The Great North, Quebec, 1934. Joe Vega, the Beast, has been locked up in Linhart Prison for three years. The brutish guards harass him because of his size, but Joe remains cool. Until Christophe Dubois, the disowned son of an affluent politician, is led into Joe's cell. From the moment Joe sees him, he suspects the ginger-head is trouble. Christophe is bold, curious, and feisty, and Joe can't resist the temptation of climbing into the man's bunk for long. However, the beautiful spoiled Christophe is a furnace to which both guards and convicts want to warm their hands, and Joe must fight to keep Christophe safe. Linhart Prison may be a cruel place, but when the two men are released from its walls, they find an even tougher world out there. Is the flame burning between Joe and Chris enough to keep them together?

Linhart's Beautiful Beast

“Stand up, Vega.” Johnson was in the room too. “Face us.”


Had he always known he’d go out of the world like this? Would he scream? No, Joe swore to himself, he wouldn’t make a sound.


Joe clenched his fists and his teeth, and stood.


Williams was drunk. They were all drunk, reeking of liquor. The scent of them hung in the steam. Lebeau was here too. But he stood guard by the door.


“Gauthier was your friend,” Joe said to Lebeau, and he was proud of his voice. It was strong. “Is that what you do to your friends?”


Lebeau glared at him, but remained silent. His silence terrified Joe. A word from him would have meant they might let him live.


“So, your little cocksucker is gone,” Williams said, sniffing the air like a hound.


Joe didn’t want Christophe to know what had happened tonight. Would Cooke have the decency to spare Christophe the details of his last moments?


Chapter 61