Cusp of Darkness


 
 
 Cusp of Darkness
 The Cusp Series: Book One
 Olivia Preya
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Copyright
 
 
 
 
 
 C
 opyright
 ©
 2022
 by
 Olivia Preya
 All rights reserved.
 No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review and certain other non-commercial use permitted by copyright law.
 Resemblance to actual persons and things living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.
 
 Cusp of Darkness
 :
 
 Editor
 : Amy Briggs
 
 Proofreader
 : Jesse Briggs
 
 Cover Designer
 : Maria at Steamy Designs
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 To Taryn: Here’s to manifesting real-life romances like the ones in books (without the excessive drama that often goes with it).
 
 
 
 
 
 Contents . Chapter CONTENT NOTES Prologue 1. Valerius (6 years later) 2. Adaliya 3. Valerius 4. Adaliya 5. Valerius 6. Adaliya 7. Valerius 8. Adaliya 9. Adaliya 10. Adaliya 11. Adaliya 12. Valerius 13. Adaliya 14. Valerius 15. Valerius 16. Adaliya 17. Valerius 18. Adaliya 19. Adaliya 20. Valerius 21. Adaliya 22. Adaliya 23. Adaliya 24. Adaliya 25. Adaliya 26. Valerius 27. Valerius 28. Adaliya 29. Valerius 30. Adaliya Epilogue ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS About the Author 
 
 
 
 
 Valerius Cafarelli
 
 In my world, we live and die for our family. We brand our skin with symbols of loyalty and rank that bind us together. It’s time to step from behind the scenes and claim my birthright, leader of the Cafarelli family. But the mafia is nothing if not set in tradition. Marriage is the only way to claim what’s rightfully mine.
 When the angel I’ve protected from a distance suddenly needs me as much as I need her, I make an offer she can’t refuse.
 She is a candle in the night.
 She is a prayer to the gods.
 She is the knife that brings me to my knees.
 —
 
 Adaliya Solarin
 
 I took an oath to save lives, trying to redeem myself from a bloody night where I played judge, jury, and executioner. I worked hard to erase all traces of the night I claimed revenge, but my mind can’t forget the man who ensured I’d never be put away for my crime.
 Now I need someone to help me save my father from himself. When I’m left desperate and defeated, the man who saved me once offers one last chance at survival. What can I do but make a deal with the devil?
 He is the bump in the night.
 He is my darkest temptations come to life.
 He is my salvation.
 
 Cusp of Darkness is book one of the Cusp series but can be read as a standalone. It has a guaranteed HEA, swoon-worthy anti-hero, and badass heroine. This is an interracial mafia romance containing explicit sex scenes, graphic violence, and is recommended for readers 18
 +. For the full list of content warnings, please visit oliviapreya.ca
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 CONTENT NOTES
 
 
 
 
 
 T
 his
 story
 contains
 explicit
 sexual content, profanity, graphic violence, and topics that may be sensitive to some readers. Recommended for readers 18+. A detailed list of content warnings can be found at oliviapreya.ca.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Prologue
 
 
 
 
 
 W
 hat
 did
 I
 do?
 What did I do
 ?
 The roaring in my ears rivaled a sports arena during playoffs. A deafening noise crowded out every sound except for the blood pounding through my body. But the sight in front of me was not a team sport.
 It was a dead man.
 Derrek Case lay on the marble floor, sprawled with red oozing from wounds in his torso and soaking both his white shirt and the ground.
 He had been shot not once, not twice, but at least three times. Blood welled up at the corners of his mouth and slowly trickled down his face. But it was his eyes that damned my soul, empty and unseeing but turned in my direction. My stomach churned at the sinister twist of his lifeless face.
 I didn’t remember shooting him, but I knew his death was at my hands. I had read about trauma responses in a class, where the brain would block out traumatic events to protect itself. There may be a gap in my memory, but it didn’t lessen the impact of my actions. What I did remember was him pointing the barrel of the gun at me, a struggle, and then the sight of my hand wrapped around the handle of a deadly weapon and his body on the floor.
 The blackness of his eyes reached up and grabbed my focus, not letting me turn away, demanding I face the consequences of my actions. Reminding me I decided to take on the role of judge, jury, and executioner. I tried to find sorrow or regret within me but came up empty. He deserved to die for his sins. But the fact I was the one to pull the trigger and end a life blackened my vision. I was a murderer.
 “Oh, god.” I moaned and dropped the gun. The piercing sound of metal on the marble floor made me flinch as it shattered the silence around me.
 My body shook so hard my teeth were chattering. The adrenaline coursing through my veins plummeted.
 I was going to vomit.
 “Don’t move,” a rough voice barked from behind me. I instinctively let out a yelp and threw my hands up, splaying my fingers.
 Cops. The cops were here. How did they get here so quickly? They had to have seen everything. I was going to jail. “Please, officer,” I begged, but for what? I had no idea. I