The Ghost Bullet

The Ghost Bullet

Augustina Hardstone · Ongoing · 45.8k Words

883
Hot
883
Views
0
Added
Add to Shelf
Start Reading
Share:facebooktwitterpinterestwhatsappreddit

Introduction

She was born into a cage of blood and lies.
Selena Rossi knows two things: her mafia don father’s empire is built on corpses, and her mother’s killer walks free.

He’s the ghost in her nightmares.
Rook. Her father’s deadliest shadow. A name whispered in fear. An assassin without a face… until he’s forced into her light as her 24/7 bodyguard.

Mutual hatred is their shield.
Trapped together as bullets fly, Selena sees the flicker of pain behind his ice-cold eyes. He sees the crack in her armor. When chaos erupts, a savage, stolen kiss ignites a fire neither can control.

Then she uncovers the truth.
Security footage. A masked killer removing his disguise.
Rook’s face.
Pulling the trigger.

Her world shatters. Trust bleeds out. She vanishes into the night, leaving only betrayal behind.

Three years. Three lifetimes.
Selena is a ghost now too. But her father’s empire is crumbling. Enemies close in. A senator is dead. The FBI’s net tightens.

He walks back into her war.
Rook. Broken. Haunted. He carries a digital bomb – evidence that could save her family… or bury them.

“Your mother’s death wasn’t my mission. It was my damnation.”
But the shadows hold darker truths. The real puppetmaster pulls the strings.

As bullets tear through a warehouse of ghosts, loyalties shatter.
Her father faces a traitor’s gun.
Rook takes a bullet meant for her.
A recording holds the key to salvation… and damnation.

He thrusts the evidence into her hands.
“Save them… or let it burn.”

Sirens wail. Blood pools. One choice remains.
But the deadliest secret isn’t who pulled the trigger.
It’s why the gun was loaded.

Justice has a price. Is love the bullet… or the shield?

Chapter 1

Selena's POV

The computer screen exploded with error messages.

"No, no, no!" Selena slammed her fist on the desk. Three hours of work, gone. The police database had kicked her out again.

Her fingers flew across the keyboard, trying to get back in. Sweat dripped down her face. She had been so close to finding something about Mom's case. So close to the truth.

The apartment felt like a prison. Bulletproof windows. Steel doors. Guards everywhere. Dad called it protection. Selena called it a cage.

She rubbed her tired eyes and tried a different password. Her mother's birthday. Her mother's favorite song. Her mother's—

BANG!

Something crashed in the kitchen. Selena froze. The guards were supposed to be outside. No one should be in here with her.

She grabbed the gun from her desk drawer. Her hands shook as she checked if it was loaded. Dad had taught her to shoot when she turned sixteen. "Never trust anyone to protect you," he had said. "Not even family."

Footsteps moved across the marble floor. Slow. Careful. Like a hunter stalking prey.

Selena's heart pounded so loud she was sure the intruder could hear it. She crept toward the kitchen, gun raised. The lights were off. Shadows danced everywhere.

"Hello, princess."

The voice came from behind her. Cold. Calm. Like death itself was speaking.

Selena spun around, finger on the trigger. A man stood by her computer. Tall. Dark hair. Eyes like winter ice. He wasn't pointing a gun at her. He didn't need to. Everything about him screamed danger.

"Who are you?" Her voice cracked. She hated how scared she sounded.

"Someone who knows what you're looking for." He nodded at her computer screen. "Information about your mother's murder."

Selena's blood turned to ice. "How do you—"

"Know about your little hacking hobby?" The man smiled, but it wasn't friendly. "I know lots of things, Selena Rossi. Like how you break into police files every night. How you've been searching for three years. How you're getting close to something that could get you killed."

"My father will—"

"Your father sent me."

The words hit her like a punch to the stomach. Dad knew about her searching? Had he been watching her all this time?

"I don't believe you."

The stranger pulled out his phone and dialed. "Tell her yourself."

Selena heard her father's voice through the speaker. Rough. Tired. "Selena, baby, listen to me. There are people coming for our family. Bad people. This man is going to keep you safe."

"Dad, I don't need—"

"You do need this. They know you've been digging into the past. They know you found something." Her father's voice got quiet. Scared. She had never heard him sound scared before. "Pack a bag. You're leaving. Now."

The call ended. Selena stared at the phone, then at the stranger.

