Showing results by narrator "Lee Turner Smith" in All Categories

First published in 1847, Jane Eyre was the last and most popular of the novels composed by the Brontë sisters. The narrative bristles with energy and passionate conviction, and is one of the first novels written from the perspective of a child.

I'm a loan shark. Breaking people is in my blood. The Haynes were supposed to be a straightforward job. Go in and pull the trigger twice. One bullet for Charlie, one for his sister. But when I saw Valentina, I wanted her. Only, in our world, those who owe us don't get second chances. No way in hell will my mother let her live. So I devised a plan to keep her. It's depraved. It's immoral. It's dubious. It's perfect. Just like her.

Ian Hart is the most wanted fugitive in the country. His gang is linked to the riskiest and biggest heists in the history of the continent. His identity is an enigma to everyone except me. Because, the night he robbed the casino, he set his sights on a different target.

Men like us, we see things. We do things, things that make us unfeeling. That's the price of power and money, of living la belle vie and running the French mafia. Then she came along like a pretty wildflower pushing through the cracks on a dirty pavement - fragile yet resilient, a breath of beauty among the filth.

When Gabriel broke down my door, he took over my body and life. Never with force, but always with clever manipulation. He stripped me of my independence, my defenses, and my clothes and turned me into an addict. My addiction is him. Once, I had dreams and a future. Now, I have fears, scars, and insatiable needs. I’m damaged beyond repair, but if I’m to survive the most dangerous man in Johannesburg, I can’t allow him to break me, because broken toys are destined for the garbage dump.

Men like us, we see things. We do things, things that make us unfeeling. That’s the price of power and money, of living la belle vie and running the French mafia. Then she came along like a pretty wildflower pushing through the cracks on a dirty pavement - fragile yet resilient, a breath of beauty among the filth. She was supposed to be just another job, a nameless person I was to pluck from her life and hand to my brother, nothing but a pawn in the gamble of our diamond business.

Ian Hart is the most notorious criminal in the country. Like the thief he is, he came in the dark and stole a night of my life. He left me with souvenirs. Disaster and fear are my new realities. I’ll forever look over my shoulder, terrified he’d return, because when he took me, he stole more than just a few hours of my time. His crime has consequences neither of us could’ve imagined. If I’m to escape the nightmare of my life, I have to outsmart him.

My love is wasted like gemstones in the dust, walked over by an oblivious shoe. It takes many suffering years and layers of mountains to squeeze carbon into a precious stone. Now that I’m polished and hard like a diamond, he doesn’t get to kick me back into the dirt. Men like him don’t love women like me. They don’t love. Period. But he made me. He’ll live with me. Because diamonds are forever.

Girls like me, we know how to survive. We each have our own little ways, but we acquire those skills at the same tender age. If you ask me how many times a person can die, I’ll tell you many times. As many times as a man stabs you in the stomach with betrayal and wrings out your heart with lies. Girls like me, we live. We don’t get a choice. We step over the cliff and fall. Eat, sleep, die, and repeat.

Ian Hart stole a night of my life, but he took so much more. His obsession pinned a label on me. His lust put me in an impossible situation. Now I have to choose sides. I have to decide between right and wrong. Only, no matter what choice I make, each comes with dreadful consequences. There’s only one way this can end - how every tragedy ends.