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I was sleeping drowsily, In a daze, I heard a series of knocking sounds, Knock, knock, knock! I glanced at my phone, It was twelve o'clock. Who could be knocking at this hour?
I was sleeping drowsily, In a daze, I heard a series of knocking sounds, Knock, knock, knock! I glanced at my phone, It was twelve o'clock. Who could be knocking at this hour?
Chapter 1
Introduction:
I was in a deep, groggy sleep when I heard a series of knocks at the door. Knock, knock, knock! I glanced at my phone. It was midnight. Who could be knocking at this hour?
(1)
I had just moved into a new house. The landlord was a sleazy middle-aged man. Grinning with a mouthful of yellow teeth, he said to me, "You're a young girl, and so pretty too. I'll rent it to you for a cheaper price!" His words were hard to ignore, but the rent was affordable, and given my current situation, I couldn't afford anything more expensive. So, I put up with it.
After finally unpacking, I sat on a chair and surveyed the room. Suddenly, I noticed a spot on the wall that was a different color from the rest. There was a grayish smudge on it. I sat up and stared at the smudge. Slowly, it began to bulge. Before long, a woman's face emerged from the wall. I couldn't see her features clearly, but I knew she wanted to break through the wall. Instantly, I felt a chill run down my spine. I tried to get off the bed but found myself unable to move. She seemed to notice me and struggled, opening her mouth towards me. I mustered all my strength. Move! If I didn't move, I would die!
With a sudden jolt, I sat up in bed. Finally, I could move! Covered in sweat, I glanced at my phone. It was already 11:50 PM. I must have fallen asleep at some point and had a nightmare. Looking at the wall again, it was smooth and showed no signs of any difference. I breathed a sigh of relief.
I went to the bathroom to freshen up. The bathroom was my favorite part of the house, especially the large, bright mirror. Everything was brand new. After getting ready, I finally felt at ease and went to bed. I pushed down the fear from the earlier dream and snuggled under the covers. Just as I was about to fall asleep, I suddenly heard someone knocking on the door. Knock, knock, knock! Knock, knock, knock!
(2)
I woke up immediately and sat up in bed. Holding my breath, I stared towards the door, even though the room was pitch dark. The knocking continued. Who could it be? Who would knock at such a late hour? I got out of bed, deliberately not putting on shoes to keep my movements quiet. For some reason, I didn't want anyone to know I was home. No matter what, I had decided not to open the door, no matter who it was.
I tiptoed to the peephole and looked outside. It was completely dark. Maybe the motion-activated light hadn't turned on. The knocking continued. I still couldn't see anything. Suddenly, I realized something was wrong. The knocking should have triggered the motion-activated light. It had worked fine earlier in the afternoon. So, it wasn't that the light hadn't turned on; someone was blocking my peephole. What I saw were the eyes of the person knocking!
I quickly covered my mouth to stifle a scream. Hiding behind the door, a chill ran from my feet up to my scalp, and goosebumps covered my skin. Who was it? What did they want? Summoning my courage, I looked outside again. This time, the hallway was empty. There was nothing there. Filled with questions and fear, I returned to bed. But I couldn't sleep for the rest of the night. I hid under the covers, browsing on my phone.
"Help: What to do if someone knocks on your door in the middle of the night?" I quickly received comments from other users. "Check if it's a ghost looking for you." "Did someone die in the house you rented?" Though the comments were nonsense, they still stirred something in me. The apartments in this complex were old and looked quite run-down from the outside. But the interior of my unit was recently renovated. What seemed like a pleasant surprise when I rented it now felt suspicious. And that dream-no matter how tired I was, I shouldn't have fallen asleep so deeply without any awareness and had such a bizarre nightmare.
Everything was too abnormal. Everything around me was sending a message. There was something wrong with this house.
Dayna had worshiped her husband, only to watch him strip her late mother's estate and lavish devotion on another woman. After three miserable years, he discarded her, and she lay broken-until Kristopher, the man she once betrayed, dragged her from the wreckage. He now sat in a wheelchair, eyes like tempered steel. She offered a pact: she would mend his legs if he helped crush her ex. He scoffed, yet signed on. As their ruthless alliance caught fire, he uncovered her other lives-healer, hacker, pianist-and her numb heart stirred. But her groveling ex crawled back. "Dayna, you were my wife! How could you marry someone else? Come back!"
The day my husband, a Mafia Underboss, told me I was genetically unfit to carry his heir, he brought home my replacement—a surrogate with my eyes and a working womb. He called her a "vessel" but paraded her as his mistress, abandoning me while I bled on the floor at a party to protect her and planning their secret future in the villa he once promised me. But in our world, wives don't just walk away—they disappear, and I decided to orchestrate my own vanishing act, leaving him to the ruin he so carefully built for himself.
Rejected by her mate, who had been her long-time crush, Jasmine felt utterly humiliated. Seeking solace, she headed to a party to drown her sorrows. But things took a turn for the worse when her friends issued a cruel dare: kiss a stranger or beg her mate for forgiveness. With no other choice, Jasmine approached a stranger and kissed him, thinking that would be the end of it. However, the stranger unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her waist and whispered in her ear, "You're mine!" He growled, his words sending shivers down her spine. And then, he offered her a solution that would change everything...
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?
For three years, Cathryn and her husband Liam lived in a sexless marriage. She believed Liam buried himself in work for their future. But on the day her mother died, she learned the truth: he had been cheating with her stepsister since their wedding night. She dropped every hope and filed for divorce. Sneers followed-she'd crawl back, they said. Instead, they saw Liam on his knees in the rain. When a reporter asked about a reunion, she shrugged. "He has no self-respect, just clings to people who don't love him." A powerful tycoon wrapped an arm around her. "Anyone coveting my wife answers to me."
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