Novel-novel oleh Margaux Dynabella

Clover’s POVLife goes on, as it always does. I almost forgot the threat to my life outside this island. I think I’m getting way too comfortable here. I have buried the night at the docks so far down that even I somehow convinced myself everything was fine. Yet one way or another, I have to face it.“Did you tame that crow?” Cuatro asks while eyeing the creature on my lap.“Not quite,” I say while feeding the bird with seeds from my palm. “I think it only hangs around me because of food, kind of like you.”Cuatro laughs and grabs the yogurt parfait I made beside me. “Hm, you’re not wrong.”We were sitting on the veranda overlooking the sea. He said that today is his day off but judging by how he is always lurking around, I don’t think he works as much as others. At least I have a buddy to save me from boredom.I faced him, “Say… can I ask you something?”“Shoot,” he replies in between a spoonful.“The night I tried escaping, some gang people appeared trying to kill me… I think, or t

Clover’s POVI’ve been spending more time in the laboratory these days and it’s been the closest I got to living my dreams—as long as I don’t think about how I got here.“Dos! This is abuse! What did I do to you?!” Cuatro exclaims as he is dramatically sprawled on the medical table, his good arm flailing as if he’d just been sentenced to execution. “I am still too young to die!”I squint my eyes at him, offended, as I fix my surgical gloves. “You do realize I once saved Uno from death itself, right? This is nothing compared to that.”Siete snorted, hands crossed over his chest across the room. “Don’t be a baby, if Boss survived, then you should be fine, lab rat.”His teasing just set off Cuatro more. “Laugh it up, jerk. I’m warning you ! If you so much as chuckle when I—”“Stop whining,” I cut in, reaching for the suture thread. “Just let me do my job, or I might accidentally stitch your arm to the table and let you grow into it.”Cuatro glared at me. “You wouldn’t dare.”I smirked, t

Uno’s POVI gathered my crew in the tech room. Rows of dissected weapons line the metal tables, blue cores exposed as I’ve been studying the residual energy of the tech we’ve stolen. It’s not easy to take it apart and not trigger an explosion.While we have been making progress in establishing Nero in the underworld, this is still a reminder that I’m far from the top of the chain.I don’t want us to just be a mafia with petty crimes and illegal operations, I want to dismantle and overthrow a lineage of empire that’s ruled unchecked for decades. Dos talks while tapping projections on the holo-screen. “Energy output is ninety percent stabilized. We can replicate their pulse rifles within a month if we get more cores.”“You think we can surpass it?” I asked without looking up.“I’m working on that,” he replies.I drag a fingertip along the spine of a dismantled rifle. Clean cut, foreign alloy, a signature that her bloodline built their legacy on. The same bloodline she has no idea about

Clover’s POVLife as a maid for a mafia group is not that bad. I make the best out of it.They mostly keep to themselves. I still think they’re very mysterious, I don’t know a lot about these guys. Still, I try to look at things positively. I’m alive and breathing. Then I realized that the island is actually beautiful if I wasn’t being locked inside.Also, I’m living in a mansion for free, not minding any rent in this economy. It’s the little things to be thankful for, I guess as I mow the front lawn.“Alright, everyone, don’t swoop in and get caught in the blades, okay?” I say as a murder of crows encircle around me. “I’ll feed you in a bit, no need to follow me all the time.”The crows are nicer too. Maybe it’s because I’ve been feeding them. Lately, food seems to work on everyone here. I wonder if I would’ve been a better chef than a doctor.“Are you Uno’s spies?” I ask the crows jokingly and put the mower aside, crouching and grabbing the seeds from my pocket.“Don’t all swarm at

Clover’s POVNever in my wildest dreams did I think I’ll be returning as the mafia boss’s willing hostage.Or more like an actual promotion to slightly-less-of-a-hostage. I’d like to believe that this is a relationship of mutual benefit just so I won’t regret my abrupt decision. But truly, I have learned enough lessons lately to know that Uno only agreed to keep me for a personal reason, a different purpose than simply being a “maid.”Whether I’m safer here or not, I don’t really have other options.For now, he’s my best choice.He did save my life. Besides, I don't plan on leaving again anytime soon if there’s a target on my back. I was not cut out for this life. Not long ago I was simply a girl whose only enemy is a nagging landlord over a crappy place for a house but now I’m out here discovering ninety-nine creative ways to die.I sucked in a deep breath and refused to remember how trickling blood feels on my skin. I will have another breakdown if I do and this is hardly the enviro

Uno's POV No one escapes my watch—and by no one, I meant not even a naive girl who thinks she’s cunning enough to run away from my grasp. It doesn’t take much of a genius. One thing I know is the moment a desperate prey acts tame and stops squirming, that is when you should watch them more. Naturally, when her crazy antics lessened, I suspected she’s planning something else. Perhaps I should give her credit. It wasn’t a bad plan this time. She just underestimated me. I stare at the trunk of the car where I know she slipped in. She’s been moving under the radar lately. Her gardening stint? I realized she was mapping the place. Then she memorized the schedule of my men who were preparing the cargo. I also notice her cozying up to Cuatro, the one who has a loose mouth in my crew. She wanted information to escape. And I let her. At least, to give her a lesson. “We’re even now,” I say and observe her terrified expression. She has never looked more of a prey than now, shivering in fe

