LOGINArielle “Hey.”I didn’t answer Ryker. “Hey!”Still no word.“Hey, I’m talking to you!” He stopped in front of me, forcing me to look at him. “What were you saying back there?”I stared at him, unmoving. “I said a lot of things.”“You said your father killed my parents,” he said. “How did you know that?”My eyes remained fixed on him. “You don’t believe me, do—"“Answer the question, then maybe I’ll believe you,” his voice became serious. “How did you know that your father killed my parents?”I sighed heavily. “If I tell you, I’m losing my leverage.”“If you tell me, I can help you get out of here.”I snickered. “I don’t trust you.”“Just tell me how you found out, and I’ll help with whatever you need.”My jaw tightened as I looked around the hallway to make sure no one was nearby. Then I leaned closer to him. “Your brother told me everything. That was why he quit.”Ryker looked at me like he didn’t believe a word I was saying.“Okay, here’s a secret. He also told me how my father t
Arielle I heard the iron door open loudly, and I slowly got up. “Good morning, sunshine. Your father needs you.”I looked at the person standing in front of me, and my jaw tightened. “Ryker.”Ryder once asked me if I could tell them apart. I still couldn’t because they looked so much alike. But I knew who was good.And who was evil.“Surprise,” Ryker laughed hysterically. “Arielle Hills. I don’t know if you can still remember me, but I’m the one who always picked you up from school with your mother.”I said nothing. “You were what? Nine?” He asked. “You were full of life back then. But now, all you do is live like a loser.”He shrugged. “Sorry about your grandma. She should’ve waited a little longer to see how your life would be after the wedding.”My hands tightened into fists. “What did you do to Darius?” “Removed a few of his fingernails,” he said casually. “And give him a little scar here and there, but he’ll be alright.”My chest tightened. “If you touch him again, I’ll kill
Arielle After I told Ryder everything, he paced inside his cage for almost five minutes. I was getting angry. “Stop pacing and say something!” I snapped. “What are we going to do? They’re looking for me!”Ryder finally turned to face me. “This is big.”“I’m scared he might do to Darius and his parents if they don’t find me.”“I’m still trying to figure out who leaked those pictures. Who could do something—““Fuck the pictures, okay?!” I snapped. “I don’t care anymore. I just don’t want anything bad to happen. Especially not now.”Our eyes stayed locked for a moment. “Please…” I whispered. “Tell me you know a way to get us out of here.”He swallowed. “I’m afraid I don’t. It’ll be too hard to leave without them noticing.”“We have to try.”He rubbed his forehead. My face tightened with anger. “I’m sure you knew a day like this would come. Why don’t you have a plan already? Why are we still here, Ryder?”“It’s your father we are talking about,” he said firmly. “He’ll have my brother
Arielle This person kept sending more pictures and even videos to both our phones. “Who is this?” I asked again, my mind racing. “Do you think this person is trying to blackmail us?”Darius sighed heavily. “I don’t think so. It must be something else.”“What—“The door opened. I thought it was Lisa, but a man walked in instead. “I knew it was a wedding ceremony. Your mother just lied to me to cover it up.”I didn’t recognize the voice. But the face—“Father?” Darius said, slowly getting up.My heart sank. I had seen that face before. It was truly Darius’s father.Darius tried to shake his hands, but his father stopped him. “Not now, son,” he raised a finger, then his eyes went straight to me. “I just came to confirm something. Is it my eyes, or does she look like Vivienne?”His father stared at me. A lump formed in my throat instantly. Vivienne. My mother. Was I getting out of this situation, or was I just getting pulled deeper into it?“Dad, come on—““What’s going on, son?” Hi
Arielle “You passed out an hour ago,” Dr. Liam explained. “Your heart rate increased significantly while you were unconscious.”He studied me. “Did you experience anything unusual before you lost consciousness?” Any dizziness? Nausea? Chest discomfort? Anything at all?”I hesitated. I didn’t know how to explain what happened. Not the dream, and certainly not what she said about a baby. Then Darius spoke. “For the past three days, my wife has been feeling nauseous and tired. Does that help?”“Absolutely, sir.”My eyes immediately drifted toward Darius. Why did he say that?“Well, what does it mean?” Darius asked. Dr. Liam stared at me for a moment before returning his eyes to Darius. “We’ll run a few blood tests and be back with the results soon. Then we can discuss what's going on and decide what to do next.”Blood test?“Thank you, doctor," Darius said. The doctor whispered a few more words to the nurse as they both walked out of the room. I finally turned toward Darius. “Dari
Anna After spending about two weeks in Korea for our honeymoon, I realized life had a different version. My friends and I FaceTimed countless times while they were in Ibiza. I wasn’t sure they were even planning on coming back. Still, they deserved every bit of it. They were all doing well. Tiffany had already found a new job at her father‘s friend’s company. Joel’s planning to propose to her soon.Summer had finally reconciled with her sister. And Tessa had found a new job where she could finally put her certificate to good use. They went to restaurants and tried all kinds of foods. They visited beach clubs, went to nightlife parties, went shopping, and returned to the villa whenever they wanted. A villa I never knew Darius owned in a country like that. They sent me videos and pictures of everything. My girls were turning the city upside down. They were having the best weeks of their life.And so was I. As a matter of fact, I completely forgot who I was. I forgot I had thing







