Nobela ni Joe Honey

The darkness weighed on Adrian. Alone, he stared at the smartphone screen, and slowly the worries came and began overshadowing him. He tried calling Jenny for the final time. But this time it was even worse. "BEEP" the dial tone resonated inside his mind as a sad song, tying a heavy string to the future of uncertainty residing in front of him.He was losing within that desperation clutching his heart. His once sharp and focused mind began to wander off aimlessly and could not concentrate on anything apart from those haunting images of Jenny.The incessant maelstrom of questions swirling in his head formed different shapes, and all were more tortuous than the first. "Man, how am I getting through with this thing right now?" He held the phone in a grip that suggested it was the only rope that could hold him alive.His fingers raced across the screen with both urgency and desperation, and though the seconds trickled by in almost a freeze, every second seemed like an eternity as he stared

Minutes turned into hours as Mr. Zan stood by, waiting for Jenny to walk out of the ladies' room. His air conditioning motor started vibrating and soon it was beyond the threshold of audible perception but damps in harmony with the slow rhythm of his heart. For the hundredth time, he looked at the dial as the hands of time crawled across its face. It had been thirty minutes since he had been told to wait, but Jenny was still conspicuously missing.His gaze moved toward the security men, somewhat narrowed, as he put the question out to them- "Are you sure she's in there?" Confident nods came his way. "Yeah, look, she's coming," said one of them, somewhat softly, in a soothing tone. Mr. Zan immediately snapped his eyes toward the door of the ladies' room, with his heart now galloping in its euphoria. A woman walked out looking exactly like Jenny.Their gazes locked; he smiled warmly. "Mrs. Jenny!" he exclaimed, feeling relief. "We've been waiting for you for ages. Our company is next,"

Disgustedly, Adrian sighed; responsibilities lay heavy upon him as if to suffocate. His eyes moved through the room, over the sea of expectation on the faces, fluttering hands, whispering murmurs, crowding the air with tension thick with perfume, cologne, and the smell of freshly printed papers. "It's getting harder," he said softly enough that only he could hear it.With that, the next company was introduced- it sounded as if they were being announced in some long-forgotten imperial court: "A&Z Company Limited!" thundered the speaker from the microphone into the welcoming room. Clapping hands and cheering greeted the representatives of A&Z Company as they strode toward the stage. The applause sounded like relentless waves crashing against the shore, full of zeal.Adrian squinted as he calculated all his strategies and machinations while the watcher observed the present scene. The adrenaline in his system was pounding in his heart like an embargo drum. "Chevron Company, should get rea

The Dubai meeting was in full swing, and the atmosphere was charged. A male and female pair had organized the event and came on stage clad in bright red. The color itself appeared to embrace life with energy, beckoning to the audience. But Adrian's gaze was not on the speakers. He was staring at the door, almost through the gate, willing Jenny to return.Where had she gone? Adrian's mind was a storm of questions. Had she gone for air? Or was it to powder her nose? In Adrian's thoughts, of course, it crossed that she might have gone to relieve herself; however, with time slipping away and still no sign of her appearing, his worries began to build with concern over where she was.He continued watching the stage when the speakers announced the next one in line, and the words 'Diamond Company Limited" reached his ears. The Diamond Company Limited representative went to the podium, adjusting the microphone, commencing his speech. There were murmurs across the crowd, and all of a sudden, Ad

Frantically looking for the woman who just called me, I sat in the vehicle allowing my eyes to scour the space. Instead, however, I was surrounded by ominously faced men; their expressions were dark and foreboding. An unease overtook me, and I could feel an influx of adrenaline passing through my bloodstream."Where am I going?" I asked them, forcing my voice to stay even as terror began to rise inside me. The men did not seem to notice, though, lest be moved by such strident yelling and asking."Somebody talk to me!" I shouted, but before any reply could come, the whine of the engine roared into life, and the vehicle started to move, sending a jolt of panic through me that I was about to be taken somewhere against my will.The men were too strong for me again when I would have tried to open the door to escape. They kept me successfully on the ground, where one tied a black cloth around my mouth and rendered any outcry completely useless. Kicking and struggling did not help, for I had

With the passing hour, the air tension thickened into more palpably heavy forms. Two hours have almost delved in looking up to their finisher preparations, and now with just one hour before the dinner, they're pushing the thrust deeper into heightened sensation and laser-like focusing.They have been getting themselves through some sessions of question and answer, self-testing for knowledge and driving home each little detail spelled in The Blueprint. As such, sail forth, the ready-to-surf mouthing on any eventuality; sharpens them up for any toughest question thrown at them.As they went drunk on the session, the rusty sound of shuffling papers, murmurs of discussion with having the occasional bout of voiced laughter resonated through the room. The spirit was invigorated by a spirit of brotherhoodness, common destiny and sheer determination to emerge victorious.And as the hands of the clock pointed to the final hour, Adrian's voice cut the noisy din with his crisp, clear, and comman

