Published by HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
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First published in Great Britain by Harper 2015
Copyright © Indigo Bloome 2015
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Indigo Bloome asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
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Source ISBN: 9780007597574
Ebook Edition © January 2015 ISBN: 9780007597581
Version: 2014-12-06
For all those who read the Avalon Trilogy, my most sincere thanks. This one’s for you! xo
Contents
Caesar
Antony ‘Caesar’ King was one of the wealthiest men in the United Kingdom. Casino and hotel management were his business staples, but he was equally notorious for his ruthless dealings in property investments and high-end gambling. The crowning glory of his business empire – on which he spent a disproportionate amount of his limited time – was the firm he had built from scratch: The Edge. It was the world’s leading sports agency, responsible for managing the global careers of the most influential and brand-conscious athletes. Caesar had a natural instinct for identifying emerging talent, and the financial resources to back those he happened to tap on the shoulder.
Athletes knew that if The Edge represented them, they were on the path to greatness. To say ‘No’ to Caesar was akin to kissing your sports career goodbye and fading into oblivion. Not only was the business highly lucrative, but it also ensured Caesar was the pre-eminent ‘mover and shaker’ in the industry. At elite sports venues the world over he was immediately recognisable for his flamboyant dress sense, and he had the personality to match. Whether people loved him or hated him, such was his magnetism that they were drawn to him like moths to a flame. Power and superiority emanated from every gesture he made and the tone of every word he spoke. And rest assured that he relished the authority he wielded and the attention he attracted. Indeed, he depended on it for his continued success.
* * *
His father, Antonio ‘Tony’ King, was a self-made man. From humble beginnings in Italy, Tony had emigrated to America after the war. He had hocked his few valuables for several hands of blackjack, and won enough to kick-start his life in the new world. He was a conscientious gambler, willing to bet on high-risk ventures. And against all odds, he won significantly more than he ever lost.
Antony junior’s middle name was a direct tribute to an exceptionally lucky night at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. During a few raucous rounds of poker, Tony was challenged to risk all of his winnings on the roulette table.
With all the careless arrogance of a man who had nothing to lose, he barely glanced