A River In Darkness

It's considered public knowledge that the CEO of Nextronics, Spencer Ford, is totally and utterly smitten with his wife, Nikita Young. Case in point: the very first digital voice assistant that Nextronics launched was called Nikki. Nextronic's newest launch, a smartphone that would revolutionize the tech industry, was to be named the Niko Ultra. Spencer seemed born to be a perfect husband—loving, devoted, and affectionate towards her. That was until she caught him in bed with his assistant. Nikita snapped out of the haze and realized a startling truth—promises could be broken, no matter how sincere the person who made them appeared. "I want to terminate this pregnancy. I don't want to bring this child into the world." "Give me ten days, and I will leave him."

Contains strong language: My parents died, my sister died, my brothers left, and I was left to a man who thought we were pawns in his play. You know the type of people who say "it gets better" they're lying to you, because it just keeps getting worse. How the hell did I end up in a gang? Well, this is that story

My husband's first love had been trapped in a car for an hour. After they pulled her out, his rage shifted onto me. “It’s your fault she got hurt,” he spat, his eyes blazing as he grabbed me. Before I could make sense of what was happening, he forced me into a wooden box, slamming the lid down with a deafening crack. “You’re going to feel every ounce of the pain she went through,” he hissed, nailing it shut. I pounded on the walls, my screams tearing through the air. “Please, I didn’t do anything! Let me out!” My throat burned with the effort, my fists aching, but nothing stopped him. “Stay in there until you’ve figured out how to act like a decent human being,” he said, his voice cold, dripping with contempt. Hours passed. My body twisted unnaturally in the tight space, bones throbbing as blood smeared the wood beneath me. I whispered into the dark, the pain unbearable. "Please… just let me out…" But he didn’t care. A week later, he returned, his laughter echoing with hers as they entered the house, carefree from their trip. He finally opened the box. But by then, I was already gone. The woman he locked away was no longer breathing, no longer pleading. Just a cold, silent corpse.

Buried deep in the Aster estate was the Heartwood—ancient, sacred, mine. Told my husband, Julian Aster—back when he actually listened—that if it ever fell, I'd die with it. At first, he freaked out. Flew in glacier water, hired a whole squad of plant experts to nurture it 24/7. Then one day, just because his childhood friend—Isabella Duvall—got a scratch from the bark, Julian had the Heartwood ripped out. The second it crashed, I choked on glowing blood—ichor. My power? Gone. Barely standing, I grabbed his arm. "You knew. If the Heartwood dies, I—" He laughed. Straight-up mocked me. "Sera, come on. That fairy tale? Only Grandma still believes that crap. Is that mayo on your mouth? Relax—it's a tree. I'll buy you a forest if you want." Overnight, my hair turned gray. Skin cracked. Eyes dulled. Still, I dragged myself to his grandmother, Henrietta. "I kept your family safe for two hundred years. That's why the Asters thrived. But the Heartwood's gone. Debt's paid. One day left. Whatever happens next? Not my problem."

Maximilian McTavish is a 35-year-old billionaire who seems to have the world in the palm of his hands, but his life comes crumbling down when he catches his fiancée in their bed with another man. Hurt and angry, he closes off his heart and himself from the notion that he'll ever find love again. He occupies himself with his work, putting women and dating aside, until one weekend his best friend, Paxton, takes him on a trip to Las Vegas, where he invites him to a private party. There he meets an extraordinary girl, Meredith Carver. *********** Meredith Carver is a 20-year-old waitress who dropped out of college to take care of her sick mother. She is barely making two ends meet, but her luck changes after her best friend's Sugar Daddy offers Meredith a job as a bartender that caters to the rich and famous. One night, while serving at one of those prestigious events in Las Vegas, she meets 35-year-old Max. They spend a steamy night together and she wakes up the next morning to an empty bed with a check on the night stand and a thank-you note. Feeling cheap and used, Meredith keeps the encounter with this Max a secret until a week later, when he finds her with a contract and an offer she would be a fool to refuse. He wants her to be his Sugar Baby. He promises to pay her five million dollars. Half now and half when he chooses to end the contract. Will Meredith sign the contract, or will she let a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity pass her by?

