Crimson Karma

The day I went into labor with the twins, I bribed the family doctor to shoot me up with every heavy-duty suppressant he could get his hands on. Anything to stall the birth. Why? Because in my last life, Vincent—my husband, the Don—claimed to have a low sperm count. To guarantee an heir, he lined up ten mistresses and told the whole house: whoever popped out a son first, her kid would be the next Corleone Don. He promised if I delivered first, he'd ditch the others. Said our baby would inherit the throne. I bought every word. When I found out I was carrying twins, I couldn't stop shaking—I thought I'd won. But after I gave birth, he tossed me and the babies into the freezing wine cellar and locked the place down. "Lucy came from nothing. I just wanted to give her kid a name. You started rumors, pushed her into despair, and now she's dead—her and the baby. You're vile. Not fit to be the Don's wife. Think about what you've done. I'll open the door in three days." Then he had the butler seal it shut. What he didn't know? That night, the cellar caught fire. Me and my babies? Burned alive. When I opened my eyes again, I was back—right before labor. This time, I'm not staying. Soon as I deliver and get back on my feet, I'm taking my kids and disappearing for good.

There's about half a month to our wedding when Daniel Bradshaw and I get into a horrible fight. The reason? He wants to have a child with his mentor's daughter. "We're only going to do IVF—it's not like we're doing anything else! My mentor is gravely ill now, and his only wish is to see Phoebe have someone she can rely on!" Daniel sounds indifferent, but my blood runs cold. "It's half a month to our wedding, yet you're going to have a child with another woman. Don't you find that ridiculous?" I watch as he storms off and slams the door shut behind him. Then, I update my social media. "I'm getting married in half a month, but I need a new groom. Is anyone up for it?"

On New Year's Eve, Facebook blew up. The reason was that Bennett Miles, the golden boy of Crestmoor’s elite, posted an update. In the photo, a shy young woman hid her face as she leaned against his shoulder while he grinned. His eyes were full of affection and mischief. His caption read, "What do I do? Looks like I'm officially taken." Friends in his circle flooded the comment section with congratulations. The real frenzy began when Bennett announced that the first 10,000 followers to like, share, and comment on the post would each receive a gold bar. The internet went wild with envy and curiosity. Everyone scrambled to find out more about the woman in the picture. Then, someone claiming to have inside information started a livestream. "Stop guessing. Her name is Kara Sierra. You know Sierra Hall at Crestmoor College? That building was named after her! "Two years ago, she had kidney failure. Bennett personally donated one of his own kidneys to save her!"

"Apa kau mencintai aku? Bagaimana dengan Yuni?" Abizhar tak langsung menyahut. Diamnya untuk sesaat sudah menjadi jawaban yang jelas bagi Shelina. "Aku.. Tentu aku mencintaimu, tapi soal Yuni... Keadaannya rumit. Aku harus tahu keadaannya bagaimana, apakah dia masih membutuhkan aku..," kata Abizhar terdengar kikuk. "Kau harus mengerti aku, Shelina." "Baru kusadari akulah duri dalam hubungan kalian," sahut Shelina pilu. "Aku tidak mau lagi memaksamu untuk mencintai aku. Sekarang Yuni lebih membutuhkanmu daripada aku." Demi sebuah tanah dan jabatan, Abizhar rela mengorbankan kebebasannya dengan menikahi Shelina yang terobsesi padanya. Akankah dia mencintai istrinya? Atau dia kembali pada mantan kekasihnya yang juga simpanannya selama dia menjadi suami Shelina?

In the Crimson city in Moon City dominantly inhabited by members of the Crimson pack, there were reported records of the daily increase of missing humans and the livestock. Traces or trails weren't left by the perpetrators of these acts, and the remains of these humans could not be found as well. The Alpha of the Crimson pack was on the edge of pointing fingers at the Greyhound pack, another pack that inhabited Diamond city as the ones behind this activity. But he got a message from Governor Klaus Mickelson, urging them to refrain from the massacre and killings if they had a hand in it. Since this was the situation, Crimson eye pack had to return a message to the Greyhound pack, requesting for a monthly meeting hosted in Moon City with several smaller packs as well. This meeting session was going to help the packs to have unified reasoning and coordinated ideas in order to devise a means to find the source of these sudden killings in the city. Meanwhile, Damon Mickelson, the son of Klaus Mickelson, Alpha of the Greyhound pack, refused to attend the meeting. He stated the availability of some unresolved conflict with the Crimson eye pack as his reason. But his parents and the elders reminded him of the importance of attending the meeting. They made him understand that he needed to attend the meeting because it was a duty that he owed the pack as the future Alpha. Tessa Randolph, the second daughter of John Randolph, tried to convince her father to allow the meeting to be hosted by another pack. She wanted to stay back and allow her elder brother to attend the meeting in her place, but her reasons were all worthless to the ears of her father.

