Foto Karma Akabane

Mein Freund Tom versprach mir, an meinem 20. Geburtstag eine prächtige Paarungszeremonie für mich auszurichten. Doch auf meiner Geburtstagsfeier machte Tom stattdessen Lily, meiner Stiefschwester, feierlich einen Antrag zur Gefährtenbindung. Während alle jubelten und gratulierten, stand ich da wie eine Närrin. Allein gelassen, voller Verzweiflung. Der Schmerz der Zurückweisung überwältigte mich. Da trat Sam vor, der Alpha-Erbe des Obsidian-Stammes, und verkündete allen, er habe sich schon lange in mich verguckt und wolle mich als Gefährtin erwählen. Ob ich einwillige? Ich willigte ein. Fünf Jahre lang verwöhnte er mich, behandelte mich zärtlich und prägte sich jede meiner Vorlieben ein. Doch dann hörte ich zufällig ein Gespräch zwischen ihm und seinem Beta. Mein Glückstraum zerbrach. „Sam, Lily ist jetzt die Luna des Weißrosen-Rudels, genau wie sie es wollte. Willst du diese Scharade mit Any wirklich fortsetzen?“ „Da ich Lily nicht haben kann, ist es mir egal, wer an meiner Seite ist. Zudem verhindere ich so, dass Any Lilys Glück zerstören kann.“ In Sams Tresor im Arbeitszimmer hütete er alle Geschenke von Lily wie Kostbarkeiten: handgefertigte Wolfszahn-Anhänger, Briefpapier mit ihrem Pfotenabdruck. Sogar auf seiner wertvollen Goldschuppen-Rüstung war jede Schuppe mit Lilys Namen graviert. „Lily, meine große Liebe. Meine Klauen werden für dich jeden Dorn zerreißen und dir das Glück erkämpfen, das du dir wünschst.“ „Wenn du mich brauchst, gebe ich dir gern mein schlagendes Wolfsherz aus meiner Brust!“ „Selbst wenn ich es rauben muss – ich hole dir alles, was du willst!“ Fünf Jahre Glück waren nur eine Illusion. Als ich die Wahrheit erfuhr, löste sich alles in Luft auf. Ich stellte den Antrag, das Rudel zu verlassen. In zwei Tagen würde ich aus Sams Welt verschwinden, für immer, ohne dass sich unsere Wege jemals wieder kreuzen würden.

Aku mati, tapi tidak mati total. Aku tidak tau bagaimana keadaanku sekarang, aku tidak perlu makan, ataupun tidur. Aku sadar, tapi tidak bisa menggerakkan tubuhku. Sekelilingku gelap gulita, tidak ada yang bisa kuajak bicara. Aku hampir gila! Aku tidak tau keadaan seperti ini berlangsung berapa lama. Ketika aku kira keadaan bakal terus begini, tiba-tiba terdengar suara ketukan.

Minha melhor amiga, Gabriela Nunes, que insiste no celibato, pegou o esperma que eu tinha escolhido para mim quando me acompanhava na clínica de fertilização. Naquele momento, eu soube que ela também tinha renascido. Na vida passada, eu quis ter um bebê de etnia mista, então fiz fertilização in vitro. Gabriela na época me ridicularizou por estar criando um filho de um estrangeiro, e disse que eu era uma idiota completa. Mal eu sabia que, meio mês depois, eu seria levada para a família real de Nabiro. Acontece que o esperma que eu tinha escolhido era de um príncipe de Nabiro, com oito origens étnicas. Ele não só queria me fazer sua princesa, como também prometeu que nosso filho herdaria o trono. Eu e o bebê fomos valorizados por toda a família real, e as joias no meu corpo quase me esmagavam. Em contraste, Gabriela ofendeu parceiros de trabalho por se autoproclamar uma feminista extrema, foi demitida da empresa e expulsa da indústria. No 100º dia do meu filho, ela usou todas as suas economias para comprar uma passagem de avião para me procurar. Mas, quando eu fui recebê-la, ela jogou meu filho no chão, matando-o, e jogou ácido sulfúrico concentrado em mim. — Por que você tem tanta sorte? Você não merece, sua vadia! Quando abri os olhos novamente, eu voltei ao dia em que Gabriela me acompanhou à clínica de fertilização...

Hari ketika aku memutuskan untuk mendonorkan tubuhku untuk kajian ilmiah, keluargaku justru berkumpul mengelilingi adik angkatku, Halida, merayakan diterimanya dia dalam sebuah program perawatan eksperimental paling canggih. Seharusnya akulah yang menderita kanker otak. Tapi Halida menggunakan posisi suamiku, Zafran, di rumah sakit untuk menukar catatan medisnya yang sehat dengan diagnosis terminalku, merebut satu-satunya kesempatan yang kupunya untuk bertahan hidup. Dan bagian terburuknya, semua orang bersorak mendukungnya. Rasanya sakit sekali. Aku berusaha tetap kuat, sampai tanpa sengaja mendengar para perawat berbisik, "Bagus sekali Dokter Zafran bisa mengamankan tempat itu untuk Halida. Mereka bilang dia hanya punya tiga hari lagi." Jadi, dalam 72 jam terakhir hidupku, aku perlahan melepaskan segalanya. Ketika aku memberikan naskah asli novel-novelku yang sudah kutuang seluruh hati dan jiwaku kepada Halida, ayah dan saudaraku menatapku dengan senyum puas. Ketika Zafran memutuskan untuk memenuhi permintaan terakhir Halida dengan menikahinya, dia menyerahkan surat cerai padaku. Aku menandatanganinya tanpa ragu sedikit pun. Dia menghela napas dan memuji aku karena akhirnya bisa berpikir begitu rasional. Dan ketika akulah yang membujuk putri kami, Olivia untuk memanggil Halida Ibu, Olivia justru berseri-seri mengatakan bahwa ibu barunya adalah yang terbaik. "Jangan khawatir." Zafran menenangkanku. "Kami hanya menjaganya untuk sementara. Setelah dia tiada, semuanya akan kembali padamu." Aku memberikan pada Halida segalanya yang kupunya, persis seperti yang mereka mau. Lalu kenapa, ketika mereka akhirnya tahu semua ini hanyalah kebohongan kejam Halida, mereka datang padaku sambil menangis, berkata akulah yang mereka inginkan sejak awal?

