of his hand.The second we step into the main hallway, Leon speaks without looking at me."Stay in tonight. Don’t leave the estate."“Why?”His tone darkens. “Because I said so.”I hum, noncommittal.Inside, I’m already slipping on a mask.An hour later, Leon is in his office with the door locked.He thinks I’m upstairs in the bath.He’s wrong.I’m in the garage.Dressed in black, hair down, a blade tucked into my thigh holster. I grab
Last Updated: 2025-07-23
Chapter: Chapter 14Chapter 14: Silk and Smoke Raven’s POV I’m halfway through a glass of red wine when I hear the knock. Not a timid one. Sharp. Precise. A warning in rhythm. I already know who it is. I don’t say a word. Just stare at the door until it creaks open and Leon steps inside, flanked by silence and shadows. He doesn’t look at me right away. He’s holding something in his hand,a long black garment bag. "You're not the type to knock,” I say, setting my glass down. "Tonight, I felt generous." His voice is smooth, but the undercurrent is sharp. He walks toward me, tossing the bag onto the bed like it’s a wrapped threat. “Get dressed. We’re leaving at nine.” I raise a brow. “Leaving for what?” He finally looks at me then, eyes scanning me with the same detached interest he might give a glass of bourbon. “There’s a party. A fundraiser. Politicians, businessmen, a few people with blood on their hands. Our kind of crowd.” I fold my arms. “Why do I need to be there?” “Because you
Last Updated: 2025-07-23
Chapter: Chapter 13Chapter 13: Snake in SilkRaven’s POVSienna couldn't find her, it's like she just disappeared. I hold the champagne flute like it’s a live grenade.Even now, the sharp tang of poison still clings to the rim,masked poorly beneath bubbles and imported fruit notes. My hand trembles slightly, not from fear, but from fury.In this house, someone wanted me dead.And I’m starting to suspect I was never meant to leave it alive.Sienna trails behind me, barefoot, her sundress flapping around her knees as she jogs to keep up.“Raven, just stop for a second—”“No.” My voice is ice. “Where is he dammit?”“He’s might not even—”I slam open the double doors of Leon’s study without knocking. The wood smacks against the wall with a satisfying thud.Leon is there. Leaning against the window in one of his pristine three-piece suits, collar unbuttoned just enough to feign humanity. He turns slowly, a tumbler of whiskey in hand, and looks at me like I’ve tracked blood across his marble floors.“Well, g
Last Updated: 2025-07-18
Chapter: Chapter 12Raven's povChapter : Honeymoon LiesSantorini.That’s where Sienna thinks I should spend my “honeymoon.”Honeymoon.A joke wrapped in white silk and gold-dusted lies.With a man I’ve barely seen since we exchanged rings two weeks ago. Rings that still feel like handcuffs.“I’m not going to Santorini,” I say flatly.Sienna groans, tossing the glossy travel pamphlet on the coffee table. It skids across the surface, nearly knocking over her half-empty cup of matcha.“Why not? It’s stunning. Blue roofs, white buildings, the ocean! You could heal your soul there.”“Maybe when I have a real wedding. A real marriage,” I mutter, taking a sip of my coffee. It burns my tongue,scalding, bitter, perfect.“For now,” I continue, “there’s no way in hell I’m flying off to paradise with Leon Vitali.”Sienna frowns, flipping through a wedding magazine like she’s searching for answers in the folds of a veil. “Do you even want a real marriage?”Her question lingers in the air like the scent of strong es
Last Updated: 2025-07-18
Carrying the cursed Alphas Heir
Three years ago, Rowan Stewart was gifted to the infamous Alpha of Red Moon as one of his pleasure servants—a brutal tradition cloaked in civility, where beauty is bartered for peace.
The Alpha, powerful and feared, accepted her without question, despite already having two wives. For Rowan, life in the Red Moon Pack was tolerable,lavish, but hollow. She kept her head down, grateful that her obedience spared her family’s lives, even if her own freedom was quietly buried.
But everything changes the day she discovers she’s pregnant,with the Alpha’s child.
The news detonates through the pack like wildfire. This isn’t just a scandal,it’s a miracle. Or a lie. Because Alpha Kael was cursed by a witch a to never bear an heir. Infertile. Doomed.
Now Rowan stands at the center of a storm,accused of deception, targeted by the Alpha’s jealous wives, and caught in a web of ancient curses, pack politics, and dangerous truths. Some believe she carries hope. Others believe she’s a threat. And Kael himself? No one knows if he’ll claim the child... or kill them both.
What began as survival has become something far more treacherous.
Because if the curse is broken…
Then Rowan Stewart may be carrying more than just a child—
She may be carrying the future of the Red Moon Pack.
