Stopping a murder that happened forty years earlier may be the only way to heal a tortured mind ...<br><br>Six months after Jesse Madding is brutally tortured by Marcus Brooker, he is still experiencing flashbacks, panic attacks, and jumping at his own shadow. His lovers, Gideon Keel and Emma Coolidge, would do anything to help him, but Jesse refuses to be hospitalized for treatment, or even visit a therapist. Desperate for a change, Gideon and Emma suggest a radical solution.<br><br> Jesse wants to fix his life. More than anything, he wants to be normal again. He doesn't want to live in fear. He doesn't want to be ashamed of his scarred and mutilated body. He doesn't want to shy away from Gideon's touch. Certain that the holding pattern will kill him, he agrees to Gideon and Emma's proposed solution: travel to an alternative dimension and save Marcus Brooker from witnessing Mary's grisly murder ... in order to save Brooker's soul.

Chaos and Communion

Jesse bent so his cheek could rest comfortably on Gideon’s thigh. Once again, he wanted to spill everything to Gideon. I’ve been trying, I swear. But nothing seems right.But the way Gideon touched him—his fingers light on his cheek and jaw and in his hair—made Jesse think talking would be redundant. Clearly, Gideon knew enough to know that Jesse needed this comfort of being close to him. So maybe that would be enough for now.


“It’s a shame about the snow.” The low tones of Gideon’s voice were hypnotic, made more so by the dim lighting. Though he hadn’t been given instructions to do so, Jesse closed his eyes, concentrating on the feel of the hard muscle beneath his cheek, borrowing its strength as he focused on what Gideon was saying. “I kind of hoped we might get out to Osaka Garden when we were done. It’s been too long since we’ve been there.”


Chapter 4