LOGINThe crowd continued to applaud as Thea took one final bow before exiting the stage. The moment she was out of sight, Elijah grabbed my hand.“Come on,” he said, already pulling me toward the aisle. “Let’s get backstage before everyone else.”We made our way through the crowd, accepting congratulatio
AgnesEight years had passed by.The concert hall was packed to capacity, not a single empty seat in sight. My spine ached like hell from sitting on the hard wooden chair for the past two hours, and my pregnant belly made it impossible to find a comfortable position. Elijah kept rubbing his neck and
“Mom?” Thea’s voice called. “Everyone’s waiting. Are you ready?”I took one last look in the mirror, adjusted the mask slightly, and turned toward the door.“Ready,” I said, opening it to find my daughter standing there in a midnight blue dress that she had designed herself. Her own mask, shaped lik
AgnesOne year later.I stood in front of my mirror, hardly recognizing the woman staring back at me. Two years. It had been two years since I met Elijah—not counting that foggy night we conceived Thea seven years before that, a night neither of us could fully remember thanks to whatever drugs had b
Initially, I resisted. The thought of sharing my pain with a stranger when I had spent so many years being treated like a madwoman for my trauma scared the hell out of me. But Elijah was persistent, reminding me that we all carried burdens that were too heavy to bear alone.And so, twice a week, we
AgnesThe weeks following the destruction of the Lunaris Stone passed in a blur.Elemental Enterprises, of course, was immediately shut down by the authorities. Every known international law enforcement agency descended on Richard’s territory, working alongside Richard and us to document the crimes
AgnesThe slap was so loud it was like a gunshot through the quiet house.My stepmother staggered backwards, cupping her hand against her face. She stumbled back against the foyer table so hard that it sent the vase on top toppling over, glass, water, and flowers shattering across the marble floors.
I scrambled out of Elijah’s arms, my feet hitting the floor just as Thea’s small figure appeared at the end of the hallway. My heart was still pounding, and my face felt like it was on fire, but I forced myself to smile and smoothed down my hair as casually as I could manage.“There you are, sweethe
She hesitated, her smile faltering for just a moment before she recovered. “Of course she did. Why else would I be here?”I didn’t believe her. Not for a second. Agnes wouldn’t have personally asked Olivia to model in the show—not after… Well, everything. But I didn’t call her out on it.Instead, I
However, I shook my head. “I always made the best coffee at the diner. Besides, it’s just coffee.”James stared at me, but didn’t argue further. Truthfully, I just wanted a good excuse to get away from the crowd for a few moments. And it would make a good impression—a calm and selfless Luna preparin







