Shady Bay (24 page)

Summer was here
. My hair was now cut in a short, inverted bob and I looked hot. Modesty was for losers. June and Mama helped me into a fierce dress I’d picked out for this shoot. It was a gown, layers of hot pink beneath flowing layers of a softer shade of the same color. Simon snapped pictures of me in every way imaginable before declaring the shoot a success. I had to agree. I felt amazing and hoped it showed in the photos. I hoped they somehow could inspire hope in someone else, someone who was battling something in their own lives.

My cell phone rang on the drive home. I was tucked into the back seat of
Mama’s new car. Well, it was new to her. It was a tiny Honda Civic. “Hello?”

“Mercy-girl!”

“Hi, Daddy!”

“How’s my girl on the big day?”

“Fabulous.”

“You sound like it! How’s your Mama?”

“She’s doing great. I’m so proud of her.”

Mama looked at me from the passenger seat and smiled
as June was driving her car.

“I’m proud of you, too, Mercy. I wish I could be there today.”

“It’s okay, Daddy. You’re always in my heart.”

“That’s a damn good place to be, Mercy. Thank you.”
I could hear a gruff voice shout, “Time’s up,” in the background. He cleared his throat. “I’ve gotta go. I love you, baby girl.”

“Love you, too, Daddy.”

When we got home, June helped me get ready. I’d bought a flowing, white gown, with tiny spaghetti straps that stretched all the way down to the low square back. Mama helped strap on the white crocheted beach sandals, which were basically designs that flowed from the toe as they wrapped around to the ankle. They were pretty and very popular. I’d sold out of them twice already and the season had just started.

June touched up my makeup and made it softer, still pink, just a softer color. I spritzed my favorite Heavenly perfume from Victoria’s Secret and followed Mama and June onto the sand. Everyone we knew, with the exception of Daddy, was there waiting for us. A small sign and big wooden crate held people’s shoes. We’d been married for a little over a year, but Jaxon insisted on giving me a ‘real’ wedding. I was happy with what I already had, but he’d insisted. Then he and June had conspired together and planned the whole event. Invitations went out in the spring announcing the ceremony and reception to follow at Shady Bay. Our friends stood when I approached. Brody smiled and walked both June and Mama to their places. June was my maid of honor and Mama stood beside her, smiling brightly. He returned for me and offered his arm and then Brody escorted me down the sandy aisle to my already-husband.

Let me tell you what. Jaxon looked edible. My breath whooshed out of my lungs. Holy hell. Jaxon waited for me in a tan suit, sky blue shirt and tie that was striped with both colors. But that wasn’t what held my attention, his lush green eyes, sexy smile and the dimple I wanted to fill up with milk and dunk my chocolate chip cookie into forever that took my breath away.

The tattoo on the inside of my forearm itched a little. I couldn’t wait to show him. Following my gaze, Jaxon narrowed in on the black outline. He grinned and gave me a when did you do this look. I’d gotten the queen, from the chess board. My queen to his king. Leaning in, he whispered into my ear, “What’s this for, baby?”

“Tell me what yours means.”

“It means I’ll always be there for you, your king.”

I smiled. He kissed the outside corner of my lips. “Mine means that I’ll always be your queen. And the queen protects her king. I love you, Jax.”

“Love you, baby.”

We were joined in marriage, again and then walked down the beach as Simon took pictures of us, some traditional, some funny, and some downright R-rated. We partied the night away with our friends at Shady Bay. Pure bliss and perfection. That was how we re-pledged forever to one another.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read what I wrote. If you’d like to help other readers decide whether or not to read this book, you could leave a review on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com or Goodreads.com.

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Winter Shadows

Devil Creek

Pariah

Reap

The few minutes before dawn
were usually the most serene. Not today. Today, everything would change. Today, we would protect the future against the tyrants who ruled over us. The sky was lightening little by little, shedding the thick, dark blanket of night. Worn wooden planks creaked underfoot as I paced back and forth. Standing still wasn’t an option.  The platform of the village’s train depot was empty. I’d made sure of it. So, my feet wore a path into the weathered wood as I silently prayed that everything would go smoothly, would go as planned.

My brother had gotten himself in trouble. Four years ago he’d been transferred from our village to work in the factories in Olympus, a Greater City. Two years ago, his lover had given birth to a baby girl. He was unable to marry her. He was a Lesser. She was a Greater. It was illegal for them to even speak. He wasn’t even permitted to make eye contact with her. So, how they had met, fallen in love, and been intimate was beyond me.

A few generations ago, a great plague swept through The United States of America, what had until then, been a great and powerful country. The world had been connected in ways that I could hardly wrap my head around. It was said that people could ride great ships through the air, cross oceans in a matter of hours.

The plague spread from America to the other continents and countries, leaving nothing but death and sorrow in its wake. Ninety percent of the Earth’s population was wiped out in a matter of only a few months. Certain technologies survived, along with a few of the experts who knew how to use them. Precautions against further spread of the disease were taken, and eventually, the plague was laid to rest along with its victims.

Those who had survived the disease, which affected everyone regardless of station, were tested. Those deemed to have superior genes, whose bodies could likely survive another onslaught of illness in the future, were separated from those whose genetics were less-than-ideal. And so began the separation of Greaters and Lessers.

