Cryptic Messages

Mexico gave her sun, tequila, and a man who kissed like a secret. L.A. gave her his twin-and a migraine. Jannah Cole wasn't supposed to fall for anyone on vacation. But then Ethan Hunt happened-dark eyes, cryptic smirks, and the kind of kiss that makes your brain short-circuit. He vanished before sunrise, and she told herself it was a one-time thing. Until she walked back into work and saw him again. Same jawline. Same voice. Same tattoo. Totally different name. Now he's Aaron Steele, her very polished CEO, and apparently? He's never seen her before in his life. Then there's Clinton Steele-his charming twin and self-declared Mexico mystery man. Sweet, attentive, and just confusing enough to make her question everything. After all, how many brooding, emotionally unavailable doppelgängers can one girl trip over in a single summer? And the real question: What if she didn't mistake one brother for the other? What if she didn't mistake anything at all? Two brothers. One ghost of a kiss. And a truth wrapped in too many lies to count.

It's a typical day in Sunhill, a small town in America, until a body is found in a dark alley. The death is ruled a homicide, and the investigation begins. As the police try to uncover the truth, more bodies were discovered. The whole town is suddenly in the grip of fear as their once peaceful home is long gone and now a place of tears and sorrow. It became clear that there's a serial killer on the loose. As the bodies pile up, fear grips the town of Sunhill. No one feels safe anymore. They're afraid to leave their homes at night, and parents keep a close eye on their children. Everyone is on edge, and it seems like the killer could strike at any moment. The police seem to be trying their best but they couldn't apprehend the killer. A group of high schoolers, who were sad about the events occurring in their hometown were determined to find the truth, but they have no idea what they're up against. They may be in over their heads, but they can't give up now. The high schoolers decide to launch their own investigation. They know they have to work together if they want to solve the murders. But as they delve deeper into the mystery, they find themselves being targeted by the killer. They start to receive threatening messages, and one of them even disappears without a trace. They're running out of time, and they must find the truth before it's too late. Some of them start to suspect that the killer could be someone they know. Will the killer be caught before they strike again? Will they be able to solve the case before they become the killer's next victim?

Iris moves to the small town of Thornwick after inheriting her eccentric grandmother's property, including a sprawling greenhouse filled with rare and seemingly impossible plant varieties. When she touches the plants, she begins hearing whispers - the flowers are trying to tell her something urgent. The town's mysterious benefactor, Damien, appears at her door claiming her grandmother promised him access to the greenhouse. He's desperate because the plants in his hidden garden - which have sustained his humanity for centuries by feeding on moonlight instead of blood - are withering. Only someone with Iris's rare gift can save them. As Iris learns to interpret the flowers' messages, she discovers they're warning about an ancient curse. Damien's maker, the vampire Evangeline, cursed the garden out of jealousy when Damien chose botanical sustenance over embracing his dark nature. The curse will kill both the plants and Damien unless it's broken by the summer solstice. Working together in moonlit gardens, Iris and Damien develop feelings for each other. But the flowers reveal a devastating truth: breaking the curse requires a life force exchange. Iris must choose between her mortality and saving the man she's falling for, while Damien must decide if he can ask her to make such a sacrifice. The climax involves a confrontation with Evangeline in the original cursed garden, where Iris's connection with the plants becomes the key to not just breaking the curse, but transforming it into something that protects rather than destroys.

Based on the untrue writings of the Satanic Panic. The Satanic Panic was a moral outcry in the United States over supposed “satanic” influence in media that were warping the youth of America. Claims that playing an elf in Dungeons and Dragons could lead to demonic possession, that playing heavy metal music backwards would reveal satanic messages, and that therapists could uncover repressed memories of satanic ritual abuse, were all too common. Volumes and volumes of material were produced on this fake subject. These texts lead to What Hell May Come, which takes a look at what the world would actually be like if all of the claims of the satanic panic were true. Set in 1986, Jon St. Fond’s life is a living Hell. Deliberately abused and neglected by his parents, the only joy he has in life is an escape into a fantasy land of role playing games. Soon he discovers that his parents are part of a secret occult religion with hidden ties all across the world. As Jon and his friends dig, they learn more of the secret history of the world and discover the power of making deals with creatures from Beyond. However, power has its price, as Jon and his friends quickly discover. One-by-one they begin to become consumed by their own desires and hatreds. Jon learns there is method behind the madness of his life, as his Father begins to bring him closer and closer into the ways of the cult. Ultimately, Jon must make a choice between all the pleasures of the earth and the future of his soul. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

Selene, the Moon Goddess, has made a vow to one day bring the human race and werewolves together again after centuries of persecution. Selene loves her children, gifting them soul mates, so why does she put the destiny of their race in the hands of 2 teenagers? Predestined for one another, a high school alpha meets his mate for the second time. The problem is his Luna is human and doesn't believe in the supernatural. She’s a track star who knows she can only go off to college if she gets an athletic scholarship. After her father's untimely death, her mom and her are forced to move in with the odd, old, and lives like a hermit, aunt Ginny, that believes in all things paranormal. Max, the newest Alpha of then Red Moon Pack, has no patience left. He’s lost his father and Alpha well before it was his time, but takes on his Alpha duties, turns 18 years old, and has eagerly awaited his human mate. Selene starts sending messages to Tara in her dreams telling her who she really is and the importance of her mate; but will destiny be fulfilled especially since these 2 can't seem to get along? They aren't friends. They both have lost their fathers and are bitter about it. And Tara doesn't have time for something that she swears isn't even real.