Thank you for reading! I am very, very grateful for the people who reached here. This has been a long journey and also my first novel. It means a lot that you gave this story a chance and stayed until the end. Truly, I appreciate it. If I could track the comments, I would personally thank each and everyone for the support. In all honesty, there are things I regret and wish to have done better during the entire writing process. I do feel guilty about leaving this hanging for a while and what I have lacked in some aspects—I apologize for that. I faced some unexpected hurdles along the way and went through a very tough writer’s block and challenge of picking this up. For what it’s worth, I tried. To everyone who remained patient and still read, thank you. The last few special chapters are for loose ends I may or may not be able to write. I’m not sure if I’d be given another chance to expand on this story with a sequel like I planned in my head so I wrote the extras to at least wrap it

Sebastian’s POVHelios has been the warmest it has ever been.Or at least that’s how it feels to me despite the eternal winter of the North. From afar, I could make out Veronica’s figure. She was crouched down and talking with a group of elders and youngsters alike. They were in a circle around a bonfire at the center of the town square.This has become one of the newest traditions in the kingdom.We’ve always been a pack of deep loyalty and respect to each other—yet the walls are still there. Veronica came to our territory and broke those walls like she did with mine.Suddenly it’s warmer in Helios even in the winter.“Alpha Sebastian,” said in unison by the people who saw me approach.llThe others finally noticed my presence and they all bowed down to me while I stopped and stood behind my wife.I raised my hand to dismiss their gestures and spoke, “Might if I steal the Luna from you?” I asked with a grin.Veronica looked over her shoulder and met my eyes. “Well, I guess my escort

Third Person’s POVNew Helios continues to thrive and grow under the leadership of the Rozeiros triplets.The three alphas resumed their duties once they came back to Aethiuopia after the debacle in their brother’s kingdom. They fell into their usual routine like they never left. Rowan is currently stuck in a court meeting with their officials, discussing the reports to catch up on what they missed when they were away and also reviewing the postponed works that need their approval—such tasks that the other two hate and find tedious so inevitably, it falls on him.Declan said he’ll be organizing their archives and artifacts but somehow, the silence and peacefulness of rows and rows of books and objects lulled him to sleep in one a corner; it was always his excuse though. In reality, he can start snoring anywhere he could consume space. Meanwhile, Nolan, ever the unruly and mischievous of the three, was currently climbing a balcony in the middle of the day. He jumped to hide behind o

Third Person’s POVThe moon hid itself from the world tonight.The kingdom of Helios was peaceful, oblivious of the scenes that were unfolding in the shadows. Their king and queen just left a few days ago for a short vacation. The Beta was left in charge to monitor the pack. Thankfully, winter has subsided a bit these days.In the dark of the dead night, only the iridescent blue glow of the arch illuminated the woods. Behemoth wolves lie snoring by the foot of the portal.A silhouette sat perched on the branch of a nearby tree, golden eyes glared at the opened entrance, waiting for something… for someone.The winter wind howled into the eerie silence. Af

Veronica’s POV I have never been happier—we have never been happier than this day. Without restrictions and inhibitions, we got to enjoy ourselves away from everyone but us. Along the way, Sebastian tackled me to the ground and we rolled over, messing around the snow. We crossed to the uncharted and unclaimed lands of the North. Nothing really is around except forests. It took a while until I reached the place I was trying to show him. It was already sunset when we arrived. My wolf slowed down and stopped before the clearing. Sebastian followed and halted beside me, gawking at the view in front of us. We shifted back to our human forms as the sun slowly descended, casting an orange hue to the sky. The snow stops around here. The forest is lush although this is the last stretch of the continent before opening to the large body of water. “I found this by accident during our hunting competition,” I said looking at the view. “We can’t really go far and take a break yet but this

Veronica’s POVAfter telling him my plan, I parted ways with Keldor once we reached the center of the forests.Sensing my environment, I focused to locate where Sebastian is through our bond. The moment I opened my eyes, I started dashing through the trees and reached where he was in the woods. When I started to make out his figure using my heightened sight, I slowed down to cloak my presence. I wanted to ambush him.Sebastian was just finishing up, removing a sharpened stick from a deer while I hid behind a trunk of the nearby tree. I smiled to myself as he looked clueless. Then, I prepared to attack him. However, when I looked in his direction again, he was nowhere to be found.“What the…” I stepped out slowly and sensed my environment, scanning my surroundings.He’s still near, I could feel it through our connection yet I can’t find a trace of him anywhere. As I turned around to the direction of the tree where I hid, he suddenly appeared in front of me.“I see I found a sneaky