Last Mile David Baldacci

Sinisikap ni Matt na mamuhay ng malayo at tahimik, Sinikap niyang hindi maging mundo ang mundo ng totoo niyang pagkatao. Sinikap nilang kahit sa kanyang sariling paraan ay hindi matulad sa mga taong kinasusuklaman pero isang babaeng ang nakatakda ng tadhana na siyang babago sa kanyang pananaw ay mamahalin ng kanyang puso at buong pagkatao. Ngunit ang babaeng iyon din ang lilipol ng kanyang uri at tatapos ng kanyang huling hininga. Tama nga bang mahalin pa nila ito?

When I was born, I was already a certified liar. That's a fact that everyone seems to agree with. The truth is, my mom, who's a scientist, has implanted advanced chips into me and my fraternal twin brother, Ryan Hartwell, when we were still babies. By right, as long as we lie or make mistakes, our mom will receive the devil signal from the chips. Then, she'll administer electrical shocks as a form of punishment. Ryan's chip often transmits the smiley signal. Even if he destroys our mom's research equipment and pins the blame on me, his chip still has the smiley branded on it. Meanwhile, when I reach home ten minutes later than usual because I had to help out a classmate, my chip transmits the scary devil signal. The next thing I know, I've already crippled to the floor from the intense pain caused by the electrical shock. At first, I'll still explain to Mom what happened. But she often exclaims, "Don't think you can pull off clever little tricks just like that gambling father of yours! The chip is ten thousands times smarter than you! The punishments will only be branded into your bones if the pain is searing enough! What I'm doing is saving your life!" After suffering from the pain countless times, I get brainwashed into thinking that I really am a liar and a troublemaker by nature. On the night of Christmas Eve, Mom comes to the attic to tell Ryan to join the family at the table for the Christmas dinner. That's when my asthma suddenly acts up, causing me to stumble and fall to the floor. "I… I can't breathe… Save me, Mom…" But Mom just coldly gazes at the devil signal that she has just received on her phone. Then, she dials the shock value to the maximum. "You don't have asthma at all! Ugh, you're kicking up another fuss just to attract attention! Seriously, you never change your ways!" After that, she takes Ryan's hand and leads him out of the attic. Soon, she slams the door heavily behind her. As I suffer from asphyxiation while on my deathbed, I can't help but think that Mom is right. After all, my chip has just transmitted the devil signal. Maybe the asthma attack really is just a figment of my imagination. I've always been a bad girl who loves lying to others, after all. When Mom finds out that this is the last time I've ever lied to her, she must be really happy, right?

Luo McCarner was dying when suddenly a woman who looked like her asked,'' Do you wish to go to the past before you made the decisions that led you to this unenviable state or die like a pathetic heroine in a play?'' Luo decided to take the chance to fix her tragic fate, which almost caused her death. But little did she know how deeply wounded her soul was and that she needed time to relearn how to be herself again. Unfortunately, the journey for self-discovery and self-repairing wouldn't be smooth. Her enemy was determined to bring her down and end her life for good. Some chapters contain violence.

Before Grandpa passed, he left behind two things: a billion-dollar fortune and three matches. He said, "Each of you gets to pick one. Renee, you're the oldest, so you go first." I did not hesitate for even a second and chose the fortune. That left my adopted sister, Vera Gallagher, with nothing but three matches. What none of us could have known was that those three matches were no ordinary matches. Each one, when lit, could make any wish come true. Vera resented our parents for favoring me, so she immediately cursed them a terrible death. Sure enough, Dad suddenly suffered a heart attack and died on the spot, and Mom was hit by a speeding semi-truck on her way to the hospital. I grabbed a kitchen knife and went straight to Vera to settle the score. I growled, "Didn't I tell you that once you turned 18, I would split Grandpa's inheritance with you? Our parents opened their home to you and gave you everything I had growing up. All these years, you ate the same food and wore the same clothes as I did. How could you betray them?!" Vera's face was filled with greed. "Since they chose to adopt me, they should have thrown you away and given me all the good things instead! I don't want your handouts. Once you're all dead, the money will be mine anyway!" With that, Vera sneered and lit the second match. "I wish Renee would be trafficked to some remote backwoods town, forced to carry and deliver eight babies at once, and die from complications!" I was horrified. I emptied my savings and hired over 1000 bodyguards to protect me day and night, making sure there was not a single weak spot. However, one night, every single bodyguard suddenly passed out at the same time, and I was kidnapped and sold deep into the mountains. I was tortured, abused, and forced to endure things no person should ever have to survive. I did not know how much time had passed before I finally swallowed my last breath in agony and humiliation. When I opened my eyes again, I had been reborn on the very day the inheritance was divided.

