Smoke Screen

To celebrate our daughter's eighteenth birthday, my husband, James Miller, decided to go nude cycling. I told him he was too old for that and would embarrass himself, but he looked at me with disdain and said, "Liliana, your life is so boring. You refuse to embrace new things." Then he brought the dog belonging to his first love, Sophia Lewis, and placed it before me. It was then I realized it was Sophia who had organized the nude cycling event. I felt my anger boiling beneath the surface as our son, Thomas, took the leash and handed it to me. "Dad, you can go have fun with Sophia. Mom will take care of the dog," Thomas said. But when the dog lunged at me later, Thomas protected it. Meanwhile, my daughter, Alice, fought to shield me. In the end, both Alice and I were bitten to death. James didn't even take us to the hospital. Instead, he dragged our bodies straight to the crematorium. Just before I turned into a wisp of smoke, I saw Alice rolling in the flames. During that time, James and Thomas were comforting Sophia. At that moment, I felt a deep rage—rage at myself for being so naive and for causing my daughter's death. When I opened my eyes again, I found myself back on the day when my son handed me the leash. This time, I was determined to make them all pay.

At the staff meeting, I was singled out and criticized by the supervisor. The supervisor said that someone had reported issues with my work attitude and demanded an immediate explanation. My face was displayed on the big screen at the meeting, subjected to public scrutiny. Just as I was feeling overwhelmed, the face of our boss appeared in my camera frame."Tell me what’s the problem.”

After three years of marriage, I believed I had the perfect family. My wife, Sarah, was gentle and caring, and our son was bright and adorable. On a rare day when I finished work early, I arrived home to find Sarah asleep, slumped tiredly by the crib. My heart went out to her, and I decided to carry her to our bedroom. As I approached, Sarah's phone screen suddenly lit up. A message appeared: “Sarah, is our son asleep?"

HUNCHING my shoulders against the cold, I watched my breath mist out in front of me. It was either that or head into the convenience store opposite and grab some cigs, which I couldn’t do. Ma’d already threatened to lop off my head if she caught me stinking of smoke, and while I wasn’t averse to a clipped ear, what with being twenty, I didn’t give much of a anymore. My wrist was , thanks to how many times Da had broken it, and I’d been shot at twice. I could cope with her pulling on my ear like it was stuck on with Velcro. Dealing with Mariska’s repugnance, however, was another matter entirely.

Alicia Smoke, an heiress to the Smoke enterprises, is arranged to be married to her father's business ally's son, Stephen Herald. On her wedding day, she catches a glimpse of how her loveless marriage will be when she hears her elder sister fighting with her husband, who was arranged as well. Determined to forfeit such a fate, Alicia takes off, leaving Stephen stranded on the altar. Luckily, she comes across a group of ladies who were supposedly going to a party and she ditches her wedding gown and joins them. It wasn't until they arrived at the venue that she figured out her newfound friends were hookers. But it was a little too late to turn back for the private premises they were in were only accessible to a few and she could only leave when the rest of the ladies were leaving.  And then she bumps into Theodore Cavill. The 25-year-old virgin nerd and the birthday boy. He assumes she is a hooker and Alicia doesn't bother correcting him. She just craves one night of freedom before her family finds her because she is sure they will. After one really great night, Alicia disappears leaving no trace but a huge bloodstain on Theodore's bedsheets. Until she discovers she conceived for the sexy stranger, Theodore Cavill.

" I thought...I..owe you a child only..", Katherine whimpered in pain, several shreds of glasses making their way deeper into her skin. " Yes but now... you owe me your body too, Principessa.", Ace replied with a sly grin, the dark layer of smoke hiding the demons behind his hazel eyes. ********* Twenty years old, Katherine Harper had everything in her life, a perfect grade,sweet boyfriend and an unfulfilled dream of becoming the next top international fashion designer. Returning to her homeland after years spent abroad, Katherine was all ready to settle down with her long time boyfriend, Nathaniel Cooper. But on the day of her engagement ceremony,she never expected to meet her ex-boyfriend, Ace King who had now become the next billionaire in town. Ruthless, Cold, arrogant, Ace wasn't the same like her childhood lover from the past.When she accepted the bitter destiny that they let go of their past, Ace started to influence her emotions mentally and sometimes physically. Secrets were yet to reveal, hatred was yet to turn in love and Katherine had yet to fall in his Devil's Trap. At the end, Katherine had yet to learn that you can never hate a person whom you loved once.

