Terra Smoke

` It was a cool, breezy and stormy night. Rain came down in sheets, as a dark figure stood before a house. The house was pretty ordinary, white with blue shutters; it didn't have more than two bedrooms. It looked like a cozy little family home with flowers and shrubs lining the front lawn, and then the smell from the pellet stove smoke invaded his nostrils. He took a deep breath and pulled out an old, rusted compass from his black trench coat. It looked like it could have been from the 14th century, the small, brass disc was dented and the Victorian designs were faded. He studied it as it pointed east, towards the small house. He looked the house over carefully, looking for the best entrance, before proceeding towards the side to gaze into the window. Inside you can see the small kitchen; the brand new, all black appliances off set the linoleum floor. Cabinets filled almost every wall of the small space that made it look more crowded than it should have been. The kitchen opened to a larger room which seemed to be used as a living room and a dining room all at once. The whole house looked crowded, with the furniture in the living room all touching except for a small gap to walk through and the dining room was so close to the sofa, it could have been sitting on it. He stepped back into the shadows as he watched a young couple enter the kitchen. The wife was tall and slender, had strawberry blond hair formed around her face accenting her jaw-line and her deep blue eyes stopped your heart as you got lost in them. Her fair complexion was silky and complimented her soft face.

“We shouldn’t be doing this, Blaze.” I whispered as I tightly clutched his silky shirt, even though it felt so right, even though everything inside me burns brighter when he looks at me— even though my knees buckled right now, when he slowly slotted his firm thigh between my legs. “You know you want it.” He slowly pressed his index finger into my mouth, and my eyes fluttered shut when he pressed an open kiss against my jaw. “But- my brother...” I mumbled around his finger, as I forced my eyes open. He lifted his thigh and pressed it against my core and I let out a stuttered cry as I threw my head back, my knees threatening to give out this time. “... doesn’t have to know.” —————— To hide her dark secrets, Tessy Roper is content with playing the good girl of her college. She keeps up to her grades, doesn’t drink or smoke or go to notorious college parties, and most definitely doesn’t involve herself with pant-dropping bad boys like Blaze Colt - feared gang leader and her elder brother’s best friend. But things take a turn for the worst when her dark secrets get exposed to Blaze Colt and the only way to protect it is to strike a dirty deal with him. Through this sinful man, she’s introduced into a world of whips and chains and one demanding master who’s determined to unravel every perfectly aligned piece of her body - and heart.

Once I became pregnant, I was hailed as the most precious woman in the underworld. My husband, the new Don of the Jenkins family, shut down an entire private hospital wing for my check-ups, while my father, the Collins Don, summoned every Michelin-starred chef in New York to the estate, just so I could pick whatever I craved. The baby I carried was destined to be the sole heir of the two most powerful mafia families. But on the day we were to sign the papers securing my child's inheritance, they both vanished. "An urgent family matter came up," my husband, Vincent, said, kissing my forehead. "We can finalize the child's inheritance when we get back. There's no rush." Shortly after they left, I received a link to an anonymous live stream. My father's voice came from the video, colder than I had ever heard it. "You're saying your marriage contract with Evangeline was never valid. Doesn't that make the child a bastard?" Vincent, lounging in a club, blew a smoke ring. Cradled in his arms was my half sister, Sarah. "Evangeline has always had all the love and affection. Her child will want for nothing." "Sarah has been mocked for her status for years. I have to make things right for her, give our child a legitimate name." In that moment, my heart seized, and I could barely breathe. Then my phone vibrated again. It was a text message: "Welcome home to the Gallo family, my queen." "Just give the word, and the child you carry will bear the Gallo name and become the most powerful heir in the American underworld."

Two souls, one body. One was a feared assassin, and the other was a beautiful soul brought up and given everything she could ever want. Both were betrayed and killed by those around them on the same day and time. Fate, it seems, could only give one of them a second chance to make things right, a chance at vengeance for both lives.********* "What is this?" Aurelia asked her. "It's a note for a surprise that was prepared for you by your father. He said to hand it to you before the party. You should open it," Nella said. Aurelia smiled at her and tore it open. It was obviously typed in bold letters. SEE YOU AT THE ATTIC, DEAREST. Dearest? That's what her father always referred to her as. "I guess I should start going there," there," Aurelia said and left. The attic had been closed since the incident, and Aurelia had always wanted to go in there and see. It was only reasonable now that her father should let her see before getting married. She entered. "Dad?" She called out to him, but there was no answer. She went in further, and then she saw what was written on the wall. 'DIE BITCH! ' Just then, she heard from behind her as the door closed. Soon, something like a pipe was let in as smoke was being let inside the room. Aurelia ran to the door and started banging, but just then, the violinists started to play below along with other instrumentalists. She kept banging until she started to feel faint and slumped as she gasped for air. There were only a few who knew about her asthmatic condition. her father, her late mother, and Nella. Why would her father want her dead?****************** Read to know what happens next.

