Who Are The Main Characters In Burden To Bear?

SLAP "You think I’ll let Cassian take the fall ?" "He’s my son. You? You’re just a face I regret making"!!. Lucien was born with a secret. One even he didn’t understand. One his father always knew — and hated him for. While his twin, Cassian, lived a life of freedom, Lucien lived locked behind doors, punished for simply existing. He wasn’t allowed outside. He wasn’t allowed to live. He was hidden. Forgotten. Broken. Until one party changed everything. A mafia princess was hurt. Cassian was to blame. But their father made sure Lucien paid the price. That night, Lucien was handed over to Zayn Kingsley — A billionaire mafia heir. One of the Eight who rule the city from the shadows. He has two wives. A daughter. And a dying father whispering: “Give me a son. A true heir. Or lose everything.” Zayn doesn’t believe in weakness. He doesn’t believe in love. And he definitely doesn’t believe in men like Lucien. Zayn is cold. Ruthless. Homophobic. But what Zayn doesn’t know… Is that Lucien carries more than pain. He carries a secret that defies biology, logic, and everything Zayn thought he knew: 🩸 Lucien can bear an heir. And what started as punishment becomes obsession. What started as hate begins to burn into something forbidden… and terrifying. ---

My sister-in-law, Maeve Cohen, floored my luxury car and blew past traffic at about 125 mph, killing a family of three. She pretended to be me and acted as if nothing could touch her. "Those idiots walked into my path! It's not my fault they got hit!" she snapped. "I'm the Lincoln Enterprise heiress. Even if I ran, who would dare catch me?" In my last life, Maeve said her husband wasn't home and she needed a car to visit her parents, so she borrowed mine. She ended up racing down the road, plowing into a family crossing the street, and driving back over them to make sure they were dead. The couple had just bought a house. The baby was only a month old. When the victims' family demanded an explanation, she hid behind my reputation and spat venom. "They're just three worthless people! I'm the Lincoln Enterprise heiress; why should I explain myself? Tell them to come to me for funeral expenses!" The grieving family couldn't take it and came to my in-laws' place. "Three worthless people, huh? Today, we'll end you so you can apologize to them in person!" My husband had died the year before. With no one to protect me, the victims' family turned on me, and I was stabbed to death. The valuable wedding gifts my family had given to me became Maeve's overnight. My family tried to appeal for me, but trolls who hated the rich maliciously reported tax problems about my father's company. My father was driven to exhaustion. One night, he fell asleep at the wheel, and the car plunged off a cliff, killing him. Only after I died did I discover it had all been Maeve's plan to ruin us out of spite. Then I opened my eyes. I was back on the day Maeve took my car and ran into those people.

“I refuse to accept your rejection,” I tell my fated mate. Her cheeks flush crimson as she pulls away. “I don’t want you!” she cries. But I’ve searched my entire life for her. I’m not walking away now. Alpha Zack has spent years searching for the one woman destined to stand at his side. At thirty-two, the Elders are pressuring him to take a Chosen Mate and secure the future of his pack. None of the women they present interest him. Until the night of the annual Mates Gala… when he finally finds her. His fated mate. There’s only one problem—she’s already in love with another man. Heartbroken but unwilling to give up, Zack is determined to prove that fate chose them for a reason. But winning her heart may be the greatest battle he’s ever faced. Will he succeed in claiming the mate destiny promised him…or will he be forced to accept her rejection and choose a different future?

Like in the deck of cards, the Ace outranks the King—and so does Ace Salvatore. A Greek-Italian mafia leader feared by all, Ace is a man of unspeakable cruelty, a calculated mind ruling an empire built on blood and terror. His face is a mystery— those who’ve seen it are long gone, silenced by his wrath. Manipulative, controlling, psychotic, and untouchable, he rules his empire with an iron fist, his past buried beneath layers of bloodshed and regret. His obsession with power and control leaves no room for weakness—not in himself, not in his enemies, and certainly not in others. When a desperate debtor can’t repay what’s owed, he offers something unexpected to settle the score: a little girl. Ace accepts the deal, not out of need, but because curiosity flickers in his mind— a curiosity he loathes. Yet the little girl is more than just an innocent. She unknowingly awakens ghosts of Ace’s past— a life of betrayal, loss, and secrets he swore to bury. Even monsters have scars. The darkness that shaped him, the wounds he carries, and the revenge that fuels his every decision begin to resurface. The past never truly stays buried. As their worlds collide, her presence becomes both his salvation and his torment. But as the past catches up, threatening to destroy everything, Ace must face a harrowing choice: cling to the monster he’s become, or risk everything for the one thing he never thought he’d have— a chance at redemption. Will his darkness consume her and change her? Or will she destroy him?

I was touching myself in front of the teddy bear on my bed, because I knew a man was watching behind its eyes. He had sneaked into my home, lay on the bed where I slept, and left traces of himself on my clothes. When I noticed, he watched as I hid in a corner, trembling… not knowing that I had been waiting for him for a long time.

The notice of my mother's layoff sat on the kitchen table. Rent was due in three days. My younger brother's tutoring fees were already two weeks late. And my little sister, Stephanie, clutched her acceptance letter to the local public arts high school like she'd done something wrong. None of this would be happening if it weren't for me. My illness had taken everything our family had saved. I stayed in my room, leaning against the door, wanting to tell them I'd drop out of treatment—but I couldn't bring myself to open it. "Why did he have to fall sick?" My mother was crying, her voice low and tight, like the words were being forced out of her. "If it were just you both, Stephanie and Jamie, we'd be fine by now." "Mom, please don't say that." My brother and sister held her, barely holding back their own tears. "He's a burden… but he's still my son." Her voice cracked. "I just… I can't do this anymore…" I stepped back and sank into my chair. It wasn't an accusation. It was a verdict.