24 Hearts Novels & Stories

"I am sorry you all had to see me like this." "What was that thing you did bowing to the ground?" One of the new men asked. "Old ritual that most don't do anymore. We do it before eating any hearts of any kind, including candy ones." We held hearts sacred, both ones we eat and the ones we don't. I only ever lost one heart that I held sacred. My mates heart. It was either his heart or the hearts of the innocents he was going to kill. So, I killed him, but these tigers didn't need to know it yet.

Swiftly flicking his cigarette, he forcefully turned the steering wheel in the opposite direction, causing the car to spin in circles around the girl. On the other side, Hiya, with her heart pounding, witnessed a black Mercedes approaching rapidly. Overwhelmed with fear, she clasped her hands over her ears and shut her eyes tightly, anticipating an imminent tragedy. In that moment, she believed it was her last day in this world, facing an inevitable and untimely demise.

"There's three hundred thousand on this card. No PIN needed. Two hundred thousand to pay you back, and another hundred thousand for interest. For the last decade." I paused, then added, "Thank you. When I found out, I was really touched." Finally reacting, Jessica hurriedly waved her hands in protest. "No, you don't have to. Just think of it as…" I cut her off, "Debts need to be repaid. As for my gratitude? If you ever need me, I'll do whatever it takes to help." I pushed the card into her hand before she could object again. Jessica pursed her lips as she held the card helplessly, then said hoarsely, "Seb, we…"

The door to Damien’s office creaked open, its sound loudly heard in the stillness of the moment. “Good afternoon, Mr. Anderson,” she said, her voice steady despite the rapid sound of her heartbeat. Her eyes flicked to her wristwatch—an attempt to maintain her composure in the presence of the man who now held her future in his hands.

“For fuck’s sake mate, stop making this harder than it needs to be. I just want to talk to him and nothing else and what I have to say does not involve you, got it?” The voices inside my head were raging with every word that was exchanged between Liam and Keith. They were making it harder for me to quiet the voices and I just couldn’t take it anymore as the tears continued and my heart ached from all the pain that came rushing back ten times. I remembered Hayley and Alexis, my parents and him. It was all so overwhelming that I screamed so loud. “STOP! I CAN’T TAKE IT!”

Inside was a single sheet of matte black paper, the message printed in faint grey type, like a whisper in ink: You’re not the only one watching. You’ve got forty-eight hours before someone decides your past isn’t worth hiding. No signature. No mark. But the phrasing… sharp, precise. It reminded her of the way Leo Knight spoke—only this was colder, less amused. Her mind moved fast—cross-referencing jobs, old contacts, burned clients—but there were too many possibilities. She turned the page over, and a smaller slip of paper fell out. A photograph. Her chest tightened.

“I won’t let it. Not with you.” “Then we’ll figure out how to make sure it doesn’t,” Aria said, her voice firmer than she felt. “First—breath.” She placed her palm on her chest, showing the rhythm. “Four in, four hold, four out, four rest. Together.” Kai followed. His shoulders began to loosen. His hands still trembled, but the shaking retreated to his fingertips.

She wiped it away, but more followed, and soon she gave in to the silent sobs that shook her tired frame. Suddenly, a sharp, searing pain shot through Daphne’s stomach, tearing through her like a bolt of lightning. Her hand instinctively flew to her belly. **Oh no, my baby!** The thought exploded in her mind, flooding her with panic. She had endured so much for her unborn child, fighting through every hardship to protect the life growing inside her. Now, her heart pounded wildly, fear taking over as the pain intensified, twisting and squeezing her insides.

she gives me air kisses and leaves. I sigh, a huge smile on my face, I look at the papers again and it brings joy to my heart but not as much as those flowers, I stare at the petals, my fingers brushing through them softly,my heart pulled in two different directions, softened by the memory of Matteo but heavy with Dexter's growing presence in my life. How can I possibly be in love with two brothers? My heart strings pulled in two different directions, my smile fades. **************** I pack up my bag and laptop when I hear a little knock on my door, I look up and see Dexter and my heart increases in pace, excitedly.

he asked, the question that was medical and intimate, the ritual that was daily and essential. "Steady," Cyrus replied, the hand that moved to Arthie's chest, the monitoring that was habit and love. The fingers that found the intercostal space, the position that was precise, the listening that was through skin and muscle to the organ beneath. "Sixty-eight. The athlete's bradycardia that is healthy, that is optimal, that is—"