Maya froze as Luca stepped farther inside, his smirk still fixed, his dark eyes unreadable. On the walls, gore clung to everything the smell of gunpowder and blood had become a ghost that refused to leave.Helena’s corpse was sprawled between them in silence, a pool of crimson widening under her frame. It was supposed to be satisfying to see her mangled, lifeless body fall apart after all she’d done, after all the suffering caused. But Maya felt nothing. No relief. No victory. Only an empty numbness curling in her chest.She gripped the knife, still slick with Helena’s blood, tighter, her green eyes narrowing as she took a deliberate step forward. “You killed her.”Luca cocked his head slightly. “You’re welcome.”Zane’s gun remained raised, a finger poised over the trigger, his silver eyes cold as steel. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t put a bullet in between your eyes right now.”Luca laughed under his breath, as though he did not care that one misplaced step could send him

Maya’s heart raced so fast she could hardly hear anything but the rush of blood in her ears. Reese was on the other side of the room, her face puffy with bruises, her wrists tied, fear jumping in her wide eyes. The barrel of Helena’s gun was pushed against her temple, her smirk unbroken.Tense next to Maya, Zane's silver gaze would not leave Helena, a malevolent fire burning within that thickened the air. His fingers twitched, longing for his gun, but one false move and Reese was dead.Maya kept breathing, making herself breathe. She could not lose control right now. She had entered this knowing it was a trap, but she had believed she could withstand anything.She wasn’t prepared for this.Helena cocked her head, amusement stirring in her dark eyes. “You’re quiet, Maya. I was hoping for more of a response.”My jaw clenched so hard it hurt. “Let her go.”Helena laughed, as if the request were cute. “Now, why would I do that? This mini-reunion is only beginning.”Maya took a deliberate

The Moretti estate had been put in lockdown. Every entrance locked down, every hallway locked down, every person on edge. Helena’s flight changed the game, and now they were on a clock.With her hands on the table in front of her, Maya loomed in the center of the war room, leaning down to study the map laid out before her. Red markers identified Helena’s last-known whereabouts, but there was no discernible pattern, no obvious trail. She seemed to have just disappeared into thin air.Zane stood next to her, his argent eyes sharp, his countenance impenetrable. Victor and Elara known themselves via walls opposite, and Alex checked the security feeds on his tablet.It was a tense atmosphere in the room. There was a long moment of silence.Then slowly exhaled Victor. “We’re running out of time.”Zane exhaled sharply. “We don’t have the luxury of tracking her movements one by one. We need to think like her. What’s her next move?”Maya clenched her jaw. “She won’t go into hiding. That’s not

Maya sat in the darkened study of the Moretti estate, her gaze fixed on the untouched glass of whiskey before her. She felt the silence in the room was as if someone was pressing against her body, a second layer of clothing she couldn’t get rid of. She should have felt relief. Helena, it had all been captured and the war should have ended, but the pressure in her chest said different. Charles was dead. After everything, all the betrayals, all the years of pain, he was gone and she didn’t know how she should feel.Zane stood by the fireplace, facing away from her, hands on the mantel. He hadn’t said much since their return. His usual intensity was still present, but somehow different, quieter, muted, as if he were waiting for the next fight to permit himself to exhale. Finally he turned, his silver eyes catching hers. “You haven’t fucking said anything since we got back,” he said, his voice low, measured.Maya exhaled slowly, running her fingers along the edge of the glass. “What’s the

Gunfire went off, the sound deafening in the cathedral as Zane stepped from the shadows, gun raised, his silver eyes fiery and bright with fury. Victor and Elara stood by his sides, weapons drew as the madness erupted.Maya had little time to spare. Helena had staggered back, holding her shoulder where the bullet had nicked her, her shock—initially—turning into sheer rage. The guards moved to retaliate, but Victor and Elara were quicker, eliminating them with ruthless efficiency.Maya did not waste a moment more. She lunged toward her dad, falling to her knees next to him. His face was white, his breathing shallow, his hands grasping the wound that riddled his stomach. He pressed his palm firmly on the cut, blood oozing between his fingers to stain the cracked stone floor.“Dad,” she whispered, placing her hands over his to staunch the bleeding. His blue eyes popped open, hazy with pain.“Maya …” His voice sounded weak, more a whisper than a cry.“Don’t go,” she begged, panic gripping

Maya sat at the edge of the bed, fingers curled around the edge of her coat as the tick of the clock moved with agonizing slowness. Midnight was approaching. The old cathedral. The meeting with Helena.This was more than a simple face-off.This was the confrontation.The one that would bring it all to an end.And still — through all of this, through the weight of every decision she had made to bring her to this moment — Maya felt nothing. No fear. No hesitation. Just an eerie quiet, a calm settling inside her bones.Zane stood with his arms crossed behind her, watching. He hadn’t spoken in the past few minutes, but she could sense his frustration, his fury seething just below the surface.At last he said, in a voice low and pointed. “You don’t have to do this.”Maya faced him, his silver eyes unwavering in his gaze. “Yes, I do.”Zane clenched his jaw. “This is some heroic sacrifice you feel is noble? That being bait is the path to growth? Smarter? Because it doesn’t. It makes you reck

