NORA’S POVThe sound of my alarm rang loudly, jolting me from my sleep.The first thought that crossed my mind was Ethan—my encounter with him last night.Never in my life had I imagined Ethan like that. What happened to him? Why didn’t he end up poorer? How did he get so damn rich? He even owned a Lamborghini! This is sick. So sick!I shifted my gaze to my phone on the bedside table as it started ringing.Reaching for it, I saw the caller ID: `Mum`.“Mum,” I spoke as soon as I answered the call.“Baby, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” she asked in a panic. Seriously?!“Why are you panicking now? I called you countless times last night, and you didn’t pick up. Now you’re in a frenzy as if whatever danger I was in wouldn’t have harmed me by now,” I replied.From my peripheral vision, I could see Hans was already awake, staring at me.“Honey, I’m so sorry! I had a long day and fell deeply asleep,” she said, and I rolled my eyes.“Why did you call? I hope everything is fine?” she asked, and

I stepped out of my white Porsche, feeling the cool air as I looked up at the skyscraper before me, my new company.Honestly, I couldn’t wait to make this company one of the biggest, elite companies in the state. I haven't even thought of a name yet.Just as I was admiring the towering skyscraper, I heard a loud engine noise behind me. It was Marcus, pulling up behind me.Since we were a bit free, we had planned to meet up here, maybe to discuss more about the company.“Hey, Ethan,” Marcus said calmly with a nod as he approached me.“Good day, Marcus. Thanks for being a bit late,” I teased. He giggled, shrugging.“I was stuck in traffic,” he said, obviously hiding his laugh. I knew if I were the one to be late, he would have acted like I had committed a huge crime.“Where’s Nathan?” Marcus asked, a frown forming on his face.“I—I told him to stay back,” I said.“Why? He’s not being paid to just sit at home while you roam around unprotected.”“I’m not roaming around; this is an empty

“Th—This was all a joke? It wasn’t real? We weren’t being attacked?” I asked, disbelief washing over me.“Well, we were actually being attacked,” Marcus replied, rising to dust off his clothes. “It’s more like a test; And You failed,” he added, as the leader also got up, followed by a few of his men. The bodies scattered on the floor were the ones I had taken down—either dead or unconscious. But what did he mean by I failed? What was the test even about?I turned around, confusion swirling in my mind. “What test? And why would you say I failed? What did I do wrong?” I demanded. Anger and frustration bubbled inside me, but I tried to keep my cool.“You see, you did everything you were supposed to do correctly. But when it came time to leave—what did I tell you about emotions? There shouldn’t be any feelings attached to this; it’s just work.”“But this wasn’t about my emotions! I did what any fucking normal human would do!” I yelled.“But we aren’t normal humans; we’re beyond human thin

I stared at Marcus, trying to process what he had just said. “A mechanical heart? How does that even work?” This was my first time hearing of such a thing.“It pumps blood like a regular heart,” the doctor replied, his tone serious. “You’ll need to be careful and stick to your treatment plan, but many people manage well with it.”A wave of anger bubbled up inside me. “You brought me into this whole mess!” I snapped at Marcus, my voice rising. “If you hadn’t forced me into becoming who my father was—who you know I’m not—none of this would have happened!”“Ethan, please,” Marcus tried to interject, his voice calm but firm. “I am doing what I know is best for you. You have to understand, you aren’t just a normal human. You haven’t realized it yet, but there’s something more to you, something beyond typical human nature.”“What are you talking about?” I shot back, confusion mingling with my rage.“You wouldn’t understand it now, but sooner or later, you will. You just have to adapt to th

I tried to get up, noticing I could no longer feel any pain.“It’s time to die, just like your father did,” I heard him finally mutter out loud. But why did his voice sound so familiar?I sat up, pulling out the IVs connected to my body. Since he hadn’t pulled the trigger yet, I asked, “If you’re here to kill me, why don’t you show me your face? You’re going to kill me anyway.” I heard him giggle.“You’re right,” he said shortly before taking off the ski mask he had on.In the process of taking off his mask, I attempted to move, but he was too quick, and I sat there still.But a loud gasp escaped my lips when my eyes landed on… Marcus.“Marcus,” I mumbled, my voice barely above a whisper. “What are you doing? Why do you want to kill me?” I asked, but before I knew it, I watched him pull the trigger.“Bang!”“Arghh!” I screamed, jolting up from my sleep. It was a dream, a fucking nightmare.I could feel my heart pounding heavily in my chest, my whole body trembling, yet, aching from th