"Pack a bag?" She laughed, but it sounded crazy even to her. "I'm not going anywhere with you. I don't even know your name."

"Names don't matter in my line of work."

"What's your line of work?"

His smile got colder. "I solve problems. Permanently."

Selena's stomach dropped. This man was a killer. Dad had sent a killer to protect her. Or maybe to silence her forever.

"The files on your computer," the man said, walking closer. "What did you find?"

"Nothing." The lie came out too fast.

"Try again."

Selena backed toward the window. "I said nothing."

He moved like a cat. Silent. Deadly. Before she could blink, he was right in front of her. His hand covered hers on the gun. Not fighting for it. Just holding it steady.

"I'm not here to hurt you," he said softly. "But others are. And they'll be here soon."

"What others?"

"The same people who killed your mother."

The world stopped spinning. Selena couldn't breathe. "You're lying."

"Am I?" He let go of her hand and walked back to the computer. "You found a name in those police files, didn't you? Someone who was supposed to be investigating the murder but wasn't."

How did he know? Selena had only found that information tonight. Detective Marcus Webb. He had been assigned to Mom's case but never filed a single report. Like he was being paid to stay quiet.

"Detective Webb," the stranger continued, reading her face. "He's dead. Killed two hours ago. Shot in his car outside a diner."

Selena's legs felt weak. She sat down hard in her chair. "That's impossible."

"Three bullets to the chest. Very professional. The same style that killed your mother."

Tears burned her eyes. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because whoever killed Webb knows he talked to someone recently. They're cleaning up loose ends." He looked right at her. "You're a loose end, Selena."

Sirens wailed in the distance. Getting closer.

The man tensed. He pulled out a gun that looked like it could stop a truck. "They're early."

"Who's early?"

"The people coming to kill you." He grabbed her arm. "We need to go. Now."

Selena jerked away. "I'm not going anywhere with you! I don't even know if you're telling the truth!"

The sirens got louder. Then stopped. Right outside her building.

The man's phone buzzed. He looked at it and cursed under his breath. "Your guards are down. All of them."

Fear crashed over her like a wave. Those guards had families. Kids. And now they were dead because of her.

"This is your fault," she whispered.

"No. This is your father's fault for letting you dig where you shouldn't have dug." He grabbed her laptop and shoved it in a bag. "But I'm not letting you die for his mistakes."

Heavy footsteps echoed in the hallway outside. Men's voices. Angry. Getting closer to her door.

The stranger moved to the window and looked down. "Twelve floors. Too high to jump. They've got the elevators blocked." He turned to her, and for the first time, she saw something that might have been worry in his cold eyes. "There's only one way out."

"What way?"

He pulled a small device from his pocket. It looked like a garage door opener. "The hard way."

"What does that do?"

The footsteps stopped right outside her door. Someone was picking the lock.

The stranger looked at her with those winter eyes. "Hold on to something."

"Wait, what are you—"

He pressed the button.

The world exploded.

The apartment shook like an earthquake. The lights went out. Emergency alarms screamed everywhere. In the darkness, she felt the stranger's hand grab hers.

"Trust me," he said. "Or die here."

The door burst open. Men with guns poured in, flashlights cutting through the smoke and darkness.

"Go, go, go!" someone yelled.

Selena couldn't see anything. Couldn't breathe. The stranger pulled her forward, and she stumbled after him because she had no choice.

They ran through the smoke toward... nothing. Just the blown-out window and a twelve-story drop to the street below.

"You're crazy!" she screamed.

"Probably."

And then he jumped.

Still holding her hand.

They fell into the darkness together as bullets whistled over their heads and sirens wailed like the end of the world.

Selena screamed all the way down, wondering if the man holding her hand was saving her life...

Or ending it.

Last Chapters

You Might Like 😍

Game of Destiny

Game of Destiny

1.2m Views · Completed · Dripping Creativity
Amie's wolf hasn't shown herself. But who cares? She has a good pack, best friends and a family who loves her. Everyone, including the Alpha, is telling her she is perfect just the way she is. That is until she finds her mate and he rejects her. Heartbroken Amie flees from everything and start over. No more werewolves, no more packs.

When Finlay finds her, she is living among humans. He is smitten by the stubborn wolf that refuse to acknowledge his existence. She may not be his mate, but he wants her to be a part of his pack, latent wolf or not.

