He cut his own hand instead of mine. It was the kindest thing he ever did to me.

They sold me to the Sasso syndicate to seal ninety days of peace — a hostage, a clause in a contract, blood witnessed across two open palms while two armies watched. The new boss was supposed to be a monster. Kiril Sasso is worse than that, and better: a wreck of a man with shaking hands and a cruel mouth, so certain he ruins everything he touches that he'd rather bury me than risk keeping me. He locks the doors. He swears he'll end me when the ninety days run out. And when he reaches for me in the dark, he does it rough, like a man taking the one thing he's sure he isn't allowed.

I was thrown away once, a long time ago. I learned the wrong lesson from it: I don't leave. Not when he's cruel. Not when he shoves me toward the door. Not when there's a debt in a ledger neither of us has seen, waiting a very long time to come due. So I'll do the one thing that terrifies a man who's never been kept. When the doors finally open — I'll stay.

═══════ WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT ═══════

✦ Dark M/M Mafia Romance — Enemies to Lovers, Blood Vow
✦ Self-destructive boss × hostage who won't break (he cuts his own hand instead of yours)
✦ Forced Proximity — ninety days, one locked house
✦ Hurt/Comfort, Dual POV (Kiril + Eli) — broken man held, not fixed
✦ Explicit, on-page, 18+ — rough turning tender
✦ HEA guaranteed — Book 1 of a trilogy

═══════ CONTENT NOTES ═══════

Explicit on-page M/M sex (18+ / rough turning tender) / self-harm at the blood vow (he cuts his own palm) + blood / captivity + hostage / organized-crime violence / past child abandonment / HEA — not a cliffhanger, but one open season-thread.

═══════ FOR ARC READERS ═══════

If you're here for the dark, welcome home. Marked in Blood is for readers who want the broken one held instead of fixed. Book 1 of three. The Tally trilogy. HEA guaranteed.

— Emmett Vance