She Got Crown I Got Cremated Novels & Stories

Just wind. And silence. Behind her: the crown—no longer gold, but forged in obsidian and bullet casings. It wasn’t worn. It was placed—on a pedestal. A symbol. She didn’t need it on her head. Because the world had already bent its knees. ~~~~~~~~~~ BOOK OF BLOOD — FINAL ENTRY OF THE CITADEL ERA “I did not inherit an empire. I burned the ashes and named the smoke.” “I did not want their crown. I broke it, reforged it, and left it behind.”

Darlene was so shaken by what I said that she ran before Randolph's cremation even finished. I wasn't surprised. Someone like her was never going to last. Even if I hadn't said a word, that scene at the banquet was enough. Branded as an imposter and an illegitimate daughter pretending to be someone else, she had no place left in that circle. I didn't bother with her anymore. I stepped outside the crematorium and lit a cigarette. I took my time, waiting while the old man inside was reduced to ash, watching the smoke curl and disappear into the air.

Tomorrow would bring more problems. She doubted sleep would come, but she followed him anyway. In the bedroom, she stripped out of clothes reeking of smoke and gunpowder and collapsed into bed, feeling detached from her own body. Damien joined her and held her in silence while her mind replayed the gunshot over and over. Eventually, exhaustion dragged her under. Just before sleep claimed her, her phone buzzed. The message made her blood run cold. You just started a war you can’t win. The Calabrese family sends their regards.

“And about Gianna poisoning me—I knew that too. I suppose even God couldn’t stand the two of you, so He made sure I heard everything.” My smile sharpened. “Surprised, Dante?” He stayed silent—radio silent. “Since you were kind enough to show up yourself and save me the trouble of hunting you down,” I said lightly, “let me give you a few updates. While you were playing ‘dead,’ I filed for Dante Moretti’s death certificate with the federal office. So now, as far as the public is concerned, Dante is very much dead. Which made me a widow. And therefore, I was no longer a Moretti.”

I gripped my phone tight, recording every word. Jane's daughter, my cousin Angela, lived there too. Angela had a bad rep and got kicked out of the family, then just a fringe member. Her only gig was dealing cards at some shady underground casino. She took one look at me and decided she did not like what she saw. "Some people think they're all that just because they got into Camford University, but they're still mooching off my family," she sneered, without saying my name but making it clear who she meant.

By the time they released me in the foyer, tears were burning my eyes. The front doors opened before I reached them. Dante, Luca, and Bianca had returned. Bianca held up a diamond hair clip that glittered beneath the chandelier. “I still can’t believe something this small cost thirty thousand dollars.” Dante laughed. “If you love it, the price doesn’t matter.” “Besides,” Luca added, “your mother gave you the black card for your college wardrobe. You’re supposed to use it.” Thirty thousand dollars. More than I could earn in months of working at the café.

She was playing for the crown, the one they had buried her for. "Alaric," she whispered to the empty room. "I hope you enjoyed your peace. Because I’m coming for everything."

Kael rode beside her, laughing as the path curved through a stand of ancient oak trees. For the first time since their engagement, Seraphina forgot that she disliked him, she forgot about the assassination attempt, she forgot about the political alliance, she forgot that she was a princess, se was simply riding fast, and free, and when she reached the bridge half a horse-length ahead of Kael, she raised her hand triumphantly. "I WIN!" Kael pulled Shadow to a halt, he stared at her, then he looked at the bridge, then back at her. "You cheated."

She walked toward the bedroom door and opened it and the moment the door swung open, Kaein was standing outside. The Imperial Bodyguard immediately straightened, he placed one hand over his chest and bowed slightly. "Greetings to Her Highness." Elly--aka---Levara looked at him and for a heartbeat...something flashed through her mind. A memory and a funeral in rain. Thousands of people dressed in black, a coffin carrying the body of Princess Levara toward the Imperial Burial Ground and Kaein. He had been standing beside her even after death, his tall figure had remained perfectly still, his face expressionless as the entire nation mourned the Princess but his eyes...they had looked empty as i

It took Matteo De Luca ten years to rise from soldier to Don. I fought through all ten beside him. The year we hit rock bottom, I cast aside every shred of pride and knelt before my father, the man who had betrayed my family, just to borrow twenty rounds. Matteo looked at me, his eyes full of pain. I asked only one thing. "The day you become Don, will you let me stand beside you?" He promised me he would. After he finally took his place as Don, I reminded him of that promise. He kept cleaning his gun without looking up. "Things are tense right now. We'll talk about it later." So I never asked again. Then I stumbled across a video on a dark-web forum: Matteo being crowned Don at Manhattan's R