The Ryder Hotel Charleston

“I do not want to stay here! Tell that to your lord!” She yelled at him. “He will take me back to Dragonsbane right now or I will bring this whole castle down!”---- Once every six hundred years, a ruling descendant of Axeris must offer up a pure breed daughter of Khione to the ancient spirits to keep the seal over the undead army of Osyron from breaking open and unleashing the wrath of the blood thirsty god upon the people of Astaroth and the other six kingdoms. Lord Ryder's rule falls under this year and he has his eyes set on Lyra, a pure breed descendant and princess of Dragonsbane, but there are complications when he tries to get her, she cannot remember him and he cannot offer her up if she is not in love with him. Time is running out, the seal is very unstable and everything seems to be working against him as he is soon caught up in a whirlwind of impossibilities and forced to make a difficult choice. There are secrets and twists as this is a tale woven into a maze of labyrinths, with each turn unlocking a new and unpredictable play out, until he is left standing against all he had ever believed in.

After catching her boyfriend in bed with two women, struggling horror writer Winona Hart thinks the universe has officially hit rock bottom. Then a mysterious invitation changes everything. The Midnight Project promises fame, money, and the opportunity of a lifetime: an exclusive fully-paid reality experience for selected rising creators. Writers, actors, gamers, influencers—only a handful are invited to the luxurious Midnight Hotel hidden deep within the mountains. At first, it feels like the perfect distraction from her ruined relationship. Until the first contestant dies. Then comes the terrifying truth: nobody can leave the hotel, every floor hides a deadly game, and when midnight strikes, time resets all over again. Trapped inside endless lethal loops with a group of dangerously attractive strangers, Winona must survive horrifying creatures, twisted rules, and betrayals that grow darker with every reset. But the deeper she falls into the hotel’s secrets, the more she realizes one thing... The Midnight Hotel did not choose its guests randomly. And the calm, mysterious man who keeps saving her may know exactly why she was invited.

I’m Iris Hale. Twenty three and a cleaner at one of New York’s most expensive hotels… and dying from the same illness that killed my mother. I was just supposed to do my job and go home but curiosity got the better of me I wake up and I'm in a cage. The rich are bidding and I’m the prize. I’m sold to a cold, powerful man who was never supposed to care whether I lived or died. But the longer I stay with him, the more I realize he’s hiding secrets… and protecting me in ways he shouldn’t. The problem? I’m running out of time. And falling for my captor might be the worst mistake of my life.

“Sorry, but due to the holiday, we’re overbooked. Your reservation has been canceled. Here’s a fifty-dollar voucher as compensation.” The hotel front desk clerk handed me a voucher with a perfunctory tone. I looked at her coldly. Then, I looked at the man next to her, who had just arrived. He had not even shown his ID, yet the clerk respectfully handed him a presidential suite key card. “Why can he check in without even showing an ID? Meanwhile, my room, which I booked a full week in advance, was canceled without explanation. And all I get is a lousy fifty-dollar voucher?” The front desk clerk let out a scornful laugh as she walked up to me. “Because he’s Mr. Ludwig, the heir of Grandview Group! His family owns the entire hotel. Do you think it’s just a matter of one room? If he wanted the whole hotel emptied out tonight, we’d do it. Who do you think you are? “If you keep standing here causing trouble and getting in his way, I’ll have security drag you outside and beat some sense into you. Now, get out!” Two security guards stepped forward. They grabbed me by the hair and roughly pulled me toward the door. My scalp hurt badly from the pulling, and my clothes were wrinkled. The front desk clerk’s shouts trailed behind me. “Next time, stay in a motel. People like you can’t afford to travel on a holiday.” I looked at the hotel’s grand entrance. Instead of shouting, I let out a quiet, exasperated laugh. The heir to Grandview Group, huh? They probably did not know that their lofty heir was right in front of them, and that he was being humiliated by their staff. Since they refused to serve guests decently, only catered to people with status, and did not think twice about hurting and humiliating their other customers, this hotel might as well shut down.

Our company was having a team building event in the Huka Islands, where every employee would get their own room. As I prepared to check in, my colleague from the same department, Yvonne Caruso, suddenly snatched my ID from my hand. "The rooms are full. The rest of you should find another hotel." I did not say anything much but took my ID back to hand it to the employee working behind the front desk. "One room, please. Thank you." However, Yvonne pushed me away viciously and berated me, "I told you to get lost. Are you deaf?!" I was not prepared for it, and I hit the corner of the front desk hard. I felt a sharp pain in my waist and immediately lost my temper. Yvonne was infuriated when I pushed her back, and she roared at me, "How dare you push me! My dad is the real boss behind this company. He's the Don of the Carusos. Cross me and you won't even see it coming when you die!" I was taken aback and broke out with laughter a second later. The Don of the Carusos, Ian Caruso, was my father. Why did I have no idea that he had another daughter apart from me?

“I, Julius Armstrong, reject Doris Charles as my mate.” The laughter came right after. This was the second time my mate rejected me because I cannot talk. In the pack, they call me dumb not because I am stupid, but because I am mute. When I turned eighteen, my first mate rejected me for that reason. Today, it was the Gamma. He is twenty-one, the same age as the Alpha and Beta. This was his third rejection. The first girl was too fat, the second was too short and now, I was dumb. I never wanted to attend the mating ceremony. I knew how it would end, but my stepmother forced me to go, and my stepsisters came just to watch me get mocked again. The next day, wolves who had found their mates returned to officially claim them before the Alpha and pack leaders. I went only because I was forced, just to stand there and watch my stepsister get chosen. Then something happened that no one expected. The Alpha claimed me as his mate in front of everyone. Was I shocked? Yes. Did I believe him? No. Did I think it was a cruel joke? Absolutely. Because no Alpha would choose a rejected, mute girl like me.