Page 1 of Desecrated Reign

PROLOGUE

ROHAN

I’m standing on the precipice of life, peering through a looking glass—a spectator of my existence.

Around me, the echo of living blurs into an unrecognisable symphony of dissonance. Reality becomes transparent, fading further and further into the distance. Above us, a smattering of burnt ash cascades through the ignited sky, floating through the air like a thousand black feathers before finally settling on the asphalt. The brutal scent of charcoaled metal, burning rubber, and scalded flesh infiltrates my nostrils.

My thoughts disjoint, and I fight to regain my composure.

Liam.

My car.

The knowing look in Liam’s eyes as he accepted his fate.

Finally, the explosion licked the gunmetal grey paint with ravenous flames.

I blink rapidly, my brow line furrowing and teeth clenching as I struggle to wade through the disorientation. Peering over my shoulder, my vision strains to take in my surroundings. Directly behind us, Lorcan holds Éanna against his chest, her head buried in the crock of his neck as her body heaves violently. Beyond them, seeping down the expansive steps of Kill Castle, people rush from the building in droves. They’re searching for the source of the boom, stopping with wide eyes and mouths agape when they see my Aventador alight. Lips move and wild, waving hands punctuate the panic, but I can’t decipher a single word being flung at me because all I can hear is the haunting resonance of pure, undulated chaos.

I don’t know how long I stay perplexed by the madness swirling around me. But as

Saoirse’s gut-wrenching cries break past the loud wail, she becomes my sole focus. Desperate to protect the girl in my arms from the debris, I ignore the sharp sting burning through my shoulder blade and wrap myself around Saoirse’s flailing body. Pain streaks her cheeks with tears, and the sight wields a glass sledgehammer into my chest. She’s breaking in my arms, so I hold her tighter, moulding her to my front as her limbs fight against me.

Her muted words fade into the resound of chaos invading my eardrums, but the unmerciful reverberation of her heart ripping from her chest punctuates each dampened word. Tears coat her cheeks, and they slice through my flesh with the sharpness of a hook, shredding my blackened soul open.

“I’ve got you,” I whisper against her neck. “Mo bhanríon, I promise, I’ve got you.” I fasten my hold around her waist, tethering myself to the only lifeline I can find while silently wishing I could erase this night from existence.

In the distance, sirens shriek with the drawn-out cadence of elongated vowels, adding to the overwhelming pressure building in my head. I can only focus on the delicate doll rattling in my grasp as I rock her back and forth, trying to find her through the curdling screams ripping from her core. Her body jerks with every breath. Each heave claws from her soul as she cries out Liam’s name.

There is no uncertainty, no hope, no fucking faith. The truth lies within the destruction.

A Killybegs king has fallen.

He knew it. The one click that would ultimately be his end. There was no escape, no easy fix. I knew it, too. No matter what I did, there was no saving him. I saw the determination reflecting in his eyes, the plea as he silently begged me to stay put—to stop her from losing us both. Don't do it, man. Don’t kill us both.

He made a choice, and so did I.

Saving him wasn’t an option.

Devin Liam Devereux is gone.

1

SAOIRSE

My toes dangle above the water, almost breaching the surface as I swing my legs back and forth over the edge of the dock. Eyes fixed on the horizon, I watch the sun dip behind the trees. The sky is lit up with a mesmerising blend of fuchsia, coral and lavender, and I lose myself in the hues. I’ve always loved the lake, but now, the place that once felt the most like home holds nothing more than painful memories and teenage dreams.

Drawing my gaze from the sunset, I survey the carved heart etched into the pier post. Slowly, my finger rises to the indented letters, tracing each one with a gentle touch. My top teeth sink into my lower lip, and I close my eyes and force back the sting of tears welling behind my lashes. A heavy intake of breath fills my nose, clogging my throat but not quite reaching my lungs, before it rushes from my mouth with a huffed exhale. The pine scent, algae-covered rocks, and briny water doesn’t ease my chest ache.

Eyes still clenched shut, I try to find calm in the gentle breeze whispering across my cheeks. The wayward strands of hair tickling my face bring back memories of summer days running along the shoreline with laughter in the air. And although there should be solace in the cherished memories and stolen moments, I can’t stop the hot tears from escaping. I let them roll down my face, dampening my skin with sadness.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He was never meant to leave me. Wrecked by the broken promise of forever, I finally open my eyes and roar into the sunset. “You fuckin’ promised!” Defeat curls around my words, dulling the force behind them until they’re nothing more than a heaving whisper. “Y-you promised.”

“You’re right.”

My head whips up so fast, my toes break past the surface, and I almost lose my balance. There he is, standing on the water, metres from the shore, with a broad, beaming smile curled on his lips as humour dances in his eyes. I drink in the sight of him—a black tux cloaks the artwork that covers his skin, and the fading sun glistens off the piercings on either side of his nose. In his left hand is a pink dahlia rose, which he holds out in an offering.

My breath lodges as I fight against reality. “How? How are you here? You’re… you’re—” I stutter, unable to finish my sentence.

---