Amie cant resist the Alpha that comes into her life and drags her back into pack life. Not only does she find herself happier than she has been in a long time, her wolf finally comes to her. Finlay isn't her mate, but he becomes her best friend. Together with the other top wolves in the pack, they work to create the best and strongest pack.

When it's time for the pack games, the event that decides the packs rank for the coming ten year, Amie needs to face her old pack. When she sees the man that rejected her for the first time in ten years, everything she thought she knew is turned around. Amie and Finlay need to adapt to the new reality and find a way forward for their pack. But will the curve ball split them apart?
Surrendering to Destiny

Surrendering to Destiny

708.2k Views · Completed · Allison Franklin
Catherine is not only a rogue half-breed, she is also the result of mate-bond infidelity, was abandoned as a baby and, to top it off, she can only shift during the full moon. When Catherine left the only pack she'd ever known in order to escape the new alpha, the last thing she expected was to find her mate... let alone for him to be the mouth-watering, heavily tattooed, lead warrior of the most feared lycan pack on the continent.

Graham MacTavish wasn't prepared to find his mate in the small town of Sterling that borders the Blackmoore Packlands. He certainly didn't expect her to be a rogue, half-breed who smelled of Alpha blood. With her multi-colored eyes, there was no stopping him from falling hard the moment their mate bond snapped into place. He would do anything to claim her, protect her and cherish her no matter the cost.

From vengeful ex-lovers, pack politics, species prejudice, hidden plots, magic, kidnapping, poisoning, rogue attacks, and a mountain of secrets including Catherine's true parentage there is no shortage of things trying to tear the two apart.

Despite the hardships, a burning desire and willingness to trust will help forge a strong bond between the two... but no bond is unbreakable. When the secrets kept close to heart are slowly revealed, will the two be able to weather the storm? Or will the gift bestowed upon Catherine by the moon goddess be too insurmountable to overcome?
Shattered Girl

Shattered Girl

850.7k Views · Completed · Brandi Rae
Jake's fingers danced across my nipples, squeezing gently and making me groan in pleasure. He lifted my shirt and stared at my hardened nipples through my bra. I tensed, and Jake sat up and moved back on the bed, giving me some space.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. Was that too much?” I could see the worry in his eyes as I took a deep breath.

“I just didn’t want you to see all my scars,” I whispered, feeling ashamed of my marked body.


Emmy Nichols is used to surviving. She survived her abusive father for years until he beat her so severely, she ended up in the hospital, and her father was finally arrested. Now, Emmy is thrown into a life she never expected. Now she has a mother

who doesn't want her, a politically motivated stepfather with ties to the Irish mob, four older stepbrothers, and their best friend who swear to love and protect her. Then, one night, everything shatters, and Emmy feels her only option is to run.

When her stepbrothers and their best friend finally find her, will they pick up the pieces and convince Emmy that they will keep her safe and their love will hold them together?
After the Affair: Falling into a Billionaire's Arms

After the Affair: Falling into a Billionaire's Arms

1.3m Views · Ongoing · Louisa
[Dear readers, if you loved this book, be sure to read my new recommended read: Cheating Husband, Vengeful Me.]
From first crush to wedding vows, George Capulet and I had been inseparable. But in our seventh year of marriage, he began an affair with his secretary.

On my birthday, he took her on vacation. On our anniversary, he brought her to our home and made love to her in our bed...

Heartbroken, I tricked him into signing divorce papers.

George remained unconcerned, convinced I would never leave him.

His deceptions continued until the day the divorce was finalized. I threw the papers in his face: "George Capulet, from this moment on, get out of my life!"

Only then did panic flood his eyes as he begged me to stay.

When his calls bombarded my phone later that night, it wasn't me who answered, but my new boyfriend Julian.

"Don't you know," Julian chuckled into the receiver, "that a proper ex-boyfriend should be as quiet as the dead?"

George seethed through gritted teeth: "Put her on the phone!"

"I'm afraid that's impossible."

Julian dropped a gentle kiss on my sleeping form nestled against him. "She's exhausted. She just fell asleep."
The Lycan Prince’s Puppy

The Lycan Prince’s Puppy

3.1m Views · Ongoing · chavontheauthor
“You’re mine, little puppy,” Kylan growled against my neck.
“Soon enough, you’ll be begging for me. And when you do—I’ll use you as I see fit, and then I’ll reject you.”


