Novel-novel oleh Ray Michael

In Mantha oil limited,Patrick Hale just stepped out of his office, Magnus behind him. “A fucking public shootout?” Patrick gritted out. He clenched his fists until it felt like his fingers would break. “Does that even make any sense?”Magnus trembled behind him. “I-I… I don't—They said it was the only way.”Patrick kept moving. He didn't utter another word as he stepped out of the building and got into the car. Awkward silence hung in the air the entire ride. Magnus tried not to breathe too loudly.By the time they got to Patrick's home, rage was already threatening to choke him. How could they have fumbled this so badly??He tore off his jacket and handed it to Magnus, before making his way down to the basement—two steps at a time.Inside, his eyes immediately caught the two figures tied to a chair in the dim lighting and his brain short circuited. “Where are the other two?” One of the men answered. “They’re not here.”In an instant, Patrick was standing in front of the man who'd

Earlier, Daphne had called to take a raincheck on lunch.Lyra chuckled. “Holdup…What happened to ‘hey, how are you?’ Is that how to greet your bestie?”Daphne snorted. “You just rolled your eyes, didn't you?” Lyra asked, her smile deepening as she shut her laptop and put it away.“Figured you weren't able to talk well yesterday… Since you know, you spent the night at his place.” Daphne took her jewelry off in front of the mirror. “I’m tired but you'll find me at your door if that's what it takes to get the tea out of you.”“No, no.” Lyra said—too quickly. “There's no need for that, you need to rest.”“Wait—” Daphne narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Are you at his place?”Lyra choked on her cheetos and coughed, eyes watering as she sat up. “His place?? Why would I come back here—there? I'd rather sleep in the forest.”‘Okay, maybe the last part wasn't necessary,’ she thought.“Heyyy…relax. Just teasing you.” Daphne sank into her dressing chair. She placed her phone on the table, grabbe

In Wilson Energy, Eyes followed Nadine as she moved. She was wearing a black dress—with a low neckline that left little to the imagination—and matching sunglasses. Conversations dipped, phones raised discreetly, murmurs sifted as she moved, the smell of judgement heavy in the air. Today was the first time she was showing up here after the sextape with their boss went viral. “What are you looking at?” she snapped at an employee. “N-nothing, ma'am.” Nadine kept walking, but she felt beads of sweat gather on her forehead and temple. She adjusted her sunglasses and lifted her chin higher, a muscle ticking in her jaw. She got to the elevator and a man from the inside held it open for her. The doors reopened. When she glanced at the three women and man that were inside, she noticed one of the women had a scrunched nose directed at her. She knew that look all too well—judgement. Nadine's lips twisted with a frown. “Get out.” “Uh…” One of the women squeezed her face and gave Nadin

Silence. Everyone's eyes were glued to the monitor. And on the screen, the jagged, chaotic waveforms instantly flattened into a perfect, steady line.The alarms stopped. The amber lights turned green.“Impossible,” Ethan breathed, lips still parted slightly from shock. When he saw Lyra’s eyes on him, he closed his mouth and straightened. “One hell of a lucky guess.”“Then you should've guessed too. Or were you afraid you'd be wrong?”Ethan just cleared his throat but didn't say anything.“Wow, you're such a genius, ma'am!” Heather, a blonde-haired employee, beamed.Miller's eyes were still on the screen. “How—” "Next time, check the environment before you blame the software.” Lyra brushed off invisible dust from her clothes. “Saves you from sounding dumb and sexist.”Miller lowered his head in embarrassment and gritted his teeth. But Lyra continued, turning to face Ethan. "Replace the sensor cables with double-shielded copper by the end of the day.”“Yes… ma'am.”Lyra turned and sa

Another engineer, Miller, who was clad in black pants and a pink shirt rushed over, almost slipping on his way. "We’ve checked the cells three times!" He rasped. "The hardware is clean. It’s a software glitch in the BMS.""It’s not the software," Lyra repeated. She was standing in front of the main console now, her eyes still glued to the jagged, rhythmic spikes on the monitor.The room quieted suddenly. All the employees turned to face her. Ethan spun around too, coffee hanging in his hand mid-sip. He narrowed his eyes at Lyra. "And who the hell are you?""Lyra Wil—” She cleared her throat and corrected herself with a small smile. No need to go around introducing herself as ‘Mrs. Wilson' just yet. “Lyra Davis. The new director."Ethan's brows arched with shock. “Strategic innovation?”Hmmm… ‘Lyra Davis’? He pondered. That name rang a weird bell in his head. Though he was quite certain that this woman here wasn't anybody special. So why her? Lyra nodded once. “You're on my team?”Et

The imposing glass door of Helixion energy stood before Lyra. Tyson had suggested rest to her, but she didn't need that. She needed something to keep her mind from drifting to last night. The danger. The adrenaline. Him. Daphne was worried all night when Lyra told her that she was at Tyson's. She'd checked in a million times, asking her if Tyson was being a pervert and even insisted that they have lunch later today—to her all about last night.Lyra huffed. As if there was anything to talk about.*Drink wine from your mouth, and do all the other weird shit that couples do. But it won't be weird to me—because it's you. And you don't get to leave. Forever.*Eww… Why would he even say something that cringe? She pinched the bridge of her nose but her lips curled into a small smile.“You okay?” Tyson asked beside her. Lyra immediately fixed her face and straightened. “Yeah, I'm good. Let's go.”And so they walked into Helixion energy. Inside, eyes moved to her, drinking her in, picking h

