Betrayal by So-Called Friend

Trust shatters when a deep betrayal by a close companion plunges a group into a modern-day nightmare. In this chilling mystery, the line between ally and enemy blurs as horrific secrets emerge from the shadows. As the psychological tension peaks, the protagonists must navigate a web of deception to survive the night. Every choice leads to darker revelations, proving that the people we trust most are often the ones hiding the deadliest intent.

Chapters

Chapter 1

Late into the night, the doorbell rang, jolting me out of sleep. On the video screen was April, her face bruised and her voice raw from crying.

"Winona, please help me. Kyro hit me again."

I was about to open the door when a series of messages appeared before me.

[Don't let her in, or you'll be caught up in their mess!]

Suddenly, a chill swept over me, chasing away any lingering drowsiness.

[Her husband resents you for taking her in each time and plans to marry you off to his vile brother. April agreed to this to appease him!]

[If you open the door, they'll force their way in, attack you, and drag you to a remote village!]

[You'll end up like those women in old folktales, trapped and isolated, with no hope for rescue, forced to bear children!]

Warnings flashed before my eyes, making me pull my hand back from the doorknob.

April and Kyro had been together for three years, and within our group, Kyro was seen as the ideal boyfriend. But just a week into their marriage, April showed up, tearful, confessing that Kyro had hit her.

Only then did I learn that Kyro's kind and attentive behavior during their relationship was just a façade; underneath, he was volatile. Any disagreement from April led to a beating. Every time, she would escape to my place in tears, and within three days, Kyro would come, apologizing and take her back.

I begged April to leave him, warning her that the abuse would only continue. But she clung to their three-year history, and Kyro's repeated apologies always softened her resolve.

Could it be that my advice sparked Kyro's resentment against me? Yet, looking at April's sorrowful face on the screen, I hesitated.

Should I really abandon my friend of ten years because of these uncanny messages?

As I deliberated, my phone rang. I quickly silenced it and stepped into the back room to answer.

"Winona, you must have been deep asleep; why didn’t you answer when I knocked?"

"I’ve been hit again, and I have nowhere to go. Please let me in; it’s so cold outside."

[Don’t open the door—she’s deceiving you!]

Better safe than sorry...

I decided to feign a trip out of town to test April's response.

"I'm not home right now; I'm in San Francisco for work."

"Why don't you find a hotel for the night? I can wire you some money if you need it."

April clearly wasn't buying it. "A trip? You always tell me when you're traveling and ask if I want something brought back. Why didn't you this time?"

"It was a last-minute thing; my boss called me at five this evening. I had no time."

"Is there anything you want me to bring back?"

"Never mind, it’s okay."

April hung up, obviously displeased.

I quickly checked the surveillance footage from the new camera outside my door; April wasn't aware of it. If those messages were true, I should see her husband and brother-in-law.

Sure enough, after hanging up, April moved toward the emergency stairs and called out:

"Come out, she’s not home."

Kyro and his brother Everett appeared, cursing.

"What are the odds? Just as we're set, she takes off?"

Kyro eyed April suspiciously and slapped her head: "Did you tip her off? Pretend to agree with my plan while secretly helping her?"

April's face showed a mix of dread and compliance: "No, I didn't tell her."

Everett spat angrily: "I swear I heard something inside when sis-in-law was on the phone."

Kyro contemplated briefly: "Maybe she's onto us and trying to trick us."

I watched as April's expression shifted, and she offered eagerly: "I can track her location!"

Continue to next part

I spent forty hours hand-beading a gown for a woman who was currently sleeping with my husband. My fingers were raw, my vision blurred, and the needle had just driven deep into my index finger, leaving a drop of blood on the silk. Braxton walked into our penthouse, rain dripping from his suit, and didn't even look at me. But the scent hit me instantly—Bulgarian rose and white musk. It was the custom perfume Griselda, my own sister, commissioned in Paris. I had spent three years as a ghost in my own marriage, sewing costumes for the woman who had haunted my vows since day one. Braxton didn't bother to hide it anymore; there was a smudge of her coral lipstick on his collar. He didn't offer an explanation, only a command to finish the gown for the Met Gala so I wouldn't embarrass them. My mother called moments later, her voice sharp with the usual dismissal. She didn't care that I was bleeding or that my husband was cheating with my sister. She only cared that I was "falling behind" on Griselda's gown. I sat in the silence of that cold, marble cage, staring at the needle in my hand. For years, I had swallowed every insult and stitched every lie, believing I was the capable one who had to make them happy. But as the clock ticked, a door inside me finally clicked shut. I wasn't just tired; I was finished. I set the needle down, picked up my phone, and dialed my sister’s number to tell her she’d have to find someone else to bleed for her.

