Shell Collectors

"I thought you were my savior. I didn't know you were the one who set the fire." The day the debt collectors came for my family, I couldn’t even scream. My voice has always been a prisoner of my anxiety, leaving me defenseless in a world of wolves. Then came Ignatius. My brother’s best friend. A man with the face of a saint and the wealth of a king. He didn't just save me; he bought my world. He paid the debts, moved me into his palatial estate, and whispered that I was finally safe. For the first time, I felt the warmth of a "hero." I gave him my trust. I almost gave him my heart. But a saint doesn't keep cameras in your bedroom. The crushing realization hit harder than any blow from a collector: Ignatius didn't buy my debt—he created it. He paid the men who terrified my mother. He orchestrated the ruin of my brother. Every tear I shed was a calculated investment in my total dependence on him. He didn’t want a lover; he wanted a broken pet. Now, the "Saint" has dropped his mask. Ignatius thinks because I am mute, I am powerless. He thinks because I am fragile, I am his. He’s wrong. If Ignatius wants to play the Predator, I’ll find a bigger one. His father, Cane—the cold, ruthless patriarch of the empire—is the only man Ignatius fears. I’m moving from the guest room to the master suite. I’m going to tear this family apart from the inside out, one forbidden dinner at a time. Ignatius ruined my life to own me. Now, I’m going to make sure the debt he owes me costs him everything.

The Protagonist of the story : Fayth Aurora Valentino is just another average teenager. She is the epitome of the word introvert, who would rather be buried in her books than do anything else. She was hoping to complete her senior with very little problems and finally be able to attend the universities of her dreams. But what happens when suddenly the ground beneath her feet opens up wide and suddenly she is falling into an endless void. A fourth war that threatens to finish the last set of humans, breaks all over the world and this time, hope is something that is no longer existent. A girl who was always cocooned is thrown right in the middle of a battlefield, fighting for something that she doubts will survive any longer. Fighting for the people who will ultimately betray her. The lines between right and wrong get so blurred that she often slips. Hurting strangers to protect the ones she loves, is it right or wrong? Is a question that looms over her head all the time. Enemies become friends, while the ones she trusted the most stab her in the back, literally. Fayth finds herself turning into someone that she isn’t sure whether she loves or hates. Everywhere she turns she finds herself losing the people she loves. Everything seems to be drawing out her energy leaving behind an empty shell made up of only pain and sorrow.

Thea had everything she ever wanted; her family, friends, loving fiancé, and beautiful son. Since she had lost her parents in an accident, she was the head of the house, raising her younger siblings until they could start their life. She's proud of her baby sister for coming out of her shell, finding the man she loves, and raising three children. As for her brother, she worries, but that doesn't hide the affection her best friend has towards him. Her brother is a bit dull on romance. Thea thought it would just be the three of them, but now there are more to surrounded by people she cares about and love. Thea loves having a big family. What can go wrong? Engaged and can't wait to marry the woman who brought joy and love into his life. Rex Wolfe decided to celebrate their engagement in Hawaii and show her where she grew up. Rex knew Thea had planned to celebrate on her grandfather's yacht. Everything had gone smoothed when a group of armed men infiltrated as the leader demanded the money his uncle owed them. Rex wasn't sure why because his uncle had been dead for years, and the man who killed him was none other than the man once his father and uncle called "Brother."

Ellie is a shy, lanky teenager, thrust into a world she doesn't belong in; a place whose students are worth more than their weight in gold. So Ellie 's plan is simple; keep her head down and focus on her studies. Be invisible. But her plan shatters the moment she spills grape juice on Carter; the school’s golden boy, untouchable because of the power his family name possesses. Ellie 's life implodes. What begins as an accident quickly spirals into a literal nightmare. Carter makes Ellie his target, and the torment rapidly escalates until one evening they reach a humiliating agreement. Over time, lines blur adding a delicious layer of confusion to their twisted dynamic, one that neither of them care for. But just when she thinks he can't take it anymore, salvation comes from an unlikely source; her favorite teacher, one he has secretly admired. As this forbidden relationship blooms and Carter is fended off, Ellie can take a deep breath again. Everything is finally ok. Until it isn't. The ultimate betrayal leaves Ellie shattered, sitting amidst the broken pieces of her recently found happiness. She becomes a shell of her former self, shutting out everyone trying to reach her, which shockingly includes Carter. Why? Why is he suddenly desperate to get in touch with Ellie ? And will he succeed? Or will it not matter anyway because she's too far gone?

