The Day Before the SATs: A Reckoning

My name is Sarah Miller, and I gave up everything for the man I loved. When a scandal threatened my fiancé Ethan Vance's political ambitions, I sacrificed my family's ancestral land and treasured heirloom locket to the ruthless Arthur Sterling, clearing Ethan's massive debt. I then endured brutal months in Sterling's notorious sweatshop, working until my body broke, leaving me with a permanent limp and a jagged scar. But the day Ethan won his election, the news crushed me: he was engaged to Tori Sterling, Arthur Sterling's cruel daughter. I limped to his victory celebration, desperate for his promised future, only for him to look me dead in the eyes and publicly declare, "I don't know you." Tori sneered, branding me a "delusional ex," and amid their mocking laughter, Ethan had Sterling's enforcers banish me from town. How could the man I crippled myself for betray me so utterly, abandoning me for the very family who orchestrated my ruin? Cast out, every sacrifice seemingly for nothing, a searing injustice ignited a desperate fire within me. Limping away from everything I knew, I set my sights on whispered legends of a hidden community, The Hollow. I would seek refuge there, not to hide, but to forge a new destiny and, one day, demand the fierce justice I deserved.

Sarah Miller, a brilliant software engineer, poured her genius and every last penny into rebuilding her disgraced tech mogul boyfriend, Ethan Knight. She sacrificed everything, even her own health enduring a miscarriage, to help him rise from the ashes and build a billion-dollar empire. But success revealed Ethan's true monstrous nature. He brought his heavily pregnant ex-girlfriend, Jessica, home, ordering Sarah to serve her. With his venomous mother, Eleanor, they turned Sarah' s life into a nightmare of relentless humiliation. The ultimate public degradation came at a charity gala when Ethan, in front of their wealthy peers, ordered Sarah to kneel and polish Jessica' s shoes with a cocktail napkin. Days later, Sarah discovered she was pregnant with Ethan's child, a secret flicker of hope. But his cruelty knew no bounds; after physically assaulting her, he locked her in a freezing garage on a bitter winter' s night. When she desperately revealed her pregnancy, he sneered, dismissing it as "manipulation." Abandoned and freezing, a chilling clarity settled over Sarah. The man she loved was gone, replaced by a monster more concerned with another woman's "important" pregnancy. In that dark, cold garage, she made the most agonizing, yet utterly resolute, decision of her life. When Jessica's lies finally unraveled, and a desperate Ethan, clutching Sarah's positive pregnancy test, begged for reconciliation, Sarah calmly shattered his world. "The baby is gone, Ethan," she whispered, "I had an abortion this morning. There is no 'us'." With that, she walked away, leaving him utterly ruined, her own path to healing finally begun.

For five years, I lived as Sarah Miller, the unassuming wife of a rising tech executive. I meticulously hid my true identity as Sarah Sterling, heiress to a vast fortune, believing my quiet support was building my husband Ethan's dreams. But that carefully constructed facade shattered at a school fair. Instead of Ethan, engrossed in a "critical product demo," I found him openly laughing with his colleague, Chloe, her son perched on his shoulders, a perfect family portrait. The text "Saw you. Don't make a scene" burned my eyes as he publicly humiliated me, even tripping me. Later, when our innocent daughter Lily approached him, he coldly asked, "Whose kid is this?" The humiliation deepened when Chloe, smirking, implied Ethan was hers, and he prioritized her son over Lily. I soon discovered his "hard-earned" success was funding Chloe's lavish lifestyle, not ours. Days later, as Lily fought a severe asthma attack, Ethan, ignoring her labored breathing and hearing Chloe's laugh, dismissed my desperate plea for help as "dramatic." My world, a carefully constructed illusion, crumbled, replaced by a cold, burning rage. Years of "late nights" and "urgent work trips" weren' t ambition; they were a double life, built entirely on my blind trust and, ironically, my family' s secret funds. This wasn't just an affair; it was an elaborate deception, a meticulously orchestrated project of my own foolishness. The custom-made dollhouse I' d ordered for Lily' s birthday, now casually claimed by Ethan for Chloe's son, was the ultimate betrayal. But the Sterling heiress, buried for five years, was about to resurface. The quiet, unassuming Sarah Miller died that day. Now, as Sarah Sterling, I would reclaim my power, dismantle my husband's fraudulent empire, and show him the true cost of his betrayal.

