Novels by Menah_writes

POV: DamienWe ran for the stairs at the end of the hall. Silas kept firing from the ceiling. Bullets smashed the mirrors around us. Sharp pieces of glass flew through the air like rain. One piece cut my cheek, but I didn't stop."Go! Go!" I yelled.We burst through the door at the end of the hallway. It led to the very top of the bell tower. It was a wide, open space with huge bells hanging from the wooden beams. The wind blew through the open stone arches. Below us, the city looked small and gray.I looked around for Silas. The room was empty."Where is he?" Sera asked. She was leaning against a beam, trying to catch her breath.Suddenly, a shadow dropped from the ceiling above.Silas landed on his feet like a cat. He didn't have his rifle anymore. He held a long, silver blade in one hand and a pistol in the other. He looked messy. His suit was torn, and his hair looked wild. The calm mask he always wore was finally gone."This is it, Damien," Silas said. He pointed the gun at my ch

## **CHAPTER 128 — “The Hall of Mirrors”****POV: Damien**The stairs to the bell tower were narrow and dark. My boots clicked against the stone. I held my gun out in front of me. Sera followed close behind. I could hear her breathing fast but she didn't stop.We reached a heavy wooden door at the top. I pushed it open with my shoulder.Inside was a long, wide hallway. It was strange. The walls were covered in tall, old mirrors. Some were cracked. Some were dusty. There were dozens of them. I saw myself everywhere I looked. I saw Sera, too. It was hard to tell where the real hallway ended and the reflections began."Stay close to me," I whispered. I took her hand. Her palm was sweaty. "Don't look at the glass. Look at the floor."We started to walk. The only sound was our footsteps. Then, a speaker hidden in the ceiling turned on.A woman started to sing a soft, sweet lullaby.Sera stopped moving. Her hand shook in mine. "That’s her," she whispered. "That’s my mother’s voice.""It is

POV: DamienWe lay together in the dark. Our breathing was slow."We survive," she whispered."That is the only rule for tomorrow. We survive.""We survive," I said as I kissed her hand."Get some sleep," I whispered. I watched her close her eyes. Soon the both of us fell asleep. —————————The morning air in the mountain was cold and sharp. I woke up before the sun was fully up. Sera was still asleep beside me. I stayed still for a moment, just listening to her breathe. I knew that by tonight, the world would be different. Either Silas would be dead, or we would be.I got out of bed and dressed in my dark tactical gear. I checked my belt, my knife, and my handgun. When Sera woke up, she didn't say much. She dressed in the dark clothes we had laid out the night before. We went to the main hub of the fortress. Gideon was standing by the heavy steel door. He looked like he hadn't slept at all. He had a bag of food and water ready for us.I walked up to him. He looked at me, and I saw t

POV: DamienThe plan was different now.I looked at Sera in the dim light of the room. For days, I tried to hide her away. I wanted her in a safe corner where the world could not touch her. But she was right. Silas was never going to stop. He followed us everywhere. The only way to end this was to use the one thing Silas wanted most to lure him into a trap."If we do this," I said. My voice was low. "You aren’t hiding, we have to keep him focused on you that he will forget to look anywhere else."Sera nodded. She picked up a small knife from the table. She ran her thumb along the edge. "Let’s give him what he wants."We trained for the next three hours without mercy.I taught her how to survive a man twice her size. I showed her the soft spots on a body. “Again,” I ordered.I stepped behind her and locked my arm around her neck tightly. My arm pressed against her throat, just enough to scare her not hurt her.“If he grabs you like this, don’t pull away,” I growled in her ear. “Lean b

POV: DamienThe monitors in the war room usually showed nothing but the quiet white snowy mountains But this morning, every screen was lit up playing a tape.Luca was typing so fast and his face was pale. "Boss, you need to see this. Silas isn't hiding anymore. He’s gone loud. He wants the whole world to watch."I walked over to the main console. On the center screen, a news report from the city was playing on a loop. The words at the bottom were bright red: SENIOR COUNCIL MEMBER KIDNAPPED.It was Moretti, One of the oldest men on the High Table. He had survived wars and assassins for thirty years, but someone had snatched him from his own home in broad daylight. His guards were all dead on the grass."He’s started a live stream," Luca whispered. He looked like he wanted to throw up.The screen flickered, and the news was cut off. A grainy video started playing instead.I recognized the room immediately. It was a basement in the old shipyard— the same place where Silas had kept Ser

CHAPTER 122 — “The Quiet Between”POV: SeraThe locket felt heavy in my palm.I was sitting on the edge of the bed in the small, stone-walled room we shared. The fortress was silent now except for the sound of the generators. My father was asleep in the next room, but I couldn't even close my eyes. Every time I did, I heard that scratchy recording of my mother’s voice.Silas was out there in the dark, and he was still using my own heart against me. The door creaked open and Damien stepped in, his silhouette blocking the light from the hallway. He looked exhausted.He didn't say anything. He just sat down on the edge of the bed next to me."I can't stop thinking about it," I whispered, my voice shaking. "How he held onto her things for all these years. It’s like he was always planning to break me."Damien reached out, his large hands covering mine. He gently opened my fingers and took the locket, setting it on the small nightstand. Then, he took both of my hands in his."Look at me, Se

