tightening the grip

"Why would you marry me just for a kidney?" Elsa demanded, her voice trembling with betrayal. Liam, her husband, met her gaze with cold indifference. "You were the perfect donor," he replied, his words slicing through her hope. Elsa's world shattered when she discovered her marriage to billionaire Liam was a sham, a plot to save his ailing fiancée, Ria. Pregnant and used, Elsa fled, seeking solace in her family. But when she lost her baby in a fall orchestrated by Liam, her despair deepened. Now, with her daughter missing and Liam's manipulations tightening their grip, Elsa must confront the monster she once called her husband. As she fights to reclaim her child and her freedom, Elsa uncovers Liam's ruthless control and the depth of his deception. With each revelation, her resolve strengthens, but so does the danger. Can Elsa break free from Liam's obsession and find true happiness, or will she remain forever in the grip of a billionaire's obsession?

A man wandered the world in search of truth, until he became lost between realms of existence. Will he find what he seeks, or fall into the chaos of scattered dimensions?

Hisako Mochizuki works construction during the day and games online at night, and she’s content with that life until her best friend Kohaku finds a door—an object erased from the world and banned long before she was born. When Kohaku goes missing, she enters a new world to save them—literally, and metaphorically. To survive and succeed, she'll become a Doorkeeper: the people who make sure accidents like Kohaku's never happen, but she'll have to become much stronger and learn to use her new abilities to do it. Updates weekly on Fridays. Art by @austinaokgray on Instagram Crossposted on Royal Road, Webnovel, and Tapas.

Being the daughter of the most feared Mafia boss isn't one to joke around, but knowing the business of the family comes next, running away is the only choice. Caught right handed, life flips over when a marriage is announced. [Note: Written in Third Person] Cover Picture isn't mine!

◾ SYNOPSIS◾ He stood motionlessly, his cloth dripping of excess muddy liquid, his gaze fixed on the retreating petite figure, riding away on her bicycle. His face was as phlegmatic as ever, his icy stare lingering on the lucky lass. "Just say the word, Zay", his friend nudged. An almost inaudible sigh escaped his lips. He dug his finger into his hair, ruffling it a bit. He turned around and walked towards his car, not even sparing his friend a glance. As soon as he gets in, he shuts the car door, placing his head on the car's head rest while closing his eyes. His men understood the message and put down their guns. Jove shook his head and turned to walk to the car. "It's your first time, dude. What the heck happened?" He asked, walking into the car. "Take the wheels, Damon." His mesmerizing yet cold voice rang, ignoring Jove's question. Jove sighed dramatically and leant back on the seat, bringing out his phone - he was used to his best friend already. Zayde Stoll was the name. His name alone triggered lots of emotions - love, admiration, fear, hatred and every other feelings one could possibly have. He was dangerously handsome; an exact opposite of his real self. At 25, he already was the world's youngest billionaire, having the least number of ten companies in each country. His name made great men fall to their knees and everyone wondered how his fame grew that much. He was known to be eerily cold and he killed without second thoughts. He only needed to say the word and whoever would drop at his feet. He was a real description of a merciless demigod and people shook when he entered college. Jove was his best friend and the only person he talks to aside his Dad, despite their very striking differences. Jove complimented his name - he was one hell of a jovial person and really cheerful...but the heck, he was the world's biggest player. Although he condemned the manner with which Zayde handled his victims, he knew he couldn't do anything about it, having known Zayde since childhood. "Damon! You want to kill us?!" Jove suddenly yelled, yanking off the earpiece he had on. He had fallen back on impulse from the near death crash they barely escaped. He glanced at Zayde, a mistake at first, because the latter never acted like something just happened. His men kept stoic faces too, leaving him dumbfounded. "Am I the only living thing in this car? Because Damon almost sent us to our earliest graves and none of you will f**cking tell me you didn't see that!" Jove yelled. He was this close to being infuriated. Damon chuckled loudly. "It was only a mistake", he said with a shrug. "Yeah, a mistake that would've marked an end to my beautiful life", he said bluntly, his voice unable to mask the sarcasm. "You should be shameless at times, Jove." Boris said, turning back to look at Jove. Just then, Zayde put on his headphone with a slightly irritated huff, a clear indication everyone were disturbing him. They all shut up at once, returning to their previous activities. "You'll watch them kill me one day." Jove mumbled, sinking down into the seat.

