Better Days Ahead

My nephew, Jason, came to live with my family for three years while he went to high school in the city. I took care of him the best I could, never once thinking it was a burden. The day he got accepted into a top-ranked university, he went live online. He told thousands of strangers about his miserable life living under someone else's roof. "I know I shouldn't say this, but I really suffered through it. "Those days of depending on others… I never want to think about them ever again. "I just want all parents to know this. No matter how poor you are, keep your kids with you. Even eating scraps together is better than watching another family of three enjoy a feast while you sit alone in the corner." He became an overnight sensation, so did I. The people on the internet dug up everything about me. My name, my job, my address. I was doxxed. I died depressed from the online bullying. However, I somehow got to do it all over again. This time, I was not going to be the saint anymore.

As Jason and I try to stay one step ahead of the Marching Tides and their nefarious associates, we draw ever closer to the shocking truth of who the mastermind behind the Marching Tides really is. Something tells me I’ll regret learning the answers at the end of my journey.©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

When I drink the amber-colored poisonous wine, I can hear the joyful melody of a toast song coming from the manor. The wedding between Emanuela Romano and my ex-fiance, Benedetto Martini, is being held there right now. The elderly butler, Vincenzo Romano, puts away the wine glass with a blank expression. The way he speaks is as somber as one sounds when they give a speech at a funeral. "You know the Don's will very well, Ms. Andreotti. Five years are officially up, yet neither Mr. Andreotti, Mr. Martini, nor Dr. Foscari is willing to pledge their loyalty to you via the blood vow. According to the rules, you must take your own life within seven days. "The Don had left the Ashwine to you as a means of protecting… what little pride you have." Scorching pain begins spreading from my throat. I just smile at Vincenzo in return. Pride? Does a bastard spawn of a loose Iernian woman deserve to retain pride of any sort in the cruel Andreotti family? I begin making my way toward the banquet hall, which is brightly lit. As I walk past the shimmering waters of the pond in the family garden, I can tell that the waters are insanely cold. Then again, nothing is as cold as my icy heart right now. After taking a deep breath, I fall face-first into the pond… only to feel an iron-clad grip wrenching me backward. As such, I collapse onto the lawn heavily. My older brother, Alessandro Andreotti, has bits of grass covering his expensive suit. Disgust is written all over his handsome face. "Eva!" he grits out through his teeth, his voice lowered. "Must you spoil the mood on Emanuela's big day?" He then scoots closer to me, his alcohol-tinged breath fanning over my face. "You want to die, huh? Go ahead and do that, but can you die somewhere further? Don't stain the Andreotti land!" Alessandro turns to walk in the direction of the radiant lights, leaving me on the lawn, completely covered in mud. I can feel the countdown of my lifespan burning my insides. Seven days… I only have seven days to live. Meanwhile, my very own brother wants me to die somewhere further away.

On a tragic winter night a young child is kidnapped from her pack. She is raised and tortured by her kidnapper. She escapes and in a twist of fate she ends up in her mates territory. She meets her mate after waking up from a car accident. Growing up she was told that her family hated her and abandoned her. In reality, they spent all those 16 years looking and hoping to find her. The fateful car crash brings her to her mate and her long lost family. Will she be able to heal from the past or will she remain forever broken? Artemis and her wolf Arya are both in need of healing. Arya gets an instant connection with her mate, but knows they have a long road ahead of them. Artemis doesn't trust anyone after all she has been through. **there is violence, torture, rape, sex, and suicide attempts in this story so you are warned ahead of time** ~Mating the EMT is a side story from this one, but they can be read separately

Thanks to a car accident, I've suffered from a severe injury in my head, leaving me with one foot in my grave. My husband, Andrew Rollins who's known for being an extremely talented doctor, serves as my primary surgeon. He conducts a surgery on me that lasts for 18 hours straight just so he can wrench my life from Death's cold fingers. But the first thing I do after I wake up is tell him, "Let's get divorced, Andrew." His eyes become bloodshot immediately. "Tess, I just saved your life, and yet the first thing you want is a divorce? Is it because I've been too busy with my work at the hospital that it cuts down on the time I get to spend with you?" I frown deeply. "It's precisely due to the fact that you've saved me that I must file for a divorce. That's the only way I can help you uphold your title as an extremely talented doctor." My older family members are quick to advise me. "Andrew is such an amazing husband. Not only is he a family man, but he also loves you with all his heart. Why must you insist on getting a divorce? Are you tired of living a great life with Andrew?" Whoever has the gall to advise me will receive a rebuttal from me, no questions asked. "If you think he's such a prized man, you can have him after the divorce." Because of that, everyone is pissed at me. "Go ahead with the divorce, then! You'd better not regret your decision in the future!" I mumble under my breath, "Oh, I regret it alright… I regret not divorcing him sooner."