The annual ranking of the most popular Werewolf Academy professors had just been released and, once again, my Alpha mate, Trevor, took the number one spot. In an interview with The Wolf Tribune, he touched the bond ring on his hand and gave a helpless smile. “If my Luna sees this, she’s probably going to get jealous again tonight.” Everyone said that he was hopelessly in love with me. However, in the blink of an eye, rumors about him and one of his students, Rin, were spreading through the entire pack like wildfire. Trevor kissed me, coaxed me in bed, swore that he only admired Rin’s talent and promised to let me decide her fate. Hence, I arranged for Rin to study abroad in a neutral territory. Who would have thought that she would be ambushed at the border by rogue wolves on her second day away from the pack. Her wolf spirit was shattered and she was left a broken shell of herself. The whole pack was rife with rumors that I had set a trap out of jealousy, trying to destroy her because she was close to my Alpha. Even Trevor did not trust me. He rushed off to be by Rin’s side that very night. When he came back, he had already removed his name from our mate registry and instead registered himself with Rin. I uttered the words, one by one, “Trevor, let’s end our bond.”

“Tell me, baby. Are you wet for me?” He asked as he licked the shell of my ear, his tongue lashing out deliciously. I stifled a whimper and shook my head. “You dirty liar,” he growled. “The next time you lie to me I’m going to bend you over the nearest surface and spank the truth out of you.” *** When Manhattan’s most successful billionaire, Alessio Castelli, hires me to be his personal cook, I’m determined not to fall for him. Too bad he’s simply too hot to resist. He says I’m not his type, but he watches me like I’m his next obsession… and when his control finally snaps, he claims me as his, unable to stay away from me. What starts as temptation quickly turns into something far more dangerous; because men like Alessio don’t love. They possess. Just when I begin to believe I might mean more to him than a secret in his bed, a previous lover from his past returns… pregnant and claiming the child is his. Now I’m trapped between the man who refuses to let me go and the kind of heartbreak that will ruin me for good, because I’m already hopelessly in love with him. And the worst part? Walking away from him might be harder than staying.

Addy Walker once believed love was supposed to be loud—felt in bedtime stories, laughter in the kitchen, and the warmth of arms that made the world feel safe. That’s how it was before her mother died. Before her father changed. Grief hollowed him out. The man who once teased and protected became a shell—quiet, cold, unreachable. Then came the bottles. The slammed doors. The bruises. Addy, now eighteen, has learned to survive in silence—walking lightly, speaking carefully, hiding her pain beneath long sleeves and polite smiles. She works long hours to keep food on the table while her father sinks deeper into debt and addiction. One night, she comes home to a dark, freezing house—again. The electricity is off. Again. And she knows why. She confronts him, her voice sharper than it’s ever been. He denies it at first, but the truth is already spread across the kitchen counter in final notice bills and losing betting slips. He’d gambled away the electric bill money on a horse. The argument erupts. He screams, she stands her ground. When he slaps her, she doesn’t flinch. Something inside her shifts. She’s done waiting for the man he used to be. Addy packs a bag. She’s leaving—for real this time. No plan. No destination. Just freedom. But as she storms out into the rain, a long, black car pulls up to the curb. A man steps out—tall, broad-shouldered, older. His face is hard, almost frightening in the shadows, but he’s striking. Dangerous. And calm.

