The Private Love of Decent Parents
Fuzzy Melissa · Completed · 10.0k Words
Introduction
What came through wasn't words—it was raw, desperate sobbing.
In Oak Creek, a well-respected couple called to report their daughter had died. But when officers stepped through the door, what they found made a veteran sheriff drop to his knees and retch—
Their 36-year-old daughter had become part of the couch.
Her body had fused with decomposing foam, waste, and writhing maggots. Skin adhered to cracked leather. Her stomach contained couch padding and her own feces. She weighed 65 pounds.
Through tears, her parents explained: "She had severe autism... wouldn't let anyone touch her..."
But neighbors told a different story: Nobody had laid eyes on this girl in twelve years.
Then investigators found something beneath the couch—freshly used cleaning wipes.
Someone had crouched beside her decomposing body and methodically cleaned her. For days.
Then who stays that composed in hell?
Grief—or guilt?
Chapter 1
"911, what's your emergency?"
What came through wasn't words—it was raw, choking sobs.
"My daughter—" The words were fractured, barely coherent. "She's not breathing... please... you have to help..."
"What's your address, ma'am?"
"217 Maple Ridge Drive... Oak Creek... please hurry..."
Then she broke down completely, sobbing so hard she could barely breathe.
Liam Cole sat in the passenger seat of the patrol car, listening as the dispatcher sent out the ambulance, confirming details. The woman's crying still echoed through the radio, that kind of desperation that made the air in the car feel heavy.
"Poor Thornes," said Sergeant Harry Miller from the driver's seat, turning off the siren. "Clayton's the Rotary Club president. Sheila works at the courthouse. Their daughter's been sick for years—basically bedridden."
Liam said nothing. Three months on the job, and he still hadn't learned to compartmentalize the way older cops did.
They rolled through streets where sunlight slanted across manicured lawns, where every house looked like something out of a magazine. Number 217 was a white Victorian with flowers blooming across the porch.
Everything was so quiet.
Clayton Thorne was waiting at the door. He wore a cashmere cardigan, home clothes, his hair disheveled, looking shell-shocked. When he saw the patrol car, he half-ran, half-stumbled toward them.
"Officers—thank God you're here—" His voice cracked. "It's Ella— my daughter—"
He couldn't finish. He wiped at his eyes.
Miller steadied him. "We're here to help, Mr. Thorne. Ambulance is right behind us."
Clayton nodded, but his steps were unsteady, as if he might collapse at any moment. He led them through the foyer, his hands trembling as he fumbled with the living room doorknob.
"Sheila's inside... she... she can't handle this..."
Muffled crying came from within.
Liam stepped through and saw a middle-aged woman crumpled on the carpet, hands covering her face, body curled in on itself. Her whole body shook with sobs, the sounds escaping through her fingers.
"Sheila..." Clayton moved toward his wife, his own voice trembling. "The doctors told us... it was only a matter of time..."
"No—it's my fault—" Sheila's head snapped up, her face streaked with tears, eyes so swollen they could barely open. "I shouldn't have left—I shouldn't have left her—Ella, baby, I'm so sorry—"
She couldn't continue. She was shaking all over. Clayton sank to his knees beside her and pulled her close, the two of them holding each other desperately.
Liam stood to the side, feeling his throat constrict.
Miller asked quietly, "Where is she?"
Clayton looked up, eyes red-rimmed, and pointed toward the center of the living room. "Right there... she liked to sit there and watch TV... every day she would..."
He couldn't finish. His head dropped again, shoulders shaking.
Liam followed the direction of his gesture.
The living room was immaculate. Sunlight poured through floor-to-ceiling windows onto a spotless Persian rug. Family photos sat arranged on the mantelpiece. The television was on, playing a children's cartoon.
In the center of the room sat a beige leather sofa.
On the sofa sat a woman, back to the door, completely still.
"We didn't dare move her," Sheila's voice came through her tears, trembling. "The doctor said... her bones were so fragile... we were afraid of hurting her..."
"You did the right thing," Miller said.
Liam moved closer, slowly.
There was a faint smell in the room. Not overpowering, but strange—the cloying sweetness of air freshener trying to mask something else, something stale and wrong.
"Did she usually stay down here?" Liam asked, trying to keep his voice gentle.
"Yes..." Clayton's voice still shook. "Ella didn't like her bedroom upstairs... she preferred it here, liked having the TV on... we let her..."
"We left yesterday and she was fine, I swear she was fine," Sheila said suddenly. "When we got back this afternoon and called her for lunch, she was just... sitting there like always, but she wouldn't answer, and then—"
She couldn't continue, burying her face in her husband's shoulder.
Clayton held his wife tightly. "Her condition... we did everything we could..."
Liam stepped around to the side of the sofa. The woman wore an oversized T-shirt, hair falling in limp, messy strands, head tilted slightly forward, face turned toward the television. From this angle, it looked like someone sleeping.
