Ruthless King
Mice and Men Book 1 (The War of Roses Universe)
Lana Sky
Also by Lana Sky
The Ellie Gray Chronicles
Drain Me
Chain Me
The Complete Ellie Gray Chronicles
Beautiful Monsters
Crescendo
Refrain
Mezzo
Allegro
Club XXX
Maxim: Submit
Maxim: Obey
Maxim: Surrender
Maxim: The Complete Trilogy
Vadim: Control
Vadim: Corrupt
Vadim: Conquer
Vadim: The Complete Trilogy
Savage Fall Duet
King’s Men
King’s Horses
The Complete Savage Fall Duet
The War of Roses Universe
The War of Roses
XV: (Fifteen)
VII: (Seven)
I: (One)
The Complete War of Roses Trilogy
Of Mice and Men
Ruthless King
Queen of Thorns
Painted Sin
A Touch of Dark
A Taste like Sin
The Complete Painted Sin Duet
Standalones
Pretty Perfect
Crossed Lines
Dragon Triad Duet
Moth
Flame
The Complete Dragon Triad Duet
Rockstar Rebels
Dirty Lyrics (Newsletter Exclusive)
Ruthless King
Ruthless King By Lana Sky
Copyright © 2020 by Lana Sky
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Acknowledgments
Thanks so much to everyone who supported this draft along the way, including the many beta readers who provided encouragement! Please keep in mind that this story includes dark, graphic, and explicit content matter that is not suitable for readers under the age of 18—or for readers who are uncomfortable with the following subject matter: age gap relationships, explicit sex, mentions of sexual abuse, and graphic depictions of violence.
Contents
1. Don
2. Don
3. Willow
4. Willow
5. Willow
6. Willow
7. Willow
8. Willow
9. Don
10. Willow
11. Willow
12. Don
13. Willow
14. Don
15. Willow
16. Don
17. Don
18. Don
19. Willow
20. Willow
21. Don
22. Don
23. Don
24. Willow
25. Don
26. Willow
A Word from the Author
About the Author
Also by Lana Sky
1
Don
“Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.” ~Hamlet.
While I wasn’t the smartest kid in the world, I had one trait most don’t—ambition. Ambitions so grand I envisioned myself one day ruling the world—and I wasn’t satisfied with just imagining it. Sure, the dumb fantasies were no different than what most punks aspire to at that age, but I’d wanted more. More than a kid raised in the streets was entitled to.
More than I deserved.
Mama called it “dreaming,” thinking too big for my britches but, bless her soul, she was naïve when it came to the way of the world. She never taught me that dreams don’t mean shit in the long run, or that success has a price—desperation. You have to take it. With pain, with blood, by any means necessary, you take what you want.
And the easiest way to do that? Through force. Young Donatello learned that violence could garner him whatever he craved. Cars. Booze. Women.
But I also learned that there isn’t one damn thing that can’t be ripped away afterward. Despite the odds, I’d gotten my wish once, gaining everything I’d dreamed of and more. The funny thing is, I was so fixated on what I lacked, I didn’t even know it. Greed was the one constant I knew, and I only ever had one goal. Money. To have more of it than God himself, enough to have this entire city in the palm of my hand. I got that wish too—my name was feared, be it Donatello or the various monikers assigned to me by rivals. Il Mostro. The Butcher. That Violent Cunt.
Back then, I’d been stupid enough to assume that fear meant something. That fear equaled power. In his own esteem, the old Donatello was a force to be reckoned with—and if that smug little punk could see the man I am now, he’d scoff, unable to recognize himself.
A man who scrapes for what he has and appreciates every damn cent. Who knows what it means to be humble. To suffer. To bide his time and keep his fucking mouth shut.
This new man ain’t no Butcher, for damn sure. From crook to legitimate businessman. Hell, it sounds like some shitty fairy tale, but reformed or not, a man never forgets his past. If he’s smart, he’ll even learn from it.
Now, of all times, I remember a particular piece of advice—coincidentally given to me by the last bastard I ever killed myself. His name didn’t matter; he was some balding, pudgy little asshole who read Hamlet once, and thought that made him a fucking intellectual. Funny, because that “intelligence” didn’t pan out so well for him in the end. I will give him this much, though—he made an impression on me in a way few have.
“Though this be madness, there’s a method to it, see. Like Shakespeare?” he’d ranted, right before I’d put a bullet in his skull.
The madness was selling me out. The method? Using back-channel deals to frame me for extortion. In his mind, it all made sense. He wasn’t trying to set me up to save his own skin, see? By slithering his way into my inner circle like the lying cunt he was, he was merely doing me a favor by revealing how easy it could be to fuck me over. His betrayal was all for the greater good.
Unimpressed by that genius rationale, I’d reacted the only way I knew how back then.
Fast-forward almost a decade later, and karma gives me a cruel, new perspective. Finally, I understand just what the dumb son of a bitch was getting at. He wasn’t smart; hell, he wasn’t even trying to be. Logic doesn’t mean shit when you’re desperate; when you have nothing else to fall back on but insanity.
In such a mental state, everything starts looking like a good idea—like what I’m doing right now.
It’s insane to stand here before two armed guards, holding a gift wrapped by some lady in a store who assured me a woman would “enjoy such a thoughtful present.” She even tied it with a goddamn bow.
It’s insane to wear this pathetic