Sometimes love finds us in the most unexpected places—through the most unexpected person. At 40, Daniel’s life is a careful balance between raising his three children and running the family business. After losing his wife, he built a cold, impenetrable shell around himself—one he has no intention of breaking. Deanna, on the other hand, is full of dreams. With just one year left before earning her degree in Arts, she’s focused on one thing: making it to the opera stage. But when her best friend Harry begs for her help, her life takes an unforeseen turn. An outdated family rule threatens to keep Harry from marrying his pregnant girlfriend. The only solution? His older brother, Daniel, must marry first. To help him, Deanna and Daniel agree to a fake relationship—a temporary arrangement that should have been simple. But the pull between them is undeniable. She brings warmth into his cold world, while he offers her a love she never expected after a painful breakup. Together, they begin to build something real—something worth fighting for. Yet, not everyone wants to see them happy. Between outside forces determined to tear them apart and their own fears whispering doubts, their love faces an uphill battle. And with a 15-year age gap standing between them, one question remains: Can they defy the odds, or will reason win over the heart?

Miguel has built his life around the land. Born of indigenous Costa Rican ancestry, he believes ownership is stewardship, not control. High in the mountains of Monteverde, he struggles to preserve his farms and a failing eco-lodge sustained by pristine mountain springs that carry life-giving water for the entire valley. Bobby, a kindergarten teacher from Ireland, arrives in Costa Rica carrying a private grief. A genetic diagnosis has ended her hopes of motherhood, and leaving Ireland for Costa Rica is the only way she knows to start a new life. Vulnerable and unmoored, she falls under the influence of Sean, a charismatic expatriate who offers work, protection, and belonging—while quietly binding her to his business interests. The springs beneath Cabinas Las Nubes become the fulcrum of their collision. To Miguel, it is sacred. To Sean, it is a commodity to be stripped and laundered through shell companies tied to South American narco networks. When Miguel refuses to legitimize the illegal extraction, intimidation escalates into violence, culminating in the kidnapping of a child—Christopher—to force his compliance. Bobby recognizes the danger too late but refuses to run again. Risking her life to save Christopher, she confronts the man who once controlled her and exposes the depth of her courage. Her choice strengthens Miguel’s resolve. Working from within, he dismantles Sean’s operation and reclaims the land before it is destroyed. Set against Costa Rica’s ancient waters and living terrain, the novel explores grief, integrity, and the quiet ferocity of love chosen under threat.

My daughter was born with silver poisoning in her blood—passed down from me—which made it hard for her to sense her wolf, and even harder for her to shift. I worked tirelessly, taking on every job I could, to earn enough money to find a cure for her. One night during a late shift, I saw her. My daughter, dressed like a princess in an elegant, Silverlight-woven gown, sat at a table in a high-end restaurant. With her was my mate—supposedly bedridden and paralyzed—wearing a tailored haute couture suit. Across the table sat the famous she-wolf of our pack, the daughter of a respected elder. They had ordered a lavish dinner, the bill totaling over $500,000. After the meal, I overheard my mate ask our daughter, “You remember how to tell the story, right?” She nodded and replied, “Yes. I’ll tell Mom we were working as werewolf junk collectors all night, collecting waste paper crates, and in the end, we only earned enough to buy half a loaf of bread.” My mate smiled, pleased with the answer. The she-wolf then gifted my daughter an entire collection of newly released moonstone jewelry. Before they left, my mate tipped each waitress $5,000. I stood frozen, tears falling as the truth shattered my heart: my mate—and even my beloved daughter—had been lying to me. Even in dormancy, my wolf mourned. A colleague saw me crying and asked what was wrong. I forced a smile and said, “I’m just happy. I got $5,000 tonight. It would’ve been even better… if it hadn’t come from my mate, the one who’s supposed to be paralyzed and lying in bed.” No one knew what I had sacrificed to be his mate. I waited for an apology. But it never came. So I made my decision. I called my father—the one who had been waiting all these years for me to return as his heir. When I disappeared from their lives, just as they had always secretly wished... That’s when they finally began searching for me across the world.