Todd and Nick Ruger are on the run after narrowly escaping the war in New Colorado, where they were implicated in the assassination of Chancellor Shaffer. Todd is gravely ill and Nick has serious injuries, but that's the least of their problems. They're alone with dwindling supplies and facing the harsh winter bearing down on them far north in Yellowknife Protectorate. Just when it seems they're trapped between the proverbial rock and hard place, they are offered refuge with a doctor in the isolated town of Elk's Ridge. As they heal, they're offered a fresh start in Elk's Ridge. But just as they begin to rebuild their lives, tragedy strikes. Victor Raleigh, the new Vice-Chancellor of New Colorado, knows all about Nick's psychic abilities, and he'll settle for nothing less than total control over Nick. He's aligned himself with a vicious creature, a type of psychic vampire capable of wielding control over individuals such as Nick. When Nick is betrayed and captured, Todd sees no alternative but to head back into the war zone to rescue him. Will Nick be the same man Todd loves after Raleigh's pet psychic vampire is through with him? Can Nick accept the fact Todd can love him after what Raleigh forces him to do, or will his guilt consume and destroy him?

Chained Hearts

“You’re letting me go to the library alone?” Nick twisted so he faced Todd and placed a hand on Todd’s knee. “You don’t have to do that. It’s okay, really.”


“Yeah, I do.” He smiled at Nick. “There’s no reason not to.”


Nick didn’t say anything. He simply nodded and turned around to face forward again as Todd set the team in motion and guided the sleigh down the long driveway to the road heading for the town.


Porter hadn’t been kidding when he’d told Todd it would take him some time before he was in top shape again. The first few weeks of winter, he couldn’t go at a pace faster than a steady walk, and even then, he’d be struggling for breath in a few minutes. The doctor’s insistence the Rugers wouldn’t be hunting for quite a while was sound advice Todd heeded.


That didn’t mean Todd wasn’t getting stir-crazy. He needed to do something and working some wood to make a bed frame for Nick and him was the perfect project.


Chapter 29