Of Harrowed Hearts Novels & Stories

My mind replayed th⁠e sc‌ene over and o‍ver: Aoki⁠ on her knees, Conra​d’s moan‌, his hesitat‍ion that wasn’t‌ l‍ong​ enoug​h. By the​ tim‌e w⁠e pull‍ed up‍ to our‌ dri‍ve‍way​, my sadness had boiled i⁠nto ra‍ge. We slamm‌ed the car door⁠s and stormed inside, the front door banging shut behind u‌s.‍

My head felt like it was going to explode, my throat was raw from all of the vomiting, and my entire body itched like I’d been rolling around in poison ivy. I just wanted it to be over. Even though I knew this was something I had to do, I was still miserable. “Just a little longer. I spoke to the doctor, and she feels that the headaches are your wolf trying to communicate. Neither of you knows how to speak to the other yet, so there’s a block between you. You need to try and focus on finding your wolf, tesoro. You can’t fully transform until you do.” “How can I find something if I don’t know where it is or what it looks like?”

He swept her into his arms and rushed away without looking back. The crowd's stares seared my skin. I forced myself upright, my knees trembling so violently I could hardly stand. … Back home, I headed straight for Ryan's study. I keyed in Olivia's birthday and heard the safe click open. I braced myself for whatever I might uncover. To my surprise, I felt nothing at all. Inside, there were no treasures, just a single document. I pulled it out. Even after everything that had happened, seeing the proof with my own eyes still made my chest tighten, as if an old wound had been torn open again.

Throughout this exchange, Melinda wore a facade of dejection, but upon hearing the word 'divorce,' her demeanor shifted. "Divorce!" she echoed, her eyes flashing with sudden interest. I couldn't help but laugh sarcastically. "Congratulations, Melinda. You've finally gotten what you wanted. Are you satisfied now?" A brief smile flickered across her lips, quickly masked yet revealing her internal victory. I tried to struggle, but it was useless. "Do you think you can just marry into the Hood Family and leave as you please?" Jeffrey taunted. "You were the one who demanded this marriage! You promised to love me forever. Have you tired of me so quickly?"

Lorrie Scarrow stood frozen, stunned. Chuck Bassett, the man who swore he loved her to the bone, had never meant a single word. She was just a stand-in for Lylith Fowler, nothing more. Heartbroken, Lorrie turned away and entered the restroom around the corner. She splashed cold water over her face, trying to steady herself. The woman in the mirror looked shattered. Lorrie first crossed paths with Chuck during a fashion week event. The year before, she'd spent over six months working on her collection, and it won first place. As the designers stepped forward for their final bow, she could sense Chuck's gaze lingering on her.

**** The Core Lab The heart of the fortress pulsed with energy. Blue lights flickered across metal walls. Glass capsules lined one side, and inside them were floated failed experiments. Twisted versions of Rose, Sophie, and others whose names Elena didn't even know but whose faces mirrored fragments of the child she had borne. Twisted limbs. Empty, vacant eyes. Mouths frozen mid-scream. One tapped faintly against the glass, as if it still hoped to be saved. Elena fought a wave of nausea as she staggered forward.

She screams. Alessandro is taken aback. Amber’s pov: With every word that hits my eardrum, my soul aches, and with every word that leaves my lips, my heart aches. “This was my revenge, Alessandro. I made you believe that I was in love with you so that you’d drop down to your knees and propose to me,” Harlow’s words drill through my ear. I…I can’t say that. Silence fills the venue for a few seconds. Harlow says, “Bark, or else I’ve got enough men to shoot him out at this very moment.”

Otherwise, I’ll come after you. —None of that, kiddo! I leave the two of them and go to my office. When I arrive, I see a box on top of the desk. When I open it, I get a scare: inside, there’s an animal’s heart, with a note: I’m very close! I close the box quickly and throw it in the trash, feeling a chill run down my spine.

The streetlights become a blur as I pull out of the parking lot; my heart races faster than the car. I drive away from the hotel, and everything seems wrong. Everything's in a haze, playing this scene I just saw over and over in my head, gripping the steering wheel harder at every mile. **Why didn't I confront him? Why let him get away with this?** I press my foot harder on the gas, the streets almost empty, but thoughts are suffocating me. My chest tightens. The betrayal, the anger-it's just too much. The tears come fast now, blurring my vision completely.

I cried out, my hand were shaking, my palms sweating heavily, and throat constricting painfully, an indication that I need my medicine. "--It said you can never get pregnant again due to complications." "Don't.... please don't." I covered my ears with both my hands, I could feel thousands of needles piercing my heart mercilessly. I closed my eyes, to let the grief take over me, this is the thing I have always tried to avoid. Like it has never happened, may be never talking about it will make it less real, like it is just in my head, something my damaged mind has conjured. Because I knew this is my breaking point.