For my entire life, I lived in my brother Jack's shadow. He was the charming, reckless musician; I was Emily, the quiet, responsible daughter, always overlooked. As my mother, Susan Carter, lay dictating her will, I braced myself. The old lawyer read it aloud: "To my son, Jack, the house and all my savings." A predictable inheritance for the favored son. But for me: "To my daughter, Emily, I leave my collection of old family recipe books, and the contents of the cedar chest in the attic." Recipe books. An old chest. Worthless junk. It was the ultimate dismissal. While Jack got new bikes, I patched my holed shoes. While Mom funded his music dreams, I worked two jobs for my teaching degree. My A' s uncelebrated; his D-grade parties. Even in death, I was utterly alone, replaced by his triumphant smirk. How could she? After everything I'd done for her – doctor appointments, meals. This wasn't just neglect; this was personal. A deliberate statement: "You are not valued. You are not loved. Not like he is." My heart pounded with agonizing injustice. Could there be anything more? Anything at all? Mark, my husband, eyed my "worthless" inheritance. "What if your mom didn' t know?" he suggested. "Or what if… she left them for a reason, Emily? You love history. You' re the teacher." The bitterness remained, but a defiant spark ignited. What if this seemingly worthless inheritance held a secret, a different kind of legacy?

My mother was dying, and the transplant was her only hope, but it was "very expensive." I swore I'd find the money, somehow. But then, my fiancé broke off our engagement, choosing Sophia Bellweather instead. Desperate, I accepted my childhood friend Ethan Miller's shocking proposal: he'd cover all medical costs if I married him. He became my savior. My mother still died shortly after the surgery, her body rejecting the organ. Five years into our stable, quiet marriage, I overheard Ethan and his friend talking. "That organ was meant for Sarah Williams. You diverted it, Ethan. You played God." My world stopped. He admitted my mother's organ had been rerouted to save Sophia Bellweather' s mother. And our marriage? "A penance," he confessed, "to give Ava a good life, to protect her. And… it kept things quiet." The man I married, my supposed savior, had orchestrated my mother's death out of obsession for another woman. My entire life, my grief, my five-year marriage-a meticulously crafted lie. My heart hammered, a cold fury rising. I was a fool, walking blindly into a monstrous deception. He destroyed everything. Now, everything will be destroyed, starting with finding the truth.

My life was perfect, or so I thought. Married for five blissful years to Ethan, the powerful CEO who publicly adored me, making me feel like his most cherished person, his greatest weakness. I believed him; I loved him with a fierce passion, a love I sincerely thought he returned. Then, one evening, I overheard his voice-low, serious-uttering words that shattered my entire world: "If I don't make Sarah the obvious target, how can Olivia continue her work in those conflict zones without becoming a pawn?" Olivia. His childhood sweetheart. Suddenly, all the "accidents"-the car bombings, the kidnappings, the trauma-fell into place; I was merely a decoy, a pawn in his twisted game to shield her. But the true horror unfurled when I painstakingly bypassed his "impenetrable" security and hacked into his private digital journal. Page after page, it boasted of his profound, yearning love for Olivia, followed by chilling entries about me: "Found the perfect candidate today. Sarah Jenkins. Intelligent, beautiful, but with a vulnerability I can exploit. She'll be a convincing decoy." He' d orchestrated my terror; he' d cultivated my dependence. The ultimate betrayal? "Sarah miscarried," he wrote. "A pity, in a way. But perhaps for the best. A child would complicate things with Olivia." His chilling indifference to our lost child, to my deepest grief, tore me apart. My love for him curdled into a cold, hard resolve, realizing I wasn't just a pawn, but a recipient of painful hand-me-downs, my deepest sufferings cruelly manipulated for his cruel agenda. How could the man I loved be such a monster? Yet, the shock quickly gave way to a steely determination. Ethan thought I was his unsuspecting wife, his perfect decoy. He didn't know the cybersecurity analyst I' d been, the skills I still possessed. I would play the loving wife, enduring his touch, while meticulously plotting my escape and, ultimately, his downfall.

"I knew he was trouble the moment I walked into our shared house. The way his hands gripped my waist when no one was looking, the way his voice dipped when he said my name, it wasn't just wrong, it was dangerous. He wasn't just my stepbrother, he was my undoing." **** All Evie Hayes wanted was to finish her college degree in peace, far from the chaos of her past. But when she moves into her stepfather's house near Ravencrest University, she finds herself stuck with Ryder Kingsley, her stepbrother and the school's golden boy. Ryder is everything she's sworn to avoid, arrogant, infuriatingly handsome, and completely off-limits. When late-night arguments turn into stolen touches, their forbidden connection becomes impossible to ignore. But in a world where secrets don't stay hidden, someone's bound to uncover the truth. And when they do, Ryder and Evie will have to decide if the risk is worth the ruin.

