Introduction
Twinkle, twinkle little star
Heathens coming, brand new scar.
Slaughter turns to pained goodbye.
Never knowing if I’ll die.
A DeAngelis family war is brewing and these heathens are the vicious ringleaders, pulling the strings of their pawns for the greatest show of all—a show that will guarantee sweet, sweet victory.
Only victory comes with a price.
The question is, what are they willing to lose to get the one thing they’ve always wanted?
They kidnapped me. Haunted me. Allowed me to believe that I could trust them, and I foolishly did. I’m in deeper than I could have known, and now there’s no going back.
When blood spilled, I ran at the first chance I got. That was my biggest mistake.
Do. Not. Run
It’s been drilled into my head since the moment they took me.
A searing bullet through the chest is enough to seal my fate, and no matter how much I scream, they refuse to believe my innocence. They’re out for blood and they won’t stop until they’ve watched the life fade from my eyes.
These heathens are nothing but the callous, cruel monsters the world has always known them to be and they hold every last card between their devious fingers. Their own flesh and blood fear them. They’ve locked them away for the greater good, but they won’t be kept down, not anymore.
This war just took a turn for the worst and navigating my way to freedom might just cost me my life.
Depraved Sinners is a New Adult, Dark, Reverse Harem, Contemporary Romance series. It contains explicit sexual content, graphic violence, drug abuse, and coarse language. It is recommended for mature readers.
Depraved Sinners is planned as a four-book series.
1
The smell of gasoline lingers in the air, wafting from the wreckage beside me as I stare up into the barrel of Roman’s gun. His eyes darken just as a gunshot rings through the night. My body flinches as a raw, terror-filled scream tears from deep in my chest, certain I’m dead. But as Roman topples toward me and barely catches himself against the wrecked car, my eyes widen in horror.
A gasp lingers on my lips as I take a mental note of my body. There’s no searing pain, no blood, no life slipping from between my fingers. That bullet was supposed to be mine, yet somehow, I’m still breathing.
The headlights from the wrecked car spread a soft glow through the property as Roman’s pained curse fills the air. He clutches his side as disbelief filters through his obsidian eyes. I watch him in horror, and as he moves his hand away from his waist, there’s just enough light for me to see the bright red blood seeping through the front of his shirt, staining his fingers.
“No,” I breathe as he hovers over me, the gun still in his hand as his hard gaze drops, taking in the stain quickly spreading from his waist.
Rage pulses through his stare and it doesn’t take a genius to know that this isn’t somewhere I want to be. All hell is about to break loose, and I’m stuck on the ground with a shard of glass protruding from my stomach. Nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide.
I swallow hard as his eyes shoot back up to mine. “Don’t fucking move.”
Roman spins, immediately clocking the gunman across the expansive property. The man is not alone. Two others stand on either side of him, all three of their guns raised high. It’s hard to see from here, but there’s something eerily familiar about these men.
“Who are they?” I gasp, a soft whimper tearing from my throat the moment the words pass my lips. My hand clutches the shard of glass as my heels dig into the cool grass, desperately trying to propel myself away from Roman and what’s bound to be a fatal shootout.
No one shoots at one of the DeAngelis brothers and expects to get away with their life. If you’re stupid enough to take a shot, then you better make it count. Unfortunately for these fuckers, they just sealed their fate, but I can’t find it within myself to hate them because their recklessness just bought me precious seconds. Without them, I’d already be dead.
Barely a moment has passed when the three strange men begin spreading out, knowing that one missed shot at Roman puts their lives in immediate danger. There’s no doubt about it, they will die tonight, the only question is, will I die along with them?
Roman clocks their every step, somehow managing to keep a skilled eye on all three of them as they move in different directions.
Anger washes over his face and he clenches his jaw, clearly not in the mood to be dealing with this shit while he has his heart set on killing me for the crime he believes I’ve committed against Marcus. He’s unforgiving, brutal, and lethal. A man like Roman doesn’t hang around to ask questions. He acts first, thinks later, and this may be my only shot at keeping myself alive.
Roman groans and crouches down, hiding behind the wrecked car as he looks back at me, irritation strong in his fiery eyes. His jaw is clenched and his breathing labored. It’s clear that the bullet wound through his waist is causing him pain, but it’s not enough to slow him down. He’s a machine, a soldier, just as his father raised him to be.
He reaches for me, and I flinch as he wraps his strong hand around the glass protruding from my stomach. My eyes widen, realizing what he’s about to do. “No, no, no, no, no,” I rush out, the fear overwhelming my already aching body.
Too fucking late.
He grips the glass and yanks it out of my waist as a searing pain tears through my stomach. “FUCK,” I cry, tears brimming in my eyes. The glass is tossed aside, shattering on the wide driveway, but Roman doesn’t give me a moment to recover. He grabs my arm and gives a hard tug, pulling me closer to the wrecked car and keeping me hidden from the three men who want him dead.
“Don’t fucking move,” he demands again, the smell of gasoline getting stronger in the air.
I search his deadly eyes, still trying to pull myself away from the man who wants to end my life. “What does it matter?” I spit, tugging my arm free and holding onto the groan as each little movement reminds me that I was just in a car wreck. “You want me dead anyway. I might as well take my chances with these guys.”
Roman leans in and grips my chin between his strong fingers, making it impossible to pull away. “You’re not going anywhere,” he growls, relentless with his tight grip. “You shot my brother and shit like that will not go unpunished. Make no mistake, Shayne, you will die by my hand, but not like this. I want to feel your screams shattering my eardrums as your life slowly slips away.”
“I didn’t do it,” I cry for what feels like the millionth time. “That hooded bitch shot him. She told me to run, she wanted me gone and I told her no. I wanted to stay with him. I would never hurt him like that. Why can’t you believe me?”
Roman scoffs and looks back toward the three men slowly moving in, finally releasing my chin. “My castle is a fucking fortress, Shayne. No one gets in or out without me knowing. I knew you were fucking stupid, but I didn’t take you for a liar.”
Fury pulses through my veins, the very thought of being labeled a liar grating on my every nerve. I’m a lot of things, but not that. “I’m not lying,” I spit through a clenched jaw, pushing up off the cool grass to protect myself better when I should be trying to get away. “After everything you’ve put me through, do you honestly think I’d do something like this? You’re wasting your time coming after me when you should be trying to find her. You’ve had me locked up, for fuck’s sake. If I did this, then where the hell did this car come from? Where would I have gotten the gun? Your stupidity is allowing her to get away.”