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Chapter: Chapter 41Kael’s POVI made a decision.After that night, everything changed,and I made a decision I knew would anger people. But I don’t care. It's the right choice, and I won’t entertain opinions on the matter. Not from the elders. Not from my wives.Not from anyone.A soft knock breaks the silence in my office.Chelsea."Come in," I call, my voice low and rough. Sleep has become a stranger since the attack.Chelsea steps inside, her features tight with worry. She didn’t expect my summons,especially not this early."Is everything okay?" she asks, taking the seat across from me.I nod. Briefly. I’m not in the mood for pleasantries or drawn-out explanations."Kael—" she starts, but a second knock cuts her off. Sharper. Louder.Vivienne.She doesn’t wait for my permission to enter,she never does. The door swings open and she strolls in like she owns the place, radiating disinterest."I had a massage appointment," she says flatly, dropping into the seat beside Chelsea.I ignore her.“Rowan was at
Last Updated: 2025-07-15
Chapter: Chapter 40RowanThe candlelight flickered softly across my bedroom walls, casting dancing shadows that usually brought me comfort.Not tonight.I rubbed the lavender balm between my palms and pressed it to my temples, breathing in. My nightly ritual was meant to ground me,a small moment of peace after days of chaos. But today hands trembled slightly. My heart beat too loud.I tried to shake it off.Just nerves, I try to assure myself as I told rinsed my face in the bathroom. The cool water helped… until it didn’t.I paused as Ireached for the towel.Something was wrong.The air had shifted.I stood at the sink, dripping, staring at the mirror. My breath fogged the glass, but I could feel something just beyond my vision,a presence. My skin prickled. My pulse climbed.When I stepped back into my bedroom, the air was wrong. Thick. Charged.Like lightning before the strike.I tightened the towel around me and called out, voice steady despite the dread curling in my chest. “If someone’s here,” I
Last Updated: 2025-07-11
Chapter: Chapter 39KaelI’d been in a foul mood ever since that damned confrontation with Rowan.Chelsea had tried to soothe me, all soft eyes and gentle words. It only made me more irritable.Vivienne hadn’t even bothered. She’d been keeping her distance, probably sensing the storm brewing under my skin.Carlos, unfortunately, didn’t have the luxury of avoiding me. Being my Beta meant he was stuck with me, bad mood and all.“You haven’t heard a damn word I’ve said,” he muttered, leaning back from the map spread between us.He was right.“Sorry,” I said with a sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. “My mind’s… elsewhere.”Carlos arched a brow. “Let me guess. This about what happened in your office the other day?”I gave him a curt nod, jaw tightening.He exhaled and rolled up the map, clearing the table with a sweep of his arm. “And here I thought we were going to get through this meeting without dancing around the obvious.”“Have the elders said anything?” he asked after a moment, his tone more serious now
Last Updated: 2025-07-11
Chapter: Chapter 38Rowan’s POVThe stew smells like rosemary and something warm I can’t quite name.Thessaly sets the bowl in front of me like I’m made of glass, like I might break if she moves too quickly. Her eyes flicker to my hands, still slightly trembling from the earlier storm I unleashed in the Alpha’s office.I don’t say thank you. I just nod. She doesn’t expect more, not when she can feel the anger still radiating off of me. We sit at the small table in silence, spoons clinking gently against ceramic. The cottage is warm, firelight throwing shadows along the walls. I’m grateful for it. Not just the warmth,but the silence. The stillness.“You didn’t have to scream at him,” Thessaly says eventually, her voice quiet, hesitant.“I know,” I reply, setting my spoon down. “I wanted to.”She chuckles, but there’s no real humor in it. Just tired affection. “You shook the whole damn house. I thought the windows might crack.”I let a breath out. “Good.”We sit again in the hush.Then, like she’s choosin
Last Updated: 2025-07-09
Chapter: Chapter 37Rowan’s POVMy fists are clenched the entire walk to the Alpha’s house.Thessaly trails behind me, nearly jogging to keep up.“Rowan, just slow down. Please think for one second—”“No.” My voice is hard. “She touched me, Thess. She touched my face and told me my child isn’t mine. Told me they’d take them from me. And she said it like it was fact. Like it was done.”“She’s trying to get a reaction out of you,” she pleads. “You’re giving her what she wants—”“Then good for her,” I snap, marching faster. By the time I reach the Alpha's office, I don’t knock. I don’t announce myself. I push the door open, heart hammering, rage making my hands shake.He is there.Of course he is.Sitting by the window, shirt undone, broad shoulders relaxed, sipping something from a glass like nothing in the goddamned world is wrong.He stands the moment he sees me.“Rowan?”His voice is low, surprised, confused. I half expect him to ask what’s wrong. But he doesn’t. He just stares, as if seeing a ghost.
Last Updated: 2025-07-07
Chapter: chapter 36Rowans povI was still lying in bed, mentally summoning the strength to get up, shower, and make my way to Dr. Bradley’s office for my check-up.“The doctor’s going to throw a fit if you show up late again,” Thessaly called out casually, perched by the window with a nail polish brush in hand, painting her nails a shade of deep crimson.I groaned and rolled over, not ready to face the day. “I feel fat.”She glanced up, arching a brow. “You’re barely showing.”“It’s not about how I look,” I muttered. “I feel fat.”Thessaly set the polish bottle down with a dramatic sigh and stood. “Rowan, nobody expects you to be stick-thin. You’re three months pregnant.”I glanced down at my belly. The bump had made its appearance not long after we returned from Whitefang Pack,one morning I’d woken up flat as usual, and the next, Thessaly had lovingly dubbed it a cute little bumpy.I hadn’t found it cute. I’d stared at it in horror.“See?” Thessaly said, walking over to me. “From this angle, I can’t e
Last Updated: 2025-07-07
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