Horror Modern Romance

8.6

Bound By Contract, Tied By Faith

8.6

Ivy Hart didn't just lose love, she was destroyed by it. Publicly betrayed by the man she thought she'd marry, her heartbreak becomes a spectacle she can't escape. Humiliated, angry, and done believing in forever, Ivy swears she'll never be that vulnerable again. Then Damian Blackwood steps in. Ruthless. Possessive. A man who doesn't ask, he takes. His offer is simple, his tone is not: Marry me. A contract. Strict rules. No love. No questions. But Ivy quickly learns one thing. Damian doesn't share. Not his power. Not his control. And definitely not what he considers his. What was supposed to be a cold, calculated arrangement turns suffocatingly intense. The way he watches her. The way he touches her. The way his voice drops when he says, "You're mine, Ivy." It's not part of the contract. And neither is the jealousy that burns in his eyes when her past comes crawling back, begging for a second chance. Because Damian doesn't believe in love... But he believes in possession. And once he's claimed something, he never lets it go. As secrets unravel and the truth behind their marriage begins to surface, Ivy realizes she didn't just sign a contract. She signed herself over to a man who would destroy anyone who tries to take her away... even if that means destroying her too. When the contract ends, one question remains: Will Ivy walk away with her heart intact... or will Damian make sure she never leaves at all?

Action Horror Romance

7.7

Bound To The Ruthless Lycan King

7.7

I fled my werewolf pack five years ago to hide in a human city, all to escape a recurring nightmare. Every full moon, a terrifying, golden-eyed Lycan slaughters everything in his path, forces me to my knees with a crushing Alpha command, and claims I am his fated mate. The vivid dreams were destroying my inner wolf, forcing me to finally agree to return to my pack for the annual Pack Run to seek a cure. But right before my flight home, I accidentally bumped into Rick Miller, the most arrogant, tyrannical Alpha on our college campus. He looked down at the coffee spilled on his expensive leather jacket with pure disdain, publicly humiliating me in front of the entire airport. "Do you have any idea what this jacket costs? Never mind. It's not like you could afford to replace it." As he coldly insulted me, a terrifying realization suddenly froze my blood. He smelled exactly like the ancient pine and storm from my nightmares, and his brief touch sent a mate's electric spark straight to my soul. How could this cruel, spoiled campus bully possibly be the legendary, terrifying Lycan King who haunted my every sleeping moment? As he turned and boarded his private jet, I looked down at my trembling hands and realized the horrifying truth. My trip back to the pack wasn't a journey to heal my trauma. I was walking straight into the cage of the very monster I had spent five years trying to outrun.

Horror Werewolf Young Adult

9.7

He Came Back, I Broke Him

9.7

Eighteen months ago, the man I loved shattered my heart, claiming everything between us was a mistake. Now, he's back, a ghost of his former self, a rookie tryout in my pro esports team. And I will make him regret crawling back. Clifton, captain of a legendary esports team, was secretly battling a severe wrist injury that threatened his career, every match a fight against his own body. He pushed through the pain, ignoring doctors' warnings, desperate to maintain his god-like status. His world was already on the edge, but nothing prepared him for seeing Justice Terry again in the team basement. Justice, pale and trembling, his eyes wide with naked terror, was now a rookie tryout. Clifton had spent a year and a half trying to forget that rainy Chicago alley, the raw revulsion in Justice's eyes, the whispered "it wasn't real" that had left him heartbroken. Justice had vanished, and Clifton had erased every trace. Now, the boy who once looked at him like he was the sun was back, flinching at his touch, displaying a deep, primal fear. Amidst sponsor pressure and whispers of being "washed," Clifton saw Justice's return as a chance for vengeance. He publicly humiliated Justice on a live stream, forcing him into a suicide mission, then coldly benched him. Yet, the satisfaction never came. Instead, a hollow emptiness and a torrent of questions: What had truly happened in the past? Why was Justice here, and what trauma had carved such fear into his bones? Clifton, unwilling to be fooled again, swore to uncover every secret and every lie. He would force Justice to explain why he had returned, even if it meant tearing down everything they both had left.

Action Horror LGBT+Mystery

8.3

My Husband’s Mistress Wore My Skin

8.3

After her husband’s betrayal, a woman discovers a horrifying truth: his mistress has literally stolen her skin. Trapped in a nightmare where her identity has been physically usurped, she must navigate a world that no longer recognizes her. This chilling tale blends domestic suspense with body horror as the protagonist fights to reclaim her life from the monster living in her house. Can she expose the imposter before her existence is erased forever?

Horror Mystery Romance

7.6

Pampered By The Sadistic Academy Villain

7.6

I woke up to the suffocating smell of copper and sulfur, my fingers wrapped around a blood-soaked leather whip. Hanging from an obsidian cross in front of me was a boy with silver hair and dead, golden eyes. His pale chest was torn open to the bone. I recognized those eyes immediately. I had spent three years describing them on my laptop. He was Kamari Monroe, the tragic, overpowered protagonist of my own web novel. And I wasn't just a bystander. I was Benedict Guerrero, the sadistic academy headmaster. The ultimate villain. A reel of images flashed in my mind: my original ending. Kamari, fully awakened, skinning me alive and burning my soul in a furnace for forty-nine days. My loyal attack dog, Gideon, stepped forward with a basin of glowing green liquid. "Headmaster, let me wake him up with this bone-rot acid so you can resume." If that acid hit Kamari, his hatred would become permanent. My gruesome death would be sealed. But if I broke character and apologized, the magical world would sense the shift, and Kamari would just think it was a sicker, more twisted trap. How was I supposed to survive a death sentence I wrote myself? I couldn't show weakness. I had to play the monster to survive. Suppressing my terror, I smashed the acid basin, healed his ruined flesh with agonizing dark magic, and lied straight to his face. "Someone had to be the monster to push you into the fire." This time, I will rewrite my own fate.

Fantasy Horror Young Adult

Betrayal by So-Called Friend

Chapter 1

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