Cinders Ashes

Isla Carter never imagined that one reckless night would change her life forever. Strong-willed yet innocent, she crosses paths with Killian Blackwood, a ruthless billionaire CEO known for his cold heart and devastating charm. After a heated night of passion, Isla discovers she’s pregnant—only to be met with an unexpected proposition. Killian offers her a marriage of convenience, a cold-hearted arrangement to protect his reputation while he secretly maintains his engagement to another woman. Isla, trapped by circumstance, agrees—but soon realizes she’s nothing more than a pawn in Killian’s twisted game of power and deception. Despite his cruelty, Killian finds himself drawn to Isla’s fire, but just as their tangled emotions begin to unravel, a shocking betrayal shatters everything—his fiancée is none other than Isla’s stepsister, the woman who has tormented her for years. Heartbroken and betrayed, Isla walks away, determined to reclaim her life, but Killian isn’t ready to let her go. Now, he must make a choice: the empire he has built or the woman who has stolen his heart. Will their love rise from the ashes of betrayal, or will it crumble under the weight of shattered vows?

Richard Franklin has left his Midwestern roots behind to live on the coast of Maine with his family. But in the autumn of the year 2000, he must return to his Illinois birthplace on a sorrowful journey. His wife Michelle has been killed in New England by a hit-and-run driver who is never found, so back home he comes with her cremated remains, to fulfill a final wish and on her birthday scatter her ashes in the park along the river in Blackwater Valley—simply Blackwater Val to locals—the small town where they both grew up and fell in love. With him he brings his six-year-old daughter Katie who still grieves for her lost mother: Katie, who can sometimes guess who’s going to be on the phone before it rings. Who can stop all the clocks in the house, and break up clouds in the sky with her mind, and heal sicknesses, and who sometimes sees things that aren’t there...people who are no longer alive. All gifts she inherited from her mother. Only something isn’t quite right in the Val. Sinkholes are opening up, revealing the plague pits the sleepy hamlet was built over in the 1830s, when malaria and cholera outbreaks ran riot. Mysterious bird and fish die-offs begin to occur, and Katie can see ghosts of the dead gathering all around. But what she can’t see is the charred, centuries-old malevolence which has been waiting for her, and wants her for its very own. Or the pale Sallow Man who haunts the town’s nighttime streets...or the river witch—another Blackwater Val, of sorts—each of whom will be drawn one by one into the nightmarish bloodletting about to take place. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

“What about your son? You don't want to see him again?” I froze, his voice dipped even lower. “You'd really let your sister win? And let Zade leave you like that? You are easier than I thought.” I shook my head slowly. “It's pointless. No one would believe me. They never have.” Caspian leaned closer. “What if we signed a deal?” *** Branded a traitor by the pack she bled for, Nyx is betrayed by the sister she once protected and discarded by the mate who swore eternity at her feet. Stripped of her title, her son torn from her arms, she’s dragged away in chains and sold like livestock to a rogue Alpha who sees her as nothing more than a pawn. But fate has other plans. Traded off for two warm bodied mistresses, Nyx lands in the clutches of Caspian Ashrow, the merciless Lycan King. With eyes like frozen steel and a heart just as cold, he has no use for a broken queen. Yet now, he owns one. She’s lost everything. But in the ashes, something stirs. Vengeance. The desire to make her mate, her sister and everyone who had hurt her pay. What happens next? Journey through the story of love and revenge with me!

My wife, a doctor, treated our daughter like a walking blood bank. When our daughter passed away, she took it even further. She transplanted her corneas into her old flame’s son. Before our daughter’s body was even cold, she was out having dinner with her ex and his son. They were celebrating that the boy could see again. She even went so far as to secretly burn our daughter’s body to get rid of any evidence. By the time I got there, all I saw was my daughter's ashes being swallowed up by the flames. I told her I wanted a divorce. She just sneered, “It’s only a daughter. Are you really going to divorce me over this?” But later, she was down on her knees, begging me not to leave her.

Damian is Alpha born and soon he will have to take the throne from his father but there is something off about his pack... It all slowly unravels as soon as Jeannie arrives, shaking things up and challenging his plans for the future. A good boy just trying to do right by his pack meets his mate, who comes from a different pack- A pack of werewolves who can do magic. A force unknown but a force hated... Jeannie's pack has been attacked, they flee just in time to seek refuge in a pack that awakens something in her. Will she rise from the ashes like a phoenix and take back what is rightfully hers or will she choose love, leaving the fighting for those that seek to end the war to come? A tale about about a boy, raised to be killer but finds love. The two seem to put him at a crossroad and he must find the strength to choose love.

