The Rains

I'm the ultimate predator, a bear shifter. I live by a code. Hunt or be hunted. Kill or be killed. Then I meet her. The second I catch her scent, I know she was meant for me. She was born to wear my mark and I was born to protect her. She belonged to my enemy until I took her. He wants her back. He'll wage war to get her, but no one's taking her from me. She's mine, and I'm not letting her go.

Choosing to live independently in a highly urbanized city is a decision Latisha Thaviya Fallarco made at such a young age. Despite her parents prohibitions, she still managed to convince them by performing well in academics. She wanted to attend parties, get drunk and dance in the club, go shopping, and explore neighboring cities. She wanted to live her life to the fullest in the place she considered the best. Yet, she never saw the coming of an incident that would end that kind of lifestyle. She was forced to leave and be with her family. Latisha thought that living in a province would be hard for her, but she was wrong. In a particular town in Iloilo Province, she found her true home. Ps. This story is written in Filipino and English.

Cherokee Rains has lived her entire life on the reserve wishing for a better world. Her best friend introduces her to tech CEO Becket Peterson, an arrogant self-centered man. When his father threatens to take his company back unless he settles down, he ropes Cherokee into a contracted marriage. Will they come to love one another or will she leave when her time is up?

"Did you kill him?" The detective asked again."I've already answered you like a thousand times... Yes, he was a monster. Yes, he beat me up a lot but I didn't do it. I didn't kill Jude!" Amanda replied."I'm sorry. I know what it's like to be a victim of abuse and all that, but you need to understand that murder is a serious case too. You'll have to forgive us for asking you continually it's just that you were the closest to him we've got here.""I wasn't. There was someone else he was seeing that knew a lot about him than I ever did," Amanda replied.*******The night was growing colder and the rains seemed to have agitated in full force. Amanda sat on one of the soft leather chairs that squeaked with her every move in the living room with tears in her eyes as she watched the rains drop on the floor forming small pools and waited for Jude to come back. She was worried sick about his whereabouts even though all his presence caused her were pain and more tears. The protruding bump on her stomach, made it quite difficult to move around at ease so she was stuck with calling his busied line while she watched the clock tick its way into the midnight mark.*****A heart rending story told differently. Stronger than Pain captures a dysfunctional Nigerian home where a callous man, beats his wife on a daily basis. Time flies and now he is dead. All the characters have a reason to kill him, but she's their number one suspect. The Question still remains, who pulled the trigger?

In the savage world of the Blackwood werewolves, the cruel Alpha Damien rules with an iron fist. By ancient decree, he is bound to take a new Luna every Blood Moon to solidify his dominance. His latest prize is Kiera, the fierce beauty from the Rivermist pack. Forced into the mating ritual against her will, Kiera becomes a possession to the brutal Alpha, yearning for escape. Her unlikely ally emerges as Ryker, an alluring omega outcast harboring his own mysterious secrets. But Kiera soon learns that Damien conceals an even darker secret . When Kiera and Ryker's forbidden attraction ignites, they risk it all to break the sacred bond in a dangerous rite. Damien's wrath rains down, sparking all-out war among the packs. With a shocking betrayal tying Ryker's past to the conflict, can the star-crossed lovers survive long enough to burn the tyrannical Blackwood legacy to the ground?

An earthquake struck suddenly during our honeymoon. I suggested that we flee immediately. My husband’s former lover mocked me for being cowardly and paranoid. So, my husband dismissed my fears. I had no choice but to continue sightseeing with them. A fractured steel frame crashed down with an earsplitting clang and smashed into his former lover. She clung to me desperately as the rebars drove into my ribs one by one. Before I could cry out, my husband kicked me down when he saw his former lover in danger. “You wretch! If you hadn’t suggested this honeymoon spot, Lena wouldn’t have gotten hurt! “You knew there’d be an earthquake today. You did this on purpose!” The rebars pierced deeper into my ribs and made every breath I took excruciatingly painful. My husband pushed me aside, lifted his former lover into his arms, and stormed off without glancing back. “Before the aftershock hits, I’m taking Lena to the hospital! Then, I’ll call for rescue. “Stay here and reflect on your actions. This is your punishment for scheming against Lena!” I waited all night. He did not know that the torrential rains of the monsoon season had flooded the area. What awaited him was the bloated corpse of a pregnant woman.