I masterminded a half-billion-dollar art auction to wash money for Miles’s family. But at the celebration party, Miles gave all the credit to Rebecca. His childhood friend. The daughter of the family’s consigliere. I stormed into his study. “Miles, head curator was Rebecca? Are you sure about that?” He looked up from a cloud of smoke, pulling me into his arms. His voice was a low, soothing rumble. “Valerie, I know you want to prove yourself, but this was all Rebecca. Especially the Caravaggio. The real one, worth three hundred million. She’s the one who pulled it off.” His lips brushed my forehead, his breath hot. “I don’t love you because you can fix some old paintings. You’re my queen, always. My girl. You don’t have to worry about her.” I almost laughed. The anger was choking me. “She can’t tell the difference between oil and acrylic. How the hell would she know a real from a fake?” “Enough!” Miles cut me off, his tone leaving no room for argument. “I know what Rebecca can do. Don’t make a scene just because you’re jealous.” His hands tightened, trapping me in his smoky embrace. “Don’t disappoint me, Valerie.” But he already had. When I’d had enough of his favoritism and his blindness, I walked. And that's when he went crazy. Scoured the earth looking for me. Begging me to come back, saying he was blind, that he’d been wrong about everything.

Selamat datang di Benua Longwu, panggung bagi lima Kekaisaran megah yang diperintah oleh bakat beladiri dan sihir tinggi. Di tengah sorotan, seorang sosok akan memperoleh ketenaran dan panggung cemerlang. Di Benua ini, sumber daya melimpah untuk mereka yang menguasai dua bakat krusial: energi Mingzhu untuk beladiri yang luar biasa dan energi Nebula untuk keahlian spiritual yang memukau. Bagi yang tidak memiliki kedua bakat tersebut, kehidupan mereka seakan terhapus dan dilupakan oleh dunia. Li Wei, seorang pemuda dari kota kecil Shuimiao di Kekaisaran Terra, tampaknya hanya seorang yang tidak berbakat dalam beladiri maupun sihir. Namun, cita-citanya tinggi—menjadi seorang Sage, manusia setengah abadi. Keberuntungan tiba dalam bentuk pertemuan tak terduga dengan makhluk legendaris pada suatu malam, mengubah hidupnya selamanya. Li Wei terbangun untuk menemukan bahwa dirinya memiliki bakat luar biasa dalam dua hal yang didambakan oleh jutaan orang: seni beladiri dan sihir. Keajaiban ini bukanlah hasil dari kebetulan semata, melainkan campur tangan makhluk gaib—monster laut yang dikenal sebagai Longxu. Sekarang, Li Wei memasuki dunia Kultivator dan Magus di Benua Longwu, membawa janji dalam sebuah perserikatan rahasia yang membuatnya menjadi target para ahli yang haus kebenaran. Apakah Li Wei akan meraih impian menjadi setengah abadi seperti yang diinginkannya? Apa rahasia besar yang membuatnya menjadi buruan di Benua Longwu? Temukan jawabannya dalam kisah epik ini, "Sage Benua Longwu."

On the day my dad, the Don of the Capone family, comes to the orphanage to take me home, I show up in a tactical helmet and a bulletproof vest. "I'm not going home with you. You're definitely doing this to trick me into getting married to a perverted old geezer in a marriage alliance. I bet my adopted sister has made preparations to start fake-crying anytime by loading up on her eyedrops." My dad is amused, to say the least. "Why would any of that happen? Silvia is nothing but welcoming you to our home! Also, our family isn't a lowly organization that deals with human trafficking." But I refuse to believe my dad at all. On the way home, I keep typing something on my phone. My mom, the Donna, leans over curiously. "Are you writing a diary entry?" "Nope. I'm writing tips on 'How to Survive the Mafia.'" 1) My food will definitely be poisoned. 2) If I get close to a staircase, I'll definitely get pushed down the stairs. 3) I'll get framed for something that I've never done before. My parents swear to me that none of the things I've written will ever happen. They tell me that my adopted sister, Silvia Capone, has a great personality, and things are amicable in the family. However, everything changes when Silvia brings me a glass of juice before lunchtime and insists on watching me drink it. Instead, I dump the juice into a nearby vase of flowers. Just as my parents are about to scold me for wasting the juice, smoke begins drifting from the flowers inside the vase. Then, they start wilting rapidly. I calmly leave a bright red checkmark behind the "poison" tip. As my parents stare at the dead flowers, they can feel color draining from their faces. "You should send the juice to a chem lab for analysis."

