MASKED AND RUINED
MASKED AND RUINED
Wren Ashby has one week to save her family’s name—and one stolen invitation to do it.
Eighteen months ago, her father’s PR empire collapsed in a scandal that destroyed her family’s finances and left Wren running a dying firm from a borrowed office. She knows who benefited: Alaric Voss, the billionaire hotelier whose empire rose from the wreckage. For a year, she has built a public case against him. Now, if she can uncover proof of what really happened inside his company, she can finally bring him down.
Her investigation leads her to The Undisclosed, a secret society hidden inside a hotel most of the city doesn’t know exists. Once a month, the wealthy shed their names and enter the darkness behind masks and numbers.
Wren enters as a journalist.
For six nights, she is drawn to a mysterious man known only as Nine—a man whose voice commands, whose touch unravels her, and whose presence makes her forget the story she came for.
Then the masks come off.
Nine is Alaric Voss.
Worse, he has known who Wren is from the beginning. The invitation, their encounters, every whispered confession—it was all part of his plan.
But Alaric never planned to fall for his enemy.
And the truth behind her father’s downfall is far more dangerous than either of them imagined.
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Chapter: A Familiar FaceChapter Thirty-Two"That's not possible," Wren said, staring at the photograph until the pixels blurred. "Grant helped us. He brought us the financial records that exposed Camille. He's the reason we ever had proof at all.""Or he's the reason we only ever saw exactly what he wanted us to see," Alaric said grimly, leaning over to study the image himself. "Wren, think about it. Grant Whitfield appeared in this story at precisely the moment we needed an ally. He handed us evidence against Camille just as her leverage over us peaked. He's been present for nearly every major turn in this entire mess, always just outside the center of it, always positioned as the reasonable outsider correcting someone else's wrongdoing."Priya, still driving, glanced at them in the rearview mirror. "I did a background check on him weeks ago, when he first showed up at your penthouse. Standard due diligence. Twenty-two years in journalism, verifiable employment history, nothing that raised a single flag.""
Last Updated: 2026-09-23
Chapter: The Woman Behind the ClubChapter Thirty-OneMarisol didn't answer right away. She sat very still on the wrought iron bench beside Adrian Cole, hands folded tight in her lap, the humid air of the greenhouse suddenly thick with something heavier than tension."I didn't found The Undisclosed," she said finally, voice quieter than Wren had ever heard it. "I've let people believe that for eleven years because the truth was never anyone's business but mine. But if someone's using it as leverage now, I suppose it's time I stopped protecting a dead man's name at my own expense.""A dead man," Alaric repeated carefully."My husband," Marisol said. "Julian Ferreira. He built the club twenty-two years ago, long before I ever had anything to do with it. I met him when I was twenty-six, working as an event coordinator for one of his other properties. I didn't know what The Undisclosed actually was until we'd already been married three years." Her hands tightened in her lap. "He died eleven years ago. A boating accident, o
Last Updated: 2026-09-23
Chapter: Someone Else's ChaosChapter Thirty"Explain that," Alaric said, voice gone sharp and urgent. "Now. Everything. Who is this intermediary, and how long have they had access to what you gathered?"Adrian sat back down heavily on the wrought iron bench, all the composed menace of twenty minutes earlier drained completely out of him. "About eight months ago," he said. "I'd been working alone for years, slowly building the case, but I didn't have the technical skill to actually access the club's internal systems the way I needed to. Someone reached out to me instead. Said they had the access I needed, and wanted to help, in exchange for a copy of everything I eventually gathered, as insurance in case I lost my nerve.""And you never learned who they actually were," Wren said."I assumed it didn't matter," Adrian admitted. "I assumed we wanted the same thing. Now I'm starting to think I was simply useful to someone with a considerably larger agenda than mine."Marisol, who had been standing quietly near the gr
Last Updated: 2026-09-21