My mother-in-law got kidnapped, but my powerful husband, who ran both sides of the law, was too busy throwing a birthday bash for his old flame's dog. The kidnappers warned them they'd kill her if he didn't show up. I didn't beg him to act because, in my past life, I dragged him away from that party despite being eight months pregnant to save his mom. His old flame, who tagged along, got spotted by the kidnappers' lookout. They assaulted her and brutally killed her. Her body parts were left to be eaten by dogs. Furious, he gunned down the culprits and vanished for a month. When he returned, he never mentioned it. Then I gave birth to our son and was full of joy. But he threw me into the woods, weak and defenseless. Wild animals tore me apart, leaving nothing behind. "You were jealous of Alicia and had the kidnappers kill her?" he accused. "You don't deserve her happiness." When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day his mom got kidnapped.

In my previous life, my brother Elliot Quinn's close female friend, Ava Sutton, told him she wanted to camp on the mountaintop and watch the stars. Wanting privacy, he took all the bodyguards from home with him. Unexpectedly, the rival whom Elliot had once humiliated took the opportunity to break into the house seeking revenge. My pregnant sister-in-law fought to protect me with everything she had, while my three-year-old nephew got hurt badly trying to save me. I called Elliot over and over, begging him to come home. Knowing that the situation at home was urgent, he had no choice but to leave Ava Sutton behind and rush back. Elliot's rival was captured, but from the mountaintop came terrible news. Ava had vanished after sending her last message. "I know your sister and wife have been waiting for me to die. Well, they got what they wanted." Elliot coldly deleted the message and told me not to overthink it. Afterward, Dad punished him, and he lost control of the family business. But after the corporate gala, while I was in the backyard, Elliot killed me mercilessly. His face was cold and cruel as he said, "You're the one who made me come back. That's why Ava died. Go and make amends to her!" When I open my eyes again, the front gate of the villa echoes with the voice of Elliot's rival.

Three days after his first love Mandy's death, my husband locked me in a steel cage and sank me into the ocean. "You vicious woman," he spat. "Stay here and repent to Mandy!" He didn't know I carried his child. I thrust the pregnancy confirmation toward him, but he walked away without a backward glance. Yet when he later saw my corpse—bloated and decomposing in the seawater—he went insane.

My name is Lyra. For eighteen years, the Silvermane Pack was my home, but it was never my family. The night my only friend, Selene, chose to end her life—to Eclipse—was the night I decided to leave. She showed me that escape was possible, even if it meant walking away from everything I knew. The Alpha and Luna who raised me, and my so-called brothers, made it clear I didn't belong. Their love was always conditional, reserved for my "true-born" sister, Lillian, found just a year ago. On my forgotten birthday, I declared my own Eclipse. I am returning to my real family, the Blood-Claws. But leaving has a price. A primordial terror stirs in the darkness, threatening to devour everyone I leave behind. They think I'm running away. They have no idea what I'm really walking into, or what I must become to save them all.

After the cruise ship strikes a hidden reef, panicked passengers shove me and Kristen Langford into the sea. My boyfriend, Elijah Jensen, is the ship's captain, so he plunges into the water. But instead of saving me, he grabs Kristen and boards the last lifeboat. I thrash and cry for help, but he slaps my hand away. "You can swim. Stop pretending for attention!" Elijah snaps. "Kristen's body temperature is dropping. I have to get her to a hospital!" The waters around me are pitch-black, and his words feel like a death sentence. When the tracking bracelet I always wear is discovered inside a shark, Elijah dives alone into shark-infested waters, searching for three days and nights. In the end, the brilliant captain who once ruled the oceans can never sail again.

Aku iri pada ibu, dia cantik seperti sekuntum bunga, disukai oleh semua pria di desa. Dia hanya perlu berbaring di ranjang setiap hari tanpa perlu bekerja, hidup dengan nyaman dan terawat. Sementara aku yang lahir darinya, justru berkulit gelap dan kurus, harus bekerja tanpa henti mengurus ladang dan pekerjaan rumah. Anak-anak desa pun sering menggangguku. Mereka bilang aku pembawa sial dan kelak pasti akan dinikahkan dengan dewa gunung, lalu mati tragis di kuilnya. Sebelum hari pernikahan tiba, aku diam-diam menukar posisi dengan ibu.