Feather Quill Pens

Sydney Ellis, seorang pemuda biasa dengan kehidupan yang biasa pula, tiba-tiba diperhadapkan dengan konflik dan drama kehidupan yang sama sekali tak pernah ia duga. Satu-persatu orang-orang yang berasal dari masa lalunya muncul dan mulai memberi dampak yang berbeda-beda di kehidupan Sydney. Apakah Sydney mampu bertahan dengan kehidupannya yang berubah seratus delapan puluh derajat dari sebelumnya? Atau malah justru terperosok jauh dalam setiap intrik yang terjadi?

When I'm accompanying my daughter, Alina Stone, to the hospital for a chemotherapy session, an employee from the social security center calls me. "Ms. Lewis, an error has occurred with the bank card that's set to receive your parents' pension. Please make sure to change to a new card." I'm left feeling stunned. My parents have been dead for three years. Why would they even receive more pension in the first place? After asking the employee, I find out that my parents' pension has been wired into the bank card as normal throughout the years. My husband, Christian Stone, was the one who had previously updated the bank card details at the social security center. Once I get home, I demand answers from Christian after playing him the recording of the phone call. He falls silent for a very long time before telling me the truth. It turns out that he never registered my parents' death back then. Till now, their corpses have been stored in a freezer in my childhood home. That bank card had received a total of 90 thousand dollars' worth of pension over the past three years. Christian has given all of the money to his ex-wife, Lydia Swanson, in order to support her financially. But the thing is, he never gave me a single cent for Alina's treatment before.

Pinagtangkaang patayin ni Griff ang kanyang asawang si Althea upang masolo nito ang kompanya ng babae at makasama na nito ang childhood sweetheart nito na si Britney. Ngunit nang araw na itapon sa bangin ni Griff ang bangkay ni Althea ay sakto namang nagmamanman ang mafia boss na si Rigor at nasaksihan niya ang mga pangyayari. Sinagip ni Rigor si Althea at binigyan ng bagong mukha na kawangis sa mukha ng kanyang yumaong asawa na si Sophia. Subalit habang tumatagal ay may kakaiba na silang nararamdaman para sa isa't-isa. Akala ni Althea ay happy ending na ang kanyang love story sa piling ni Rigor. Hindi niya akalaing may darating palang kontrabida. Si Sophia, ang original na nagmamay-ari ng puso ni Rigor. At ang original na nagmamay-ari ng kanyang hiram na mukha. Talaga bang malas siya pagdating sa pag-ibig? At paano nangyaring nabuhay ang matagal ng patay?

Année 2279. La planète s’apprête à traverser une crise sociale et environnementale sans précédent. Les inégalités de classes entre les Éternels et les Éphémères atteignent leur paroxysme. L’ère de l’immortalité touche à sa fin, embarquant les populations dans un tourbillon d’interrogations, et les dirigeants dans des stratagèmes où l’éthique n’a pas sa place. Deux personnages occuperont un rôle crucial à l’aube de ce nouveau pan de l’Histoire. D’un côté Harold, usé par ses relations familiales et des capacités qui le dépassent, de l’autre Jeanne, frustrée par son extraordinaire absence de facultés. Au coeur de la forêt primaire, aux côtés de la dernière tribu libre du monde, tous deux s’appuieront sur la Nature et le Vivant pour trouver des réponses à leur quête de sens. Un roman d’aventure qui rend hommage à tous les opprimés, ces Silencieux qui n’en pensent pas moins. Cette histoire se déroule chronologiquement après « Les Éphémères sont éternels ». Pour autant, les deux livres peuvent se lire indépendamment et dans l’ordre qui vous plaira.

