

In the VIP lounge of an underground casino, Maeve, the Falcone family's princess, had been plied with too much hard liquor. Fueled by alcohol, someone goaded her into revealing the most shameless thing she'd ever done to win over the Don. She swirled her glass, pointed at me dealing cards behind the table, and threw her head back with a laugh. "Seven years ago, when Declan was in a coma after a shootout, I took his private phone. And I deleted the distress message that bitch sent him. Every last trace of it. Then I replied in his name: You're a burden. Go die." "You'll never guess what happened next. That idiot stood outside the safe house all night in a downpour, like a stray dog. I almost died laughing…" The room erupted in crude laughter. Only the man enthroned at the head of the table remained silent. The crystal whiskey glass in his hand shattered with a sharp crack. Blood mixed with the amber liquor, trickling over the veins on the back of his hand before dripping onto the carpet. His murderous, bloodshot eyes were locked on me. I calmly dealt the last hole card in front of him and offered a clean, white silk handkerchief. "Don Declan, you should wipe your hand. Blood on the felt is bad luck." After all, some stains never wash out.

Everyone in the family can see the countdown above Eli Nash, my brother, so we all know he dies the day he turns 16 years old. Thus, Eli becomes the most pampered person in the family. He gets all the good food, the latest limited-edition sneakers, and even the bedtime stories from Mom and Dad. I feel very bad for him, yet I am jealous of all the love he receives. I finally make it to the eve of his 16th birthday. But Mom and Dad fear that I will cause trouble, so they lock me in a storage room while I am suffering from a high fever. I panic as I bang on the door. "Please let me out, Mom! I'm running a fever, and my head hurts so badly!" Mom snaps through gritted teeth, "That's enough, Ash! Eli is going to die tomorrow! Why can't you just put up with it?" "I feel really sick, though…" I start losing consciousness as the sounds outside the door die down.

While they slice me apart, I desperately call my brother, Nathan Slade. He finally picks up as my consciousness starts to slip and answers in an annoyed voice, "What now?" "Nathan, help—" I don't get to finish before he cuts me off. "Can't you ever go a day without drama? Gemma's graduation is at the end of the month. Miss it, and I swear I'll kill you!" Then, he hangs up without a second thought. The agonizing pain swallows me whole, and my eyes close for good, tears still trailing down my cheeks. Well, good news, Nathan… You won't have to kill me because I'm already dead.

My coworkers and I are forcibly dragged into a bizarre game with the initial title displayed as "War of the Plants". Everyone crowds around to choose camps or safe houses with abundant water resources. I am the only one who picks a plastic apartment in the desert with no water or electricity. My female supervisor mocks me in front of everyone, saying I must be out of my mind. No one is willing to team up with me, and they even bet I won't last three days. When choosing abilities, everyone rushes for practical powers like spatial storage or metal control. I, however, choose reverse photosynthesis that allows me to gain energy from air humidity. Everyone immediately mutes me in the game. Clearly, no one wants to hear my desperate cries for help later. But when the system revokes team permissions and administrator functions, everyone is stunned. The game's name is reset to "Magnet Apocalypse".

Lana Axley's mother dies for "ruining" a dress—tortured and drowned by the vindictive Aria Stetson. Worse, Aria's defense attorney is Lana's husband, Liam Gray, who abandoned his own family to be with Lana and now demands that she sign an apology letter. Refusing to be broken, Lana pretends to surrender while secretly building her case. With evidence secured, she fakes her death and begins her calculated revenge.

Nina Bale is an immortal who controls life and death. A year ago, the head of the Ford family accidentally severed a geomantic vein, cursing his bloodline. To protect them, he traded his life for Nina's help—for just one year. Now, the Fords, tired of her presence, are ready to cast her out. But just as they do, the powerful Cork family arrives, falling to their knees. Only Nina can save their dying patriarch—and time is running out.

I died on the day I was supposed to receive the Pack’s Distinguished Service Award. Three hours after I died, my parents, my brother, and my mate were just wrapping up the graduation party they’d thrown for my sister. While my sister, Ella, was posting a cozy family photo on Instagram, I was locked in our basement, using my tongue to swipe on my phone and call for help. The only person who answered was my mate, Ryan. All he said was, "Sophie, cut the drama. Ella's graduation party is important. Enough with the tantrums!" This was the ninety-ninth time they had let me down. And the last. I lay in a pool of my own blood, my lungs still. They thought I was just throwing a fit, hiding somewhere. That if they taught me a lesson, I’d come crawling back. But they didn't know. I was home the whole time. I was already dead.

Maisie Kent is betrayed by her boyfriend, Jerry Ford, and Gigi Smith, signing a contract that costs her life. Reborn at the moment of signing, she pretends to comply while secretly swapping the contract. When Gigi tries the same trick in public, the harm rebounds instantly. Unscathed, Maisie watches coldly—on the deadly contract now stands a name no one dares to provoke.

Jada Shaw meets Henry Gray when he has lost both his career and his love life. In order to help him, Jada makes a deal with Saul, giving up a part of her life in exchange for the revival of Henry’s career. However, the catch is that if she fails to win Henry’s heart by the time his career reaches its peak, Saul will take her life.

Eight-year-old Ava Miller has spent her entire childhood living in the shadow of her older sister, Sophie, who suffers from brittle bone disease. To keep Sophie from feeling hurt, Ava is not allowed to run or jump. She cannot have toys of her own, and over time, she learns to give all of their parents’ love and attention to her sister. On Ava’s eighth birthday, their mother suddenly realizes that Ava has grown taller than Sophie. In a moment of anger, she lashes out: “Why couldn’t you have been the sick one? Why couldn’t it have been you who died?” Those words completely shatter Ava. What no one knows is that just one week earlier, Ava had also been diagnosed with the same inherited brittle bone disease. Afraid of adding even more medical debt to the family, she keeps the diagnosis a secret. Instead, she takes her mother’s cruel words as one final thing she is supposed to do for the family. Ava takes an overdose of medication and dies. But her spirit remains inside the house. She watches helplessly as Sophie later dies in an accident, and as their mother places all the blame on Ava, never realizing that the daughter she is accusing is already dead. Several days later, Ava’s parents finally break open the door to her locked bedroom. Inside, they find her medical records, her awards, and the money she had carefully saved for Sophie. Only then do they understand the truth. Ava had never been jealous of her sister. She had simply wanted so desperately to be a good child—one who never caused trouble, never became a burden, and never made life harder for anyone