Chapter 57 After their dinner of dry sweet potato and lukewarm water, the hut fell into a silence so thin it felt like it could tear. The oil lamp in the corner burned low, stubborn but struggling. Its flame threw a honey-colored glow across the bamboo walls, softening their roughness,

Chapter 56 The forest was already swallowed by darkness when they reached the rebels’ stronghold. Not dark like a city blackout or drawn heavy curtains. This was a different kind of darkness—the kind that erased streets, names, and the idea that anyone would come looking. The trees arched high above

Chapter 55 It was him. That soldier. For a second, the jungle disappeared. Not the trees. Not the fire. Not the blood. Just him, broken and scarred. On the brink of death. Lara dropped to her knees beside him and ripped open her pack. She searched for cloth. Anything that

Chapter 54 The trek into the heart of Ourea’s jungle chewed them up and spat them out. The air was thick enough to drown in, heavy with moisture and the sour stink of rot. Every breath tasted like wet leaves and old decay. Vines clawed at their ankles. Roots coiled

Chapter 53 They traveled all night. No one talked. Just the catamaran’s engine noise and the rattle of metal every time the boat hit a boulder. Shay slept against Lara’s chest, sweaty and restless. Sandro tried to stay awake the whole time, pretending not to be scared. Of course, he

Chapter 52 Lara edged toward the sound of the kids’ voices, every step slow, careful, like the floor might snitch on her. Her heart hammered so loud she swore they could hear it. Then she caught it. That baby-powder, milky scent that belonged only to Shay. But then, she also

Chapter 51 Ares had been locked in a closed-door meeting for one hour. Exactly sixty minutes. The same hour Shay disappeared. The timing was too precise to be a coincidence. Too clean. Too deliberate. It felt engineered. As if an unseen hand had moved the pieces across a chessboard… or

Chapter 50 Lara came back ten minutes later, sneakers crunching over gravel and grass, eyes already sweeping the park before she fully stopped moving. That section of the Treasure Island buzzed—kids laughing, while they looked for treasures behind rockeries. Some even dug on certain mound while the nannies and teachers

Chapter 49 Monday Morning at Obsidian Peak The city was already awake. Traffic snarled sixty floors below like a metal river. Horns barked. Delivery trucks hissed. Somewhere, a jackhammer rattled concrete into dust. The air beyond the glass shimmered with heat and smog and sunlight fighting for space. Inside Obsidian

Chapter 48 Lara returned to the living room and said her goodbyes. Madeline, Logan, and Lucas walked her out, with reluctant steps. Liam, on the other hand, had disappeared toward the guesthouse, chasing after Layla’s storm. The warmth from earlier had thinned out, replaced by that polite, careful quiet people

Chapter 47 “Layla, don’t be willful p> Liam’s voice cut through the room, sharp as a blade against glass. “You still haven’t explained the video from earlier. Who did you think you were humiliating—Lara? Amelia?” His jaw tightened. “It was Dad. It was all of us p> The air went

Chapter 46 Lara felt the faintest tremor in her eyelids, a tiny betrayal her body couldn’t quite suppress. Her face, however, stayed perfectly composed. For one suspended second, their eyes locked. Then she looked away first. Her gaze shifted to the older man standing beside him. His silver hair had

Chapter 45 Artemio intercepted Rocky before he could rejoin the crowd. “Walk with me p> They slipped away from the music and laughter, cutting across the lawn to a darker corner near the hedges. Out here, the fairy lights didn’t quite reach. The party noise dulled to a distant hum.

Chapter 44 Lara stood at the edge of the lawn. Beyond it, the orchard glowed. Thousands of tiny lights hung between the branches, scattered like fallen stars. They flickered in the dark, alive and restless, like a swarm of fireflies caught mid-flight. She couldn’t look away. A sound stirred the

Chapter 43 Layla had just lifted a slice of steak to her mouth when the words reached her. She stopped mid-bite. The fork hovered in the air. Slowly, her hand lowered. Something dark flickered across her face. Then heat rushed up her spine…hot, sudden, and ugly. The metal fork clattered

Chapter 42 Soon, a stir rippled through the side entrance of the Norse Mansion. Conversations faltered. Heads turned. A line of men stepped in—some broad-shouldered and silver at the temples, others older but still carrying themselves with soldier-straight backs. They walked two by two, instinctively synchronized, like formation had never

Chapter 41 When Lara and Amelia emerged from the mansion, Shay struggled out of her chair and ran toward Lara. She ran too fast, and Sarah could not catch up. “Mommy, you’re back.” Shay’s cheerful voice reached Lara’s ears. “Where have you been? Why did you disappear for so long

Chapter 40 Amelia was lost in herself, she forgot that she wasn’t alone in the restroom. “You’re trying to reject yourself before anyone else can p> Lara’s gentle voice startled her. “It feels safer. But it’s still cowardice p> Amelia flinched. Cowardice. The truth stung worse than the gossip. Because

Chapter 39 “Oh,” Lara said casually, meeting Amelia’s eyes in the mirror, “it’s you p> “You know me?” Amelia asked as she straightened her back. Lara hesitated as she looked at the reflection of the girl in the mirror whose eyes had turned red from crying. “I just heard some

Chapter 38 Amelia felt so stifled. The laughter around her felt too loud, the music too sharp, the air too thick with perfume and champagne. Every word, every glance, pressed against her ribs like invisible hands squeezing tighter and tighter. If she stayed one second longer, she was certain she