Target Round Table Novels & Stories

~Passage~ A few days had passed since Andrès and Carlos had struck their agreement, and Andrès found himself summoned to a private club downtown. "The Table" requested a meeting . It was an exclusive gathering spot, meant only for the most trusted and powerful figures in their line of business. As Andrès walked in, the atmosphere felt heavy, charged with a mix of curiosity and skepticism that only grew as the men at the table sized him up. Each of them held their own power, wealth, and influence-and now, Andrès had a seat among them.

I turned and saw Lucille looking up at the building with the baby in her arms. Patrick's office was on the ninth floor. My guess was that she knew exactly which window looked into Patrick's office. It was action time. I pulled Shania along and walked out of the cafe. Though everything was going according to plan and I wished for them to be utterly ruined with all my heart, I couldn't keep the anxiousness at bay. I felt so jittery that I stumbled. Shania steadied me and asked cautiously, "Should we just forget about it?" "There's no turning back now." I forced a smile and collected myself before walking out once more.

“What do you want?“ I asked, taking another puff of the tobacco in my hands. “There's a problem, boss“ He said in a low tone, that I almost didn't think I heard him right. “What did you say?“ I asked again, to be certain if I had mistaken his words. “A member of the Round Table is here. He's demanding your presence.“ He relayed carefully, taking a few steps back. I frowned. Skylo didn't bother to inform me about their arrival, which only added to my annoyance. What was everyone around me doing lately? Acting like a bunch of incompetent fools. Of course, I braced myself for something of this nature happening but, I didn't expect it to be so soon. It was barely 24hours since Tracy's disappeara

Cold air rushed into the stairwell and I blinked as he pulled me through the door and into a scene straight from a movie. We were on the roof of the building, the view overlooking the town and the dark sea, the waves crashing, providing soothing background music. The flat top tarred space was decorated with a few iron wrought tables and chairs, twinkly light were strung up all around, giving a soft, romantic feel to the atmosphere, to the left, a small stage was set up, complete with a DJ stand and mic stand. A long table of drinks and snacks to the right all complete with the small crowd of my closest friends and colleagues, all smiling widely at me while I stared around at the entire set u

Perfect for conversations that couldn't happen in polite society. My phone buzzed. Luca: "Target acquired. Back room, table seven. Three other players, but they're leaving." I checked my watch. 11:47 PM. Late enough that witnesses would be few, early enough that cleanup would be manageable. "Clear the room," I texted back. "I'm coming in." The bar was exactly what I'd expected—dim lighting, sticky floors, and the kind of clientele that minded their own business as a matter of survival.

Now, I was off to tend to a flower of my own, a flower named Rose. A week later, the door that was barely hanging on gave way with a gentle knock, and the breeze that followed sent the document fluttering to the floor. "Carol? Are you still mad? I should've told you sooner, the movie theater is owned by our boss and Jasmine is his daughter. We were just there to work as security," James confessed. "Check this out, I got you movie tickets! You can finally say you've been to the movies!" Nathan added with a grin.

EVELARA The break ended too quickly. The officials did not allow us the luxury of rest. No long speeches. No gentle warnings. Just a quiet shift in the arena’s atmosphere that told every healer present the truth: this would be the round that broke most of us… The final round that would decide the fate of this competition. When the massive central screen ignited again, the hall dimmed as if the light itself was bowing to what was about to happen. FINAL ROUND: DUAL-TEAM DISASTER RESPONSE. MIRRORED TRAUMA. REAL-TIME OUTCOME SCORING.

The answer did not keep people away. It brought them. The next table meeting had twice as many faces. Greywatch. Ironhollow. Moonhold. And new ones. Two men from Greyspire. A woman from the river towns. An older couple who did not say where they were from. No one sat at the head. They never had. But today people kept looking at the empty space like they expected someone to fill it. Rowan was under the table again. He had a new game. He traded pebbles for pieces of bread. He was very serious about it.

Daniel did not like being read when the page belonged to his own family. Then he looked back at Robert’s name. “No,” he said. “I do not.” The admission changed the room more than any accusation would have. Elaine moved quietly to the printer near the side cabinet and gathered another sheet as it emerged. “There are additional public mentions. Not many. Robert Cole attended two Northbridge donor dinners in the same year, one spring advisory gathering the year before, and one foundation roundtable eighteen months later.” Daniel’s hand closed once, then opened. “Who hosted the roundtable?”

Subconsciously I gripped my necklace and twisted my finger around it like it’d give me some form of comfort. My gaze bore into his back as he picked a club. From the corner of my eye, I saw his friends watching with hopeful eyes. He drew the raffle. Cracked the ball open… “Your target is Hole Five.” Everyone’s spine straightened in sudden stupefaction. That was the smallest of numbers so far. He took his stand at the teeing ground, ready to swing. Pod eighteen was called out as a distraction— a burly red-haired man who appeared as tho he crushed ants for a living.