Even In Darkness, She Chose To Rise

Kourtney was out of options. To save herself and get her inheritance, she did something crazy—she kidnapped Travis Forger. Now, she stood in front of him, holding a marriage contract, her last hope. “If you marry me, I can get my inheritance. After that, we’ll let you go,” she told him, her voice shaking. But Travis didn’t panic. He stayed calm. “And what do I get from this?” he said. “I already have a fiancée. I love her." Those words broke Kourtney’s heart. She already knew about Kim, but hearing him say it hurt more than she expected. “You’re my hostage!” she snapped. “You have to do what I say!” Travis looked at her, no anger—just disappointment. “This isn’t love, Kourtney. This is just fear.” Her hands dropped to her sides. She felt small, helpless, and humiliated. But deep inside, something darker began to grow. As she turned away, her eyes filled with tears, and one dangerous thought crossed her mind: If Travis won’t marry her by choice… Then maybe he won’t have a choice at all.

After six years by Archie Valez’s side, everything changed when his uncle died—and Archie took over the family legacy… and with it, the responsibility of caring for his “young” aunt, Betty Cruz, whose age was practically the same as Archie’s. Still, whatever Betty wanted, Archie delivered. I just never thought it would include a baby. Betty said she wanted a baby with the Valez bloodline. And with the uncle gone, Archie was the only one left to do the job. So he gave her that, too. “Just wait a little longer,” he would say to me, “Sabrina. As soon as she’s pregnant.” What started as once a month turned into once a week… Then it became a nightly routine. Of almost eight months that we lived in New York, Archie went to Betty over a hundred times. And she finally got pregnant. Shortly after, the Valez family announced that Archie would be marrying Betty. “Mommy,” my daughter asked softly, climbing onto the couch beside me. Elly—our Elly. My Elly. The daughter Archie never had time for. “Is someone getting married?” I held her close and kissed her hair. “Yes, sweetheart. Daddy’s finally marrying the love of his life.” Elly blinked at the screen. “But what about us?” I smiled. “We’re going home, baby,” I whispered in her ear. Archie forgot that I was Sabrina Marcellus. And the Marcellus women didn’t beg for rings. And certainly not love after betrayal.

Ever thought you were different from the world, that no matter how you tried, you just never fit in? That no body would accept the real you? Things felt the same for Ariana Bliss. It never got better after she realized the head agent of her defense academy that everyone answered to was the most annoying schoolmate she could ever come across. ******************************. "It's gonna be like this for a month." He smiled. Punch him. Break his nose or finger, dislocate his leg, shove a book in his mouth, stuff a pen into his nostrils. Ari's mind kept thinking of several possible ways to hurt him. "You don't know how much I wanna hurt you." She mumbled truthfully. "You can't, cos I'm gonna beat you again. Just like earlier today." He smirked. Arrrgh! "Just ignore. I'm just gonna ignore you for the rest of my life. " She said and the teacher walked in.....

When I went to buy a new house, all I found was crumpled newspaper where my savings should've been. I almost called the cops—until I found out Tony Jarrett, my own husband, had blown seven years of my hard-earned cash on a shiny new motorcycle. For Pauline Schmidt. His ex. I asked why. He just shrugged. "She's a single mom. Life's tough. This way, she won't have to walk so much." I wanted to scream, but I swallowed it down. Made him at least get an IOU from her. While I was busy sourcing stuff for the factory, a flood warning hit our town. And Tony? Out buying toy cars with Pauline and her kid. Our son was home alone, trying to stay above water. I was back. Like life hit rewind and dropped me into that exact day. The day he gave her the motorcycle. I saw them—laughing, tight, like their own little picture-perfect family. But I didn't cry this time. Didn't beg. Just turned and walked off.

My wolf was cursed. I had three days left. But my parents and my mate, Alpha Edwin, forced me to surrender my Luna title to Meggie. All because she claimed a curse was killing her, too. In my despair, I agreed. The moment our mate bond shattered, the backlash nearly broke me. With tears in my eyes, I asked them, "If I died, would you even miss me?" They told me to stop faking it, their expressions ice-cold. But they didn't know. Meggie's curse was a lie. And mine was all her doing. It wasn't until my wolf faded to nothing that Meggie's true colors were revealed. Only then did they scream at her, blaming her for my death. But Meggie just snarled back, "I wasn't the only one who killed Hazel. You all did, too, didn't you?"

