Fred Durst Illness Novels & Stories

Dorian Keene was once untouchable—admired, feared, and cruel in the way boys are when they believe the world belongs to them. Caspian Vale was the opposite: quiet, brilliant, marked, and easy to target. What Dorian never admitted was the truth beneath the cruelty—he was terrified of how badly he wanted the boy he was meant to destroy. Years later, life shows no mercy. Penniless, grieving, and battling a worsening illness, Dorian takes a job that feels like a miracle only to discover his employer is Caspian. No longer the boy he buried, but a powerful tech mogul with an unreadable stare, a carefully constructed life… and a fiancée at his side. Dorian tries to keep his distance. Caspian pretends nothing ever existed. But desire doesn’t die, it waits. And the closer they get, the harder it becomes to tell where control ends and longing begins. As secrets surface and memories fracture, Caspian is forced to confront a truth he’s spent his life denying and Dorian must decide how much of himself he’s willing to lose for a love that was never supposed to exist. ~~~~~ “Once His Nightmare, Now His Employee” is a slow-burn MM romance that drifts from longing into obsession, where power shifts, choices cut deep, and loving the wrong man may cost everything.

Alina Cole has only a few months left to live. Since childhood, she has suffered from a mysterious illness that no doctor has been able to cure. But her life takes a dark turn on her twentieth birthday when she is kidnapped. The kidnappers demand a huge ransom from her father, Mr. Cole. Desperate to save his only daughter, he borrows a large sum of money from the bank to pay them.Months later, Mr. Cole is unable to repay the debt, and the bank threatens to take everything he owns, his company, and even their home. With no other choice, he turns to the most powerful and feared man in the country, a man people call “The Devil.”The Devil agrees to help… but only on one condition.Mr. Cole must give him his only daughter.Horrified, Mr. Cole refuses. But Alina makes a shocking decision. Since she only has a few months left to live anyway, she agrees to go with the Devil.Her father knowing how dangerous the Devil is, refuse to let his daughter go live with him afraid she might not even survive it to her remaining months. But Alina plead with him to let her go with the Devil.After all, if death is already waiting for her…What difference does it make if she spends her final days with the most dangerous man alive?

Seven years ago, my husband, the King of the Humans, banished me to the Everfrost Plains, where my life came to a tragic end. Seven years later, a grave illness befalls the Queen of the Humans, and blood spills endlessly from her lips. The clerics claim that I have cursed her. Only the blood taken from my heart can cure her fully. Gareth Lancaster, my former husband, comforts his new wife, the queen, and says, "You have nothing to fear. To think she's still trying to harm you, her older sister, even when she has been exiled! "I'll march to the Everfrost Plains right away and carve her heart out to use as your cure. Then, I'll have her soul sent to hell to suffer in torment for all eternity." Sword in hand, Gareth heads to the Everfrost Plains. He finds a Serpentkin, one who should've died in the Great War of the Beasts and Men seven years ago. The Serpentkin has frozen solid, standing before my grave with his hands clasped together as if in prayer. In front of my grave sits a young girl. She says, "You won't be able to take my mother's heart. She died many years ago. I stayed here to let the truth be known to all…"

I decide to not have anything to do with Holden Gunning anymore. Since he claims that he's busy with work at his company, I don't hesitate to pack my belongings at home. As soon as Holden brings his first love, Leah Linton, home with him, I tell him that I want a divorce immediately. In my previous life, I had given my all to this family. Even my own money was on the brink of running dry just to patch up every problem in life. But on my 40th birthday, my children knelt before me simultaneously. They wanted me to accept Leah, who was diagnosed with a terminal illness, into our family. I could only stare at Holden. "You told me that you'd only love me in this lifetime! Have you forgotten all about your vow?" But Holden glared at me with bloodshot eyes. "I'll definitely spend the rest of my life with you! All Leah wants is a proper title anyway! Why are you being petty when it comes to a dying woman's business, anyway?" When I open my eyes, I realize that I'm 25 years old again. In this lifetime, I shall grant their wish and let them stay together. At the same time, I'm also setting myself free.

For twenty years, the De Santis family was shaped by betrayal. Samuel de Santis abandoned his wife, Isabella, and their two sons, Adriano and Lorenzo, to start a new life with Silvia. Years later, Samuel died, and Isabella followed after a long illness caused by two decades of heartbreak and abandonment. Adriano de Santis grew up consumed by the belief that Silvia was responsible for destroying his family. After losing his mother, he vowed to make her pay. His weapon of revenge was her daughter from her previous marriage, Monica de Rossi, because he knew that shattering Monica would mean shattering Silvia. His plan was simple: assume a false identity, get close to Monica, earn her trust, make her fall in love with him, then destroy her and her family from within. But executing his plan is not as easy as he expects. Monica is strong, independent, sharp-minded, and impossible to tame. Moreover, she is already engaged to Sam Conti, her childhood friend, which makes his plan even harder to carry out. What begins as a calculated act of vengeance slowly spirals out of control, until he finds himself trapped between revenge and an unexpected love that threatens everything he swore to destroy.