When Violet Hastings begins her freshman year at Starlight Shifters Academy, she only wants two things—honor her mother’s legacy by becoming a skilled healer for her pack and get through the academy without anyone calling her a freak for her strange eye condition.

Things take a dramatic turn when she discovers that Kylan, the arrogant heir to the Lycan throne who has made her life miserable from the moment they met, is her mate.

Kylan, known for his cold personality and cruel ways, is far from thrilled. He refuses to accept Violet as his mate, yet he doesn’t want to reject her either. Instead, he sees her as his puppy, and is determined to make her life even more of a living hell.

As if dealing with Kylan’s torment isn’t enough, Violet begins to uncover secrets about her past that change everything she thought she knew. Where does she truly come from? What is the secret behind her eyes? And has her whole life been a lie?
Oops, Wrong Girl to Bully

Oops, Wrong Girl to Bully

237.4k Views · Completed · Xena Kessler
An original story by Xena Kessler
My back hit the desk. Pain exploded through my skull.
"Girls like you don't get to dream about guys like Kai." Bella's breath was hot on my face. "You don't get to write pathetic love letters."
She shoved me again. Harder.
"Maybe if you weren't such a desperate little—"
I fell. My head cracked against the corner.
Warmth trickled down my neck. Blood.
Their laughter turned to gasps.
The door slammed.
I tried to stand. Couldn't. The room was spinning, fading to black.
Someone... please...
Angelina, the most powerful Alpha who conquered forty-nine packs, dies in a yacht explosion—only to wake up as Aria Sterling, a fifteen-year-old Omega's daughter who just died from bullying.
The original Aria's life was a nightmare. Humiliated when golden boy Kai Matthews posted her love letter online, then shoved to death by his girlfriend Bella Morrison. But that's not all her family faces:
"You got until Monday," the tattooed gangster sneered at Aria's mother. "Ten grand cash. Or I'm taking collateral—your kids' organs fetch top dollar. That pretty daughter of yours? She could make us money another way too."
Now Angelina's lethal combat skills awaken in this fragile body. No more hiding. No more fear.
Armed with an Alpha's ruthlessness and a mysterious blood-red pendant, she'll dismantle everyone who hurt this family—one calculated move at a time.
Goddess Of The Underworld

Goddess Of The Underworld

649.3k Views · Completed · Sheridan Hartin
Left at a pack border with a name and a stubborn heartbeat, Envy grows into the sharpest kind of survivor, an orphaned warrior who knows how to hold a line and keep moving. Love isn’t in the plan…until four alpha wolves with playboy reputations and inconveniently soft hands decide the girl who won’t bow is the only queen they’ll ever take. Their mate. The one they have waited for. Xavier, Haiden, Levi, and Noah are gorgeous, lethal, and anything but perfect and Envy isn’t either. She’s changing. First into hell hound, Layah at her heels and fire in her veins. Then into what the realm has been waiting for, a Goddess of the Underworld, dragging her mates down to hell with her.

When the veil between the Divine, the Living, and the Dead begins to crack, Envy is thrust beneath with a job she can’t drop: keep the worlds from bleeding together, shepherd the lost, and make ordinary into armour, breakfasts, bedtime, battle plans. Peace lasts exactly one lullaby. This is the story of an orphan pup who became a goddess by choosing her family; of four imperfect alphas learning how to be better. Steamy, fierce, and full of heart, Goddess of the Underworld is a reverse harem, found-family paranormal romance where love writes the rules and keeps three realms from falling apart.
The Prison Project

The Prison Project

1m Views · Ongoing · Bethany Donaghy
The government's newest experiment in criminal rehabilitation - sending thousands of young women to live alongside some of the most dangerous men held behind bars...

Can love tame the untouchable? Or will it only fuel the fire and cause chaos amongst the inmates?

Fresh out of high school and suffocating in her dead-end hometown, Margot longs for her escape. Her reckless best friend, Cara, thinks she's found the perfect way out for them both - The Prisoner Project - a controversial program offering a life-changing sum of money in exchange for time spent with maximum-security inmates.

Without hesitation, Cara rushes to sign them up.

Their reward? A one-way ticket into the depths of a prison ruled by gang leaders, mob bosses, and men the guards wouldn't even dare to cross...

At the centre of it all, meets Coban Santorelli - a man colder than ice, darker than midnight, and as deadly as the fire that fuels his inner rage. He knows that the project may very well be his only ticket to freedom - his only ticket to revenge on the one who managed to lock him up and so he must prove that he can learn to love…

Will Margot be the lucky one chosen to help reform him?

