PROLOGUE

When a hundred elite students partied on Zion Island in the middle of the Atlantic for spring break, the rest of the world exploded into a nuclear war.

Many lost their homes, families, and their wealth. While they cried on each other's shoulders, I watched calmly.

When the world tells you since the day you were born that you are worthless, you make peace with that thought. When that very world starts sinking while you thrive, you think that maybe it was wrong.

It's a common truth that while some live through their worst times, others have their best ones.

Two years have passed since the Change. It will take decades to repair the damage from the war and a lifetime to heal the scars. But mine were inflicted before the war. The Change made me a rich man. The party island for the wealthy became my kryptonite.

I want to thank the former Secretary of Defense, who, unbeknownst to him, saved my life when I eavesdropped on his conversation. RIP, sir.

His son, Archer Crone, now runs the show. Me, I protect him, his company, and Zion Island. The Elites pay me big bucks to ensure their safety.

But there are other forces at play.

Aleksei Tsariuk, the wealthiest and most powerful man in the Northern Hemisphere, has been flipping the world upside down looking for his daughter since that fateful spring break two years ago.

And here's a little secret—she is on Zion, and I just found her.

I don't care about her all-powerful father. Or her past. Or what consequences come with what I'm about to do.

I have it all, but I want her more than I've ever wanted money or power.

Zion Island is crumbling. The dark end is inevitable. And she will be my last meal.

Welcome to paradise.