Novels by Dorathy Charles

Kael’s POVDarkness swallowed the warehouse. One second the lights were on; the next, everything vanished. The only sounds left were the storm outside and my own heartbeat slamming violently against my ribs. “What happened?” I shouted. “Don’t panic,” Marcus said immediately, like it was easy for him to say.Raven moved instantly beside me. I couldn’t fully see her in the darkness, but I heard the metallic click of a gun being loaded. “They cut the power,” she said coldly.Outside, thunder exploded across the sky, and I heard the sound of lots of slow and organized footsteps getting closer that made my blood run cold. Those were Lucien’s men, and I backed away instinctively while trying to control my breathing. This couldn’t be happening again; we had just escaped, so how the hell did he find us so fast?Raven grabbed my wrist suddenly and shoved a cold gun into my hand, which I nearly dropped. “What the hell?” “Safety’s off,” she whispered. “I don’t know how to use this!” “You’ll lear

Kael’s POVWe didn’t stop running until my lungs felt shredded. Rain hammered the streets of Blackthorn City while Raven dragged me through narrow alleys and abandoned roads like she already knew every escape route in the city. The word “assassin” still echoed bitterly in my head as I glanced at her running ahead of me. She was cold, fast, and deadly, and apparently she was originally supposed to kill me.My shoulder burned with every movement while blood continued soaking through my hoodie, and Marcus ran behind us surprisingly well for an older man. “How are you not tired?” I shouted breathlessly. “Fear is excellent exercise!”We cut through another alley before Raven suddenly shoved open a rusted metal door hidden behind stacked crates. “Come inside.” I stumbled into darkness. The place smelled like dust, oil, and old smoke, and it looked like an abandoned warehouse. Raven slammed the door shut behind us and locked it immediately.For the first time all night, there was silence, no

Kael’s POVGunfire erupted beneath the bridge, and the first bullet slammed into the concrete inches from my face, spraying dust into my eyes as Raven yanked me behind one of the support pillars. “Move!” she yelled. Men flooded the bridge from both ends like shadows spilling into the rain. They wore black suits, had assault rifles, and wore cold expressions. Those were Lucien’s people, and my heart slammed violently against my ribs. Marcus crouched behind a car nearby, surprisingly calm for an old man caught in a shootout. “Raven!” he shouted. “Get him out!” “Oh, that’s the plan?” she yelled back while firing two quick shots. One of the attackers dropped instantly, and I stared at her in disbelief. “How are you this calm?” I asked, and she shot me an irritated look. “Because panicking gets people killed.”Another SUV screeched beneath the bridge, and more armed men jumped out. They were way too damn many. Raven cursed softly. “This is bad.” “Is that your professional opinion?” “Yes.”

Kael’s POVThe call ended, and rain continued crashing around us beneath the train bridge, but it seemed like I couldn’t hear any of it as Lucien’s final words echoed through my skull over and over again.Did your mother ever mention the key? I slowly lowered the phone, and Raven was already watching me carefully. “What did he say?” My throat felt strangely tight. “He asked about a key.” For the first time since meeting her, Raven’s expression actually shifted into real shock. “What kind of key?” “I don’t know.” “That’s impossible," I snapped. “Well, welcome to my night because apparently everything is impossible!”My voice echoed beneath the bridge as I dragged both hands through my wet hair, trying to breathe through the chaos destroying my mind.This couldn’t be real; there was no way any of this could be real. Yesterday I was worried about hospital bills and Selena cheating on me. Now armed killers were hunting me because of some underground empire connected to a father I never kn

Kael’s POVThe footsteps downstairs multiplied rapidly, and I knew there were at least six men or more. Rain battered the broken windows of the abandoned building while thunder shook the walls hard enough to rattle dust from the ceiling. My shoulder burned where the bullet had grazed me, warm blood soaking through my hoodie, but somehow the pain barely registered anymore because my brain was still stuck on one sentence.Most hunted man in Blackthorn City.I stared at the blonde woman and yelled, “Who the hell are you?”She ignored the question completely; instead, she moved toward a nearby table and calmly assembled another gun, like this was a normal Tuesday night for her.Metal clicked softly beneath her fingers, precise, practiced, and dangerous. “You know,” she said casually, “most people say thank you after being saved.” “You pointed a gun at me.” “But you’re still alive; that's a fair point.” Another crash echoed downstairs, and a male voice shouted, “Search every floor!”Adrena

Kael’s POVThe door burst open, and three men stepped inside. They wore black suits and black gloves and had silenced guns. They were not cops or ordinary criminals either, and they moved too calmly and professionally.The red emergency lights painted their faces like demons as terrified nurses backed away, screaming. One of the gunmen scanned the room before his gaze landed on me and he smiled. My blood turned to ice.“There he is.”Every instinct inside me screamed danger, and my mother gripped my wrist harder. “RUN!”Gunfire exploded, and the doctor beside me dropped instantly, with blood spraying across the wall. The nurses screamed, and everything turned chaotic. I ducked on pure instinct as bullets shattered the glass behind me. “What the hell!”A hand grabbed my hoodie suddenly, and I turned to see it was my mother. Her terrified eyes locked onto mine. “There’s a back exit,” she gasped desperately. “Go!” “I’m not leaving you!” “You have to!”Another gunshot tore through the roo