Renascida, ao reabrir os olhos para esta nova vida, compreendi meu único caminho: precisava me manter o mais longe possível de Lorenzo Alencar. Quando ele caiu de paraquedas na empresa onde eu trabalhava, pedi demissão sem pensar duas vezes. Quando comprou um apartamento no meu condomínio, fiz as malas e me mudei para bem longe. Quando decidiu assumir os negócios da família e permanecer em Santa Esperança, tratei logo de pedir transferência para o exterior. Na vida passada, usei a gravidez como pretexto para obrigar ele a se casar comigo. Mas, no dia da cerimônia, o grande amor da vida dele voltou. E ao ver ele subir ao altar comigo, ela se lançou do terraço de um hotel. Lorenzo fingiu que nada havia acontecido, sorriu e repetiu os votos ao meu lado. No aniversário de casamento, levou a mim e à nossa filha para um salto de bungee jump. E então… cortou a corda. Nós duas fomos despedaçadas na queda. Diante do meu corpo, ele riu com crueldade: — Se não fosse por você, Patrícia jamais teria se matado. Agora, desça ao inferno, pague a sua dívida com ela! Quando abri os olhos novamente, já estava de volta àquela noite — a noite em que usei a minha filha como arma para forçar nosso casamento.

In the kingdom of Drakemont, silence hits harder than any blade sometimes. Selene is this mute servant girl, cursed to stay hidden in the shadows her whole life. She has always known how to survive without anyone noticing her. But then one night changes everything. A single glance from King Aurek, the ruthless Alpha King, breaks down those walls she built around her secret. His wolf wakes up inside him. It claims her as his mate, something she can never let happen. Destiny bites deep, though. The queen-in-waiting, this witch named Veyra, will do anything to lock down Aurek's throne. Selene turns into the target right away. Her only real ally is Maris, an old childhood friend. But that loyalty has some serious weak spots in it. The court is full of whispers that cut like daggers. Alliances shift around like smoke in the wind. Selene has to figure out if she runs from the king's shadow. Or if she steps right into it completely. The more she gets pulled into Aurek's world, the more secrets she finds out about. There are his cursed brothers, the ones who shift between man and beast all the time. A prophecy talks about a silent queen coming along. And a betrayal that is so close to home, it might stab her heart before any enemy even gets near. Selene and Aurek are stuck between love and just trying to stay alive. They have to untangle all the lies holding them together. Otherwise, the witch's crown gets made from their blood. In a realm run by wolves, where silence covers up the worst truths, The Alpha King's Shadow tells a haunting story. It is about forbidden love. Dark magic pulls at everything. And a fate that just will not let go.

I hid behind the study curtains, heart racing with a fragile, trembling joy. In my hands: an ultrasound photo—two heartbeats—and a no-limit black card. Alessandro had given it to me last night, his lips on my neck, calling me his Donna, his queen. Tonight, I was going to tell him about the twins. "The Petrov family needs to see my good faith," his voice drifted in, smooth as velvet. "Vittoria arrives Thursday. I’ll announce the engagement then." My blood froze. "What about Elena?" someone asked. "She’s been with you three years. She manages the books, dug that slug out of your side herself. Is this fair to her?" "Elena?" He leaned back in the leather chair, cigar smoke curling around his jaw. "She’s like a trained hound, Salvatore. After the Rossi family got wiped out, I pulled her from the gutter, gave her a gun and a bed. Have you ever seen a hound leave its master? I could kick her, and she would lick my boot and ask for another." My nails sank into my palms, crumpling the ultrasound. "Aren’t you afraid she’ll leave?" Marco, his Capo, asked. Alessandro paused. Then he said: "She would die for me without question. How could she ever leave?" Those words struck my chest like two 9mm rounds. I didn't wait. I ran through the cemetery, past the tombs of dead Dons, and hurled that card into the Hudson. I vanished into the night with his heirs in my womb and three years of lies in my throat. "I'm sorry, my babies," I whispered to my belly. "Mommy was a fool." But I wouldn't be a fool anymore.