The Lessers served the Greaters from small villages where their lives were consumed with producing raw materials that the Greaters needed. Over time, the divide between the two groups had formed into a deep, dangerous chasm. The Greaters had become power-hungry and oppressive, abusive of the power that they’d claimed.

So, I was shocked about my brother’s news. He could be beheaded for consorting with the woman. I shuddered to think about what they might do if the Greaters discovered their child. She was a hybrid, a mix of both worlds. I had to help. I would hide her. Keep her safe. She was our future, the best of both Greater and Lesser, belonging to neither side, yet an equal and important part of both.

When the Greater woman had been questioned about the pregnancy, she had lied. She’d protected him. No doubt she loved him. But the baby had grown into a toddler and was now much more difficult to conceal. I knew this day would probably come, but had no idea what the urgency was. I’d received a communication from him, which was risky enough for both of us. If someone found it, we’d both be hanged, so I deleted it almost as quickly as I read it. The three needed a way out of Olympus, and the baby needed to be hidden. She needed a new home—a loving home. I was their only option. But having no children of my own, I would have to figure out how to provide that for her. I had no idea how to care for a toddler. But, I supposed we’d learn together.

The sky lightened further, lofty clouds streaked happily across the sky, tinged with oranges and yellows. The train would be here any minute. The smell of spring was everywhere; fresh and earthy. The fields were being fertilized. New ones were being sown. We would nurture and care for them until they bore their fruit in the fall. Our village was Orchard, and we grew apples for the Greaters who required the bounty of the Earth.

The loud horn of the train sounded in the distance, between two hills, further than I could see. Soon, puffs of gray smoke rose slowly and hung thickly in the valley beyond. Old and rusty, the wheels of the train screeched and squealed as the engineer applied his brake. Sparks flew from the contact with the rail in various places. The metal cars themselves were also rusted. It was a cargo train, the only kind that would be expected here in Orchard.

Car after car rattled past me. Third car from the back, I thought. That’s where they were supposed to be. I knocked lightly on the steel door and then slid open the latch. It was hollow, with the exception of stacked wooden crates, buckets and bushels. I whispered for him. “Adam.”

“Lulu?” A voice whispered in return.

“You have to hurry. The train is only supposed to stop for twenty minutes.”

My brother stepped forward, carrying a child, whose head lolled limply on his shoulder. She was asleep and looked more peaceful than anything I’d ever seen before in my life. Drool pooled in the corner of her little mouth and her eyelashes fluttered lightly. Her curly brownish-red hair was stirred lightly by the breeze. My heart attached to her immediately. My niece.

A woman stepped out from behind Adam. He cleared his throat. “Lu, this is Kaia.” He looked wearily from her to me. I stepped forward and offered her my hand.

“Hello, Kaia. I can’t imagine how difficult this must be for you.”

She nodded and tears cascaded from her greenish eyes, their pupils rimmed in Greater gold. It was an attribute they all bore, though the rings of some Greaters were more pronounced than others. “Does she have the ring?”

Adam swallowed and shifted his feet. “Yes. But it’s very small. Almost unnoticeable. Will she be safe here?”

“I believe so. I have traveled out of the village a handful of times, but I’m the only one who has seen a Greater in years.”

They both nodded. Tears welled in Adam’s eyes as he peeled the child away from his torso and transferred her onto mine. She probably weighed 30 pounds. The little one stirred for a moment and then settled back down. “Please say goodbye quickly and hide yourselves again. This train will continue to Vesuvius. A man named Brock will meet you there and provide you with new identification.”

“Thank you, Lulu. Please take care of her. If anyone finds out about her, please send word, or get her to safety.”

“Why is this so urgent? What’s happening in Olympus?”

A great burst of steam and smoke sizzled from the train’s engine, several cars away.

Kaia jumped at the sound and huddled into Adam, who wrapped his arm around her lovingly. “I don’t have time to explain. Just please keep her safe. No one can know she’s a Greater, or part Greater, anyway.”

“Luella?” The engineer called over my comm.

I depressed the button and answered. “Yes?”

“Are you finished? I need to pull out as soon as possible.”

“Yes. Everything is secure. Please continue to your destination.”

“Thank you. Preparing for departure.”

“Have a safe trip.”

His static-filled chuckle rang out. “Always. See you on the next pass-through.”

Looking back at Adam and Kaia, my heart thundered in my chest. “Hide. I
will
keep her safe. I promise. I would give my life to keep that promise. It doesn’t mean she’ll be treated well here. Life is hard in Orchard, as in all Lesser villages, but I will give her a normal Lesser life.”

My brother kissed my cheek and then brushed the child’s hair back from her little face and kissed her, too. “Goodbye, Abby Blue.”

“Abby Blue?”

“Yeah,” he stroked her cheek. “Her name is Abigail Blue Kelley. I call her Abby Blue.”

Kaia kissed her baby girl goodbye, and Adam had to pull her away and back onto the train car so that I could latch the door. As the wheels began to move them down the track and away from me, I could hear her cries. They echoed through the old metal car, fading into the cool morning air. I was certain that that sound would haunt me for the rest of my life.