Thief: A dark reverse harem romance (Sterling Falls Book 1), page 1
THIEF
Sterling Falls, #1
S. Massery
Copyright © 2021 by S. Massery
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover Design by Qamber Designs
Cover Photo by Wander Aguiar
Editing by Studio ENP
Proofreading by Paige Sayer Proofreading
Contents
Introduction
KORA
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
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Acknowledgments
Also by S. Massery
About the Author
Introduction
Dear reader,
Thank you for joining me! If you are unfamiliar with my work, fair warning: my stories run dark (violence, explicit content, etc.). Sterling Falls is no different.
Reader discretion is advised.
xoxo, Sara
Prequel: THRILL
(download at smassery.com/thrill)
#1: THIEF
#2: FIGHTER
#3: REBEL
#4: QUEEN
KORA
“You’re late.” A man with a boar mask flicks his cigarette. The flash of embers falling draws my gaze, but the grotesque mask keeps it. He leans against one of the huge marble columns that make up the front side of the building. I’ve never seen a place like this before.
It feels like it was transported directly out of ancient Greece.
The door I stand in front of doesn’t have a knob, which is peculiar. And it’s at least twelve feet tall and carved in intricate patterns that all seem to interlock. I can barely make it out in the darkness.
I wring my hands. “Look, I know. I—”
“I don’t need your excuses. You’ll have to come back next time. And be punctual.”
I scowl at him. “I’m five minutes—”
“Five minutes is a lifetime. You know what an average person can do in five minutes?” He stubs out the cigarette and straightens. He saunters forward, revealing himself in the moonlight. Behind the holes of his mask, his eyes drill into mine. “You want to beat the system? Sneak in?”
This feels like a test. Or a trap.
I try to hold his gaze, but I’d rather do anything but. My skin crawls. And I’m suddenly aware that we’re alone out here—this strange man and me. Anything could happen.
“No.”
He inclines his chin. “Okay, then.”
Okay, then…
He chuckles to himself and turns, disappearing around the side of the building.
I take the marble steps down to the grass and sigh. So much for my grand plan of seeing what Olympus is all about. I’d heard rumors of it—well, not really rumors. More like gossip. The girls who live in the apartment next to mine were talking about it.
When I tentatively asked them, they mentioned the masks. And the way everyone dresses up to attend. But they didn’t say much more, and I got the sense that it was supposed to be a secret.
And now I’m alone, in an ill-fitting black dress and uncomfortable gold mask, surrounded by parked cars. Meanwhile, the people inside get to enjoy… whatever it is that happens in there.
I sigh and pull out my phone. My clutch is just large enough to accommodate it, my ID, and some cash. Enough to have got me into Olympus and then the cab fare back to my apartment. But it looks like I’ll just be calling another cab.
Except, I have no service.
How did I miss that?
I face Olympus again. To the left is an incline, and I can’t tell what’s beyond it. I head that way, glancing at my phone every few steps. My only other option would be going back down the long driveway to the main road and hoping I eventually get service.
Either way is a gamble.
So I adjust my mask and pull off my heels. I angle away from the driveway beside the building and step onto the grass. It’s cool under my bare feet. I make it past the corner of Olympus and climb the slight hill. A noise catches my attention to my left. Here, the moon is brighter. It sits low in the starless sky, huge and yellow, and gives everything an eerie feel.
And then I spot them: six people in a little circle. They’re off to the side, away from where people would be able to see them if they were entering or exiting Olympus.
I step forward, about to call out, when one lunges toward one of the others.
No one yells. No one says anything. They don’t even seem surprised by the sudden move. But the man the first one went at hunches forward, clutching his stomach, then falls. He faceplants, and the men stare down at him for a moment. One of them kicks him, and he rolls over onto his back. Something sticks out of his abdomen.
The handle of a knife?
I cover my mouth to bite back my scream. He was just stabbed—and the five others seem unperturbed. Horror fills me—but even more so when one stoops down and grabs his arms. Another one walks up and pulls the knife out, and there’s a glint of wetness on the metal. It catches the moonlight.
My stomach turns, and I fight the bile surging up my throat.
The stabbed one is dragged away, around the other side of the building. They all watch them go, too, until he rounds the corner and disappears from sight.
Then there were four.
I need… I need to report this to the police. Or someone. I creep closer, keeping my body low. I probably stand out like a beacon, but I can’t stop myself from trying to see more. How would the police catch them if I can’t give them any true details?
I keep close to the grass, one hand pressed into the earth to stabilize myself, and stop only twenty feet away. Enough to see them clearer.