**Third person** Valerie dragged her heavy eyes open. She blinked a couple of times to clear her vision. The smell of drugs and antiseptic and hospital filled her nose. Beside her, Lucas sat with his eyes closed. Almost immediately she jumped up on the bed. “Let me go,” she shouted, startling Lucas. He climbed the bed and pulled her into his arms. “It's okay, you're safe now,” he whispered softly, planting kiss after kiss on her hair and forehead. Valerie relaxed into his embrace, her racing heart finally calm. A tear slipped from his eyes and he wiped it. He'd thought he'd lost her. “I'm sorry I couldn't keep you safe. I should have anticipated it, I should—” “It's not your fault,” she cut him off gently. “It's not.” Tears trailed down her own cheeks and she sniffed. “What happened to Matthew?” A muscle ticked in Lucas's jaw, he felt Matt had an easy fate after everything he did. "Dead." Valerie let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, her body shaking with relieve

**Third person**“Let's move, slowly,” Matt murmured in Valerie's ears, his hot breath fanning against her skin. His eyes were still locked onto Lucas—who was practically shooting daggers at Matt with his eyes."Matthew, please," Valerie whispered back, her voice trembling. "You don't have to do this. You can still let me go."Matt's jaw tightened, his chest heaving with desperation and anger. "Do you really think I'm stupid?" he hissed. "You want me to let you go? I should just allow you to run into his arms?" He questioned in a mocking tone.“Drop your weapon and surrender,” the police announced again but neither Valerie nor Matt paid any attention. “Best believe that if I do that, then I'll shoot you from behind before you get to him,” Matt added. The chilling sensation in his voice sent a shiver down Valerie's spine.“Man to man,” Lucas began, his voice almost a growl. “What would it take for you to let her go? Anything at all… name it. Even if you don't want to spend a single da

**Third person**It took Matthew half the time it would normally take to get to the bunker. He parked his car at a safe distance before running over to the location. And with each step he took, his mind raced, his heart pounded with anxiety. He couldn't afford to lose her now that he was so close. They'd literally be leaving the country today. Valerie please be there, please be there, Matt murmured, his legs moving faster.A half-relieved sigh left his lips when he reached the entrance and saw that the door was still locked—She was still here. His trembling fingers sifted through his bunch of keys, his breath gaspy and he wiped the sweat on his forehead with the back of his palm.Matt unlocked the door and then pushed it open forcefully. His eyes blazing with anger and anxiety found Valerie immediately. She was curled up at a corner, her cheeks stained with tears and her hands and feet shaking."What have you done??!" he growled, his voice venomous.She frowned in confusion, even th

**Third person**Matt seemed to ponder for a moment before he exhaled deeply. Then he moved over to the table and picked up a small knife. He began cutting the ropes. His jaw clenched at the red mark the ropes left on her skin, a pang of guilt coursing through him. He'd done this to her, he thought. “Do you need me to get you anything from the store?”Finally untied, Valerie examined her free hands and legs, a sense of relief and determination washing over her. “No, thanks.”“I'll be back soon.” He gave her a warning look. “Don't try anything stupid.”She nodded vigorously. “I wouldn't dare.”Satisfied, Matthew turned around and headed out. Valerie had her timid and innocent mask on, until the moment Matthew was out of view.She squeezed her eyes shut and then began counting from one to fifty in her head, giving Matthew enough time to leave the premises. Even with her eyes closed, she could hear the locks click behind him.When she was done, she sprang to her feet, her eyes desperat

**Third person**Eighteen hours had passed since Valerie's disappearance.Lucas stood in the center of his living room, surrounded by computers and anxious faces. His team of experts, handpicked from the best in the business, worked tirelessly to track down any lead on his woman.But so far, neither his team nor the police have been able to come up with anything tangible. There was also no signal from the tracker in Valerie's necklace. Either her kidnapper knew that the necklace was bugged and got rid of it, or they were under water, in a bunker, or somewhere that'll block the signal.One thing for sure; he'd find Valerie and he'd find her soon. Even if it meant turning the planet upside down. She'd be found.News about her and disappearance was all over the media and there was a huge cash prize for whoever brought relevant information on her whereabouts. Lucas ran a palm across his exhausted face. Deep lines creased his forehead, and his jaw was set in a rigid clench. "Broaden the

**Third person** It was almost as if Valerie disappeared just when Elliot blinked. After dismissing the woman who'd come to talk to him, he looked up but he didn't find his boss. Damnit! He'd clenched his jaw and quickened his pace, his hand instinctively resting on the gun holstered at his hip as he rushed outside. Eyes scanned everywhere around but there was no trace of her. "Miss Thorne?" he called out, his mind racing. “Ashley?” He called louder. “Valerie?” There was no response. Immediately, he dialed her number… once, twice, thrice… until it was unreachable. He'd rushed over to some passersby to ask if they'd seen her… There was nothing. Shit! Just then, his phone started ringing. Elliot pulled the device out and stared at the screen, his throat suddenly feeling dry as he registered the caller ID—Mr. Stone. He took a deep breath and then pressed the answer button. ***************************** Valerie's eyes fluttered open, her gaze was blurry and unfocused. She tri