Finis, page 1
Cyborg: Redux
Once evil reigns there is only the honest left to fear…
Clarissa was an ordinary nanny until Dr. Jeremy Colvert made her a bio cybernetic freak. On the run, it was an act of kindness that nearly ended in disaster.
When Michael met Clarissa everything in his world changed—again—too. He too, is a “Cybe Enhanced Human” — a creature greater mankind now fears. Now they’re hiding from a world out to get them and aiming to shut down Dr. Colvert’s experimentation isn’t exactly going to plan because worse, much worse, lurks just beyond sight.
Love might have bloomed, but there’ll be no future if they can’t save each other and it’s going to take more than just them to succeed.
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Children Of A Greater Evil
In the deepening darkness, hope can continue to bloom.
With the knowledge of the cybernetically enhanced, causing the populace to seek stronger, faster, and better warriors, a faction has determined they can use this opportunity to further their ends.
Senator Daniella Villede takes charge of a covert agency. Their mission is to investigate and close down those who’d overthrow the government. She’s on the rise in her political career, but as conditions change, so does her role.
Jonah McDowell is just the man to head up the security force. Drawn to Daniella, he fights against his attraction. She’s his superior, a senator, and beyond his reach.
When the unthinkable happens, Daniella turns to Jonah, but staying alive is just the first step.
Content Warning: this story contains sexual content and violence but also hope for a future where love conquers evil
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When Evil Came To Stay
When things are at their lowest ebb, chances are it’s going to get worse.
For Erin McNally that includes working alongside David Villede. He’s the one man she wants and can never have. Too much separates them—position, money, and power are just the beginning.
For David, Erin is the woman he dreams of and burns for. After she’s hurt in a horrible incident, his protective instincts kick into overdrive.
But the times are dangerous—the genetically engineered warrior kids are growing in power, there’s someone in the camp they trust who’s betraying them, and the tide of public acceptance could just as easily turn against them as in their direction.
Success isn’t assured, and neither is their survival. Love may be their only hope.
Content Warning: Genetic modification, violence and erotic content exist within this book.
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Finis: The War To End All Wars
Inevitably, the end must come. But only one side can win the war.
Senna Reed—soldier and arson investigator—knows danger. She was there right beside the men in the war—a soldier. Now she’s facing an enemy the likes of which no one in their right mind could have foreseen years before.
Franklin Mann is a soldier first and foremost. Romantic entanglements aren’t his speciality, but Senna, the woman he’s been tasked to work with, pushes all his emotional buttons. He fights the emotional entanglements…until he can fight no more.
The passion between them is scorching, but there’s work to be done. Dirty tasks only soldiers can perform.
The possibility of failure in tracking down the one person who is behind the creation of the super-soldiers and neutralizing them won’t be easy. The battle will require them all to steel themselves, because never before have they seen the likes of what’s to come.
There are so many to thank and yet trying to list them is difficult.
Keri, Suzi, Sassie, Tee, Michelle, Susan… All part of my tribe!
Makers & Fakers! You guys seriously rock! Thank you for your awesome support whether it’s a rocky patch or perfection.
To Pamela & Willsin for editing and covers that simply rock my world.
To my husband Mark and Miss C…
To my awesome readers who’ve invested in this series. Thank you.
Imogene Nix
Kingaroy
2021
Copyright © 2022 by Imogene Nix®
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction. Character, places and events are from the author's imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.
* * *
Print ISBN 978-1-922369-33-8
EBook ISBN: 9781922369970
CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
The Celtic Cupid Trilogy
Star of Ishtar
The Blood Bride by Imogene Nix
Also by Imogene Nix
About the Author
CHAPTER 1
Senna Reed poked at the meal on her plate. “Slop, more like,” she muttered. It was an unappetizing mess, and not for the first time, she considered how her life had come full circle. Back on a base again, eating military grub, wasn’t quite what she’d envisioned when she’d returned to civilian life.
The meat was dewy at best, or better described as downright wet. The vegetables erred on the side of overcooked, and she wasn’t the only one feeling the pain of the bad food standards. With a sigh, she shunted the plate away then rose. If there was nothing edible, she refused to waste any more of her time.
“There isn’t even an herb or condiment to be seen,” she said.
Out the doorway, she caught sight of the orange light in the sky and wondered, as she always seemed to these days, what the cause was. Since the lockdown of the base, the excursions to the city were limited to targeted attacks, the odd mission to extract personnel, or guard duty for traveling officials.
Cupping her hand over her brow, she ignored the trickle of sweat that slid down her back. Summer was on its way with a vengeance, and things were only likely to get worse once the real heat settled in.