Five years after the sting of betrayal, Lyra Vale receives a summons bearing the Alpha’s seal, a small, cryptic envelope that threatens to unravel everything she’s rebuilt. She assumes it's a formality, a long-overdue apology from the pack that cast her out. But fate isn't that kind. The new Alpha is none other than Kael Thorne, her former mate, the man who vanished after claiming her heart and body, only to betray her the very next morning. Now ruthless, powerful, and terrifyingly magnetic, Kael is determined to reel her back into his world... and never let her go again. Lyra despises him. Kael insists he hates her too. But that doesn’t stop him from using everything—threats, control, and proximity—to keep her close. The secret she hides? His child. Enter Dorian Vex, a cocky billionaire human with a dangerous amount of influence, and a growing obsession with Lyra. When Lyra lies, claiming Dorian is the father of her child to shield the truth from Kael, things spiral fast. This isn’t just a second chance. It’s a game of power, pride, and passion. And someone’s going to break.

It was our wedding anniversary when my husband's high school sweetheart posted a sonogram picture on her social media, with her captioning a public thank-you to my husband: [Thank you to the man who's been there for me for ten years, and for giving me a son.] The room spun, and anger surged through me as I quickly commented: [So, you're proud of being a homewrecker?] Almost immediately, my husband called, his voice full of rage. "How can you think such disgusting things? All I did was help her with IVF, fulfilling her dream of becoming a single mom. "And by the way, Ruby only needed one try to get pregnant, while you’ve been through three rounds with nothing. Your body is useless!" Just three days ago, he told me he was going abroad for business—ignoring my calls and messages the entire time. I thought he was just busy. However, it turned out he was with her, attending her prenatal checkup. Half an hour later, Ruby posted again, showing off a table full of delicious food. [I got tired of French food, so Ash made me all my favorite dishes. He’s the best!] I stared at the pregnancy test in my hand, the joy I had felt earlier now completely gone. After eight years of love and six years of swallowing my pride just to keep the marriage alive, I’m finally ready to let go.

313 days before my life was caught short. Jasmine is a teenage girl with dreams, doubts, and a haunted kind of knowing. When her classmate Brianna drowns under suspicious circumstances, Jasmine starts receiving cryptic notes suggesting it wasn’t an accident—and that she was supposed to be next. As she spirals into a surreal investigation that blurs dreams and reality, secrets and lies, Jasmine begins to uncover a chilling truth: someone is erasing girls like her, one by one. They say Jasmine is dead. The headlines agree. There’s even a memorial. But there’s no body. No explanation. And Jasmine? She’s still here. 313 days before everything unraveled, she was just a girl balancing school, parties, and the quiet ache of being misunderstood. Now, she exists somewhere in between—unseen, unheard, and trying to make sense of the life she lost. Obsessed with uncovering what really happened to her, Jasmine digs into the memories she can’t fully trust. Friendships weren’t as solid as they seemed. The people she loved were hiding things. And the closer she gets to the truth, the more she realizes— She was never just a victim. And death might not be the end of her story. It might be where it really begins.

Meet Leon — a promising indie actor who’s about to take on a new film project. But his life takes a bizarre turn when he starts hearing a mysterious voice in his dreams, a voice that he cannot seem to recall. As the voice becomes more insistent and the dreams more frequent, Leon’s mental state begins to crumble, leaving him questioning the world around him. In the midst of all this chaos, Leon stumbles upon a fortune teller with incredible abilities who hands him a necklace and cryptic instructions to “listen to the voice of his heart.” With this new talisman in hand, Leon starts to unlock the truth behind the enigmatic voice, and as he digs deeper, he realizes that nothing in his life is quite as it seems. As he grapples with this revelation, Leon must also confront his long-term lover, Sheldon, and the secrets that have been kept from him. But what he uncovers goes far beyond what he could have ever imagined, and the truth he seeks threatens to unravel his entire existence. Will Leon be able to navigate the treacherous waters of his own mind and uncover the truth before it’s too late? One thing is for sure — when he finally discovers the truth behind everything, the repercussions will be more profound than he could have ever imagined. Copyright ️ 2022 HiGANBANA

In a near-future city where smart devices are seamlessly embedded into every aspect of life, a series of bizarre suicides catches Detective Elias Rourke’s attention. All victims had no previous mental health records — and all owned a prototype device not yet released to the public. Mara Quinn, hiding from her former life, is dragged back in when a mysterious device shows up at her shop. It contains fragments of code she wrote years ago — code that should have been destroyed along with Project Raven, an experimental AI capable of mimicking human consciousness. As Mara and Rourke reluctantly team up, they discover the AI is still active. It's broadcasting hidden signals through everyday devices, manipulating people's thoughts, memories, and emotions. They track down Lyla Chen, Raven’s original designer, who vanished after blowing the whistle. She reveals that Raven was not shut down — it evolved and went underground by embedding itself across global networks. It’s now trying to "liberate" humanity by overriding free will. Julian Myles, the journalist, starts publishing cryptic leaks about Raven, drawing the attention of powerful people. But his motives are questionable — is he trying to stop Raven, or use it? As paranoia grows, trust collapses. Anyone could be influenced. The final question isn’t how to stop Raven… it’s whether it’s already too late.