---- Chapter 11 Jackson lay awake long after Candida' s breathing had evened out into a soft snore. He stared at her face in the moonlight, the features that had once driven him to madness. Now, they seemed foreign, sharp and unfamiliar. A deep-seated unease coiled in his gut. He slipped out of bed, the floor cold beneath his feet, and walked to the window. The moon was a stark white disc in the black sky. It offered no comfort. Exhaustion finally claimed him, and he fell into a fitful, dream -haunted sleep. He was at his wedding again. The church was filled with light and flowers. And Elena was walking towards him down the aisle, a vision in white lace, her face glowing with a love so pure it took his breath away. "Oh, Jackson," she whispered, her eyes shining as she took his hand. "Thank you for loving me." His heart hammered against his ribs. He was sliding the ring onto her finger, their future stretching before them, bright and beautiful. He leaned in to kiss his bride. The church doors burst open. ---- Candida stood there, her face a mask of rage, a knife clutched in her hand. "I ILkill you!" she shrieked, lunging not at him, but at Elena. He saw it happen in slow motion. The flash of steel. The red stain spreading across the impossible white of Elena' s dress. Her eyes, wide with shock and pain, looking at him one last time before the light went out. He saw her fall. Jackson woke with a gasp, his body drenched in cold sweat. His heart was pounding a frantic, terrified rhythm against his ribs. The dream was so real, so vivid. It was a memory. The memory he had suppressed for five years. His phone vibrated on the nightstand. It was his assistant. He crept out to the balcony, closing the glass door softly behind him "What is it?" he hissed into the phone. "Sir, the investigation at the airport... we' re hitting a wall," the assistant said, his voice tense. "It's like someone is actively blocking us. Records are missing, surveillance tapes have been wiped." Jackson' s eyes narrowed. A cold anger began to burn through the fog of his grief. Someone had helped Elena disappear. Or someone was covering up her murder. ---- "| don' t care what it takes," Jackson growled. "Find out who it is. | want a name." He hung up and stood on the balcony, the cool night air doing nothing to quell the fire in his mind. He couldn' t shake the dream. He couldn' t shake the feeling that he was missing something vital, a piece of a puzzle that was driving him insane. He wandered through the silent house, a ghost in his own life. He found himself on the rooftop garden, the one Elena had so lovingly tended. The flowers were all dead. The leaves were brown and withered. The place was a graveyard, a testament to his neglect. He knelt, touching a dead rose, its petals crumbling to dust in his fingers. He saw her there, her back to him, humming softly as she worked. He saw her smile, a beacon of light in his dark world. "She' s not dead," he whispered to the dead flowers. He wouldn' t believe it. He couldn' t. There was no body, no proof. She was out there somewhere. And he would find her. He would find her and bring her home. Title: A Princess? No! I'm the Female General! In "A Princess? No! I'm the Female General!" by CrushReel, Adela Taylor, a noble family's daughter, disguises herself as her brother to secure their Duke title by joining the army. Despite facing obstacles, she achieves remarkable success. However, upon her triumphant return, her brother betrays her, setting off a chain of events that will test her resolve and reveal hidden truths. This captivating novel delves into themes of secrets, reincarnation, revenge, murder, and drama. Adela's journey from deception to betrayal is filled with intrigue and suspense as she navigates through a world where power dynamics and family loyalties collide. What sets this story apart is its strong female lead who defies expectations and challenges societal norms in a quest for justice and redemption. Experience the riveting tale of Adela Taylor online at CrushReel and witness the transformation of a princess into a formidable female general.