Will Coban be capable of bringing something to the table other than just sex?

What starts off as denial may very well grow in to obsession which could then fester in to becoming true love…

A temperamental romance novel.
The Pack: Rule Number 1 - No Mates

The Pack: Rule Number 1 - No Mates

1.9m Views · Ongoing · Jaylee
Soft hot lips find the shell of my ear and he whispers, "You think I don't want you?" He pushes his hips forward, grinding into the back of my ass and I groan. "Really?" He chuckles.

"Let me go," I whimper, my body trembling with need. "I don't want you touching me."

I fall forward onto the bed then turn around to stare at him. The dark tattoos of Domonic's chiseled shoulders, quiver and and expand with the heave of his chest. His deep dimpled smile is full of arrogance as he reaches behind himself to lock the door.

Biting his lip, he stalks toward me, his hand going to the seam of his pants and the thickening bulge there.

"Are you sure you don't want me to touch you?" He whispers, untying the knot and slipping a hand inside. "Because I swear to God, that is all I have been wanting to do. Every single day from the moment you stepped in our bar and I smelled your perfect flavor from across the room."


New to the world of shifters, Draven is human on the run. A beautiful girl who no one could protect. Domonic is the cold Alpha of the Red Wolf Pack. A brotherhood of twelve wolves that live by twelve rules. Rules which they vowed could NEVER be broken.

Especially - Rule Number One - No Mates

When Draven meets Domonic, he knows that she is his mate, but Draven has no idea what a mate is, only that she has fallen in love with a shifter. An Alpha that will break her heart to make her leave. Promising herself, she will never forgive him, she disappears.

But she doesn’t know about the child she’s carrying or that the moment she left, Domonic decided rules were made to be broken - and now will he ever find her again? Will she forgive him?
Invisible To Her Bully

Invisible To Her Bully

430.9k Views · Ongoing · sunsationaldee
Unlike her twin brother, Jackson, Jessa struggled with her weight and very few friends. Jackson was an athlete and the epitome of popularity, while Jessa felt invisible. Noah was the quintessential “It” guy at school—charismatic, well-liked, and undeniably handsome. To make matters worse, he was Jackson’s best friend and Jessa’s biggest bully. During their senior year, Jessa decides it was time for her to gain some self-confidence, find her true beauty and not be the invisible twin. As Jessa transformed, she begins to catch the eye of everyone around her, especially Noah. Noah, initially blinded by his perception of Jessa as merely Jackson’s sister, started to see her in a new light. How did she become the captivating woman invading his thoughts? When did she become the object of his fantasies? Join Jessa on her journey from being the class joke to a confident, desirable young woman, surprising even Noah as she reveals the incredible person she has always been inside.
From Substitute To Queen

From Substitute To Queen

1.1m Views · Completed · Hannah Moore
For three years, Sable loved Alpha Darrell with everything she had, spending her salary to support their household while being called an orphan and gold-digger. But just as Darrell was about to mark her as his Luna, his ex-girlfriend returned, texting: "I'm not wearing underwear. My plane lands soon—pick me up and fuck me immediately."

Heartbroken, Sable discovered Darrell having sex with his ex in their bed, while secretly transferring hundreds of thousands to support that woman.

Even worse was overhearing Darrell laugh to his friends: "She's useful—obedient, doesn't cause trouble, handles housework, and I can fuck her whenever I need relief. She's basically a live-in maid with benefits." He made crude thrusting gestures, sending his friends into laughter.

In despair, Sable left, reclaimed her true identity, and married her childhood neighbor—Lycan King Caelan, nine years her senior and her fated mate. Now Darrell desperately tries to win her back. How will her revenge unfold?

From substitute to queen—her revenge has just begun!
Alpha Twins' Mate's broken Human

Alpha Twins' Mate's broken Human

161.5k Views · Ongoing · dragonsbain22
Chiara was raised in the orphanage of the Silver Aspen pack. Not an overly large Pack, but a strong Pack. As a human, she takes the brunt of the pack's bullying, especially the "Ranked Squad" as she calls them. When she turns 18 earlier than she thought, and gets a wolf, will she be able to accept what she is after all the abuse? Accept her wolf? And accept the Twins as her mates? Or will she retreat into herself and leave the Twins struggling to reach her to make things right? Read along to find out.