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

Gideon stood in front of his desk, palms flat on the surface as he leaned heavily against it. His head was bowed, his shoulders curved, and though his face was hidden from her view, she knew the grief that would be reflected there.


“The only part about this that I like is that at least Jesse won’t be alone.” He said it without lifting his head, without looking back at her. “But it means you’re going to be. He’s going to use that as a weapon not to do it, and I can’t say that he’ll be wrong.”


“I won’t be completely alone. I’m going to stay with Michelle while you’re gone. And besides, I’ve been alone before.” She moved closer to him. “I can handle it as long as I know you’re both coming back.”


The slight shift in his shoulders was probably meant to be a reluctant agreement, but otherwise, Gideon remained where he was. “Can we not do it tonight? I don’t think…I’m not up to it.”


Chapter 9