Cruel Throne – Ava Harrison

I head toward the stairs. “Because she’s the one thing in this house more dangerous than me.” Their eyes widen, but neither asks for clarification. Smart men. I head outside and approach my car, sliding into the driver’s seat. Then I’m peeling down the long driveway. My estate sits in the middle of nowhere. It’s private and fortified like a fortress. I bought it the second I turned twenty-one. My salary wasn’t enough to afford this beast of a house. Neither was saving every penny. Nope, it was the inheritance I received from my father’s passing, with interest, that sealed the deal.

Because, as it so happened, when I turned twenty-one, my uncle told me about the money he had put aside for me, my father’s portion of the family business. I drive fast, one hand on the wheel, jaw tight. The road lines blur beneath my headlights. My brain is a fucking mess. I shouldn’t have married her because every time I look at her, the eighteen-year-old version of me—the boy I killed to survive—tries to claw his way out of the grave.

And I don’t have space for him. Not anymore. It’s not long before the Amante estate comes into view. Iron gates open by the time I reach them, and guards nod me through. I pull into the courtyard, step out of the car, and straighten my jacket before striding toward the entrance. Inside, Matteo waits beside the staircase, arms crossed. His dark hair is a mess from running his hands through it. “You certainly took your time.”

I make a show of looking at my watch. “It took me less than an hour to get here.” “Where have you been the past few days?” “I was busy,” I reply. “With what?” “Not killing someone,” I say, shrugging. “Barely managed.” “Great,” Matteo sighs, rubbing his temples. “Just what the family needs. A Lorenzo mid-spiral moment.”

“You love my spirals.” I grin, but it’s empty. He snorts. “Let’s get this over with.” We walk down the hall to my uncle’s office. Two guards open the doors the moment they see us. My uncle stands behind his desk. He’s a large and formidable man, despite being in his fifties with graying hair and eyes like polished obsidian.

He doesn’t smile. He doesn’t look relieved. He looks impatient. “Lorenzo.” He extends a hand. “Good. You’re here.” I shake it, my expression neutral. “I was told it was urgent.” “It is.” He gestures toward a map laid out across the table. “Someone is making a move against us.” “Yes, Father.” Matteo steps forward. “We already confirmed the skimming—” “This is more than skimming.”

My uncle interrupts, slamming his palm on the map.

Published by AH Publishing All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, including photocopying, recording or by information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locations is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products, brands, and/or restaurants referenced in the work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. Cruel Throne Cover Design: Hang Le Editor: Editing4Indies Content Editor: Readers Together Proofreader: Virginia Carey OceanofPDF.com CONTENTS Author Note The Beginning Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 The Middle Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Chapter 55 Chapter 56 Chapter 57 Chapter 58 Chapter 59 Chapter 60 Chapter 61 Chapter 62 Chapter 63 Chapter 64 Chapter 65 The Present Chapter 66 Chapter 67 Chapter 68 Epilogue Acknowledgments About the Author Also by Ava Harrison OceanofPDF.com AUTHOR NOTE This is Lorenzo Amante’s villain origin story.

This story takes place before the Corrupt Empire Series. You do not have to read those books to read this and this won’t spoil the other books. Enjoy! For a full list of triggers, please head to shor.by/CTTrigger OceanofPDF.com THE BEGINNING OCEANOFPDF.COM 1 Lorenzo Mom keeps her hand clamped around my wrist like she thinks I’ll bolt.

To be fair, I might. The Danforth family estate rises in front of us—if you can even call it an estate. Estates are lawns and fences and maybe a fountain if the owners want to brag. This? This is…obscene. A peninsula jutting into the Long Island Sound, like a giant hand reaching out to strangle the ocean. The mansion looks less like a house and more like something ripped out of a documentary about robber barons.

White stone columns, glass walls that catch the morning sun, balconies stacked like gold. Every inch of it screams money. Old money. The kind that buys influence, hides sins, and buries bodies beneath a philanthropic foundation.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

Book Information

• Unique ID: d1bf1bdba720c73e
• File Extension: .pdf
• File Size: 3,421,672 bytes (3.263 MB)
• Title: –
• Author: Unknown
• Pages: 423
• Language: English (en)

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• Estimated Reading Time: 563.14 minutes
• Total Words: 112,629
• Total Characters: 609,813
• Average Words per Page: 266.26
• Average Characters per Page: 1441.64

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