Marrying His Rival: The Ex-Fiancé's Nightmare

I was the "Caged Canary" of the underworld, a biological asset designed to merge two crime families. My fiancé, Bryant Barnes, didn't love me. He loved the power I brought, and he loved his mistress, Kalia.

The night Kalia broke into my penthouse and stomped on my hand, crushing the bones and my fashion career, Bryant didn't help me. He told the police she was my guest and warned me not to embarrass him with a cast.

That was just the beginning. When Kalia lied about feeling unsafe, Bryant dangled me off a balcony. When she faked a kidnapping, he locked me in an industrial freezer for six hours until I turned blue. And when I fell into the marina, he swam right past me to save her, leaving me to drown in the freezing water.

He destroyed my body and my dignity for a woman who was stealing my designs and faking a pregnancy. He thought I was just a broken obligation he could discard.

But he made a fatal mistake. He didn't make sure I was dead.

I dragged myself out of the water and made a call to his greatest rival.

On the night of our grand merger, I walked onto the stage wearing royal blue instead of white. I rolled up my sleeve to reveal the scars he gave me, looked him dead in the eye, and grabbed the microphone.

"I hereby terminate my engagement to Bryant Barnes. And I am proud to announce my betrothal to the true King of this city."

Chapter 1

Charlotte Glover POV

I stood on the precipice of the underworld's highest altar, adjusting the silk of Bryant's blood-red tie while the paparazzi screamed our names.

My burner phone vibrated against my hip, a secret pulse against the silk of my gown. The message displayed on the screen was enough to shatter the Omertà.

"He just signed the deed to the penthouse for her. Leave him tonight, or I burn the city to get you out."

I didn't flinch.

I couldn't.

Bryant Barnes was the heir to the Barnes Syndicate, a man whose family controlled every shipping container entering New York Harbor and every judge sitting in the Southern District.

He was a predator wrapped in Italian wool, a man who had executed a rival in a crowded restaurant last week simply to make a point about table etiquette.

And I was his trophy.

The Caged Canary of the Glover Crime Family.

"Smile, Charlotte," Bryant murmured, his hand gripping my waist with a pressure that promised bruises by morning. "You look like you're attending a funeral."

"Maybe I am," I whispered, forcing the corners of my mouth up as the flashbulbs blinded me.

He chuckled, a low vibration that used to make my stomach flutter but now only churned the bile in my gut.

"Don't be dramatic. It's just a charity gala. We need the press to see the unity before the merger."

The merger.

That's all I was.

A biological