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

Instead of being thin and wiry with a long face as when Nick first saw him, he had a more bloated look. The whole picture reminded Nick of a feeding tick.


“You will address me as Jah’lar and never, ever tell anyone what you see in me, understood?”


Nick glared at Jah’lar, refusing to agree.


The slight change in Jah’lar’s facial structure, how his eyes flickered from one color to another for a few seconds, were details Nick knew he alone saw. Those small signs told him it wasn’t the drug affecting his breathing. It was Jah’lar himself.


Jah’lar’s eyes brightened from their original pale gray to a sharp, bright, deep blue for a few seconds.


Nick leaned forward, gasping for air, but Jah’lar’s hand on his head prevented him from doubling over and collapsing to the floor. His throat constricted even more, pain flaring along its length as if Nick was being stabbed with tiny needles from the inside.


Chapter 44