Chapter: The GreenhouseChapter Twenty-NineThe security contractors moved first, methodical and cautious, clearing the path toward the greenhouse with the kind of practiced calm that did little to settle the dread coiling tight in Wren's chest. Alaric stayed close beside her, one hand at the small of her back, his jaw set with the particular tension of a man prepared for a confrontation he'd been dreading for fifteen years without ever knowing its name.The greenhouse sat behind the main house, glass panels fogged with humidity, greenery grown wild and untended inside. A man sat waiting on a wrought iron bench near the center of it, unhurried, watching their approach with an expression that held none of the menace Wren had braced herself for. He looked ordinary. Late fifties, gray at the temples, dressed simply, the kind of man who might have passed unnoticed in any boardroom or coffee shop in the city."Alaric Voss," he said, standing slowly as they entered, security contractors fanning out discreetly alon
Last Updated: 2026-09-17
Chapter: Following the MoneyChapter Twenty-Eight"We're not paying him," Alaric said, the moment Wren finished reading the last message aloud to the small group assembled in his office. "Not because the money matters. Because paying him confirms he has real leverage, and men like this never stop at one payment once they know it works.""I agree," Marisol said, though her voice carried the particular strain of a woman watching her life's work balanced on a decision she didn't fully control. "But I need options beyond simply refusing, because refusing without a plan means Friday arrives and he releases everything regardless."Priya had been quiet for several minutes, scrolling through something on her laptop with increasing focus. "I think I found a way to trace him," she said finally. "The shell company that absorbed Adrian Cole's old assets, Halcyon Logistics, still exists on paper, even after Marcus Chen's resignation blew up his involvement with it. If Cole's still drawing operational funds from that structure
Last Updated: 2026-09-17
Chapter: The PreviewChapter Twenty-SevenNobody slept that night. Marisol worked her phone relentlessly, trying to reach the mayor's office through back channels discreet enough not to raise alarm, while Priya coordinated with Voss Holdings' security team to monitor every major outlet for any sign of what Adrian Cole intended to release at the mayor's event. Wren sat at the center of it all, laptop open, running every search she could think of to build a fuller picture of the man threatening to unravel everything they'd only just managed to stabilize."He's a ghost," she said finally, close to two in the morning, rubbing her eyes. "No public record past about eight years ago. No property in his name, no known employer, nothing on social media. Whoever Adrian Cole used to be, he's spent the last several years making sure nobody could easily find him again.""That tracks with someone rebuilding an identity specifically to disappear," Alaric said, pacing near the window of his office, tie long gone, exhaus
Last Updated: 2026-09-14
The Space Between Full Moons
She came to the mountains to photograph wolves. She never expected to fall for one.
Wildlife photographer Elena Voss arrives in Thornwood Hollow chasing a career-saving story — a wolf pack, sighted for the first time in decades, hidden deep in the Cascades. What she finds instead is Rowan Ashford: a ranger who warns her off the trails, vanishes without explanation, and heals from wounds that should have taken weeks. Every instinct that made her a good journalist tells her something isn't adding up. Every instinct that made her human tells her to stop asking questions and let herself fall.
She doesn't listen to either.
As Elena gets closer to the truth and closer to Rowan, she uncovers a secret three generations in the making: a pack of werewolves living in plain sight, protected by a single unbreakable law. No outsiders. Ever. Rowan has spent his whole life enforcing that law, even against his own heart. But loving Elena means breaking it, and the last time this pack's secret got out, it cost them everything.
Now, with a vengeful hunter closing in and Rowan's own father demanding he choose between the woman he loves and the pack he's meant to lead, Rowan and Elena are running out of time to decide what they're willing to risk for each other.
Some secrets are kept to protect the people you love.
Some loves are worth breaking every rule you were raised on.
The Space Between Full Moons is a slow-burn paranormal romance about the terrifying, thrilling act of being truly seen by someone who was never supposed to let you get close enough to look.
