Novels by Author Marvella

The words he said did not leave the room as quickly as the other, when he had said them.They also didn't soften with time or distance. Or even breathe, because they settled into the space between us with a weight that made everything feel still.“I should punish you for that…”I did not move, not because I did not want to, but because every instinct in me understood that if I moved now, it could interpreted into something I could not take back.So instead, I held myself in place and let my breathing remain.Even my pulse climbed in a way that felt dangerously close to death, but I remained still regardless.Ben did not step closer either. That was the first thing that unsettled me, because I expected him to do that.I expected the shift into something physical, something immediately, something I could at least recognize and prepare for in a way that made sense.But instead, he remained where he was, watching me with the same careful attention that made it feel like he was waiting for

“I have to find a way to get to her.*“Yes, you do.” Nora agreed. Her voice was high pitched as she sat listening to me. Her gaze flickered between me and the television. I couldn't tell if she was listening to me or just distracted from her show by the sound of my voice.I stopped speaking for a few seconds. Her eyes remained on the screen for a while, eventually, she turned wide-eyed. “Did something happen?*“No. I just thought you weren't listening.*“I'm listening.”“I see that.”She adjusted.closer, Lily was in her room by now, distracted by a book or something else. The poor child hated that Mia wasn't here, but as the days went by, she started to grasp reality fast enough.“So what do you want to do now?” Nora distracted me from my thoughts as she poked me with the end of the remote.“I don't know.”“Look, I know you love this girl but I don't think you should do whatever's going through your mind.”“What's going through my mind?”She nodded. “I've known you for long, Ethan. I

There was something about the room that refused to let me breathe properly, not because the air itself was lacking but because everything within it felt deliberate.Like it was arranged in a way that had intention and made it impossible to ignore the prulspe behind it.From the position of the bed, to the faint lingering scent in the corners, something medicinal wouldn't stop ooIng from there corners.The more I sat on that bed, the more I noticed how unsettling everything seemed, I tried to understand, but I couldn't. I couldn't understand how anyone could have found comfort in such a place without puking.Ben stood close enough that I could feel the presence of him without needing to look directly, and even though his hand had left mine, the memory of his grip lingered against my skin in a way that made it difficult to forget how easily he could close that distance again, how quickly control could shift back into his hands if I gave him even the smallest reason to take it.“You’re q

The door opened before the guard announced anything, and I didn’t bother turning immediately because there was only one person who came in without knocking twice.Bruce stepped in, shut the door behind him, and took his seat like he owned the room, which in a way, he did.“You look settled,” he said.“I’m adapting,” I replied, finally looking at him. “You didn’t come here to check on my comfort.”“No,” he said. “I didn’t.”I leaned forward slightly. “Then say what you came to say.”He studied me for a second longer than necessary before speaking, and that hesitation told me whatever this was, it wasn’t small.“There’s been a development,” he said.“There’s always a development,” I replied. “Make this one worth my time.”He exhaled. “Mia is missing.”The name didn’t surprise me. The timing did.I leaned back slowly, letting that settle in properly before responding. “Missing,” I repeated, more to process it than to question it.“Yes.”“When?”“A few days ago.”I nodded once, my eyes st

I still didn't understand him.What did he mean by that?“I already told you,” he continued, his thumb brushing lightly against the back of my hand in a gesture that would have felt gentle if it had not been layered with everything else, “you’re different from her.”My gaze flickered briefly toward the girl before I could stop myself, and this time I let it linger just enough to acknowledge her presence without making it obvious that my attention was drawn to her in a way that mattered, because I could feel him watching even in that moment, measuring the length of my glance, the shift in my focus, the meaning behind it.She was still watching me.Always watching me.And there was something in her eyes now that hadn’t been there before, something beyond fear and desperation, something sharper, more urgent, like she had placed all her hope into a single, fragile possibility and that possibility was me.I forced my attention back to him.“In what way?” I asked, my voice steady, controlle

“You?” I watched the corner of his lips curve. “You want to know about yourself? Are you sure?””My lips quivered, too afraid to speak, so I nodded instead.“Yes. Tell me.” I whispered.The question hung in the air lined then it should have been there. Ben straightened slowly, turning back towards me with a look that felt too far focused, far too intentional.“You’re different,” he said.The certainty in his voice made my chest tighten again.“You understand me,” he added, stepping closer to the doorway, closer to me, until I could feel the shift in the air between us again.I forced a small nod, even though everything inside me resisted the motion. “I’m trying to.”His smile returned.Soft.Satisfied.“I know you are.”Behind him, the girl shifted weakly, her hand moving slightly across the mattress as though she was trying to reach for something, anything, and before I could stop myself, my gaze dropped to the movement.Her fingers brushed against the edge of the mattress.Closer an