In my previous life, my parents doted on my frail, sickly younger sister. For her sake, they chose a hawk beastman willing to settle in a human city as her husband. Me? They cast me into the deep sea, marrying me off to a giant shark beastman. When the apocalypse came and torrential rains drowned every human city, my parents and sister were left clinging to a rotting plank, adrift on the endless ocean. I couldn't bear to watch them die. With my giant shark husband, I dragged them down into the deep sea to safety. But resentment festered. Seeing me live comfortably while my shark beastman hunted day after day, my parents grew furious that my sister's life paled in comparison to mine. In their jealousy, they laced the fish we ate with poison and killed me. Now, given another chance at life, they've decided my sister should marry the giant shark beastman instead. My biased parents believe she will finally enjoy the blessings they once denied her. But what they don't know is this: after the cataclysm, fish become scarce. And a giant shark… does not survive on scraps. He needs flesh.

"They're coming, Benedicta. Grab all your stuff right now!" One second, I snapped my head around at the panicked Paul who clutched a towel around his waist. But when I looked back, the creature was gone. Shocked by the sudden disappearance, my eyes darted around in search of nothing. "Did you hear what I fucking said? Gather your stuff and let's go!" "Did you-did you see that?" I pointed at the empty window oozing in chilling air. As the breeze got stronger, so did my confusion. "Wake the hell up, Beni," Paul yelled, startling me off my trance. "What is wrong with you?" Without saying a word to Paul, I followed him like a doll as he led me out of the room through a secret passage. "Find them. They haven't gone far." That deep scratchy voice penetrated the walls. "Search the bushes. As ordered, bring her alive." —-------------- —-------------- Benedicta, a young girl sets out to retrieving a glowing stone buried in the depths of the earth, located near Beast Land, a terrifying place inhabited by massive werewolves known as the Lycans. Despite the danger, Benedicta is determined to find the stone, which is said to possess great power. Meanwhile, the Alpha of the lycan pack is cursed, and has been unable to produce an heir for thousands of years. Each time he chooses a pair of lycans to mate and produce offspring with, the pups turn into stone as soon as they are born. His Lunas (female werewolves) also die soon after the curse takes effect. When Benedicta crosses paths with the enraged Alpha, she inadvertently restores his youthful appearance, with just a STEP, triggering a rage that threatens to destroy them both. Hot tension rains down on them as the changes begin.

"Rain, I am sorry but we can't get married, I mean, you don't expect me to marry a woman without a womb or do you?" Rain Arnold was dumbstruck, after loosing three pregnancies all for this man, he dared to call her barren "Miss Arnold, you do know abortion is very risky, everything is at stake when you choose abortion". Rain felt suffocated at this point, she was living a nightmare that seemed like it was never going to end. She lost her pregnancies not because of abortion but because of miscarriages yet this doctor dared to tell her a different story? what was happening? Rain was confused at this point. The man she loved had just abandoned her and now, the whole world seemed like it was crushing right before her. A few days later, Rain found herself with a golden opportunity that would change her life forever. A five year contract marriage that stated that she would get married to the most influential young bachelor in the city and after five years, she ought to divorce him and leave. In any case of her, getting pregnant, after the divorce, she would leave her child behind and forget she ever had a child or husband. Rain thought about it and smiled, it's not like she had any hope of having a child. As long as she could be granted her wish each year, she was sure to get her revenge without any difficulties. A few months after her marriage, Rain was shocked by what the doctor told her, "Mrs Johnson, you are pregnant" Rain couldn't utter a word... but how? how could this be?" this is how Rains life began to take a new turn, all of the sudden. will he take this child away from me?