Phantom Flower (The Void Kings)

Chapter 1

Rei Kurosaki

It had been one year.

One painful year since they had buried my dad in the cold ground and my whole life had been ripped apart. One year since I had been torn away from cherry blossom mornings and dumped into this loud concrete city that never sleeps. A city that never let you forget how small and weak you were.

I hated New York.

I hated the noise, the giant buildings that blocked out the sky, and all the loud people who always seemed to smile.

In Japan, things had felt organized.

Here, everything had moved too fast, like the city was constantly trying to outrun itself. People had walked around like sharks, always sizing you up and figuring out how much they could take from you.

But I had gotten used to it. I had learned to walk these streets with my head held high and that black flower tucked behind my ear like a shield.

The one wound I couldn’t cauterize was Daniel Walker.

My mother’s husband.

The American snake who had sunk his fangs into her grief six months after my father’s death.

I saw the way he looked at our money and the Kurosaki name, like it was already his.

He called me “son,” and every time it made me want to smash that fake smile off his face.

He was living in the world my father had built and touching my mother like he had earned the right.

This morning I got out of the house before I had to see his fake-dad grin. I grabbed my bag and slipped out like a shadow. Still, I heard my mom laugh softly somewhere inside.

When I finally stepped out onto the Manhattan streets, the cold air slapped me in the face and woke me up.

I pulled my coat tighter and started walking.

Bloodburn Academy sat on the Upper East Side like some private kingdom for billionaire kids. And yeah, that was exactly what it was. The place looked more like a fancy museum than a school. Most students showed up in expensive cars with drivers who waited outside all day.

Money was everything here.

Everyone knew exactly how much everyone else had.

The second I stepped into the main hallway, the warmth hit me.

“Rei…” A soft voice said my name, then gentle arms wrapped around my waist from the side. “You’re here. I was worried you’d skip again.”

Marco Bellini was my only real light in this place full of vultures.

He pulled back. His dark curls were messy over his forehead even with that little black ribbon he always wore.

Marco was pure sunshine. He had big hazel eyes, a soft smile that could melt ice, and a gentleness that made him look like he belonged in a fairytale, not this cutthroat school.

He was here on scholarship, smart as hell in a sea of spoiled assholes, and he got scared way too easily. It hurt my chest every time.

Especially when it came to them.

I ruffled his hair. “I’m fine, Marco. Just another morning avoiding the parasite at home.”

He smiled shyly and looked down, but his fingers kept twisting the strap of his bag.

“You look tired. Did you sleep? You can text me if… if it’s bad again.”

His worry was real, and it was so damn cute it cracked the ice around my heart a little. Marco was the only person who saw the real broken parts under my armor and didn’t try to use them against me.

We started walking down the hallway together while other students moved around us. I changed the subject.

“What do we have first?” I asked.

“Economics,” he mumbled. “I hate that class.”

I bumped his shoulder. “You’ll be fine.”

He let out a soft laugh, cheeks turning pink. God, he was adorable. Way too pure for this place.

We went to the cafeteria to grab iced coffees before class. We sat near the windows while Marco ranted about our economics professor.

Then the whole room suddenly went quiet.

Everyone started whispering. Heads turned toward the entrance. Some girls fixed their hair. Some guys sat up straighter like they were about to get inspected.

The Void Kings arrived.

Dimitri Morozov led them like a king entering his conquered kingdom. He was tall, with dark hair pushed back carelessly. His eyes were the color of frozen arctic seas, beautiful and utterly merciless.

Alexei Morozov flanked him on the left. He was the tallest of the three of them, built like a fucking wall.

Ilya Solovyov, the blond with angelic features that hid something demonic, smirked on the right. His golden hair caught the light like a false halo. He was the smallest in the group.

They were untouchable, the vicious core of Bloodburn’s underworld. They were the sons and heirs of the most powerful Russian mafia syndicate on the East Coast.

Marco shrank beside me right away. His shoulders curled in and his fingers went white around his cup. “Rei… don’t look,” he whispered. “Please.”

I should have listened.

Instead, my eyes locked on them.

A freshman was slammed against the wall, Dimitri’s hand around his throat. The kid’s feet were barely touching the floor as he choked out apologies.

“I-I didn’t mean… please—”

Alexei’s face was blank. Ilya chuckled and spun a silver knife between his fingers like it was a toy.

My blood boiled. I glared straight at them.

Marco yanked my sleeve. “Rei, stop.”

Too late.

Dimitri’s head turned. Those icy blue eyes found mine across the room. Something dark flickered in them. He looked interested… and pissed.

He let the freshman go. The kid dropped to the floor coughing. Then Dimitri started walking straight toward us. Alexei and Ilya followed.

The whole cafeteria went dead silent.

Dimitri stopped in front of our table.

“And why are you glaring?” he asked.

So he noticed.

Marco made a tiny scared sound beside me.

I lifted my chin and didn’t back down. “Because some of us are trying to exist without watching you three throw your pathetic power trip in everyone’s face. Let the kid breathe. Or is bullying freshmen the only way you can feel big?”

Everyone gasped.

Dimitri’s smile got wider. He leaned down, getting right in my space until I could smell his cologne. “You’ve got a mouth on you. That’s dangerous for a pretty little thing like you.”

Marco was shaking. His face had gone pale. I fucking hated it. Hated seeing my sunshine boy shrink because of some arrogant, psychotic bastard.

Dimitri was a devil. He even scared me. I’d never talked to him before, but I wasn’t about to bow down.

I stood up fast and grabbed my bag. “Let’s go, Marco.”

Marco jumped up, ready to run.

But the second I tried to walk past Dimitri, he grabbed a fistful of my hair from behind and yanked me back hard.

Pain exploded across my scalp.

“I didn’t say you could leave, little fairy,” he murmured.

Fairy? This motherfucker.

I gritted my teeth and twisted just enough to glare up at him, refusing to show how much it hurt. “Let. Me. Go.”

“Mm.” He hummed, tightening his grip until my eyes watered. He looked amused by my defiance. “No.”

I raised an eyebrow even though my scalp was burning. “No? Does the big bad mafia prince need to yank people around by the hair just to feel important? What’s next?”

I saw real surprise cross his face. His eyes narrowed.

Big mistake.

Before he could react, I drove my knee up hard between his legs.

Dimitri grunted and doubled over. His grip loosened just enough. I ripped free, grabbed Marco’s wrist, and we ran.

Everyone gasped behind us.

I glanced back once before we disappeared down the hallway.

Dimitri was still standing there, one hand pressed to his crotch, slightly hunched over. But his eyes… fuck. Those eyes were locked on me like a blade sliding under my skin.

And for the first time since I stepped into Bloodburn Academy, I knew I’d just made a terrible, irreversible mistake.