Serpent King's Bride: A Dark Mafia Romance Trilogy

I should have been content in this moment, surrounded by the warmth of family connection—a rare respite from my dealings as part of the Serpents. But tranquility was rare these days, not with Ba’s shadow looming over us, even when he wasn’t present.

My gaze lingered on Abby; she played the part of my girlfriend perfectly, pretending to lack any care in the world. Seeing her like this, feigning innocence, the desire to protect her was overwhelming. I knew too well the darkness that touched those caught in the Serpents’ coils. Ba wouldn’t hesitate to use—or hurt—anyone to keep his empire strong, his enemies closer.

“Everything smells amazing, Ma,” I called out, attempting to push aside the anxiety clawing at my thoughts.

“Thank you, baobei. You could join us and learn something,” she teased, her voice carrying the familiar warmth that always seemed to make the room brighter.

I chuckled, but it didn’t reach my eyes. A chill had settled deep within me, a constant companion since Alex disappeared. I couldn’t shake the conviction that Alex hadn’t betrayed us. If the Serpents weren’t behind the attacks, then who was? And more importantly, what did they want with us?

“Maybe next time,” I replied, my voice hollow. “Looks like you’ve got enough help for now.”

Abby glanced my way, her eyes catching mine as I leaned against the doorframe. Her smile was a simple curve of lips, yet it struck deep within me, stirring a cocktail of emotions I couldn’t indulge.

I wanted to despise her for the secrets I suspected she still kept, to push her away to protect her from the life I was ensnared in. But more than anything, I wanted to pull her close, to shield her with my own body from the storm I felt brewing on the horizon. My heart twisted at the thought that maybe, just maybe, I should tell her to run—to find safety with her father who could whisk her away from San Francisco, out of the Serpent’s jaws.

But before a word could escape my lips, Ba’s voice sliced through the momentary peace. “Is dinner not ready?”

“Actually,” I interjected, forcing a casual grin as I pushed off the doorframe. “I’m sure it will be even more delicious with the extra care they’re putting into it.”

Ba’s eyes narrowed at me, the flicker of annoyance in his gaze unmistakable. It was as if he could sense my newfound rebellion, taste the defiance I was barely keeping leashed.

“Helping hands make lighter work,” I said, brushing past him to join Ma in the kitchen. The clinking of dishes punctuated the mounting tension as I took the steaming plates from her, our fingers briefly touching. Her smile was strained but warm—an anchor in the chaos.

As we laid out the meal on the table, I could feel the fractures in our family like cracks in thin ice. Justin’s chair sat empty, a silent rebuke. Alex’s absence was a gaping hole—a reminder that loyalty was a fragile thing, easily shattered.

It was a change, a seismic shift within me. I had always been the dutiful son, Ba’s right hand. But now, as I looked around the table at the faces of my family, a deep anger boiled within me, focused squarely on the man who had sired me.

Ba—the Serpent—was the one tearing us apart, and the realization tasted like bile.

We gathered around the table, a cloud of steam from the dishes between us. Ma’s laughter mingled with the clatter of chopsticks against porcelain. She was chatting with Lily and Abby, somehow still bright even with the tension. I marveled at her strength, her ability to sidestep Ba’s dark moods as if dancing through shadows.

She didn’t say a word about Justin or Alex, but the absence of my brothers hung heavy in the air, a silent storm cloud over our heads. It was breaking Ma’s heart, I knew that much. The void where they should have been ate at me too—like acid, it gnawed at the edges of my conscience.

Ba finished his food with a final, deliberate bite, scraping his chopsticks across the bowl as he set them down. The sound seemed louder than it should have been, echoing off the walls and sucking the warmth from the room. He cleared his throat, a commanding rumble that drew eyes like a magnet.

The chatter died instantly, the air thickening until it felt like we were all submerged in deep water. Everyone’s gaze fixed on Ba, even Ma’s smile faltering as she anticipated what might come next. I clenched my jaw, the muscles working as I braced for the impact of whatever decree Ba was about to deliver.

Ba clasped his hands in front of him, and I could see the veins bulging slightly, a network of power and control that held our family in an iron grip.

“It’s high time we closed ranks,” he began, his voice steady and sure. The words were cold, formal, the prelude to something I knew carried weight. “That means it’s time for both Abby and Lily’s Triad initiation.”

The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees. A shiver passed through me, but not from the chill. Memories surged like a flood, dark and tumultuous, dragging me back to when I was fourteen.

I remembered Ba’s return from Hong Kong, the way he had dragged me to a meeting with his men, my stomach churning with fear and a desperate need to please.

Take the vows, he had said then.

And I did, reciting them while trying to keep my voice from shaking. But it wasn’t the vows that haunted me—it was what came after. The ritual was nothing compared to being handed a gun, the metal cold and heavy in my trembling hands.

Now make your bones, Ba had instructed, his eyes dark pits in the dim room. Prove you are one of us.

And I had.

With a shot that echoed louder than anything I’d ever heard, I crossed a line I could never uncross. The life I took that night was the first stone in a path leading straight to hell—a path I was still on.

I swallowed hard, pushing the memory into the depths of my past where it belonged. My hands curled into fists under the table, nails digging into my palms. Abby was ready, she’d seen the worst of me and this business…but Lily was innocent.

The cost was too high, and the blood spilled would never wash clean.