Three of them wear masks, like they came out of Olympus. The fourth is older, tall and lean with a trim goatee. He’s maskless but seems unbothered by it.
“You sure about this, Hades?” The maskless man shakes his head. “He was in my circle.”
Two wear skull masks with horns—but they’re markedly different. The first is an animal skull, a deer or something with a long nose bone that extends past the man’s own nose. Even in the moonlight, I can see the streaks of gold on his bare chest. And the second seems like the Devil himself. The pale skull looks human, minus the lower jaw, and black horns curl out of the temples.
The human-skull one grunts. Is he Hades? “We don’t get things wrong.”
“Of course.” The man pulls something from his pocket and tosses it.
The third, with a red mask and red jacket, catches it. He thumbs through the roll of cash, then jerks a nod. “Pleasure doing business with you.”
The maskless man follows behind the other two.
“Apollo,” someone calls from behind them. Warm light spills out from inside Olympus. “They’re ready.”
The one with the animal mask turns back to the doorway—one I had missed, set into a dark alcove in the side of the marble—and waves at the new person. The door clicks shut.
And then he turns back, and his gaze finds me.
Shit.
“We have an audience,” he informs the other two.
I straighten, ignoring the ice pouring down my spine. Because… yeah. I’m screwed. But I may as well look them in the eye, right? I’ve learned to take punishments like that. I’ve learned that men hate when you keep looking at them, even after they try to beat you down.
I found out the hard way.
Hades saunters toward me. His long stride eats the distance. Behind his mask, his eyes are shadowed. His full lips press together, revealing his displeasure.
Snakes writhe in my belly.
“I’m sorry—”
He stops in front of me, and my breathing halts along with it. His open shirt reveals perfect abs. My eyes fall to his shoes, then back up to his face. Even with the terrifying mask, he’s gorgeous. And very clearly deadly.
A smirk lifts the corners of his lips, like he knows the effect he has on women. There’s a cruel edge to it, though. And soon we’re joined by the other two, the red-masked man and Apollo.
After the Greek god of sun and light. I’m not sure if he’s supposed to be portraying that god exactly, though, because there’s a darker side to this man.
And the last… red. Blood drips down his chest, although it seems more like it was painted on. I don’t know who he is, but he seems soaked in violence. I can feel it in my bones.
And that brings me back to Hades. The king of the underworld. I came to experience Olympus, and now I’m standing before the gods who rule it.
Curiosity tugs at me, until Hades raises his hand and touches my cheek.
&nb
He curls his fingers around the edge of my mask and rips. The ties break easily, the gold falling away from my face. My lips part, and I automatically lift my hand to my face. My cheeks are hot. Embarrassment and fear wind under my skin, grappling to be the primary emotion.
He drops the mask and crushes it under his foot, then leans forward. “Do you know who we are?”
I shiver at the roughness in his tone. “I can guess.”
He smiles. It’s not a happy one—it’s a tempt me to do worse smile. The kind you give to your adversaries, not your friends. “What did you see?”
“N-nothing.” I step back.
He comes forward, staying right in front of me. “Why don’t I believe you?”
“Please,” I whisper. “I won’t say anything.”
“About nothing?” He tilts his head. “What would you say if you didn’t see anything?”
“I’m sorry.” My throat constricts, and I keep backing away. I drop my heels but keep my clutch close. I shouldn’t have come here. I should’ve stayed in my apartment and made friends in daylight. Or waited until I started work next week, befriended a coworker.
Stupid.
“She’s going to run,” the third says.
I glance over Hades’ shoulder at the red-masked man.
“Let her.” This from Apollo. There’s a knife in his hand, and blood on his skin. He was the one to stab the other man. To kill him.
Their stares are too intense—and they’re right. I want to run. I want to sprint as far away from here as possible. I tremble and hold firm.
Until Hades breaks his stare and glances back at Olympus.
My self-control snaps, and I spin away from them. I sprint back down the hill. But instead of angling for the road, I dodge between cars and head for the woods.
Not the best decision to go barefoot, but I can’t stay in the open. I’m not in the best shape, and I’m breathing heavily by the time I make it past the last row of cars.
For a moment, I wonder if they’re going to let me go. Then a howl breaks open the night. It’s very clearly a human voice. One of the three declaring the hunt? Full-body chills break out down my spine, and I push myself faster.
In my head, I can hear them running after me. Their laughter and pounding footsteps. It might be my imagination, though, because the only thing I can really hear is my ragged breathing.
I’m the prey they’re after.