The front doors of the police precinct swung open just after nine o'clock the next morning.Conversation throughout the lobby slowly died away as Jonathan walked inside without saying a word. He wore a dark charcoal suit, and every step he took was calm and deliberate. His expression revealed nothing, but there was a quiet intensity in his eyes that made people instinctively move aside.Six people followed closely behind him. Three men and three women.Every one of them carried a black leather briefcase filled with files, laptops, and legal documents. They were some of the country's most respected criminal defense attorneys. Leading them was Robert, a senior lawyer whose name alone was enough to make prosecutors nervous.The desk sergeant looked up from his computer, his eyebrows lifted."Can I help you?"Jonathan stopped at the counter. "I'm Jonathan Blake." His voice was calm but firm. "I've come to represent Lucy Quinn."The officer blinked. "I'm sorry, sir, but visiting hours—"Ro

The concrete bench was hard beneath Lucy as she sat alone in the holding cell. The room was small and cold, with peeling gray walls and a single light bulb overhead. Every few seconds it flickered, casting brief shadows across the floor before returning to its dull glow.She rested her elbows on her knees and stared at the red marks circling her wrists. The handcuffs had been removed when she arrived, but the bruises remained, burning every time she moved. Strangely, the silence inside the cell was comforting. After weeks of whispers, accusations, and endless humiliation, this was the first place where no one expected anything from her.The quiet didn't last long.A metal door slammed somewhere down the hallway, followed by the sound of footsteps growing closer. A female guard stopped outside the bars with a tablet tucked beneath her arm."You're making headlines," she said with a mocking smile. "Thought you might want to see what people are saying."She switched on the screen and hel

The sound of sirens shattered the silence surrounding the Matthews estate.Red and blue lights flashed through the tall dining room windows as paramedics rushed through the front doors carrying medical bags and a stretcher. The elegant dinner party had dissolved into chaos.Victoria knelt beside Adrian, her designer gown soaked with spilled wine. She clutched his hand as tears streamed down her face."Adrian... please wake up," she cried, her voice breaking. "Please!"A paramedic gently pulled her back. "Ma'am, we need room."She stumbled away as two others dropped beside Adrian. One checked his pulse while another fitted an oxygen mask over his face."Pulse is weak.""He's barely breathing.""Prepare an airway."The room filled with hurried instructions. Medical equipment clicked open while another paramedic connected Adrian to a portable monitor.Arthur stood several feet away, gripping the edge of the dining table so tightly his knuckles turned white, the confidence he'd worn at di

The Matthews mansion hadn't felt this lively in weeks.The long dining table was set with crystal glasses, and enough food to feed a few hundred people. Laughter drifted through the room as servants moved quietly between the guests, refilling glasses and replacing empty plates.For the first time since the corporate war began, the Matthews family looked relaxed.The scandal surrounding Lucy and Jonathan had done exactly what Arthur and Victoria wanted. Investors had stopped talking about Matthews Global's financial losses and started talking about the affair that dominated every headline instead. Blake Holdings was taking the hit, and the Matthews family finally felt like they were back in control.Arthur sat at the head of the table beside one of the company's oldest banking partners, Mr. Hills. Victoria looked happier than Lucy had seen in months. Every few minutes she lifted her wineglass with another satisfied smile.Only Lucy remained quiet. She sat beside Adrian with her hands f

The grandfather clock in the hallway chimed twice.It was well past two in the morning. Lucy walked quietly through the dark mansion, a glass of wine in her hand. She couldn't sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she heard the whispers from the gala all over again.The house was silent except for a faint glow from the door of Adrian's private study. As she got closer, laughter drifted into the hallway.A woman's laughter.She stopped.She didn't mean to listen, but Adrian's voice carried through the half-open door."...you're overthinking it."She looked inside. Adrian was sprawled across his leather chair with a bottle of scotch in one hand. A young woman sat comfortably on his lap, smiling as she traced circles across his chest.Lucy didn't recognize her. It was probably another girl… another replacement."What if your wife catches us?" the girl asked with a playful laugh.Adrian laughed even harder. "Lucy?" he scoffed. "She's probably locked in her room crying. That's what she's

Adrian stumbled through the door of the guesthouse, the whiskey still burning in his veins and blurring the edges of the world. Zoe was waiting, just like she always was, curled up on the couch in nothing but a silk slip that barely reached her thighs. Her face lit up the second she saw him, a bright, hungry smile spreading across her lips.“Adrian,” she purred, rising smoothly and meeting him halfway. “You came to me again. Drunk and horny, just how I like you.”He grabbed her waist, pulling her against his body. The scent of her… vanilla and something warmer, hit him hard. “Fuck, Zoe… needed you tonight.” His words slurred slightly as he crushed his mouth to hers, kissing her with sloppy, demanding hunger. She moaned into it, parting her lips and letting his tongue invade, tasting the liquor on him while her hands worked open his shirt buttons.“You’re so fucking hard already,” she whispered against his mouth, palming the thick bulge straining his pants. “Your wife doesn’t take care