The ruthless billionaire, Devon Grey once loved Karen – or at least, that’s what she believes. There was a time when his eyes had lit up in love as he looked at her, a time when his touch had been tender, loving. Now, Devon Grey is ruthless, heartless, and cold – to her. Engaged to Devon, Karen agrees to go ahead with the marriage in hopes that she would be able to win back Devon’s love, but she is in for a great shock. When the billionaire accuses Karen of betraying him, she knows that she is going to have to prove her innocence in order to win back his love – and also, in order to survive. The billionaire is known for his merciless cruelty against anyone that betrays him. Devon goes ahead with the marriage because he plans to use Karen to get to the people she has been selling information about him to, before he finally destroys her, and then he finds out he was wrong about her all along, but it might already be too late.

Title: The Billionaire’s Secret Vow Description: Sophia Bennett’s life takes a dramatic turn when she’s forced into a marriage of convenience with the enigmatic billionaire, Adrian Blackwood. Known for his immense wealth and sharp intellect, Adrian is also confined to a wheelchair—a fact that makes him an object of pity for some and a mystery to others. For Sophia, it’s a loveless arrangement meant to save her struggling family. But beneath Adrian’s aloof exterior lies a man who sees through Sophia’s guarded heart. As days turn into weeks, Sophia discovers a side of Adrian that captivates her—a man who is warm, fiercely intelligent, and surprisingly vulnerable. Against her better judgment, she finds herself falling for him. Yet, Sophia begins to notice inconsistencies in Adrian’s condition. The truth shatters her world: Adrian’s disability was a carefully constructed lie. Tired of women who pursued him for his money, he created the façade to find someone who would love him unconditionally. Betrayed yet undeniably in love, Sophia must decide whether Adrian’s intentions justify his deception. Can she forgive the lie that brought them together, or will the truth tear them apart? The Billionaire’s Secret Vow is a heart-stopping tale of love, betrayal, and redemption—a story that will leave you breathless until the final page.

The story of a prince cursed with immortality and a girl counting down the days to death. An Alpha in search of his Luna. An omega once rejected. She couldn’t shift until she met him. He couldn’t see colours until he met her. They call Prince Valens the cursed prince, the Alpha who neither knocks nor asks before he enters and takes but the true thing he seeks, he cannot find. Wandering the earth for over a hundred years in search of someone to break his curse, he has become nothing but a cold man. He invades packs in search of his mate, staging takeovers, until he meets her; his curse-breaker. Aysel has the blood of a traitor in her veins. Eleven years ago, her parents led an attack to overthrow the Alpha. They lost and got slaughtered, leaving her behind to bear the burden of their tainted legacy. Abused, broken and rejected, she has no hope of a better life until she meets him; the cursed alpha. Her saviour. Valens introduces Aysel to a life of power and affluence. Those who mocked her now fall on their faces to serve her but with an ex desperate to get her back, a scorned alpha hell-bent on ruining them and her identity emerging, will the relationship between Aysel and Valens flourish?

Ning Tian Tian was one of the few people who could see ghosts. She was destined to be the Queen of the Spiritual world. She had the power to choose if the soul could go back to the body or will the soul keep wandering. The souls would have only 100 days to find their killer and make them confess with the help from Ning Tian Tian. Sounds easy, Right? No. Tian Tian cannot make even a single mistake, it will cost her something that she would never think of. Apart from helping the souls who had died due to a mistake she also has to be extreme careful so as not to let a vengeful soul fool her. ---- Gu Shen was an extraordinary person who had the power to kill a vengeful soul. But he also had the choice to kill any soul who tries to disturb the realm of living world. Smart, cold, handsome and decisive was all that could define his character. He was young but was strong enough to hold all the responsibilities. He can kill a vengeful soul but, will it not affect him? He would have only three chances to kill a vengeful soul, but were they enough? ----- What will happen when, these two meet and decide to make the world a better place by fulfilling the incomplete wishes of those wandering souls. Would they be able to find love amidst of the chaotic world or would their own wishes remain unfulfilled. -----

A vampire prince buys a six-year-old girl as a servant. He takes care of her from age 6 to 24. As the years go past, he grows to care for the young lady as she take care of his every need. The lady falls for him to as she gets to know his sweet side. On her 22nd birthday she asked the prince to turn her so that she could be with him for life. At first he says no. It takes two years for him to agree but something bad happened after he puts his venom into her blood. She could not bring herself to drink his blood to become a full blooded noble vampire. She is stuck in a state between human and vampire. After three days of her not taking his blood he takes her memory, leaving her in the forest to choose with no memories to hold her back, whether to be a vampire or die. She drinks his blood becoming a noble then tries to find the prince. On her Journey she learns about the world and how bad it is. Once she finds the Prince she gets her memories back and has to choose to stay in a world where humans are treated badly and do nothing or join the prince and make the world a better place.