He took another step forward.
The smell grew stronger. Not sharp, but something that made him want to step back.
"Oh God, Ella..." Sheila's crying rose again. "I'm so sorry..."
Liam drew a deep breath and moved to the front of the sofa.
He saw.
Everything else fell away.
Sunlight still cast warm patches across the carpet, but ice slid down Liam's spine.
This was not a body that had just died.
Not even close.
Miller came up beside him. The old sergeant's breathing suddenly grew heavy, his hand instinctively grabbing Liam's arm, fingers digging in.
"Oh my God..." Miller breathed.
On the television, cartoon characters sang cheerfully.
Liam wanted to speak, wanted to move, but he couldn't. He could only stare at what lay before him, one thought pounding in his head:
This wasn't an accident.
This absolutely was not an accident.
Last Chapters
You Might Like 😍
King of the Underworld
However, one fateful day, the King of the Underworld appeared before me and rescued me from the clutches of the most powerful Mafia boss's son. With his deep blue eyes fixed on mine, he spoke softly: "Sephie... short for Persephone... Queen of the Underworld. At last, I have found you." Confused by his words, I stammered out a question, “P..pardon? What does that mean?”
But he simply smiled at me and brushed my hair away from my face with gentle fingers: "You are safe now.”
Sephie, named for the Queen of the Underworld, Persephone, she's quickly finding out how she's destined to fulfill her namesake's role. Adrik is the King of the Underworld, the boss of all bosses in the city he runs.
She was a seemingly normal girl, with a normal job until it all changed one night when he walked through the front door and her life changed abruptly. Now, she finds herself on the wrong side of powerful men, but under the protection of the most powerful among them.
Alpha Under Love Spell
Thorin pushed her on the bed and pinned her with his body. He growled near her face, “Liar!”
“No! No! I am not lying!”
“Then explain this!” Thorin whipped the screen of his phone near her eyes. Maeve looked at the screen, and her eyes widened with shock. It was a DNA report. It clearly said that Valeska was Maeve and Thorin’s daughter. “You have been lying to me for months now. Why did you hide that she is my daughter? Why did you start hating me? Did you never love me?”
“What should I have done? Let you kill my daughter!” snapped Maeve.
“What? Kill? What the hell are you talking about?” shouted Thorin.
After a passionate night with the Alpha Heir Thorin Blackridge, Maeve Arrendale, a human, found herself pregnant. She knew she had left her contact details for Thorin to find her, but he never came. Desperately, she went to tell him everything and ask him to take responsibility. But what came at her was humiliation and the devilish serial killer, Ozul.
She had no idea how she escaped her certain but she thanked every god and ran far away from Thorin and his world. She raised her child on her own. She herself had a difficult life and didn’t want her daughter to suffer. So she did everything in her power to give Valeska a good life.
Her life was turned upside down when Thorin came to her office as her boss. His fated mate, Vespera clinging to his arms. Now, Thorin hated her for vanishing from his life, and Maeve hated him for sending a serial killer to kill her.
Will Thorin accept his daughter? Will Maeve forgive him for attempting to kill her? If not Thorin, then who sent a serial killer to kill Maeve? An ancient magic, a prophecy, a powerful child is going to change everything in everyone’s life. Is everyone ready?
A pack of their own
They'll Regret This
My fiancé didn't just dump me—he proposed to her that same night. My so-called family handed me bus fare and a one-way ticket to the countryside.
Perfect. Let them think they won.
They don't know who I really am. The anonymous genius surgeon who saves lives when elite hospitals give up. The legendary artist whose paintings sell for millions at auction. The undefeated shadow queen of the underground fighting circuit. And the true heiress to a fortune that makes theirs look like pocket change.
Now my ex-fiancé begs on his knees. My fake sister's jealousy is eating her alive. And that cold, arrogant CEO who once threw our engagement contract in my face? He's hunting me down like a man possessed, desperate for one more chance.
They threw me away like trash to upgrade their lives.
Joke's on them.
I was always the upgrade.
From Substitute To Queen
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!
Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother
"What is wrong with me?
Why does being near him make my skin feel too tight, like I’m wearing a sweater two sizes too small?
It’s just newness, I tell myself firmly.
He’s my boyfirend’s brother.
This is Tyler’s family.
I’m not going to let one cold stare undo that.
**
As a ballet dancer, My life looks perfect—scholarship, starring role, sweet boyfriend Tyler. Until Tyler shows his true colors and his older brother, Asher, comes home.
Asher is a Navy veteran with battle scars and zero patience. He calls me "princess" like it's an insult. I can't stand him.
When My ankle injury forces her to recover at the family lake house, I‘m stuck with both brothers. What starts as mutual hatred slowly turns into something forbidden.
I'm falling for my boyfriend's brother.
