Chapter: TWENTY-FIVE: Tired and sick.“Five minutes to vacate the mansion.” The voice filtered into my subconsciousness as I moved down the stairs in black leather pants, a tight-fitted combat jacket, and my hair up in a tight bun. I easily blended with the moving crowd as we walked out, while I made every possible effort to avoid Lucan. My traitorous mind did a vivid flashback to an hour ago when he’d suddenly pulled away once we were in the mansion and then I recalled how he stepped three feet away from me, no emotions leaking through him. Except I, who was a shivering mess with my lips still pulsing and every part of me feeling charged. “You’ll catch a cold if you don't get a warm bath”That was the only thing he'd said to me before walking away. I watched him disappear up the stairs as anger and an awakening need began a war in my chest.How I hated him. I hated the level of his audaciousness.I hated how he felt it was easy to jump on me and assert his dominance, something I never let anyone have over me. And
Last Updated: 2026-02-22
Chapter: TWENTY-FOUR: Breathless.Stella’s death started something more than inhumane. For everyone, for the evil system itself. And for me. Something shifted in me after watching her helplessly lie in her own pool of blood. She only did what she had to do to survive here and while that god walked away unharmed, she paid with her life. By morning, her body withered away into dust, leaving only dried blood. I sat under an oak tree, numbed. The once white dress on me was now red from wine with injuries littered across my once flawless skin.The garden smelled soft and citric, a sickening contrast to the doom this place was.The sun smiled down on my face and for the first time in my whole years of living, if it was possible to rip the sun out of the clouds I'd be making haste to do just that. I turned away from its light only to see Lucan standing a few distances away with a strenuous look etched into his face as he folded both arms across his chest.“I’ve searched everywhere for you.” He muttered. I didn't resp
Last Updated: 2026-02-22
Chapter: TWENTY-THREE: Rot.As soon as the locks fell and the bolts clicked off, the door pushed open by sheer force plunging everyone who had been resting against it—Not out onto land—but down a steep hill into the dark glaring mouth of a volcanic cave. My heart caught in my mouth, their screams echoing as they tumbled down.“I think she’s one of them.” A woman behind me whispered to the next player, her arrow already stretched against her bow’s string to shoot. “She has a blue…” “It doesn't matter, blue or red…shoot her.” The woman ordered. I didn't wait. There was no time to. I turned around swiftly only to collide with a tower of red wine lined up like a pyramid on a golden table. The glasses toppled and shattered over me, red wine splashed like blood onto my dress while I crashed to the ground. My palm dug into one of the broken glasses creating a deep cut into my skin.White pain flared through me. And just as I brought the injured palm up to my chest in a tight grip with blood pelting onto my dress
Last Updated: 2026-02-22
Chapter: TWENTY-TWO: Purging?The moment I ran back into the ballroom, I slammed the door shut behind me, the splitting bang drawing every eye to me. My chest thumped frantically. I was out of breath, but I forced myself to straighten up, my skin itching with an ugly sensation as I recalled the man’s eyes—red eyeballs that sparked fire. Everyone was already seated at the tables, the guests in the gallery above, watching us like this was a damn cinema show. From what I’d seen earlier, they were probably not human. I stole a brisk glance at their faces. As I’d suspected, they looked unreal… yet human. “Are you okay?” Kim asked the minute I reached her table and slumped into one of the seats. She, Rick, and two other male players, were feasting on the crisp skin of roasted quail. The wild and unfamiliar scent pushed bile up my throat. “Hey,” Rick mumbled with a mouth full. “Why did you go in there?” Kim resumed eating. “I heard it’s prohibited.” “Those people up there aren’t human,” I whispered to her. “One
Last Updated: 2026-02-22
Chapter: TWENTY-ONE: Ball of respite.Once I made it out of Lucan’s orbit I moved up the third floor in search of Kim’s room. It was fruitless as every door I opened had players in them and I was soon chanting ‘Sorry’ to everyone I walked in on. This was what I got for snuggling up to Lucan despite how much I had tried staying away. I stood in the middle of the hallway, conflicted. With my hands on my waist, I puffed air and kicked and whined. I probably should have just gone with Lucan. “Excuse me, are you lost?” I heard and gradually looked up to find a lady. Too beautiful to be in here, tall, slender waist, her gorgeous ball dress clung to her like a second skin with the hem stopping at her thighs. “Yes, I am.” I quickly walked up to her. “Can I use your room? I need to wear something before everyone is called down.” “Of course” She smiled, and then brought her hands up to touch my hair. “You have such great hair, it's so silky and shiny…I envy you.” My face warmed up at the compliment. This was perks
Last Updated: 2026-02-20
Chapter: TWENTY: Warmth before ruin.I ran a hand through my hair—tired, exhausted already.We all got to the bus station on Harcourt Street as the voice had ordered.The road was deserted, the street sign already crashed like a thick log of wood in our path as we all walked over it to the crooked bus, with its door already wide open like a welcome. Inside, the leather seats were damp and soaked with morning dew, torn at the sides, and the atmosphere swirled with fog.I’d never seen fogs as much as I’d seen in this world, each one always had an unpleasant smell, and at this point, it was safe to call it a fog city.We were about twenty standing in the bus—clueless.“Take your seat, players.” The voice announced.As everyone moved about, I found a lone seat in the middle, walked close to it, and slowly perched down on it. The damp wetness soaked into my pants with a sharp coolness, I couldn’t help but shiver.And then there was darkness. One so thick— I couldn’t see a soul on the bus, except for murmurs that still groun
Last Updated: 2026-02-11
