LOGINI'll drive!" Jude ran."No," Tobias wore his gloves which felt hot on his palms. "I'm driving." Together, they rushed out of the bloody Oddsion. Yalda pushed the weapon bags into the car with them."Vince would wanna leave this country, no doubt... considering the fact that his secret is out at the precinct and the city knows of his atrocities now. He's gonna want to take First Lady away." She said."That's only gonna come true when my body gets embalmed." Tobias responded as he drove out speedily.--[Vince's Crib]Uncle Will got up with insane headache which made him rub his temples with a groan, but when he noticed the darkness in the room, he quickly rushed his way out of bed, traced the wall with his palms to get to the wall, then turned on the lights."The hell am I in a room?" He muttered to himself, looking around.Vince definitely gave him a cup of coffee. He drank it without asking, thinking
Jude and Yalda ran in after they finished their surveillance outside too, and when they saw what had happened inside, they halted.Another wave of shock slapped them right in the face.Tobias still stayed on one knee where he was, staring at the maid who just died like her dead body would spit out answers for him.But behind his focused, trembling lashes, he could make out the only thing that made sense here.The bodies.They aren't bodies of people he knew. They aren't bodies of Odds.Only the dead maids belong here. The rest of the bodies? None of them belong to Odds at all.He got up, bones creaking under his flesh. Only him could hear."They aren't Odd s!" Yalda said breathlessly."Could Odds have gone in chase of the perpetrators?" Jude said."The surveillance room." Tobias said without waiting, and they all rushed to the lift, riding up to the room.There, they met a bleeding Odd—the most brilliant handler.He sat behind a system, clutching his stomach with an hand, grunting.Re
[ADELIND POV]I was twenty-four years old, and I was dying.The first thing that came back to me was the sound. A slow, cold metallic beat that felt like a timer counting down the rest of my life.Beep. Beep. Beep.Then came the smell of hospital disinfectant mixed with bleach. My body felt heavy, like it was made of concrete. My fingers were locked in place, my eyes refused to open, and every breath through the oxygen tube felt like swallowing sharp glass.“Miss Gomez,” the doctor had told me two days ago in a quiet, sad voice. “Your organ failure is getting worse very quickly. The treatment isn't working anymore. I think you should say your goodbyes.”Say my goodbyes. As if watching my health, my dreams, and my father's company fall apart could be fixed with a few quiet words.I wasn't afraid of dying anymore. The constant, unbearable pain of the past eight months had wiped away my fear, l
Chapter One: The Second Chance [ADELINE POV]I was twenty-four years old, and I was dying. The only sound that was ringing in my ear was the slow, monitor beat that felt like a timer counting down the rest of my life.Beep. Beep. Beep.Then came the smell of hospital disinfectant mixed with bleach. My body felt unbearably heavy, my fingers barely responding beneath the thin blanket. Even breathing through the oxygen tube felt like swallowing broken glass.Two days ago, the doctor had stood beside my bed with a quiet, defeated expression."Miss Gomez, your organ failure is getting worse very quickly. The treatment isn't working anymore. I think you should say your goodbyes."Say my goodbyes.As if a few final words could make up for everything I was leaving behind. My health. My dreams. My father's company.I wasn't afraid of dying anymore. Eight months of constant pain had taken care of that. There wa
[ADELINE POV]I couldn’t take my eyes off Charlotte.She stood in the middle of our room, taking a long sip from her water bottle, looking as sweet and harmless as she always did. There was no cold malice in her face. No sharp, calculating look in her eyes. Just my best friend, standing in front of me in her oversized hoodie.My throat felt painfully tight. A single tear slipped down my cheek before I could catch it."Adeline?" Charlotte paused, setting her bottle on the desk. She frowned slightly, her eyes filling with instant worry. "Hey… are you okay? Why are you crying?"She took a step toward me, reaching out her hand.I flinched.It was a small, quick movement, but it was enough to make her stop. The memory of her standing over my hospital bed, whispering about lawyers while my heart gave out, flashed behind my eyes like. My chest tightened with panic."I'm fine," I choked out, my voice raspy and thin. "Just… a bad dream. I'm going to wash my face."Without waiting for her to an
[ADELINE POV]I couldn’t take my eyes off Charlotte.She stood in the middle of our room, taking a long sip from her water bottle, looking as sweet and harmless as she always did. There was no cold malice in her face. No sharp, calculating look in her eyes. Just my best friend, standing in front of me in her oversized hoodie.My throat felt painfully tight. A single tear slipped down my cheek before I could catch it."Adeline?" Charlotte paused, setting her bottle on the desk. She frowned slightly, her eyes filling with instant worry. "Hey… are you okay? Why are you crying?"She took a step toward me, reaching out her hand.I flinched.It was a small, quick movement, but it was enough to make her stop. The memory of her standing over my hospital bed, whispering about lawyers while my heart gave out, flashed behind my eyes like. My chest tightened with panic."I'm fine," I choked out, my voice raspy and thin. "Just… a bad dream. I'm going to wash my face."Without waiting for her to an
{AARON POV}The door to my private office hadn’t been closed for more than ten minutes before Mason let himself in. He didn't knock. He just tossed a thick,folder onto my desk and dropped into one of the leather armchairs, crossing his legs comfortably."You're making a mistake, Aaron," Mason said
{AARON POV}Everything stopped for a second; I could hear my own heartbeat.She stood next to Marcus Vance.Wearing a sharp, charcoal-gray corporate suit that didn’t fit her right it was slightly too big, masking the curves I used to know by touch. Her dark hair was pinned back in a neat, professi
{LAURETTA POV}My alarm went off at six o’clock in the morning, but I had already been staring at the ceiling for an hour.I wasn't anxious about the interview questions.I had spent years managing high-stakes corporate messaging, writing press releases under tight deadlines, and turning potential p
My chest felt tight, my breath hitching every time my eyes drifted back to the bolded name at the top of the roster.Aaron Carter.My hands were clammy as I gripped the edge of the kitchen table. Panic clawed its way up my throat."Auntie Estie!" Ryan’s ecstatic shriek shattered the heavy silence o