**
I hate girls like her.
Entitled.
Delicate.
And still—
Still.
The image of her standing in the doorway, clutching her cardigan tighter around her narrow shoulders, trying to smile through the awkwardness, won’t leave me.
Neither does the memory of Tyler. Leaving her here without a second thought.
I shouldn’t care.
I don’t care.
It’s not my problem if Tyler’s an idiot.
It’s not my business if some spoiled little princess has to walk home in the dark.
I’m not here to rescue anyone.
Especially not her.
Especially not someone like her.
She’s not my problem.
And I’ll make damn sure she never becomes one.
But when my eyes fell on her lips, I wanted her to be mine.
Accardi
“I thought you said you were done chasing me?” Gen mocked.
“I am done chasing you.”
Before she could formulate a witty remark, Matteo threw her down. She landed hard on her back atop his dining room table. She tried to sit up when she noticed what he was doing. His hands were working on his belt. It came free of his pants with a violent yank. She collapsed back on her elbows, her mouth gaping open at the display. His face was a mask of sheer determination, his eyes were a dark gold swimming with heat and desire. His hands wrapped around her thighs and pulled her to the edge of the table. He glided his fingers up her thighs and hooked several around the inside of her panties. His knuckles brushed her dripping sex.
“You’re soaking wet, Genevieve. Tell me, was it me that made you this way or him?” his voice told her to be careful with her answer. His knuckles slid down through her folds and she threw her head back as she moaned. “Weakness?”
“You…” she breathed.
Genevieve loses a bet she can’t afford to pay. In a compromise, she agrees to convince any man her opponent chooses to go home with her that night. What she doesn’t realize when her sister’s friend points out the brooding man sitting alone at the bar, is that man won’t be okay with just one night with her. No, Matteo Accardi, Don of one of the largest gangs in New York City doesn’t do one night stands. Not with her anyway.
Goddess Of The Underworld
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.
Reborn To Rule: I Will Seize The Throne!
He paused, his gaze never leaving mine.
"And I don't share what's mine."
☆
I died on my son's death anniversary, betrayed by the man I'd devoted my entire life to, and the woman who stood by, smiling as I took my last breath… was my very own sister.
When I opened my eyes again, I was five years in the past—before the betrayal, before my death and before the beginning of it all.
This time, I refused to marry the man who destroyed me.
Instead, I walked straight into the arms of the only man the entire Empire feared—Crown Prince Alpha Rhaedon Ashkaar.
Rhaedon was everything Lucien wasn't.
Dangerous. Competent. Powerful.
And the perfect weapon for my revenge.
He wanted the throne. I wanted vengeance.
It should have been the perfect alliance, but revenge was never that simple.
With every step I took toward my revenge, another secret from my first life came to light. The deeper I dug, the more I realized I wasn't the only one playing this game.
And by the time I uncovered the truth...
Walking away from Rhaedon Ashkaar was no longer an option.
My Life As A Werewolf
Lexington makes it crystal clear: most new turnlings die before the second full moon, and if she survives, she belongs to his pack. But to Jo, this isn't a terrifying curse—it's the content gold she's been waiting for. She starts documenting her bizarre, terrifying, and surprisingly entertaining supernatural life, determined to make her 'My First Shift' vlog the biggest sensation on VidHub.
Her antics quickly draw the ire of the most powerful being on the continent: Merrick, the lethal and uncompromising Lycan King. He sees her rogue vlogging as a threat to his world’s secrecy, and tasks Lexington with the impossible: bring the feisty new wolf to heel or face the King’s wrath.
Unbeknownst to Jo (and the King himself), Merrick recognizes her as his fated mate—a destiny he has vowed never to accept. As Jo's bright, defiant personality starts to chip away at the sullen, dangerous existence of his pack, the King finds himself helplessly watching her channel, falling a little more in love with the chaotic wolf he's supposed to silence forever.
Jolene's journey is a battle for survival, not just against her shifting body and dangerous Alpha, but against a destiny written by a Lycan King who loves her too much to ever claim her.
Bound by Fate, Freed by Choice
Her escape leads her to Alpha Rowan, the commanding leader of the Blackwood Pack, who offers shelter, protection, and an unexpected chance at a new life. But Rowan’s fierce and jealous fiancée sees Lyla as a threat, and the pack’s charming Beta is drawn to her quiet strength.
As a dangerous attraction simmers between Lyla and Rowan, they begin to unravel a dark web of secrets that implicates Kaiden and threatens both their worlds.
With her hidden power awakening, Lyla must navigate treacherous loyalties, face the alpha who shattered her, and decide: Will she follow the destiny fate forced upon her, or claim the love and strength she has chosen for herself?
Bound By Power, Torn By Love
She regards him as her only salvation, but he regards her as a pawn for revenge. When two enemies dance on the sharp knife, what will be the final outcome?