“They hit the last of the hospitals. Saint Jory’s security contacted us at 2000 hours to advise they were surrounded.”
She whirled at the voice then sighed heavily. “Mann. Next time, some warning would be useful. Civilian losses?”
Franklin Mann. She’d first met him years ago, when he’d been a guard for Dr. Michael Villede. Not that he needed one now, given both he and his wife were cybe-enhanced with super-strength. Senna snorted but stilled the sound when Mann pinned her with his dark brown gaze.
Mann was a long-time pain in the ass, all brawn and not so much brain. He tended to lumber around, beefcake-like, but she had to give him credit for his fighting style. Most people took him cheap, thinking he’d be too heavy to move quickly, but there was an unusual grace to him when it came to hand-to-hand combat.
“My contacts say minimal. Mostly the site was cleared after we sent the first alert. Only the most necessary cases were still in situ. Still, the loss of medical personnel won’t help the greater community.”
Senna frowned at his assessment. She rarely had the opportunity to talk to the man, having drawn her conclusions remotely. Yet, he’d summed up everything she’d wanted to know with brevity. It made her wonder if she’d sold him short.
“Your sources?” she asked.
He shrugged and glanced away. “I know some people who know other people.”
A moment passed, then another. The need to twitch rising which angered her. Senna realized he’d say nothing more unless directly asked, and it irked. “Okay, thanks.”
She took off, heading across the parade grounds in the direction of the offices, aware her particular skillset might be required by Daniella and Jonah.
So much had changed in such a short while, she mused. Daniella had become the head of the resistance, and Jonah had assumed the position of Base Leader.
Her own team of arson investigators had been scattered after the first major attack by the children. “If someone had mentioned even a modicum of what happened in the last few months, I would have laughed at them.”
From the corner of her eye, she spied movement and turned, then breathed freely once more when she realized it was David and Erin. Their weariness was clear in the droop of their shoulders and married with the soot on their faces.
“Tough night?” Senna asked.
Erin’s lips firmed, white lines edging the pink flesh. “An attack on Saint Jory’s. About sixty lost, mainly ICU staff and patients.”
Senna growled. Always just too late, but that was what she’d trained for, wasn’t it? Right now there was no satisfaction in knowing she’d be able to tell them when and how. “Dammit. What do you need from me?”
David shook his head. “We may need your skills with explosives, finding what they hit the building with, but until then, we just need to get clean, some food—”
“Avoid the mess hall then.”
David glowered while
“Overcooked and really wet meat. They tried to pass it off as stew.”
“Urgh.” David shuddered. “Maybe we’ll just pop on over to the infirmary then. I’m sure Michael and Clarissa will have something better on offer.”
“So I hear. Maybe they could teach those who are on cook duty a few things?” Senna snarled.
“I’ll mention it to Daniella. Now, if you’ll excuse us, I’m not so sure I don’t stink of some charred things I don’t want to consider.” David tugged on his wife’s hand, and Erin waved goodbye as they trudged off.
Once gaining the interior of the office space, Senna was stopped by a small woman rocking a baby at the front desk. If she didn’t know better, she’d call this unattached woman almost maternal. However, today, she could also add the tag of ‘gatekeeper’.
“Senna, what can you do for us today?”
Senna blinked at the strange query. Maylin was the resident data and technological wizard of the base. Had she decided to adopt one of the children they’d found in the laboratory just two months ago?
“I didn’t realize you were chosen, Maylin! Congratulations on your new child!”
The woman eyed her with an intense glare. “I wasn’t. I’m simply sitting until his mother can return.” She grimaced. “I have no intention of breeding or fostering.” The baby waved its arms and gurgled before a large, smelly emanation came from the region of its bottom.
Taking a step back, Senna waved her hands, hoping to ward off the stench. Maylin looked downright horrified and stared at the being in her arms.
“I’ve come to see the senator or Jonah if either are available?”
“Daniella is meeting with members of the resistance, but Jonah will be here in a couple of minutes. I just hope the mother turns up quickly and takes this bundle of joy home. Soon.”
Maylin’s scrunched face told Senna everything she wanted to know. “Okay, thanks.” She moved away from the desk, and around the corner, perching on the hard, plastic chair while waiting for Jonah to arrive.
Franklin watched as Senna, a tall, dark-haired woman, strode purposefully away. He wondered if she were dismissive of his talents. Hell, he was damned good in the field, but not a strategist, and he was aware she was well-regarded as an investigator with the arson team. It wasn’t so much that she was so totally beyond him in terms of her rank—though even back when they were both in the services, she held a higher position—it was more the air about her.
