Nine Lives Caryl Novels & Stories

I had no sense of direction. Even after five years on Avenmore Island, I still could not tell north from south. Isaac Norwood always set up my GPS ahead of time. He said he would guide me for the rest of my life. On our wedding day, the bridal car reached Summit Pass Road when he suddenly said the bouquet had been left in the trunk. The moment I stepped out, the car door clicked shut behind me and locked. I saw the driver glance at Isaac through the rearview mirror, like he had known all along. The next second, the motorcade disappeared into the fog. Isaac sent me a voice message. "Walk 999 steps forward and you'll hit a fork in the road. Sabrina says you can't even find the ceremony hal

Even then, my eyes had filled with tears as I promised that I'd work harder, so she'd never have to feel like she was settling. The regret hit her like a tidal wave. She finally admitted that she'd lost the only man who'd seen her as his everything. … A week later, Morgan slammed his phone down in front of her. Seeing the photo on the screen made her heart throb painfully. "Jonas Sawyer, Nephew of Global Trade Tycoon Hubert Braun, to Get Engaged to Heiress Hallie Chase Next Month." In the photo, I looked gentle and composed, while Mom looked healthy and radiant. It was a far cry from her days of fear.

Evelyn stood up and walked to the middle of the desks. She took a deep breath, and I followed her lead. “Miss Garrison, have you ever had a one-night stand?” I felt the colour drain from my face. What did this have to do with the case? “Miss Garrison?” “Yes, once.” “Do you remember when you had the one-night stand?” “It was about 2 weeks after I moved here.” “And when was that exactly?” “I moved here on November the 18th last year.”

The vibrating pattern is now something wild and unpredictable. I groan under this delightful changeup. Leaning back into the pillows, I spread my legs more. I push my heels into the mattress, enjoying how blocky my heels feel in these shoes. In my head, Callum swallows nervously but obeys to the letter when I tell him to undress completely, turn away from me, and get ready for his whipping. In my head, I imagine I’ve taken up a flog, and am lazily flicking its

And when I finally made it to my bed, alone under the twelve-thousand-thread-count sheets, I didn’t even pretend to reach for Victor’s side. I reached for myself instead, biting the pillow so the staff wouldn’t hear whose name I was moaning when I came a second time that night. Twenty-nine days. God, I was already losing count.

Janice started yelling, "I said I was sorry! What else do you want? "I was just a kid who didn't know any better when I picked on you. Do you really want to ruin my family? You're being too harsh!" I snorted. "Oh, so you’re blaming bullying me on just being a kid? "Janice, I guess I am harsh. Get ready to be a bankrupt heiress!" In the days that followed, I was deeply involved in bringing down the Wheeler Group. It took less than a month for the company to hit rock bottom and file for bankruptcy.

Two streams of tears ran from the corners of his eyes back into his hair and down into the pillow. "What I couldn't have imagined was that you were behind every single one of those accidents." "And the skydive wasn't even all of it. Ninety-nine times, Julian. Every single time you planned one of these, did you ever stop to wonder if it would kill me?" "Or did my life just never matter that much to you?" Julian's chest started heaving. He coughed. "No, Ada. No." "I was blinded by Sheila. I really did think she was the love of my life."

“You just stood in my way. This family adopted you, and you enjoyed everything that should have been mine. Meanwhile I was missing for twenty years.” “That was not my fault. You already got everything back when you returned. Why are you still doing this?” Chiara’s smile widened. “Because you should not be here. If not for you, they would have come looking for me. Now I am back, and I want everything that is mine. Your parents. Your husband. Your position. This is family tradition: blood comes first.” “You can take everything.” My knees buckled. “Why did you lie to them? Why did you tell them you are dying?”

"Do you remember our agreement?" Lyralei nodded stiffly, her voice tight. "I remember. You said I was only carrying pups for Rowena. Once they were born, you would pay me, and we would have nothing more to do with each other." "Good," Garrick said coldly. "Since you remember, what did you do afterward?" He activated the surveillance footage and played it in front of her. The color drained from Lyralei's face. "Your ambition was aimed at the wrong place," Garrick said. "Now you will pay for that greed."

She held up her phone, showing him her best friend’s most recent message. [I’ve reached the new pack, Lily. Everything’s great here, so don’t worry about me.] “A new pack?” Leonard panicked, stumbling back. “That can’t be! She loves me too much to really leave me!” “In the past, maybe! That’s why she gave you 99 chances. But what did you do with them?” Lily’s words were like daggers flying into Leonard’s heart. “Three days after she miscarried, you made her drink on Judy’s behalf! When you chased her out of the car, you immediately turned to soothe Judy! You even made her wash your dirty clothes!”