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Chapter: The Real PressureChapter Fifty-TwoElena stared at the message, exhaustion warring with fresh dread as the words sank in. She nudged Rowan gently, and he stirred immediately, some deep instinct honed by years of vigilance snapping him back to alertness despite the late hour."What is it?"She showed him the phone. His jaw tightened as he read it, all traces of drowsiness gone in an instant. "They're saying tonight was deliberate. That they let us have one night of rest before whatever comes next.""Do you believe them?""I don't know what to believe anymore tonight," Rowan admitted, running a hand over his face. "But I don't think we can afford to just go back to sleep and hope they're bluffing."They found Callum and Renata still awake in the study, apparently having anticipated exactly this kind of follow-up despite the late hour. Renata's expression turned grim as she read the message on Elena's phone."This tracks with their broader strategy," she said. "Sustained pressure, applied unpredictably,
Last Updated: 2026-09-23
Chapter: A Trick, Not a TruthChapter Fifty-OneThe silence in the courtyard stretched unbearably before Vera spoke again, her voice suddenly sharp with fresh realization. "Wait. Stop. All of you, stop for a moment."Every head turned toward her. Callum's brow furrowed with confusion. "Vera?""I made a mistake just now," Vera said quickly, stepping toward Naomi with visible urgency. "I described a pattern the Accord uses to recruit informants. I never said Naomi fit it more than anyone else standing here. I was thinking out loud, not accusing her directly. I'm sorry, Naomi. That wasn't fair to you."Naomi's composure remained tight, hurt still radiating from her despite the walk-back. "It didn't feel like thinking out loud. It felt like every eye in this courtyard deciding I was guilty before I'd said a single word in my own defense.""You're right," Callum said, stepping forward, his voice heavy with genuine regret. "I let my own exhaustion and fear cloud my judgment. You have given this family everything, Naomi,
Last Updated: 2026-09-23
Chapter: The Real InformantChapter FiftyElena read the message twice, the words settling like ice water through her veins. She turned the phone toward Rowan without a word, watching his expression shift from exhaustion to fresh, sharpened alarm as he processed what it meant."They're saying Sofia was a decoy," he said slowly. "That there's someone else, still inside our circle, that they consider more valuable.""Someone we haven't even suspected," Elena said, the implication settling over her with cold clarity. "Someone close enough to matter, but careful enough that nothing's raised any flags yet."Desmond's face had gone pale, his arm still wrapped protectively around Sofia despite the fresh horror of this new revelation. "Could it be Mara? Elias? Someone else we already know about?""Doesn't fit," Rowan said, shaking his head slowly. "If it were someone we'd already identified, exposing them wouldn't be useful leverage anymore. They're talking about someone still hidden. Someone we trust completely, with n
Last Updated: 2026-09-21
Chapter: Not Asking PermissionChapter Forty-NineElena's body went rigid, every instinct screaming at her to run, though her feet remained rooted in place, some part of her brain still frantically calculating options that didn't exist. The man's hand emerged from his jacket, not with a weapon as she'd feared, but with a small radio device, which he raised to his mouth without breaking eye contact."Bring in the second team," he said calmly. "Ms. Voss has declined our generous offer."Elena's mind raced, understanding dawning with cold, sickening clarity. This had never been a negotiation. It had been a stall, a way to keep her occupied and isolated while whatever else the Accord had planned moved into position."Rowan," she breathed, praying the earpiece was still transmitting, praying he could hear her. "They're bringing in reinforcements. Now."The warehouse's side door burst open before she'd finished speaking, and for one terrifying moment, Elena believed the Accord's second team had already arrived. Instead,
Last Updated: 2026-09-17
Chapter: What She Really UnderstoodChapter Forty-EightElena's pulse hammered as she stepped into the warehouse's dim interior, the man leading her past stacked crates and idle machinery toward a lit area near the back of the building. Her mind raced through everything Renata had briefed her on, every contingency they'd tried to plan for, none of which had accounted for the strange, unsettling calm radiating from her guide.They rounded a final row of shelving, and Elena's breath caught.Sofia sat in a chair near the center of the cleared space, unbound, a cup of what looked like hot chocolate resting untouched on a small table beside her. She looked frightened, certainly, but not the way Elena had expected — not the broken terror of someone held captive for hours, but something closer to confused, wary uncertainty."Sofia?" Elena said carefully, taking a slow step forward. "I'm a friend of your brother's. I'm here to help you."Sofia's eyes flicked between Elena and the man standing nearby, something calculating behin
Last Updated: 2026-09-17
Chapter: Being Watched BackChapter Forty-SevenElena's hands shook as she showed the message to Rowan, the words landing like a physical blow against whatever fragile advantage they'd thought they had. "They know we're here. Right now, this exact moment."Rowan's eyes scanned the street immediately, searching for any sign of surveillance, any watcher who might have tracked them from the moment they'd arrived. "How? We were careful. We parked blocks away, kept our distance.""They might have anticipated this location before we even arrived," Renata said grimly, her own eyes sweeping the surrounding buildings with renewed urgency. "If Desmond's contact point was compromised the moment he mentioned it, they could have simply waited for us to show up rather than needing to actively track our movements.""You think they set a trap," Jonah said, his voice tight."I think it's possible, and we need to act like it's likely." Renata's jaw tightened. "Everyone, stay alert. Don't scatter, don't panic, but be ready to move
Last Updated: 2026-09-14
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