One night. One lie. One secret that changes everything. Twenty-year-old Natasha Samuel never imagined a single night out would turn her world upside down. Exhausted from juggling work and college, she meets a mysterious, devastatingly handsome stranger at a Manhattan club. One night of passion later, she wakes up alone abandoned without a word. What she doesn't know: Lucian Romano isn't just any man. He's one of Italy's most feared mafia bosses ruthless, obsessive, and deadly. He didn't abandon her. He's been searching for her obsessively for four years, driven mad by the fake name she gave him. When Natasha moves to Milan four years later for a fresh start with her young son, she has no idea she's walking straight into the lion's den. Because Lucian Romano finally found her. And he just discovered she's been hiding his son. In a world of blood, lies, and dangerous obsession, Natasha must protect her child from the man she can't forget even as he refuses to let her go. Some secrets are worth killing for. Some obsessions can't be escaped.

"City's Grip" In a city where shadows breathe danger and trust is a currency few can afford, Samira battles to escape the chains that bind her to its merciless streets. Juggling a dead-end job and a debt she didn’t ask for, her one shot at freedom lies in a dangerous alliance with Malik—a smooth-talking hustler with secrets as heavy as the duffel bag he drags her into carrying. But when a drop-off goes awry and Samira finds herself hunted by unseen forces, she realizes Malik’s plan is far more dangerous than he let on. As the city’s grip tightens, she must outwit criminals, corrupt officials, and even those she thought she could trust. The city doesn’t let go easily. And for Samira, escape may mean sacrificing more than she ever imagined.

-"Forget me not."- Ellie Powell is a woman living in the shadows. For eighteen months, she has traded her academic brilliance for a waitress’s apron to escape the reach of her abusive ex-boyfriend, Jeffrey. Her life is a desperate math equation where every cent earned is funneled into the medical care of her terminally ill sister, Helene. When a high-paying job offer arrives from Hephastian Wellington, the cold, calculating CEO of Emerson Corporation, Ellie risks her invisibility for a chance at a cure. But the offer is a scorched-earth trap. In a room fueled by corporate malice, Ellie’s certifications are shredded, leaving her without a career—and without hope. Just as her world collapses, the man she fled in terror finds her. With Jeffrey closing in and her sister’s time running out, Hephastian returns with a second and more dangerous proposition: Two hundred thousand dollars in exchange for a signed contract, in which she must agree to be his. Now, Ellie stands at a lethal crossroads. Does she surrender her soul to a man who humiliated her, or fall back into the hands of the monster who nearly broke her? Ellie must decide if her sister’s survival is worth her own heart—or her very life.

I was 19 years old when I was knocked out and abducted. It happened on my dad's festive, we were celebrating the whole day. And without realizing a man not much older than me filled me up while flirting with me. After two years of being nothing but a tool, I often ask myself how I ever could be that dumb. How my past me trusted strangers too easily. But if you had lived a normal life, than this would be normal. Celebrating, having fun, flirting and drinking.... I wished I could go back in time. Warn my younger idiotic naive me. Till he stepped into my cage and made my worst nightmares come true.

[Irresistible MC + Farming & Entrepreneurship + Strong Female Lead + Cute Baby + Love Rivalry + Farming System + Male Competition] Deng Yuyuan wakes up to find she has transmigrated into a period novel about a "pampered group darling" — as the biological mother of the vicious female villain. The female villain has a biased grandmother, a mooching uncle and his family, a blindly filial father, and a spineless mother. She was a small-time thief as a child. As an adult, she committed every kind of evil — constantly framing the female lead — and ultimately met a miserable end. The female lead is the only daughter in another family, doted on by her older brothers. The villain targeted her out of pure jealousy. And now, Deng Yuyuan has become that villain's cowardly mother — and the villain herself is currently just an ugly, wrinkly-faced infant. The blindly filial father loves his wife, but gives all the good things to his own mother. He says to his starving wife and daughter: "Xiao Yuan, come drink some water. I specially heated it for you." Deng Yuyuan looks at her own bony frame and her tiny child — and decides to get a divorce. Goodbye, useless husband. She's going to raise this little cub with an abundance of money and love. No way she'll go astray this time. Lost one husband, gained a crowd of suitors. A beautiful sent-down youth coveted by many — she knows some self-defense and burns the midnight oil studying. With the reinstatement of the college entrance exams, she takes her child toward a much wider world. Riding the wave of the times, Deng Yuyuan works her way up to become a gaming tycoon and a cutting-edge scientist... Except — why are so many men fighting to be her cub's stepfather?