In the year 2020, the world faced Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, and took several years to slowly recover from its immense effect. Thirty years after, another virus rose and affected the world's population in just a few weeks. The health workers couldn't determine what exactly the virus is, its type, and the way it is being passed from person to person despite the advanced and improved technology. Because of this and the sudden virus outbreak, the World Health Organization assigned Richforte Medical Team for a research mission for the virus and find a cure for it as soon as possible. Would they be able to accomplish this mission if, in the next few hours, the world would have what they called Zombie Apocalypse?

I plan a family trip at my mother Lucia Sweeney's request. While avoiding the danger zones, my sister Linda Harper and I are ambushed by rogues. To protect her, I throw myself in the path of their claws and get driven into a silver mine. As I fall, my back is slashed open to the bone, and shards of silver embed deep into my right leg. The searing silver poison spreads quickly, burning through me and my wolf. My wolf is whimpering—she's close to death. However, as the pack's chief healer, Mom gathers all the healers around Linda to give her a full check-up over a few minor scrapes. I sob and beg her to save me first. "Mom, the poison has almost reached my heart. I can't hold on anymore." She turns around impatiently and yells, "Are you seriously still fighting with Linda now? Do you have any idea how close she came to getting clawed in the face by a silver claw? Our pack doesn't have a wolf as heartless as you!" And in that moment, I hear my wolf's final whimper, saying goodbye. I finally fall asleep in the cold wind, never waking up again.

I push through my Gamma warrior training ahead of schedule just to get back to the pack sooner. All I want is to stand beside my Alpha, Kyle Faucher, and finally complete our mate-bonding ceremony. But when I step into our house, scarred and feeling hopeful, I see 100 old boarding passes to the Darkmoon pack littering the floor. That pack is only a mile from my training grounds. Kyle's been that close for two years, and still, he never came. I sprint to the place where we were supposed to have our mate-bonding ceremony, clinging to the desperate hope that there's an explanation. But the moment I burst through the doors, I stopped cold. Kyle is down on one knee, dressed in a tailored suit, his eyes locked on someone with a softness I've never seen in him before. Standing across from him, smiling through her tears, is my stepsister, Vivian Blackwell. "Vivian, I haven't completed the mate-bonding ceremony with Serene. Say the word, and I'll reject her and mark you right now." At that moment, the world goes still, and I even forgot how to breathe. So this is what he's been doing while I was gone, chasing the woman he never let go of. Meanwhile, I spent those two years giving everything I had, trying to become someone worthy of standing by his side. I don't ask why or shed a tear. I just turn around and walk away. If she's what he wants, then so be it. The mate-bonding ceremony I dreamed of will be theirs instead. But the second I'm gone, he loses it and sends every warrior looking for me.

Salma’s life seemed perfect—engaged to Juan, a man who could offer her safety and stability. But when Vito, a dangerous and magnetic mafia boss, steps back into her life, everything changes. Vito’s presence ignites a fire in Salma she hasn’t felt in years, a passion so fierce it consumes her. Caught between two men—one offering love and security, the other thrilling danger and wild desire—Salma is torn. Vito’s dark world lures her in, intoxicating her senses, while Juan clings to her, desperate to hold onto the woman he loves. As tensions rise and secrets come to light, Salma must decide which man she’ll surrender to—the one who makes her feel safe or the one who makes her feel alive. But in a world of power and betrayal, every choice comes with a deadly price.

Krystal Wallace never thought her life would have any dent on it, until she caught her long-term boyfriend cheating on her with another lady, during their trip to Vegas. Heartbroken, Krystal opted to vent her anger on alcohol at a local pub nearby. A decision that got her drunk and landed her on the bed of a stranger, after a one night stand. Having no recollection of what'd happened, Krystal returned home with a mantra, "What happened has happened and it account to nothing." However, what happened in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas, because, it didn't take long for Krystal to realize that the stranger she'd had a one night stand with, was Lucas Vanowen, CEO of the multimillionaire Vanowen Groups and he'd left his seed growing inside her.