Ruthless Crown

Ruthless Crown: An Arranged Marriage Dark Mafia Romance (The Gallagher Crime Family Book 1) Copyright © 2023 S.R. Watson & Ryan Stacks www.watsonandstacks.com This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, actual events or locales is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction. The publication of these trademarks is not associated with or sponsored by the trademark owner. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without the express written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. To obtain permission to excerpt portions of the text, please contact the authors at [email protected] Editor: Jenny Sims of Editing4Indies Cover Designer: Sommer Stein of Perfect Pear Creative Covers Model: Ryan Stacks Photographer: Jean Maureen Woodfin CONTENTS Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-One Chapter Twenty-Two Chapter Twenty-Three Chapter Twenty-Four Chapter Twenty-Five Chapter Twenty-Six Chapter Twenty-Seven Chapter Twenty-Eight Chapter Twenty-Nine Chapter Thirty Chapter Thirty-One Chapter Thirty-Two Epilogue SNEAK PEEK ~ Phoenix Rising: Issue#1 Ruthless Crown Playlist Other Books by S.R. Watson & Ryan Stacks About S.R. Watson About Ryan Stacks PROLOGUE Lennon Gunshots ring out in the alley below. My hackles rise with dread, my intuition laced with guilt. I never should have agreed to separate. The middle-aged prostitute before me doesn’t flinch, seemingly unfazed by the shots fired as this is likely her constant reality. We came here to get information on the decline of business. Some of our file soldiers run a prostitution racket and are allowed to operate under the contingency that a hefty percentage be given to my father, the Clan Chief. Although not in the best of neighborhoods, this hotel was afforded to them to get the prostitutes off the streets and somewhere more secure for their transactions. My father suspects that the money CHAPTER ONE Lennon I stare blankly at the dried blood crusted around my nail beds— the essence of life exsanguinated around each of my fingers. My latest target was someone’s husband, someone’s father, yet remorse eludes me. I feel nothing; the numbness won’t allow it. My soul has a fiery fate of much more detriment than the life I just ended. Until then, my sins of darkness will reign unapologetically. This was who I was groomed to be. With the wall at my back, I push to my feet from the floor. I can’t let midnight propel me into another day without serving my penance, my palate cleanser to reset my body count. I walk over to my