Chapter: Chapter 0146When the cab pulled up in front of the magnetic hotel suite, Louisa stepped out half sober, water dripping down her chin along with her own tears as she stacked a wad of cash into the man’s hands and hurried into the building—Looking messed up and out of place. “How can we help you, miss?” The front desk staff demanded as soon as she walked up to it. “I want to see Alessandro,” she replied, dropping the key card right onto the desk, and much to her chagrin. “Can you please tell me what suite he is in?”“You don't look fine, miss” The woman said Instead, taking the card and tucking it away with a wary look crumpling her face. “We have Mr. De Luca getting ready to vacate his suite, he never walked in here with a woman of any sort…” “You don't get it, I just want to talk to him before he leaves.” Louisa pleaded, her hands grabbing the woman’s own. “This card was issued to Mr. Alessandro De Luca, I’d like to know how you got your hands on them.” The woman urged. “Let’s start from ther
Last Updated: 2026-02-05
Chapter: Chapter 0145Louisa didn’t dress up for a party. She dressed to forget. Eve came the next day, as promised, for their crazy night out. She’d fought the urge to decline, to say an unhealed fragment of her past was making her rethink every decision she’d thought she’d made peace with. “I wish to get back into my partying spirit.” Eve had squealed, being more like herself than the nightmare she once was. “I’ll introduce you to a few friends.” Then she’d leaned in and whispered coyly, “However you relate with them determines if you’ll leave with a Christmas boyfriend.” She’d laughed, utterly oblivious of the faraway stare in Louisa’s eyes. Once up the stairs of the private lounge, Louisa moved to the bar first for a drink once Eve excused herself for a moment. The smell of luxury lingered thickly in the air. Chandelier drapings filled the ceilings, silver curtains that shone down on the bustling city. People moved about as if they had perfect lives. The music was meant to soothe, but she felt
Last Updated: 2026-02-05
Chapter: Chapter 0144“You good, Don?” “I don’t know, Eric.” Alessandro pulled off his coat and let it fall across the back seat. “Just keep the car moving,” he muttered with a low rumble in his voice. Eric locked his seat belt in place once they got onto the highway. An infuriating silence reigned in the car, its cold clutches pressing in. The city slid past the window in blurred gold streaks as Alessandro propped a fist under his jaw, brooding and replaying the last few moments he shouldn’t be. His cane, propped between his thighs, leaned against the leather. “Palermo can always wait,” Eric broke the silence. Alessandro said nothing, only the silent tick of his jaw answering. He reached for the document stacked in a file in the dashboard compartment, then a pen. “What are you doing?” Eric glanced at him once, even though he already knew the answer. “You have to hand that to Carusso yourself.” Alessandro flipped through each page of the document, not without dropping his signature on eve
Last Updated: 2026-01-24
Chapter: Chapter 0143Three months later—New York City.“We named him Raniero. Baby Rani.” Louisa’s vibrant voice rang out loud in the three-bedroom condo she now called home, overlooking the bustling city.Her phone was placed against some discarded cereal pack on the kitchen island while she brewed coffee almost absent-mindedly, except for Eve’s voice grounding her back.“Oh, he’s a prince!” Eve beamed a smile.Louisa cracked up. “Only you get it. Lilian wasn’t having it tho. She wanted something more English…” she trailed off.“She’s a spitfire,” Eve replied.Louisa cracked a small smile. “She just wants me happy.”There was a pause. The kind of deafening silence that threatened the quiet of her apartment and reminded her of the hollow emptiness in her chest that she refused to acknowledge.She straightened her back, picked up her coffee cup, and dragged a slow sip before bringing it to her chin to stare at Eve. “I’m glad you are still here at least. You didn’t leave me.”There was a faraway look in Eve
Last Updated: 2026-01-19
Chapter: Chapter 0142Italy, Sicily.The De Luca patriarchal home had never been this quiet, with a dead calm that brushed over the entire household.Two stairs up the building was an off-limits room, shut off to the world. The atmosphere smelled of old wood and antiseptic. The bed sheets were crumpled with rough dents, like it had just been rolled off.Deep into the bedroom was another door, quite ajar. A closed-off office space with a large desk space and a broad, high-backed golden mahogany chair. Resting against the desk was a dark crested cane. Scattered across the tabletop were ledger pages, white documents, fountain pens, a glass holding brown liquor, and a bottle nearby. A laptop was propped open, with voices spilling from the video with several Arab men in tailored suits, seated and speaking among themselves.Sitting in the chair was Alessandro, pain locked tight in his jaw, his back constantly pressed into the seat as he couldn’t sit upright for long without agony flaring up his spine. His finger
Last Updated: 2026-01-18
Chapter: Chapter 0141The air was thick with performative grief when Louisa walked into the church hall a week later.The pews on each side of the church had a few grieving congregants. Some stared straight ahead into space in respect of the dead, and some instantly whispered amongst themselves the minute she breezed by them.Some of the neighbors were ones she could recognize from the housewarming party.Ahead and right in front of the altar was a white coffin, partly opened and surrounded by a bed of lilies.Louisa was already walking up to it in a neutral, pale dress, her face blanched with little to no emotion, and her hair packed in a messy bun as though she’d just gathered it up with a band at the very last minute before stepping in.Once near the coffin, she slowly reached for the unwrapped dried thistles in her bag and dropped them straight onto his coffin without sparing a glance at his pale and embalmed face.“I hope you rot in hell,” she muttered.“What do you think you are doing?” Hattie voiced
Last Updated: 2026-01-18
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