There’s an opening in the tree line. A trail that becomes clearer the closer I get. I run for it while my heart threatens to explode out of my chest.
The forest swallows me in darkness. The trail is almost impossible to see. The trees block out all of the moonlight, and rocks dig into the bottoms of my feet. I wince when something sharp jabs the soft arch.
I fumble for my phone’s flashlight, turning it on just as another howl sounds. I flinch.
My phone falls from my grip, the bright light arcing through the air. It lands light-down on the path, and I scramble on my hands and knees to find it. Panic rises in me, constricting my throat, and I brush away fallen leaves and pine needles frantically. My fingers land on the smooth glass screen, and I check it quickly. Undamaged.
I climb to my feet. The woods have fallen silent. No more howls, no footsteps. The silence is almost worse, because I have no idea where they are. If they’re still coming after me, or if they have me right where they want me. I struggle to catch my breath, to calm my heartbeat and ease the tightness in my lungs.
But I need to keep moving. I shine it down the path and scream.
Hades strides toward me.
I backpedal and trip over something, falling hard on my ass. I ignore the spike of pain up my spine and crawl backward. “Please don’t—”
I hit legs.
Hands grab my upper arms and hoist me up, and my courage flees. The pain in my foot is overshadowed by fear and adrenaline. My phone’s flashlight shines up, illuminating the trees that seem to tip toward us.
Hades stops just in front of it. It gives him a sinister look with his mask firmly in place. And I feel strangely vulnerable without mine.
He tilts his head, then crouches and lifts my forgotten clutch.
I risk a glance over my shoulder. The red-masked man holds me close. He grins, leaning in and running his nose up the shell of my ear. Goosebumps break out all over.
“Kora Sinclair.”
I flinch against my captor’s grip.
Hades flashes my ID at me, then resumes scanning it. “Why are you here?”
“I came to see—”
“Why are you in my city, Kora Sinclair?” His eyes narrow, and his lips press into a thin line. He stalks forward and appraises me under a more critical eye. “Dressed as you are. In a hand-me-down dress and plastic mask. Did you know what you were walking into?”
I get the impression that he usually only has to ask a question once, and people snap to obey him. And with the red-masked man right at my back—and Apollo god only knows where—I should be one of those people.
But my weakness has always been that I don’t give up when I should, so I stay silent. Besides, the dress wasn’t that cheap. I set my jaw.
The red-masked man chuckles. “I like her. Maybe we should keep her.”
Keep me?
Hades shakes his head once and comes closer. He tugs on a lock of my dark hair. “Tell me.”
I stare past him. I’ve never been so glad to have changed my appearance before I left home. Because if he’s memorizing what I look like… this isn’t the real version of me. It’s just another layer I’ve created to protect myself.
But then he pulls harder, and I wince.
“A scholarship to SFU.” I hate that I admit it to him, caving just because he’s touching me. Or maybe I give in for another reason. Survival instinct finally, finally kicking in. “A full ride for next year.”
“Listen to me very closely.” He twists my hair around his fingers, forcing my head to tilt. The pressure on my scalp is on the verge of painful. “You made a mistake by coming here. And we don’t give second chances. So you’re going to leave Sterling Falls, because there’s nothing left for you here.”
He releases me and slides my ID into his front pocket. The ID that has my name, my parents’ home address. The parts of my identity that I can’t change overnight: height, weight. Birthday. Eye color.
My stomach rolls again, and I bite my tongue. The copper taste of blood fills my mouth, and my nausea worsens.
“I’m going to hold on to this.” Hades smirks. “Just in case you decide to tell anyone about what you saw. Either way… no one will believe you. As of this moment, Kora Sinclair doesn’t exist.”
The red-masked man at my back releases me. Hades steps past me, and my knees give out. I hit the ground and stare at the light on my phone. Their footsteps recede, until it’s just me in the woods.
His ominous words ring in my ears.
Kora Sinclair doesn’t exist.
Part of me wants to believe it’s a joke. That their reach can’t possibly be that long. But they killed a man without flinching. He has my ID. My name. He knows I’m here for school.
The light on my phone flickers, then dies.
And I’m left in the dark.
Chapter One
Three Months Later
The dive bar is dark and crowded. It gives off a bad sort of energy that I only picked up on after I’d been there a few times. Every time I leave, it feels like the negativity clings to my skin.
Still, no one reaches out to grab me as I wind my way through the tables. The guys lounging at their tables ignore me. The waitresses and bartender turn a blind eye.
I’m invisible—my new profession.
The man standing guard at the back room holds out his hand.