The notice of my mother's layoff sat on the kitchen table. Rent was due in three days. My younger brother's tutoring fees were already two weeks late. And my little sister, Stephanie, clutched her acceptance letter to the local public arts high school like she'd done something wrong. None of this would be happening if it weren't for me. My illness had taken everything our family had saved. I stayed in my room, leaning against the door, wanting to tell them I'd drop out of treatment—but I couldn't bring myself to open it. "Why did he have to fall sick?" My mother was crying, her voice low and tight, like the words were being forced out of her. "If it were just you both, Stephanie and Jamie, we'd be fine by now." "Mom, please don't say that." My brother and sister held her, barely holding back their own tears. "He's a burden… but he's still my son." Her voice cracked. "I just… I can't do this anymore…" I stepped back and sank into my chair. It wasn't an accusation. It was a verdict.

My parents were renowned educators, celebrated as top-tier teachers who mentored countless high achievers. Yet, I was the black sheep of the family, consistently bringing home failing grades. After yet another gentle reminder from my homeroom teacher, my mom erupted in frustration. "How could I have given birth to such a foolish child? You only exist to torture me!" She disappeared for three days. When she returned, she brought a girl with her. "From today on, Cora is my real daughter. You are forbidden to call us Mom or Dad ever again. Get out. Only when you can pass your exams will you be worthy of being my daughter!" Our next encounter was at the hospital, during the school staff's annual physical check. The dean spotted me, speaking. "Renee, isn't this your daughter? Sherry works here now! That means Cora's illness can be treated. Ask her to introduce you to the new director!" My mother's gaze landed on my white coat and shifted from shock to irritation. "She changed jobs and didn't even bother to tell me?" I discreetly covered the badge pinned to my chest, trying to conceal my status. I was now Evie Coffey, the director of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

After my grandpa receives a critical notice regarding his illness, he takes my boyfriend, Layne Harper, by the hand and pleads with him. "Layne, please marry Aleah while I'm still alive this month. I want to see her live happily ever after." Everyone sheds tears in the hospital room, thinking that Layne will heed Grandpa's words right away by getting down on one knee and proposing to me. After all, I have been waiting for him for the past ten years. With tears brimming in my eyes, I wait for Layne's response eagerly. But he covers the speaker of his phone out of worry that he might awaken his childhood friend, Ruby Martin, whom he has spent the last five hours coaxing to sleep. Finally, Layne replies gently, "Don't worry, Grandpa. I will give Aleah the happiness she deserves. Even if we don't get married in the end, I'll stick with my promise." My relatives stop cheering Layne on immediately. Then, they turn to look at me sympathetically. But I just smile and go with the flow. "I'll still be happy even if I don't marry Layne, Grandpa." After all, in two hours, I will accept another man's marriage proposal.

Five years ago, Kamarah Ruse spent one forbidden night in the arms of Zephyr Kane — the ruthless Mafia Don who ruled the city’s most dangerous casinos. She ran the next morning, carrying a secret she swore he would never discover. Now, with her four-year-old son Nevan battling a life-threatening illness and mountains of medical debt crushing her, Kamarah has no choice but to return to the one place she vowed never to step foot in again: Zephyr’s empire. She takes the stage as a singer at his flagship casino, praying the lights and crowds will keep her hidden. They don’t. The moment Zephyr’s cold, possessive gaze finds her under the spotlight, her world collapses. He never forgave the woman who disappeared after one night in his bed. But when he discovers the sick little boy with his eyes is his son and heir — obsession turns into something far more dangerous. Kamarah belongs to him now. Her body. Her future. His child. Zephyr will stop at nothing to claim the family that was stolen from him. Even if it means binding the only woman he’s ever wanted to his side, forcing her to pay for every lost year in pleasure and pain. She ran from the devil once. This time, he won’t let her go.

Charlotte Hawkins had everything—a powerful family legacy, a loving husband, and a best friend she trusted with her life. But on her birthday, her world collapses. After years of mysterious illness, Charlotte finally discovers the horrifying truth. The man she married, Vance Vardern, has been poisoning her slowly, waiting for the moment he secures control of her family’s company. And he isn’t alone. Standing beside him is the person Charlotte trusted most—her best friend. Betrayed by the two people she loved most, Charlotte dies knowing everything she built was stolen from her. But fate gives her a second chance. Charlotte wakes up three years in the past, before the poison destroyed her body and before she handed her future to the people who would kill her. This time she remembers everything. The lies. The manipulation. The betrayal. And this time, Charlotte refuses to be the naive woman they once deceived. Armed with knowledge of the future, she begins to rewrite her fate—protecting her family’s empire while carefully setting traps for those who betrayed her. They believe she is still weak. Still blind. But they are about to learn the truth. Charlotte Hawkins has been reborn. And this time, she will make them pay.