What would you do if you were the only one of your kind left in the world? Would you hide at home and blend in with humans? Becca is determined to find other survivors like her, even though she knows that werewolves have been wiped out. After years of searching, she finally finds Jason, who is thrilled to meet another werewolf but thinks the idea of finding others or his mate is laughable. However, Becca convinces him to go on a journey with her, and they soon face unexpected challenges. Will they be able to find a pack and a peaceful home? Will the two strangers become friends, or their attraction is too strong to deny? And what if they find their mates at the end of their journey?

Long time ago, a war broke out, a prophecy has been told, an heir with a strong power that can end the whole world was born. During the war the queen decided to send the princess to the mortal world for her safety. After the war, the kingdom was destroyed, many immortals were killed. No one survived in the royal family they all died during the war, only one is left the princess Aliyah Savannah is the only one can save her people from the enemy who ruined their peace and happiness. Will Aliyah accept her fate or will she return to the life grew up with her adopted parents? Let's find out what will happen.

My twin sister died in my arms with his name on her lips. Five years later, I wear red lipstick and heels to seduce the man who murdered her. ~ Five years ago, Anastasia’s world ended in gunfire and ash. Her entire family was slaughtered on her eighteenth birthday, by the man her twin sister loved. Left for dead, Anastasia was saved by a stranger. Broken, enraged, and alone, she was taken in by a woman who taught her how to disappear… and how to kill. Now, she’s Skye, trained to seduce, infiltrate, and destroy. Her mission is simple: get close to Nikolaus Volkov, close enough to break him. But killing him isn’t enough. She wants to make him suffer, to crave her, to need her. And when he’s completely at her mercy… she’ll rip him apart the way he tore her world to pieces. A kiss meant to disarm ignites something deadly, Desire. Obsession. Confusion. Nikolaus is not the cold-blooded monster she expected. He’s worse. And yet, with every stolen glance and kiss, Skye begins to slip. Revenge was the plan. Desire was never part of it. Now, she’s playing a game she might not win. Under Her Skirt: The Last Kiss is a dark, twisted mafia romance of seduction, revenge, and ruin, where every kiss could be a betrayal… and every heartbeat could be your last.

This is the ninth year Dante and I have honored the Month of No Masters. The Corinni family's heir apparent believes this will make our relationship last longer. For one month after our dating anniversary each year, he is free, and we stay out of each other's lives. If either of us finds someone more suitable, we are to wish them well. If not, we go back to the way things were after a month. Around me, the men of the family are spraying champagne with abandon. "To another year of freedom! Congratulations to our Underboss on reclaiming his bachelor status!" "The family betting pool is open! Place your bets on the left if you think they'll still get married, and on the right if you think it's over for good!" Through the hazy cigar smoke, I sat on the corner of a leather sofa, a cold observer, as if this whole farce had nothing to do with me. Dante's hand was curled around Scarlett's waist as he brushed past me, whispering, "Don't get any ideas. You'll always be my only Donna." "I'm a kite. No matter how far I fly, the string is always in your hand." I pressed my cold fingers against the gentle swell of my belly, my expression a blank mask. Dante, this time at the family's betting table, I'm putting my money on "the end." I'm going to vanish from your world completely. That kite string you're so proud of? Tonight, I'm cutting it myself.

My family is on the brink of bankruptcy, and I beg my fiancé to help us with emergency funding. He turns me down cold, then gets engaged to Nellie White without hesitation. Just when I'm out of options, my childhood friend shows up with an investment contract and a marriage proposal. I say yes without thinking twice. But even with his help, our company can't escape ruin. My father, unable to bear the blow, suffers a heart attack and dies. At the funeral, overwhelmed by grief, I faint. In my haze, I overhear a conversation between my childhood friend and his friend. "You've already crushed Talitha’s family. When are you going to take her uterus for Nellie?" "On the wedding day," he replies casually. "I'll stage an accident, then operate on her myself. Her uterus will be Nell's. I can't give Nell happiness in this life, so I'll give her a wedding gift. I hope it makes her happy." Turns out his so-called devotion was just so he could take my womb. Even his proposal to me was just a way to remove all obstacles for the woman he loved.

Zara Night is tired of being the academy's biggest failure. As the only werewolf who can't shift, she's stuck cleaning classrooms while elite students like Kai Storm train for a war she doesn't understand. But when students start disappearing and Zara begins having impossible dreams of flying through space and devouring entire packs, she realizes her biggest weakness might be her greatest weapon. Kai Storm has one mission: earn the werewolves' trust, then lead them to slaughter. But falling for the academy's "broken" omega wasn't part of the plan. As his alien programming fights his growing humanity, Kai must choose between his creators and the girl who's about to become the most powerful being in the universe. When Zara discovers that Earth's werewolves are being bred as soldiers for an alien empire, and that everyone she trusts has been lying to her, she'll have to embrace the monster inside her to save not just her world, but reality itself. Some secrets are worth killing for. Others are worth dying for. But some secrets can end everything.