JACE'S POVIt's 2am and I'm in my lead engineer's office, the only sound permeating the air is a soft hum of computers.I've been pacing over the past few hours that I had been there because that was the only thing that I could do. I didn't want to do the system check by myself and had my lead engineer do it. There had to have been an issue because why would the screen at the event hall just show “We are coming”Before it happened, I had been talking to Ethan and he had continued his advice on how I should have approached Darius more aggressively, than giving him time to think. That was when I heard the commotion - guests suddenly whispering and talking loudly. It wasn't even hard to figure out what the problem had been because immediately I turned around, right on the screen, I could see, in very bright and weird colour combinations the words “We are coming.”I would have remembered if I had approved this as part of the slideshow.My eyes moved through the crowd and found my lead e

ARIA'S POVI had gotten back from work early when Caila told me about the program that Jace company had built and how it was going to be launched that day. She told me it was the program she told me about and that she wanted me to be there. But I didn't want to go. Apart from the stress I was feeling, that had a huge influence in increasing my reluctance, there was also the part that I wasn't Jace's wife in the eyes of the public so there wasn't any formal reason for me to go for the event.But me and Caila were now on the same page and I didn't want it to seem like we were still fighting so after several hours after they had left, I had changed my mind. I had to go. After preparing myself and was about leaving, Edward had stepped into the house. “Ma'am, you're home,” he bowed.“It's Aria, not ma'am. I'm not your Boss. I'm not Jace so loose the 'Ma'am'. Is it over?” I asked, surprised to see him back home without Jace and Caila. They were lots of reason that could make them stay outs

CAILA'S POVMy heart pounded loudly in my chest and my pulse hammered away in my ears as I stared at him. The look on his face was very disturbing and I didn't know how to react. I had seen him leave and had forgotten about him to take any precautionary measures. I couldn't think of how to get away and I couldn't even kick straight. This particular restroom was one of the private ones and people rarely came by here and it was too far from the loud event hall and the possibility of anyone hearing me shout was very low. “I told you. I said you'd regret what you did but you thought I was bluffing?” he laughed. “I never bluff, Caila.”“Look, you don't have to hurt me,” I begged. That was the only way I believed I could deescalate the situation. “I know what we did… I'm sorry… I...”“That's it! That is it, Caila! I don't have to do anything but I want to. I want to hurt you so bad for what you did to me. I want you to regret it and even when you do. I would hurt you more and then leave y

CAILA'S POVParis wasn't as great as I thought it was going to be. The first night was great, Jace had taken me to a very nice restaurant. I had ordered for a meal and Jason told them not to bring that and he sent for the chef. When the chef arrived, Jace began sputtering for several minutes in french, words that I couldn't even pronounce and when he was done, the chef gave him a huge smile and walked excitedly to the kitchen.Chef smiling? Wow. I never trusted a smiling chef. When I asked Jace about what he had ordered, he just smiled and told me it wasn't on the menu. After talking for several minutes our order was ready. But when the chef was done several minutes later, he served it himself. An array of several dishes arrived later, several plates that looked nothing like anything I had ever had before.I had been reluctant to taste them at first but when I did, there tasted like heaven on my tongue. The chef couldn't stop smiling when I told him I liked it. But that was where

JACE'S POVI have always prided in my ability to be smart, focused and fast. I didn't waste time because I knew that was one important resource I could have in my hands. That was why when Caila handed over the flash drive to me, I sent it to my engineers and developers and even employed new ones and we had everything we needed. That was a week ago. Right now, I was standing on the podium of Sharpe Tech's event hall. My eyes surveyed the crowd as they waited for my speech. Even though speeches wasn't my thing and getting things done was what I did. I could still see the anticipation on their faces. “Today, we celebrate a huge milestone for Sharpe Tech,” I began, my voice booming through the speakers as they listened. “Our new AI driven quantum computing program is unlike anything you have ever seen. In just a few days of using it, we've seen a 300% boost in efficiency, 25% cost reduction and an 80% increase in revenue.” The room erupted into applause as I smiled down at them. “This

CAILA'S POVI laid in my bed thinking about how easily I had just gotten a trip to Paris and yes, I should have felt bad about how I had just handed the Darius project to Jace. When Jace first introduced me to Darius, I knew something was up, I just didn't know exactly what was up. Then when Darius had gone mad with excitement while explaining some AI driven related concepts, I knew that Jace wasn't introducing me to him for no reason. Jace didn't seem like the type to do things without reason and I had just confirmed it.When we had gotten back from the first dinner we had with Darius, Jace was so happy about what I had done that he fulfilled my dirty wishes because I was his little good girl. Then he had explained everything to me. How he planned to take over the project from Darius company - Dynamo Tech.At that point, I felt bad for Darius. Then I had gone to Darius' company to get as much information about the project as possible.10AM THAT SAME DAYI stood outside in front of