Crimson Hunters

Just one week before my marking ceremony with Lucien, I discovered his heart already belonged to someone else. His secretary, Anika, walked out of his office with a smirk that was a little too knowing. Her blouse was askew, her usually neat hair a tangled mess, and only the faintest trace of her crimson lipstick remained. My heart seized in my chest, and my fingers went cold on the doorknob. Two years ago, she had been a timid girl fresh from the countryside. All that pretense of innocence had vanished, replaced by a brazen ambition written across her face. Her relentless eagerness around Lucien had always grated on my nerves, and I had asked him more than once. "Lucien, can't you replace her?" His smile would always fade. "Anika saved my life," he'd say. "I can't be so heartless." Now, that single triumphant smirk was all it took for me to understand. What others once envied in me had already been trampled beneath her heels. My phone vibrated. It was a new proposal from the event planner. [The marking ceremony plan is nearly perfect. Can we finalize it?] I refused to be consumed by sorrow. I wiped a tear from my cheek and made one last adjustment to the document.——Replaced the bride's name withAnika I didn't want a false love, or a fake Alpha Lucien. Let them have the marking ceremony. Let Anika stand at his side as his Luna, his chosen mate. In seven days, I would be gone with my pup.

The thrilling game is called, The Mafia and Citizens. The goal of the game is for The Citizens to identify the Mafia by talking it out, accusing, and observing who is acting suspiciously. Somehow, the ruling was changed by someone named Crimson, who began to kill everyone throughout the game. Anyone who refuses to participate in the game will perish, and anyone who loses the game should prepare for their own death. A fascinating game quickly devolves into a murderous spree. Crimson like this kind of vengeance. Crimson knows everyone, knows your deep secrets. Crimson doesn't give any conditions. And Crimson is your biggest nightmare.

Aline’s life plan doesn’t include being the sole female in a pack full of idiot males. When her boyfriend turns Alpha and imprints on her best friend, she learns horror stories are real. When Hunters attack the pack, Aline discovers how far she'd go to cheat fate. Jian, her packmate and secret-admirer, finds Aline naked in the trees, broken by her epiphany. Lending her his shirt and taking her home hardly seems like a life-changing event. But she asks him to stay. Will Aline choose Jian over the imprint she's fated to meet? --- Author's Note: Your reading experience is important to me. For some, certain topics can ruin that experience. Please visit https://laelamoreno.tumblr.com for a list of trigger warnings.

Ken has always hated who he is: a half-vampire. His guardian, Allen, encourages the young man to embrace the darkness within. Vampires can’t help but feed on humans. Why fight something that’s a part of you? Ken knows that behind Allen’s charismatic demeanor lies a monster. He also realizes that every step he takes into the world of blood and brutality moves him further away from love and humanity. Ken has managed to carve half a life for himself by refusing to give in to his temptations, but that all changes when he meets Teya. Teya is a lonely college student who is recovering from a painful breakup. After she witnesses several vampires savagely murder her roommate at a frat party, she finds herself in grave danger. She has information that vampires would kill to keep secret and that vampire hunters would just plain kill to keep. Ken vows to protect Teya but begins breaking his own rules as he grows closer to her. Ken has always believed he can never be with a woman due to his nature, but Teya just might inspire him to start thinking differently about his identity and his future.

In a world where the supernatural thrives, destiny weaves a tangled web. At 13, I unveiled my magical powers, an awakening that birthed both wonder and seclusion. Cast out by Alpha Kevin, of the Shadow Pack at 18, unable to shift, urban life became my sanctuary amidst the storm of confusion. As threats loomed and my powers surged, encounters with a cryptic brown wolf stirred both fear and fascination within me. Little did I know, this enigmatic creature held the key to an unforeseen fate. Captured by hunters, the cruel truth unraveled: I am the last descendant of the Embermoon witches, my kin massacred, my safe haven found within the embrace of Josiah and Trinity Moon. Yet, the tapestry of my past unravels further, unveiling a shocking revelation—the brown wolf, my mysterious companion, is destined to become not just an ally but a mate. The revelation blindsides me, but it's the disclosure that his Godfather of Black Moon was the reason behind my coven's annihilation, that shatters my world. The headmistress's meddling in werewolf affairs that set the wheels in motion. Now, navigating dangerous waters of power and passion, I must confront a fate bestowed to me, tied to the one who both completes and challenges me, as we untangle the threads of a dark conspiracy threatening both our worlds.