Doing a part-time job in a speakeasy bar, Wendy got drunk unexpectedly. When she woke up, she found that she was regarded as a call girl and lost her virginity. After having a one-night stand with Charlie, an incredibly handsome man, Wendy threw out two hundred dollars to defend her own dignity. However, Wendy's arrogant actions annoyed Charlie, who grabbed Wendy back to bed repeatedly for revenge. "What do you want?" Wendy was annoyed. "Be responsible for what I did to you." Charlie smiled. "But how?" Wendy continued. "By keeping sleeping with you."

"Never let anyone treat you like shit!" I learned that the hard way. For three years, I lived with my in-laws. They didn't treat me as their son-in-law but as a slave. I put up with everything because of my wife, Yolanda Lambert. She was the light of my life. Unfortunately, my whole world came crashing down the day I caught my wife cheating on me. I have never been so heartbroken. To have my revenge, I revealed my true identity. I was none other than Liam Hoffman-the heir of a family with trillions of dollars in assets! The Lamberts were utterly shocked after the big reveal. They realized what fools they had been for treating me like trash. My wife even knelt down and begged for my forgiveness. What do you think I did? Did I take her back or made her suffer? Find out!

Miley's life fell apart on the night of her 19th Birthday. The celebration was tainted by the business of betrayal. At the party, Miley's drink was spiked, and when she felt ill, she staggered out of the room, only to stumble upon a conspiracy between her boyfriend and her sister. She had always known that her sister didn't love her. but what she hadn't expected was that her boyfriend, whom she had always trusted, was also in cahoots with her. Realization stung sharper than the cold air outside as she discovered their cruel intentions to humiliate her. Overwhelmed and betrayed, she found refuge in an unfamiliar room. But fate, it seemed, had a cocktail of sorrows lined up for her. In the room she sought refuge in was Logan Pierce. This man, a dominant and arrogant person, and her boyfriend's uncle were known to be a living nightmare for those who would cross his path. Under the influence of drugs, they slipped into a night, and he took her for the first time in ways she wished she could forget. Waking up to a world where accusations were hurled at her from all corners, her family turned their backs on her. Placating Logan seemed to have ranked higher than standing up for Miley, their own blood. Disowned and discarded, Miley found herself abandoned on the relentless, heartless streets. Years later, she had blossomed into the U.S. manager of Hales company. During a business meeting, she stumbled upon Logan once again. But the passing years had erased Miley's face from Logan's memory, arousing within him a curiosity and fascination for this elusive lady director. unable to recall the tragic past, Logan felt unwarranted anger towards Miley as he continuously evaded her- thus beginning their forbidden dance of desire yet again.

Sera Vale was sold like a slave. Dragged from her home in chains. Stripped of everything and handed to the most feared Alpha who is also a Mafia, as payment for a debt she didn't owe. Lucien Virelli doesn't believe in mercy. He rules with bullets. Breathes violence. Fucks like a beast. And when Sera is thrown at his feet, he doesn't see a girl. He sees prey. A mystery. Something that should not exist. She was told her entire life she was nothing. No wolf. No power. No purpose. Just a broken girl with a cursed bloodline and a dead mother who took the truth to the grave. But Lucien sees it. Smells it. Wants it. He doesn't want to protect her. He wants to tame her. Mark her. Breed her. Make her scream until her wolf rips out of her body and begs him to take it. What he wants from her isn't gentle. It isn't safe. And it sure as hell isn't human. He touches her like he owns her. Looks at her like he's already inside her. And when she finally begs. He makes her earn it. Now she's trapped in a world she doesn't understand. Craving a monster she should fear and drowning in a heat she swore she'd never feel. This isn't just a love story. It's a dark craving that takes over your body and doesn't let go.

On her wedding day, Khloe’s sister connived with her groom, framing her for a crime she didn’t commit. She was sentenced to three years in prison, where she endured much suffering. When Khloe was finally released, her evil sister used their mother to coerce Khloe into an indecent liaison with an elderly man. As fate would have it, Khloe crossed paths with Henrik, the dashing yet ruthless mobster who sought to alter the course of her life. Despite Henrik’s cold exterior, he cherished Khloe like no other. He helped her take retribution from her tormentors and kept her from being bullied again.