What Chapter Does Kenjaku Die

There are monsters in this world. And they used to be us. Now it's time to euthanize to survive in a hospice where Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible. Post-infection Chicago. Christmas. Inside The Hospice, Emily and her fellow nurses do their rounds. Here, men and women live out their final days in comfort, segregated from society, and are then humanely terminated before fate turns them into marrow-craving monsters known as ‘Smilers.’ Outside these imposing walls, rabid protesters swarm with signs, caught up in the heat of their hatred. Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible. But in a world where mortality means nothing, where guns are drawn in fear and nobody seems safe anymore – at what cost will this pursuit come? And through it all, the soon to be dead remain silent, ever smiling. Such is their curse. It won't be long before that snow-speckled ground will be salted by blood. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

Ich war seit drei Jahren mit Alexander verheiratet. Jeder fürchtete seine Rücksichtslosigkeit, doch er war immer unglaublich sanft zu mir. Aber seit Elena vor sechs Monaten während eines Schusswechsels eine Kugel für ihn abgefangen hatte, änderte sich alles. Er sagte immer, sie sei verletzt worden, um ihn zu retten, also musste ich verständnisvoll sein. Auf dem prestigeträchtigsten Gala des Familienclans kam mein Mann – der Don, Alexander – mit seiner Sekretärin Elena an seiner Seite. An ihrer Brust prangte das Rubin-Brosche, das die Position der Donna der Familie symbolisierte. „Elena hat eine Kugel für mich abgefangen. Sie mochte die Brosche, also habe ich ihr erlaubt, sie eine Weile zu tragen. Trotzdem bist du die einzige Donna hier. Versuche, ein wenig Klasse zu zeigen.“ Ich widersprach ihm nicht. Ich zog einfach meinen Ehering ab und zog die Scheidungsunterlagen heraus: „Da sie den Ring so sehr mag, soll sie ihn doch behalten. Ebenso diesen Platz neben dir. Den gebe ich auch auf.“ Alexander unterschrieb ohne zu zögern, ein kaltes Lächeln auf seinem Gesicht. „Welcher manipulative Trick spielst du jetzt? Du bist ein Waisenkind, von deiner Familie getrennt, du wirst keine drei Tage auf Sicily überleben. Ich warte darauf, dass du zurückkommst und mich anflehst.“ Ich zog ein verschlüsseltes Satellitentelefon hervor, das ich seit drei Jahren nicht mehr benutzt hatte. Alexander wusste nicht, dass ich eigentlich die jüngste Tochter der ältesten Mafia-Familie in Europa war. Doch meine Familie und Alexanders waren seit jeher Feinde. Um ihn zu heiraten, hatte ich meinen Namen geändert und sogar den Kontakt zu meinem Vater und meinen Brüdern abgebrochen. Der Anruf wurde verbunden. Ich atmete tief ein und flüsterte: „Papa, ich bereue es. Schick jemand, um mich in zwei Wochen abzuholen.“

Lumi-as someone who's being told what to believe and hope in everything as she grows up-reckons that living is a way to comply with and entrust one's entire life to serving superiors on top of the hierarchy. Who will not think of that way anyway? Being harbored in the lands of Castellanos, it is engraved in her mind that she lives to pay her debt of gratitude to the family who sheltered her, who protected her from all the cruelties the outside world has to offer behind those fences. What they're doing is to protect her life and welfare-that's what they told her. So there's no other way to live but be the gullible and obedient yokel of the Castellano clan, because they're doing everything just for her safety. But that's before her life turns upside-down as she discovers a strange note from the attic. "To whoever finds this message, they erased us. This is all that remains. Remember us, please." What does the note want to convey? Is it just one of those mundane trivial stuff found in an attic like the usual when someone decides to clean it? Or is it something connected to her... "safety?" For sure it is for her safety. That's what they always tell her. But what one hears is not always the version of reality. Most of the time, it is the most convenient scheme to twist and bend the truth. That... That's what they will never tell her.