After my boyfriend, Mitchell Cooper, finds out that I've spent 300 thousand dollars on a mug, he demands that I buy his mother a single-level apartment that's worth eight million dollars in the heart of the city. Naturally, I turn his ridiculous demand down in a roundabout way. But this sets him off instead. "Don't be so stingy! My mom will become your mom in the future! What's wrong with showering her with gifts in advance?" Afterward, he records all our expenses that have taken place during our relationship on presentation slides and tells me that we have to split them up. "If you think splitting up our expenses is a troublesome thing to do, then you might as well imburse all of them. You're the rich one, after all. "I've already discussed everything with my family. We'll only give you one dollar as a form of wedding gift. It means 'the only one,' which sounds amazing, right?" Upon noticing my lack of response, Mitchell issues the ultimatum right away. "If you refuse to accept these conditions, then we can call off the wedding. You've already dated me for so many years. I'd like to see if anyone wants a second-hand woman like you." I stare at the long list of expenses that need to be split. I even catch sight of the two-dollar Uber fees that were charged when Mitchell came to look for me in the past. With a smile on my face, I reply, "Okay, then. I don't want a single cent from you in terms of wedding gifts. I'll buy your mom that apartment right now."

No dia em que a cunhada do meu marido, que morava sozinha, entrou em trabalho de parto, o meu marido me arrastou à força para o hospital para induzirem o meu parto, mesmo eu ainda estando só com sete meses de gestação. Ele me trancou na sala de parto, com a expressão tensa, e falou, desesperado: — Agatha Braga, o bebê que a Daise Diniz carrega tem uma doença raríssima. Se nascer assim, vai morrer logo que vier ao mundo. O médico disse que precisa do sangue do cordão umbilical e de células‑tronco especiais colhidas durante o parto pra salvar a vida dele! Meu irmão já morreu, eu tenho a obrigação de cuidar dela e da criança! Quando a agulha de dez centímetros para induzir o parto entrou no meu corpo, as contrações me rasgaram por dentro de um jeito que eu comecei a suar frio. No meio daquela dor, eu encarei o rosto dele e questionei, quase sem fôlego: — Eliel Paiva, a gravidez da Daise sempre correu bem. Como é que, de uma hora pra outra, o bebê dela tem uma doença tão rara? Eu é que precisei segurar a gravidez o tempo todo, e mesmo assim você quer que o nosso filho nasça antes da hora. Isso não é só acabar com a vida dele, é acabar com a minha também! Eliel franziu a testa, me segurou com força e me prendeu na cama do hospital: — Agatha, o médico já explicou. É só fazer o nosso filho nascer dois meses antes. Não vai acontecer nada com ele! Quando ele ouviu os gritos de dor da Daise na sala ao lado, pareceu se lembrar de alguma coisa. Me lançou um olhar cheio de desconfiança e disse: — Não vai me dizer que, só porque eu vivo cuidando da Daise, você quer aproveitar essa chance pra se livrar dela, né? Eu já te falei que só cuido dela por causa do meu irmão. Como é que você consegue ser tão cruel? Eu senti o sangue escorrendo por baixo de mim e comecei a chorar de desespero. Agarrei o pulso dele com o pouco de força que me restava e supliquei, com a voz quebrada, que, se ele poupasse o meu filho, eu aceitava o divórcio e deixava os dois livres pra ficarem juntos. Eliel me lançou um olhar impaciente, gelado, e respondeu: — Você está delirando. Eu sou o pai do nosso bebê. Como é que eu ia querer fazer mal pra ele? Quando o sangue do cordão umbilical do meu bebê e as minhas células‑tronco foram usados no bebê da Daise e o médico anunciou que mãe e filho estavam fora de perigo, só então o Eliel se lembrou de que também tinha uma esposa e uma criança esperando por ele em outra sala. Mas, quando ele empurrou a porta do meu quarto, não foi o choro do nosso bebê que encontrou. Sobre a cama, esperavam apenas dois pedaços de papel: as duas certidões de óbito: a minha e a do meu filho.

