To Protect Whats nine

Oscar Chamberlain once believed he was the happiest man alive. He had nine extraordinary sisters who adored him and never hesitated to show it. Then the Chamberlain family found their long-lost biological heir, and everything changed. Overnight, Oscar became nothing more than a temporary stand-in, easily replaced. For years, he had worked tirelessly for the Chamberlain family, giving them his loyalty and effort without question. Yet on the day their true heir returned, they cast him out without hesitation. He did not even have the chance to show them the diagnosis clutched in his hand: brain cancer, two years left to live. … After the nine sisters drove Oscar away, they began, one by one, to sense that something was wrong. The eldest no longer carried her commanding confidence. The second lost the sharp decisiveness that had once made her seem unstoppable. The third found her inspiration drained, her once-celebrated talent slipping into mediocrity. And the new young heir, when measured against Oscar, fell painfully short. Only much later did they understand what Oscar had truly meant to the Chamberlain family. By then, regret had come too late. When they accidentally discovered that he had brain cancer, the news struck them like thunder from a clear sky. In the pouring rain, they knelt before him, weeping and begging for forgiveness. This time, however, Oscar chose himself. "Sorry," he said calmly. "You've already taken back the Chamberlain name. I don't know you anymore."

I have to go to the police station to bail two people out at 2:00 am. The young woman this time is different compared to the others in the past. She keeps her head hung and is as docile as a rabbit. Melvin Norton, my boyfriend, says with a smile, "I've just won her heart over. This is your junior colleague, Stacy Decker. "I joked about wanting to try having car sex with her. She dared not do that, so she grabbed the steering wheel from me. That's how we ended up crashing into the greenbelt." Stacy raises her head to glare at Melvin with red-rimmed eyes. But that's when the hickey on her neck is revealed. I just nod with a blank expression. Then, I begin the procedures fluently. The police officer in charge of the fine is already used to seeing me at this point. He asks casually, "How many times have you done this so far?" I'm temporarily taken aback by the question, resulting in me pausing in my actions. Last year, Melvin had cheated on me with a saleswoman. The year before, it was a nurse. The year before that year was the gym trainer… Suddenly, I lose all interest in this stupid game. "This is the ninth and the final time."

I am one of the last of the merfolk, born with the ability to create Mermaid's Pearls. Pearls that can bring the dead back to life. After the werewolf, Kyle, saved me from human hunters, I would have done anything for him. He died nine times expanding his pack’s territory. Each time, my pearl brought him back. The ninth time, I was too weak to even stand. But the first thing he did when he woke up was pull a sexy omega she-wolf into his arms and flirt, "Baby, you smell incredible—not like Althea. Her scent does nothing for me." He glanced at my pale face, annoyed. "Go rest. Get ready for the next time. I'll need you again soon." The next time? He had no idea. There would be no next time. I only had nine pearls. And I'd just given him my last.

When the world was young, the Lord of the Heavens chose ordinary human beings to guard the knowledge of the civilizations. Three beings were gifted with immense power to protect the Chamber only they know where it was hidden. But an evil and malicious being was released from his prison and threatened to destroy the world. And a new set of Guardians have to be chosen. Tivona, Aedre and Parisa were chosen as the new Guardians. Despite their differences, they learned to get along. But...as every person has a past, so is every one of them. And their pasts may be their weakness or their strength to determine their role as Guardians and keeper of the Chamber of knowledge.

A story between a nine-tailed fox and a human who met with a tragic fate led by their descendants. From the very beginning of their story, they're already bound to meet and fulfill Kagome's curse at the right time. Amaya and Hiroshima are the victim. Kagome is the reason the entire fox tribe has been cursed to turn into a horrible beast every midnight and wild every full moon. But Amaya is the chosen one to break the curse since her body is where Kagome's spirit has been sleeping for a long time. Will they be able to escape their world and learn to love each other despite the fact that they are not the same creature?

I had just climbed into the armored SUV leaving the Moretti estate when the gatekeeper hurried after me with a black encrypted phone in his hand. "Mrs. Westmore, Don Moretti asked me to give you this." I took it. One unread message glowed on the screen. [Selena only had a scare. I'll come home tomorrow. Don't overthink it.] I stared at it for two seconds, popped out the SIM card, snapped it in half, and tossed it into the rain outside the window. The next day, I had just reached the abandoned shipyard in North Harbor when encrypted messages started hitting my backup phone one after another. [Vivian, where are you?] [Why aren't you home? Where the hell did you go this late?] [Answer me. Don't make me send men all over the city looking for you.] The last one was exactly his style: soft on the surface, arrogant underneath. [Your family survives under my protection. Don't test my patience.] I didn't answer. After countless messages sank without a reply, my husband finally drove to the old Westmore grounds at North Harbor. He knew that if anything was left of my family, I would be there. But when Damon pushed through the broken iron gate, he found no guards, no household staff, and no Westmore men waiting for orders. The old house stood hollow in the rain. Its windows were blown out, the front steps were black with soot, and the air still carried the bitter smell of smoke and gunpowder. Damon grabbed a passing harbor guard by the sleeve. "Where are the Westmores?" The guard looked at him as if he should already know. "Gone. The family was hit two nights ago. Whoever came for them knew exactly when Moretti protection would be pulled from the harbor." "Miss Westmore came back before dawn," the guard added. "She took the black-gold signet, a few boxes of ledgers, and whatever papers survived the fire." "After that, she left. And no one has seen her since."