Aku diam-diam mengikuti jejak teman sekamarku, tetapi malah tertangkap oleh seorang tukang bangunan yang bertubuh kekar. Dia langsung menekanku ke atas meja belajar, lalu bertanya sambil menyeringai nakal, "Kamu maunya sama satu kelompok atau cuma aku?" Menghadapi ruangan yang penuh dengan pria-pria kasar itu, aku menangis sambil membuat pilihan. "Aku pilih kamu saja!" Hanya saja saat aku sedang dipermainkan hingga wajahku memerah, tiba-tiba pintu ruangan terbuka ....

We were on our way to celebrate our son’s birthday when we got into a car crash. When I woke up, I looked at my family gathered around my hospital bed and cracked a joke: “Sorry, but who are you guys?” I held back a smile, curious to see how they'd humor their "amnesiac" patient. Would my mother grab my hand in a panic? Would my husband look at me with worry? Would my son rush over, crying and calling me Mom? What I didn't expect was for them to freeze for a moment—and then, almost in unison, let out sighs of relief. My mother was the first to speak, her tone unmistakably lighter, as if a huge weight had been lifted. "If you don’t remember, it’s probably for the best. This is Lindsay—your sister, she’s my daughter. You were adopted." My husband then pointed at me and said to our son, "You should call her Aunt Wendy." Before the shock could even sink in, I watched the child I'd fought so hard to protect turn and throw himself into the arms of Lindsay. "Mom! I played outside all day. I missed you so much!" So that was the truth. My amnesia was exactly what they'd been hoping for. In that case, I didn't need this made-up life anymore.

Acara ulang tahun yang seharusnya bahagia telah menghancurkan hidup Kasih. Gadis itu menghabiskan satu malam panas dengan seorang pria asing. Hingga dia akhirnya terusir dari kampung karena fitnah dari sepupunya. Kasih yang sudah tak memiliki apa-apa terpaksa meninggalkan kampung halamannya. Dalam pelariannya, Kasih menyelamatkan seorang pria yang mengalami kecelakaan. Sang pria pun sadar dengan tingkah seperti anak kecil dan terus menempel padanya. Hingga Kasih terpaksa harus menikahi pria bodoh itu dan merawatnya. Bagaimanakah kisah Kasih bersama suaminya yang bodoh?

— Ah... Mais devagar, meu marido está me ligando. Com o rosto em chamas, peguei o celular e atendi à chamada em vídeo. Do outro lado da linha, meu marido, com os olhos fixos, dava uma ordem atrás da outra. Ele não percebia que, fora do enquadramento, a cabeça de um jovem se movia inquieta entre minhas pernas.

Mi suegra fue secuestrada, pero mi esposo, que tiene influencia tanto en el mundo legal como criminal, llevó a todos sus secuaces a celebrar el cumpleaños del perro de su amor platónico. Los secuestradores dijeron que si no veían a mi esposo en persona, matarían a la rehén, pero yo no hice caso. Esto fue porque en mi vida anterior, estando embarazada de ocho meses, saqué a mi esposo de la fiesta de cumpleaños por fuerza y salvamos a mi suegra. Su amor platónico nos siguió a escondidas, pero fue descubierta por los informantes de los secuestradores. Ellos la violaron, e incluso la descuartizaron y la dieron de comer a los perros. Mi esposo, tan enfurecido, mató a tiros a esos secuestradores y desapareció por un mes entero. Cuando regresó, nunca volvió a mencionar el asunto. Hasta que di a luz a nuestro hijo, yo estaba llena de felicidad. Pero mi esposo me arrojó, débil como estaba, al bosque, dejando que las bestias salvajes me mordieran hasta morir, devorándome sin dejar ni los huesos. —¿Tú envidiabas a Mía, incluso sobornaste a los secuestradores para matarla? No mereces obtener la felicidad que le pertenecería a Mía. Al abrir los ojos de nuevo, volví al día en que mi suegra fue secuestrada.