On an indrawn breath, he turned and headed away from the mess hall. According to Senna, there wasn’t really anything in there worth eating, and he had a standing invitation with Michael and Clarissa.
At the door to the infirmary he cast a glance down the corridor. It was quiet. A whole heap more than he would ordinarily expect.
His footsteps echoed on the tiles, the scent of cleanser and lemon filling his nostrils.
He’d missed the camaraderie from the days when he’d been guarding Michael. Back then Michael had been an up-and-coming officer with a bright future, while Franklin had been a private first class. He’d moved on of course. His field promotion to army specialist during the war wasn’t something he talked about a lot. It come at great personal cost, when his platoon commander realized he was handy with a rifle and long-range sniping.
His mind shied away from the memory of what he’d done and how many times he’d dealt with a difficult situation for those in senior ranks. What it had achieved for his platoon was to give them a fighting chance more than once in the middle of a skirmish.
He scowled as the familiar need to work off tension suddenly filled his body like a tide washing over him.
The urgency to stop, turn around, and run—far and hard enough to forget—became a clawing beast, tearing at his guts, and he had to lean against the wall and breathe, sucking in great lungfuls of air until the sensation passed.
Dots popped before his eyes, gray and black, until he was once again able control his body.
“Franklin?” The voice at the end of the corridor captured his attention, and he managed to gather his senses enough to paste on a smile.
“Clarissa. God, I hope you’ve got something edible cooking.”
She hurried forward, her hands reaching for his and drawing his close. If he hadn’t known better, he would have thought her just a normal, if average, woman. Well, if you discounted the weird light emanating from her eyes.
“Are you sick? Do you need to see Michael?”
Franklin sighed. “I’m okay. Just thought of something and it sort of knocked me flat. Don’t worry though. I’m good.”
He gazed into her eyes, willing her forcefully to understand and let go of her concerns. It must have worked as the tension in her grasp fizzled away. “If you say so. And yes, I have food cooking. Some basic stew, but it will be filling.”
Clarissa urged him forward beyond the patient area and into the private living zone she’d claimed together with her husband, Michael, and the child they’d adopted.
“How’s the baby?”
“Oh, fine. Growing. Like quickly. Erin and David are joining us once they’ve had a chance to clean up. They’ve been out all night dealing with the explosion at Saint Jory’s. Daniella and Jonah were coming, but she’s tied up with the resistance, and I’m not sure what Jonah is doing. Now sit down at the table. It won’t be long.”
Scents of stewing meat and vegetables filled the air, and his stomach gurgled its approval of what would soon be forthcoming. “Want me to do something?”
Clarissa disappeared into the room beyond then came back, a small bundle in her arms, that was until she deposited it into his arms. “Feed the baby for me while I finish getting everything ready.”
He cradled the child awkwardly until she shoved the small bottle into his hand.
“Like this.” With a firm motion, Clarissa guided the nipple to the baby’s mouth. It latched on, rapacious mouth moving in a quick rhythm as it sucked. The sound of gulps and the sight of bubbles his immediate reward. Then Clarissa left the room.
“Have you given her a name yet?”
Clarissa popped her head through the doorway. “They all had designations when they were found, but Michael and I needed some time to agree on a name. She deserved better than a weird designation, so we combed through some ancient texts, in the hopes we’d find something inspiring. And we did. I can’t remember the name of the book, but there was a character called Eliza Doolittle who rose above her station and achieved something no one thought possible. That appealed so much, we decided to call her Eliza.”
“Huh!” Franklin glanced down to the infant he was sure was listening intently. “Hi, Eliza. I’m Uncle Franklin, and you’ve got a great family. We’re all here for you.”
The baby released the bottle on a sigh and burped loudly, as if in agreement.
“Doing a great job there, Uncle Frank!” Erin’s words made him jump, and the baby screwed up her face as if to cry then relaxed as Erin slid a finger down her cheek. “How you doing, sweetie? Want to come to Auntie Erin?”
Franklin wasn’t sure if he felt relieved or sad at the sudden loss of weight as Erin lifted the baby from his arms. Instead, he simply turned and gave a single nod to David who stood watching his wife settle the baby at her shoulder and smoothing circles over her tiny back.
“Here for dinner?” Clarissa ushered them to the table. “Won’t be more than a moment or two.”
Senna settled into the seat opposite Jonah. “I heard about the explosion and those who died. I’m so sorry. I wondered if I could be of assistance.”
Jonah rubbed red, tired eyes. “That would be great, but to be honest, that’s less important than getting to the person at the bottom of this mess.”