"Do you know what it feels like to know that all the decisions that you've ever taken in your life are masterminded by someone?" Eleanor Welsh is an intelligent, independent girl who always wanted her life to be in her control since the tragic fatal accident that claimed her parents' lives at twelve. Being an orphan at a such tender age, her father's best friend, Antonio Welsh, took her into his custody but sold her off to a contracted marriage later on to a heartless billionaire, Ethan Grayson, in dire need to save his business from bankruptcy. What happens when the mysteries of her parent's death unfold with her protective husband backing her up? Ethan walked into the dark room unhurriedly with both hands in the pockets of his pants. He was furious, yet he had his usually calm expression. He walked to the fireplace in the room which was the only source of light in the room and pulled out a hot metal. From the way the metal glowed in a dark-red crimson color, even a fool can tell that the metal had been in the fire for hours. Walking to where a man who was chained to the wall with blood all over his body was with the metal still in his hands, Ethan stood before the man, his eyes black from the lack of light in the room. "Mr. Grayson, please..." the man pleaded in almost a whisper "I didn't know she was your wife." Before anybody in the room could blink, the hot metal was placed on the man's face. The man screamed in pain as hot tears fell from his eyes, before fainting. "Take him to his boss as my gift. Anyone that touches my property, I will burn him in hell." Max nodded.

"Kill her!" "Kill her!" "Kill her!" They all chanted as she knelt before them with her head hung low. Her wet hair clung to her face as her heart hammered against her chest. She was going to die. Her hands were tied behind her and her legs were shackled with huge chains that sent bristle shock through her body. Her throat kept bobbing, forcing the lumps down. It has finally come to this. She thought to herself. •••• She was nothing but a weak and cursed Omega. Left to die in the terrifying Black Forest, Nyx was captured by slave hunters who wanted to have her sacrificed for the Alpha King’s sister's marriage. Her salvation came in the image of her mate, Zenith Hells, the Lycan King. But there was an hindrance. Zenith was not here for a mate but for an arranged bride. What happens when she is suddenly caught between the royal struggle for power and the throne? Will she be able to get her mate from the clutches of his fiancée and the chaos that roamed the streets of the Lycan Lands or will she be left to tend to her broken heart?

When she was hurt in her wolf form as a kid, Thea Whitlock was saved by Carson Rivers. The heroic action created a spark of feeling in her heart until she meets Carson again in high school. An old prophecy that has become werewolf's guide to life forced her to keep her distance from Carson, and that's when Elliott Calloway, a werewolf from her brother's pack, comes back into her life. Little did she know that Carson comes from a family of cold-blooded hunters. Things start to spiral out of control when some hunters were found dead of animal attack. The pact the werewolves made about staying away from humans begin to shatter, but Thea can't just stay still to let the prophecy comes true, destroys both worlds she lives in, and hurts the ones she loves.

The things we want are so very rarely the things we need. Clifton Heights, a modest Adirondack town, offers many unique attractions. Arcane Delights sells both paperbacks and hard-to-find limited editions. The Skylark Diner serves the best home-cooked meals around, with friendly service and a smile. Every August, Mr. Jingo’s County Fair visits, to the delight of children and adults. In essence, Clifton Heights is the quintessential small American town. Everyone knows everyone else, and everyone is treated like family. It is quiet, simple, and peaceful. But shadows linger here. Flitting in dark corners, from the corner of the eye. If you walk down Main Street after dark, the slight scrape of shoes on asphalt whispers you're not alone, but when you look over your shoulder, no one is there. The moon shines high and bright in the night sky, but instead of throwing light, it only seems to make the shadows lengthen. Children disappear. Teens run away. Hunters get lost in the woods with frightening regularity. Husbands go mad, and wives vanish in the dead of night. And still, when the sun rises in the morning, you are greeted by townspeople with warm waves and friendly smiles, and the shivers pass as everything seems fresh and new... Until night falls once more. Handy's Pawn and Thrift sits several blocks down from Arcane Delights. Like any thrift store, its wares range from the mundane to the bizarre. By daylight, it seems just another slice of small town Americana. But in its window hangs a sign which reads: We Have Things You Need. And when a lonely traveling salesman comes looking for something he desperately wants, after normal visiting hours, after night has fallen, he will face a harsh truth among the shelves of Handy’s Pawn and Thrift: the things we want are rarely the things we need. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

After the death of her family, Romona Quinn, a Seer and half dragon destined to protect her kind, the dragons, had a goal in mind to kill the tyrant lycan Alpha king Caspian of Dalerie, who had taken everything from her. What she didn't expect was the blooming, overwhelming passion that erupted whenever he gazes at her. Alpha Caspian Alessandro, a powerful lycan, despises dragons and anything related to magic, and he destroys them all in his empire. What happens when he meets his fated mate that dispels his hatred? What happens when he becomes entangled in the web of her raging vengeance? ... "Stay with me, and piece by piece, I will make your life even more extraordinary than it is." He whispered monotonously, slowly carressing her red cheeks with the back of his fingers and igniting the fire she never thought she had in her. Ramona's luminous pink lips parted slightly, her heart raced, and her twinkling amber eyes reflected those blazing crimson eyes that oozed desire. "It will be the biggest mistake I will ever make, but I will never regret it, Caspian," her voice came out deep, and the side of her lips pulled up. What was she thinking?! Was she really not going to regret staying with him? What about vengeance?