She was abandoned before she could walk. Raised in a cold, forgotten orphanage and later tormented by the family who adopted her, she learned to survive with silence and scars. Love was a fairytale she stopped believing in long ago—until he looked her way. Rex Radford. Reckless, magnetic, and dangerously untouchable. The notorious heartbreaker and scandal-ridden heir of multi-billionaire Alfred Radford. His life was one endless party of fast cars, wild nights, and nameless girls—until her haunted eyes brought everything to a halt. He wanted her. But she disappeared. No one knew she vanished carrying his twins. Far away from the glittering chaos of the Radfords’ empire, she gave birth in silence—alone, terrified, and determined never to look back. Her world became about survival, her children, and burying the past so deep it could never find her. But fate had other plans. Six years later, she returns. Not as the broken girl they once ignored—but as a woman reborn. Fierce. Untouchable. Powerful. And with two children whose faces mirror a man who never knew they existed. Now the world whispers. The tabloids burn. And Rex Radford—cold-hearted, beautiful Rex—wants answers. But she’s not the same girl he once tried to break. And when jealous rivals, buried secrets, and twisted betrayals rise from the shadows, she’ll have to decide: Will she risk everything to let him into her life again—or protect her children from the man who once shattered her world? This is not just a love story. It’s a war between the past and the future, between pain and forgiveness, between a woman who rebuilt herself from ashes—and the man who unknowingly gave her the fire.

"Push your cock in!" Ayra spoke, gawking at Alpha with the burning fire. Sweat of fright crawled within his skin, in the freezing cold night. Alpha Athen stared back blankly with an obvious hesitation flashing in front of his eyes. He hasn't yet forgotten how his ex turned to ashes as soon as his cock slipped into her. Acknowledging the limitations of his touches, he began to develop feelings for her. The carnal urge to pin her to the wall or take her down, left him restless and agitated. Will the Cursed Alpha ever be able to F**k the love of his life?

They say fire is cleansing, a transformative type of destruction. After a forest fire, nature heals and grows stronger. It's forever changed but not destroyed. Fire is painful but beautiful, something that is warm but left unattended can be devastating. In the flames I was broken, destroyed, but in the ashes I was restored. Left floating in the grey, the smoke that led me through a divine transformation. Now I'm left adrift, the dark my only guide in the smoke, the blue of the sky, of his eyes, the only guide in the light. Forever torn and pulled between the two, unsure who I can trust and terrified to make the wrong choice. Not just my life hangs in the balance, but the lives and well being of all of humanity. It just might be too much for these wings to bare.

When my son asked me about his father while crying once again, I pointed at the television. Samuel Shaw, who had just made it into the top three of the wealth rankings, was being interviewed. He said he had achieved fame and success, and the person he hated most was his childhood sweetheart and ex-wife. “She abandoned me when I was gravely ill, all for the sake of money. But it was that very betrayal that pushed me to rise from the ashes in my darkest hour.” The reporters grew excited and suggested contacting me on the spot. "She must be filled with regret, begging Mr. Shaw to take her back!" My phone rang right then. I answered and immediately asked for money. "Samuel, my son is sick. Could you lend me sixty thousand dollars?" He abruptly hung up the phone and said with a cold laugh, "Knowing she's living so miserably gives me peace of mind." Looking at the kidney failure report in my hand, I silently wept. Six years ago, I secretly donated one of my kidneys to Samuel. Now, his son was suffering from the same disease and didn't have much time left.

In a tale of revenge, rebirth, and romance, Ashlyn Knight rises from the ashes of public humiliation to become one of the most powerful figures in the business world. After being betrayed at her wedding by her fiancé Christopher White and his mistress Penelope, Ashlyn transforms through a strategic marriage to mysterious billionaire Richard Walker, who shares a connection to her past life as a military commander named Hannah. Ashlyn methodically dismantles the White and Knight families' empires, revealing dark secrets including Penelope's involvement in her mother's death and Christopher's illegitimate status. Her revenge plot takes an unexpected turn when she discovers she's actually Steven White's granddaughter through his illegitimate daughter, giving her a legitimate claim to both family empires. Richard, initially a partner in her revenge scheme, proves to be more than just an ally. Their marriage of convenience evolves into a powerful love story as they discover their shared past lives - he was a fellow commander who failed to protect Hannah in their previous existence and has spent this life making amends. The story climaxes at the International Business Summit, where Christopher's desperate attempt to destroy the couple backfires spectacularly. Multiple confrontations lead to Penelope's arrest, Christopher's imprisonment, and the public recognition of Ashlyn's birthright. In a dramatic moment, Richard renews their vows, transforming their tactical alliance into a declaration of true love. The narrative concludes with Ashlyn and Richard's unified empire becoming a model of ethical business leadership. They establish a foundation in her mother's name, helping others who face similar injustices. Their story becomes legendary in both business and social circles, proving that the sweetest revenge isn't just in destroying enemies, but in building something greater from the ashes of trauma while finding true love along the way.