The darkest corners of the world hold the secrets the leaders want you to forget. Deep inside a cabin covered with moss and shadows, those secrets are not yet forgotten. Under the moon, light glistens off of shining stones lining the porch and bundles of herbs drying from the rafters. Candlelight emanates from the interior and warmth surrounds the occupant. Inside this cabin was a forrest witch who was chanting a spell as she added herbs to a small caldron. Smoke rises and electricity fills the room. Her raven hair started to rise and the smoke turned glowing green. Leaves outside the cabin started swirling in the air raising around the cabin forming a circle. “None may find me where I reside, safe in the forrest this witch hides. Safe from the evil doers and safe from their men. None may ever find me again.” Cold. Like ice from an iceberg, his skin molded smoothly across his frame. The envelop in his hands was sealed by the Elder Lords sigil pressed into blood red wax. Slipping his long pale finger, breaking the seal, one word was inside. “Urgente.” His particular talents were once again needed.

Meet Noel Atkins, kinda awkward, has her face stuck to a screen almost every time, talks to herself and always, always wears a beanie. She moves to a new town in other to start things afresh, and scale through Highschool unnoticed and alone. Meet Aaron-lee Altamira, the popular boy, rich, handsome, every girl's dream and every boy's model. With his killer blue eyes and charming attitude, Aaron-lee always gets what he wants. Aaron-lee doesn't do flings and hook ups, he's searching for something real. Something substantial. Something challenging. Something more cherishing than his cars. Something he finds in the eyes of the new girl who talks to herself and always wears a beanie. With the school's hottest boy interested in her, Noel's quite, boring, gaming and withdrawn life is about to take a ride on a rollercoaster. Noel isn't interested and Aaron-lee isn't taking no for an answer.

A little over a month pregnant, I was happily looking forward to my wedding—until my fiance teamed up with my parents and brothers to put me on trial at the Court of Justice. They fabricated charge after charge, hoping to have me executed in the name of the law. If the judge found me guilty, I would be sentenced to death on the spot. Once I was dead, my corneas would be transplanted into my adopted sister, and everything I owned—my assets and insurance—would be claimed by them. Faced with my fiance’s betrayal and my family’s treachery, I fought back. I demanded the judge use the latest medical technology to extract my memories and project them on the big screen, letting the judge and hundreds of public jurors decide my fate. Just as everyone was smugly certain of their victory, the truth revealed by my memories moved the entire courtroom to tears.

“You should end things with him.” A husky deep voice echoes from the darkness. I freeze in place, his thick Russian accent sent shivers down my spine. I could only make out his large form from the dim lights of the smoking area. “H-how long have you been standing there?” I shivered, not from the cold but from an unsettling feeling. He chuckles richly causing my heart rate to quicken as I watch a small flicker of light before smoke puffs out into the air. “Go inside, krasotka it’s too cold for that little dress of yours...” ******** Josephine Beaumont would’ve never imagined that working as a personal nurse for a wealthy French businessman would entangle her into a deadly web of mafia rivalries. Struggling with financial issues and a toxic relationship, she catches the attention of the dangerous and ruthless Russian pakhan, Sasha Romanov and a deep dark obsession brews takes root in his heart. He stalks her every move with burning desire and manipulates their meeting in the pretense of fate, pulling her into the dangerous dark world of the mafia. Delve into this dark, steamy mafia romance filled with obsession, power, and high-stakes danger, BRATVA'S OBSESSION will leave you breathless and craving more.