Novels by Edethabor

Arianna stepped off the train and exhaled slowly, letting the tension of the journey bleed out of her shoulders. It had been a long one — longer than usual. Spring had barely announced itself, and already the season had caused enough trouble. Flooding along several stretches of track had forced the service onto an alternate route, adding nearly two hours to what should have been a straightforward journey home. She had sat through it all with her eyes fixed on the passing landscape, telling herself that rest was the only thing on her agenda now. No calls, no case files, no thinking about any of it.That resolve lasted exactly as long as it took her to board the bus.She found a seat near the middle and had barely settled when the conversation drifting from the row in front of her caught her attention. Two women, both middle-aged, were speaking in that particular tone people use when they are certain a story is worth telling — animated, slightly indignant, leaning toward each other."Th

The sun hadn't even fully cleared the horizon when Jonah found himself gripping the steering wheel of the SUV, his knuckles white as he navigated the nearly empty streets toward the courthouse. He’d barely slept a wink, his mind looping through every possible disaster scenario like a broken record. Usually, Jonah was the rock, the guy who could stare down a boardroom of angry investors or a pack of corporate spies without breaking a sweat, but today felt different. He felt exposed.Honestly, he wasn't feeling all that confident about this morning. While he was more than capable of holding his own in a scrap or managing the daily chaos of Novax, he was deeply dependent on his boss in these kinds of high-stakes legal situations. Kaelen had the vision, the sharp tongue, and that weirdly calm authority that made judges listen. Without him sitting in the back seat, Jonah felt like a soldier walking into a minefield without a map."You’re overthinking it, Jonah," the law

Kaelen stared at the grey concrete wall of the canteen, his issued military phone feeling like a brick in his hand. Jonah’s voice had finally cut out, but the words were still ringing in his ears, vibrating with a tension he didn't know how to handle. He was exhausted, but the news about Arianna’s choice had spiked his adrenaline in the worst way possible. He understood it—really, he did—but that didn’t stop the slow, hot crawl of exasperation from tightening his chest. "She’s really doing this, Jonah?" Kaelen asked, his voice low and raspy from hours of silence in the lab."She feels like she doesn't have a choice, Boss," Jonah replied over the static-heavy line. "The pressure from the press, the way Riley is painting her in the media... she thinks if she distances herself, it protects you and Mirella. She’s trying to be a martyr."Kaelen let out a sharp, jagged breath. "I don't need a martyr. I need her. She thinks she’s helping by backing away, but she’s just giving Riley a clear

Arianna was in the living room with her parents when her mother called out to her from across the room."Ari, there's a call on my phone for you. The number isn't saved," her mother said, holding the device out with a slightly puzzled expression.Arianna frowned as she crossed over to take it. She couldn't think of anyone she had failed to save a number for. She picked up cautiously."Hello?""Arianna."She recognized the voice immediately. Jonah. She pulled the phone slightly away from her ear and stared at it for a second before bringing it back. Of course it was him. He had used a different number because he probably knew she wouldn't pick up if she saw his name.She was already reaching for the end call button when his voice came again, quicker this time."Wait. Just — wait. Please. Give me one minute."She stopped. She didn't know why exactly, but she stopped. Maybe it was the fact that he said please, and Jonah didn't say please often. She held the phone and said nothing, which

Kaelen sat hunched over a series of glass-encased monitors, his eyes tracing the jagged lines of a genetic sequence that shouldn't have existed.He had only been officially working on the military’s project for a short while, but the pace here was breakneck.Every single hour brought a new discovery, a fresh piece of the puzzle that made his heart hammer against his ribs.He was making grand discoveries at a rate that would have taken a civilian lab a decade to achieve. The resources at his disposal were staggering—unlimited processing power, rare enzymes, and a team of silent, efficient assistants who moved like ghosts.If things went according to the plan he was sketching out in his mind, he actually had a real, tangible hope of treating Mirella.He didn't want to think about it too much.He couldn't even begin to fully imagine the relief because a part of him was still terrified.He feared that his hope might eventually fail, that the science would hit a wall he couldn't climb, and

The Alderton was not a large space. Maybe forty people on a busy night, fewer on a Tuesday. He scanned the room the way he used to scan a courtroom before delivering a ruling — methodically, without making it obvious that he was doing it. The man reading near the window. The two suits at the bar who hadn't looked up from their conversation. The server folding napkins by the service station. The older gentleman nursing something amber three tables away who had not moved since Harold arrived.Any of them. None of them. He had no way of knowing.That was, of course, the point.His fingers rested flat on the table. He brought them back to his glass, wrapped them around it, and looked at the woman across from him."Not an issue," he said. His voice came out exactly as he intended — measured, without the crack of a man who had just spent thirty seconds scanning a room for surveillance. "I'll get it done."She smiled. It was a clean, professiona