No nosso sexto aniversário de casamento, minhas bochechas ardem enquanto desvio do meu marido, Ethan Grant, que se inclina para me dar um beijo voraz. Empurro-o na direção da mesa de cabeceira em busca de uma camisinha. O que ele não sabe é que escondi uma surpresa ali — um teste de gravidez positivo. Já consigo imaginar seu rosto inteiro se iluminando no segundo em que encontrá-lo. Mas no instante em que sua mão vai em direção à gaveta, seu telefone toca. Seu melhor amigo, Henry Miller, fala do outro lado da linha em dinamarquês. — Sr. Grant, como foi ontem à noite? Aquele novo sofá do amor que a nossa empresa lançou está te tratando bem? Ethan solta uma risada baixa e responde em dinamarquês — A função de massagem é ótima. Me poupa de ter que fazer massagem nas costas da Sandy eu mesmo. Ele ainda me mantém puxada contra seu corpo, mas seus olhos olham através de mim, como se estivesse vendo outra pessoa. — Isso fica entre nós. Se minha esposa descobrir que dormi com a irmã dela, estou acabado. Sinto como se alguém tivesse enfiado uma faca no meu peito. O que eles não sabem é que fiz curso complementar de dinamarquês na faculdade, então entendo cada palavra. Me forço a manter a calma, mas os braços que tenho em volta do pescoço de Ethan não param de tremer. Naquele momento, paro de hesitar e decido aceitar a proposta daquele projeto de pesquisa internacional. Daqui a três dias, vou desaparecer da vida de Ethan para sempre.

With the return of his memories, my husband, Trevor Beaumont, recalled that he was the Alpha of a wolf pack. He walked away, leaving me with a ruby necklace as compensation. The jewel shimmered amid my sleep, and a tall, burly man stood before me. The compensation came with a hidden bonus after all. Later, I sent a message to my ex. “Thank you for your necklace. The guy inside comes in handy. “We’re getting married, and since you brought us together, we’d hope you can be the best man.” Trevor drove through the night to our wedding venue, veins popping out of his face as despair swallowed him. “Who the hell put the man inside the ruby?”

The day I win the cheerleading championship, the entire arena erupts with cheers for my team. But from the stands, my brother, Nelson Locke, hurls a water bottle straight at me. "You injured Felicia's leg before the performance just so you could win first place? She has leukemia, Victoria! Her dying wish is to become a champion. Yet you tripped her before the competition, all for a trophy! You're selfish. I don't have a sister like you!" My fiance, who also happens to be the sponsor of the competition, steps onto the stage with a cold expression and announces, "You tested positive for illegal substances. You don't deserve this title. You're disqualified." All the fans turn against me. They boycott me entirely—some even go so far as to create a fake memorial portrait of me, print it, and send it to my doorstep. I quietly keep the photo. I'll probably need it soon anyway. It's been three years since I was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. Knowing I don't have much time left, I choose to become the type of person they always wanted me to be—the perfect sister who loves without question, the well-mannered woman who knows when to keep quiet, and the kind of person who never, ever lies.

I check on family businesses in the countryside with my girlfriend, Mildred McClure, in tow. At noon, we stop by my uncle, Barron Cortez's, place for a simple lunch. Just as we are getting ready to leave, his new wife, whom he married just six months ago, Hilda Ross, rushes out and demands that we settle the bill. "Elden, you two just had the Supreme Farmhouse Set Meal, which is 1,888.80 dollars, and your girlfriend picked three organic, pesticide-free tomatoes in the garden. That's 199.80 dollars. "With an 80% service charge, your total comes to 3,800 dollars." Mildred is stunned. "Elden, do we have to pay to eat at your uncle's place?" I start to feel embarrassed, and my expression darkens as I look at Hilda, my supposed aunt, who's barely any older than me. "I've grown up eating at my uncle's place and never paid a single penny. Besides, your prices are downright outrageous!" Hilda calmly whips out a price menu and righteously declares, "That's all ancient history. Now, we're running a farmhouse business where all prices are clearly marked, so everyone pays the same rate. "Barron said you're some big boss in the city. Surely you're not going to stiff us over a little bill, are you?" She steps in front of the gate to block the exit with her body and shoots me a contemptuous look. "Even family settles their accounts. If you don't pay up today, don't even dream about stepping through this door!" While Mildred panics, I laugh in disbelief before taking out my phone and dialing Barron's number. "Uncle Barron, Hilda wants to settle accounts between family, so don't you think it's time we settled our accounts too?"