Sirius Black Novels & Stories

Chapter 1 I never should have answered Daddy’s text. But when the notification lit up my phone at 9 p.m.—Come to Blackwood Tower tonight. We need to discuss your trust fund. Now.—I couldn’t ignore it. Not when it came from Richard Blackwood, founder and chairman of Blackwood Enterprises, the man who’d built a billion-dollar empire from nothing and spoiled me rotten every step of the way. I am Sophia Blackwood. Twenty-one. Only child. Heiress to everything.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the obsidian table. "Seize my assets?" Killian repeated, a predatory smirk touching his lips. He snapped his fingers. Marcus, who was standing quietly in the corner, stepped forward and placed a single, thin tablet on the table, sliding it toward the Mayor and the General. "General," Killian’s voice dropped to a lethal, corporate whisper. "Blackwood Heavy Industries manufactures the turbines for your stealth bombers. Blackwood Financial holds forty percent of the municipal debt of New York State. And the energy grid that my Queen just saved from a multidimensional cosmic horror? I own the servers that route it."

The victory lasts exactly sixteen hours. Saturday morning, Lucian’s phone rings at six AM. Marcus. Never good news at six AM. “Turn on CNBC,” Marcus says. No greeting. Lucian grabs the remote. I wake beside him. “What’s wrong?” “I don’t know yet.” The news anchor’s voice fills the room. “Breaking news in the Blackwood Technologies saga. Three major investors have issued a joint statement expressing concern over CEO Lucian Blackwood’s recent board retention despite what they’re calling ‘clear conflicts of interest.’”

Within seconds, more than thirty black armored SUVs surrounded the estate from every direction. None carried license plates. None displayed insignias. Only a silver crest engraved on the doors. A crown resting above a serpent. Grace’s face turned pale. “They’re here.” Damien studied the emblem. “You know them.” Grace nodded. “They’re called… the Circle.” “The men who financed Black Hollow.” Daniel frowned. “I thought Black Hollow was destroyed.” “It wasn’t.” “It simply changed owners.” The lead SUV stopped at the broken estate gates. Its engine fell silent. No one stepped out.

“Then we'll find another solution.” She ended the call and sighed. Lucas walked into the room. “Problem?” Stella turned. “You heard that?” “Enough to know you're worried.” She sat down. “The company has been under pressure since yesterday.” Lucas sat opposite her. “Is it the same investors?” “Yes.” “Who are they?” Stella hesitated. “Blackstone Holdings.” Lucas's expression remained calm. But the name immediately caught his attention. He had heard it before from Xavier. It was one of the companies suspected of having connections to powerful underground figures.

"I'm fine." "You sound as if you're about to cry." "I've had a long night." "What happened?" I was silent. She knew me too well. "Serena." I sighed. "Damien told me something tonight." "What?" "He owns the Blackwood Capital Houston." She kept silent for a bit, like she was trying to really capture what I was saying. "What?" "He owns it." "The company that invested in the Sovereign?" "Yes." "Oh." There was enough shock in that one word for me to nearly smile.

Thirteen chairs. Thirteen positions that have been passed between families for generations. People upstairs think money runs Blackthorne. They’re wrong. Money buys buildings. Names buy influence. The Thirteen control what happens inside them. “Are you planning on joining us tonight, or should we give you another ten minutes to stare at the fucking wall?” My eyes move across the table.

“Miss Scarlett, do you actually have any knowledge of Moonlight’s research and development?” I tried to respond twice and got cut off both times, the questions overlapping each other with everyone talking at once. Before I could continue a dignified man in the middle of the audience stood up, his face set with and filled with displeasure. I recognized him before he opened his mouth. Alpha Xavier of Blackwood. One of Killian’s biggest investors in my previous life, a man with a reputation for being loud about his dissatisfaction and being difficult in every room he walked into. He was not someone who softened his opinions.

“What kind of insolence is this?” “I’m the one running this pack now,” Sirius replied evenly. “What?” The Gamma stared at him in disbelief. Sirius stepped forward and laid the unsigned document on the desk. “My grandfather refused to sign it.” The Gamma glanced down at the papers before looking back at Sirius. “Have you lost your mind?” he snapped. “This is treason!” “Shh…” Sirius lifted a finger to his lips. “You’re telling me something I already know.” He leaned over the desk, his voice dropping into something far more dangerous.