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The admissions office calls and says my daughter's admission fee has been paid, asking when I'll come to handle enrollment. I'm completely stunned. My daughter, Natalie Steward, is top of her class. She's already guaranteed a spot in the city's best high school, Dream High School, with no admission fee required. Upon questioning my husband, Arnold Lewiston, he claims the admissions office must've made a mistake. He says, "I just wanted to surprise you, so I pulled some strings with the principal to get her into the accelerated track. You should talk to the teachers and make sure we get the best homeroom teacher so I can look good." As soon as I end the call, I slam the accelerator and head straight to the admissions office. On my way there, I call Lynn Warrens, my best friend who works in the State Department of Education. "Help me check under whose name Arnold paid the admission fee for his illegitimate child. I'm going to withdraw them from the school!" I say.

“Zelle, don’t worry, I’ll protect you!” Zach caressed her hair as tears fell on her cheeks.   “Y-you—you are not my knight in shining armor… This is not a fairytale!”    Aaron held her hand away from Zach. “I can be your prince if you want to...”    Zelle fell on her knees bursting into tears, “Please stop! I—I don’t want to see you two in one of those boxes too!”   18 people she cares about… 18 days left before her 18th birthday… Each day onward she receives bloody gifts containing disembodied parts… Which candle our Little Zelle will blow on the day of her birthday? “Happy Birthday to me…” ~~~~ * Original Novel * Original Book Cover * Copyrights Reserved

When 15-year-old Callisto's life's flipped completely upside down in a matter of hours, it's up to to her and her companions to restore a broken kingdom before an evil warlock, Zephyr, destroys all she holds dear. They travel across the nation of Pasiphae to find the only person who can help them, an old, wise wizard who has the power to beat Zephyr. Can this sheltered teenage unite a divided kingdom? Or will Zephyr and the darkness and pain of the real world show her that most things in life are out of her control? •••Updates Every Sunday and Wednesday at 11:11 am EST

I was the Falcone family's top consigliere. Their brain. And today, I was walking away—handing over the books to every legitimate business I ran, severing my final tie. My protégé couldn't understand. "You're the future of this family, Aurelia. You can't just leave." I shook my head with a bitter smile. They didn't know. I'd been secretly married to the Don, Vittorio Falcone, for three years. I thought my looks, my mind, and everything I gave him would be enough to win all of his love. A hit at the docks three months ago showed me the truth. I took thirteen bullets. Emergency. I needed the family surgeon—which required Vittorio's direct order. I called him over a dozen times. But when he finally answered, all I heard was a soft, breathless voice on his end. "Vittorio, we haven't cut my birthday cake. Will you hold my hand and cut it with me?" That voice. My best friend. The woman Vittorio once had a crush on. Carina. In the safe house, weak from blood loss, I dug the bullet out myself and had one of my men rush me to a family clinic. Right before they wheeled me into the OR, Vittorio burst in—carrying Carina. Twisted ankle. Needed a doctor. Now. My surgeon was dragged away. The antibiotics came too late. The wound got infected. I fought for my life for a week. When I woke up, I stared at my phone. Not a single message. The tears finally came. I understood. I was just the woman he'd been forced to marry after he was drugged and slept with me. A scandal averted. All he cared about was my value and his reputation. And me? The secret princess of the Rossi family, who gave up everything to build his empire. All for nothing. So I prepared four parting gifts. A celebration of our mutual destruction. Then he'd never see me again.

"Draven, where the hell are you touching? That's Mrs. Miran!" At my son Draven Tarell's, birthday party, he was making a wish with his eyes closed. But his hand ended up right on my neighbor, Rina Miran's chest. Rina was wearing a deep V-neck, showing off her fair chest, and his hand was already on bare skin. But what I didn't expect was Rina looking like she was actually enjoying it. She even arched into his touch. I was even more shocked when I realized that her ripped son, Kian Miran, was eyeing me like I was his next meal.

Three days before the wedding, I was cleaning out some old boxes when I remembered the time capsule Natasha Rowe and I buried ten years ago. When I mentioned it, her face stiffened for a moment. She quickly tried to talk me out of going. "It's been so long," she said. "Someone probably dug it up already." I didn't think much of it and went back to our old high school alone. At the spot where we buried it, I started digging. Instead of one box, I pulled out five metal containers of different sizes. Two of them were the ones Natasha and I buried ten years ago, their surfaces rusted and worn. But there were three others. One of them was just as rusted as ours. The other two looked almost brand new. The old extra box had a name scratched into the lid. Vince Houle. On it were the words, [My secret crush was a war I fought alone. Natasha, I hope you're happy.] I remembered him then. He had been a quiet guy who sat behind us in class. The kind of student no one really noticed. The two newer boxes had names carved into them, too. Natasha and Vince. The date etched into both of them was today. On Natasha's box were the words, [The greatest regret of my life is that I couldn't marry you.] On Vince's box were the words, [The greatest regret of my life is that I can't openly congratulate you on getting married.]

The day I found out I was a match for my dad—stage four leukemia—I bailed. Mom tore the world apart looking for me, but yeah, she had to watch him go. After that, she drowned herself in research, built a name, even adopted this perfect little angel. We crossed paths again at some fancy leukemia conference she was hosting. I was on the demo table. She took one look and scoffed. "Charlotte Stein, not the time for your crap. Get up and go." The host blinked, stunned. "Dr. Cooper... you know this cadaver?" She actually laughed. "What, she paid you for this stunt?" The host turned ghost-white. "M-Miss Stein passed three days ago..."

The fifth year of my marriage to Silas marked a turning point I would never forget. Our son, Yael, was kidnapped. The ransom was set at ten million dollars, an insignificant amount for Silas, yet his response chilled me to the core. “No rush. A Gardner needs to experience some hardships to grow.” Ten million meant nothing to him, but Yael’s life meant everything to me. I dropped to my knees, tears streaming down my face, and begged him relentlessly, pleading for Yael to be brought home as soon as possible. Silas, however, remained unmoved. Three days later, Yael was returned to us, but the cheerful boy I knew was gone. He had been so traumatized that he could not speak. Far from showing concern, Silas coldly remarked, “Yuna said Yael keeps telling everyone at school she’s a fatherless child. Let’s see how he spreads lies now.” His words cut through me like a knife. I picked Yael up in my arms and whispered softly in his ear, “Don’t be afraid, Yael. Mommy will take you away from here.”

Athena Caddel, the punching bag of the Alpha of Silver Blood Pack. She had been dreaming of leaving the little town they lived in ever since she was young. For as long as she could remember, she's always been bullied by the alpha. She was disliked by most people there thanks to her mom, who cheated on her father. To say it shortly, Athena was the product of the cheating. Another reason being she's human, or so they thought. Nicholas Ashford, the Alpha of the Silver Blood Pack. He was one of the biggest bullies in his town which was why people feared him so much. All he ever wanted was a mate, a mate that would give him the love he yearned for. He has been waiting for two years with no such luck on finding his mate. On the night that she turns 16, she finds out he's her mate. What happens when she's terrified of him and being his mate so she hides? Or when he finds out about her being his mate? How will he react?

In a world where Omegas were often overlooked and undervalued, the disabled alpha found himself in a situation beyond his control. No one ever wanted an Omega, often considered the runt of the Pack. But destiny had other plans for him. As whispers of Alpha Phoenix's impending demise circulated, everyone believed he was on the verge of death. Little did they know that his salvation might just come in the form of a mate he never knew existed. Omega Rayyel, the unexpected gift bestowed upon the disabled alpha.