SHIFT! I hear Will's voice clear as day in my head.  SHIFT! SHIFT! SHIFT!  It develops its own rhythm, playing in a loop, like a chant giving me incentive.  I get lost in the feeling of disarray, I endure the splitting of cells, the realigning of bones, the discarding of the outer layers of my frame.  In the blink of an eye, it's over.  I've transformed.  Three years ago, on her 18th birthday, Sincere Rose discovered she is not an ordinary girl. She has an ability, a very special ability, that is worth killing her for.  Being on the run from people who plan to murder her, and authorities who want to imprison her, she is forced to do the unimaginable to live.  Amid these struggles she meets Will, who tells her she is a being that hasn't existed in hundreds of years.  She is thrown into a world of war and magic, where she is known not by her birth name, but her ability  THE SHIFTER

I was about to get married, but my boyfriend of nine years had no idea. Why? All because his recently divorced ex-girlfriend waltzed back into town, and he threw himself into her life without hesitation. The knight in shining armor was back, ready to save the day. The moment they saw each other, it was like a scene from a bad romance novel. Their gazes lingered, sparks flying, the kind that screamed, “Oh, we’re soulmates reunited.” To welcome her back, he had 9,999 Juliet roses flown in to decorate her room. Why? All because it was a promise he had made to her long ago. How sweet. Except for one small problem: I’m severely allergic to pollen. When I woke up in the hospital after an emergency rescue, I didn’t cry, yell, or demand answers. No, I pulled out my phone and texted my parents, "Please help me arrange a marriage. I’m done."

After five years of marriage, Madeleine Smith still hasn't been able to win Jonathan Hartley's affection. Even Sawyer Hartley, the son she's raised since birth, prefers to have someone else as his mother. Madeleine has finally decided to leave the pair of heartless, ungrateful father and son. She prepares a draft for the divorce agreement and leaves the house that has given her nothing but painful memories. Everyone thinks that an ignorant housewife like her won't last for even a month outside and will soon return to Jonathan's side and beg him to take her back. Yet Madeleine, who's set on building her career, begins to achieve success one by one. At the same time, she's doing very well connecting with those from high society and the elite circle. After seeing the numerous suitors vying for Madeleine's attention, Jonathan gets antsy and tries to ask Madeleine to give him another chance. Even Sawyer has clung to her leg and cried miserably, trying to arouse her sympathy. However, a certain man with an impressive background circles his arm around Madeleine's waist and gazes at her affectionately. "Sorry, but Ms. Smith is already taken!"

All human beings have been born with darkness inside. The challenge that we face in every passing day is controlling this darkness sheltered within us; if not, demons will feed on that darknes, find a way to possess both our body and soul, and wreak havoc to our lives as we know it. In this story, five unique teenage individuals harbor darkness within their souls using it to combat evil and save the mortal world from destruction. Along with their all-knowing homeroom adviser, these teens delve into the world of mythology and folklore. Join Cassidy, Noah, Maura, Lowan, Ross, and Ms. Reina in witnessing the war between the dark and the evil unfold. P.S. - Points of view change every two chapters. Please enjoy diving into their stories one by one.

A month before I was set to present my life’s work—the Moonlight Therapy—Marcus, my Alpha and fiancé of five years, asked me to give the entire research project to his old flame, Isabella. I refused. He spent the entire month trying to convince me, insisting he was only fulfilling her dying wish. Then, two weeks before the presentation, a link from a friend arrived. That’s when I discovered Isabella was already promoting my research online as her own. He had never intended to ask for my permission at all. In that instant, I chose to sever our five-year bond. What Marcus didn’t know was that the core research he’d stolen was critically flawed. On the very day Isabella presented that faulty data to the world, I walked through the doors of the Boston Werewolf Medical Institute instead. I never looked back.