Even though I've been with Eric Blackclaw, the heir to the Alpha title, for three years, he's still unwilling to mark me. Later, he falls in love at first sight with my stepsister, Layla Talbot. Thus, he begins courting her in a grand manner in the pack. This time, I no longer throw a tantrum, nor do I question Eric like I did before. Instead, I just burn all the gifts he's given me and rip my gown for our marking ceremony into shreds. On Eric's birthday, I leave Northpine Woods on my own. Before I board the private jet bound for another continent, Eric sends me a message via the mind-link. "Avril, why aren't you here yet? Everyone's waiting for you." I don't respond to Eric at all. This time, I just sever my mind-link with Eric. What he doesn't know is that I've already accepted Alpha Marcus Howler's mating proposal to me half a month ago. Once the private jet lands in the new territory located in Frosthill Mountains, Marcus and I will become mates with the Moon Goddess as our witness.

The day I win the cheerleading championship, the entire arena erupts with cheers for my team. But from the stands, my brother, Nelson Locke, hurls a water bottle straight at me. "You injured Felicia's leg before the performance just so you could win first place? She has leukemia, Victoria! Her dying wish is to become a champion. Yet you tripped her before the competition, all for a trophy! You're selfish. I don't have a sister like you!" My fiance, who also happens to be the sponsor of the competition, steps onto the stage with a cold expression and announces, "You tested positive for illegal substances. You don't deserve this title. You're disqualified." All the fans turn against me. They boycott me entirely—some even go so far as to create a fake memorial portrait of me, print it, and send it to my doorstep. I quietly keep the photo. I'll probably need it soon anyway. It's been three years since I was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. Knowing I don't have much time left, I choose to become the type of person they always wanted me to be—the perfect sister who loves without question, the well-mannered woman who knows when to keep quiet, and the kind of person who never, ever lies.

Eine Braut wird in ein Königreich geschickt, das nicht existieren sollte. Ophelia wurde Sicherheit versprochen, doch in dem Moment, in dem sie die Welt ihres Ehemannes betritt, erkennt sie, dass etwas furchtbar falsch ist — niemand atmet, niemand lächelt, und das Schloss beobachtet sie wie eine Beute. Dann beginnen die Träume. Träume, in denen sie gejagt wird … und wenn sie aufwacht, sind die Wunden real. Weit entfernt spürt Tristan ihren Schmerz durch eine Verbindung, die sich langsam in ein Todesurteil verwandelt — und als er sich auf den Weg macht, sie zu retten, wird er als Verräter gebrandmarkt und durch ganze Königreiche gejagt. Doch die Wahrheit ist weitaus schlimmer, als sie beide es sich je hätten vorstellen können. Ophelia war nie dazu bestimmt, eine Braut zu sein. Sie war dazu bestimmt, ein Opfer zu sein. Und je näher Tristan daran kommt, sie zu retten, desto näher kommt sie dem, was die Welt fürchten sollte.

Laya’s world is falling apart—haunted by a past she can’t outrun and a future she never chose. When shadows resurface and loyalties are tested, survival might cost her everything.

Story 1: "Make a wish," He asked her. "I want to die." She replied without hesitation. He was the only one who could save her, and she was the only one who could see him and bring him back to life. Story 2: after so many years, a message arrived for a reunion of the whole batch. everyone was excited except those two hearts, twisted and anxious. But little did they know it was going to be a new beginning for the two of them as they would finally fall in love all over again...

In a world where the gods of legend have become actual fact, a few misnomers from another planet seek to simply live their lives in peace. If you could choose one word from the dictionary, one that simply defines you to the core of your soul, what would you say your definition is?

When I joined my pregnant wife at her class reunion, I heard the thoughts of her male bestie. 'Once she kicks her bum husband to the curb, the money's all mine!' He was snuggling up to my wife, raising his glass in salutations with a perfect smile, but I still caught the flicker of disgust in his eyes. 'Stupid sow thinks I'm in love with her? Who would care about her if it weren't for her money?' He had no idea that Mary's family had gone bankrupt long ago, and her life of luxury now was all thanks to me!