In the year 2184, the US is divided. Half the country has moved on with the rest of the world, while in middle America, the survivors of the terrorist biological attack that split the country struggle just to stay alive. Though a century has passed, few people brave going behind the borders meant to contain the danger. Even the privatized military is reluctant to do so.<br><br>But that doesn’t stop recently discharged Sullivan Eberle. Only one thing drives him anymore -- the need to find Raphael Hamada. He doesn’t know why. He only knows he must. If that means a lifetime behind the borders, then so be it.<br><br>Rafe Hamada ran away from the real world when he was still a kid. The last thing he wants is to be found, especially by a soldier who can’t even tell him why it was so important to locate him in the first place. He’d like nothing more than for Sullivan to leave, but turning his back on a man alone and friendless is against everything Rafe stands for ...

Penny Candles

He kept his knock quiet, for fear of disturbing what few neighbors she had. Movement echoed from within, and a few seconds later, the door opened. Maria took one look at him, tightened her mouth, and waved him inside.


She was already dressed for the day, her hair pulled back into its utilitarian ponytail. The smell of coffee set his stomach grumbling, and she glanced between him and the kitchen with a frown before making up her mind.


He followed because he didn’t feel comfortable waiting in her living room like a guest to be served. Maria didn’t pay any attention to him as she poured a cup to match the one already sitting on the small kitchen table. She added a dollop of cream without being asked. He would have been pleased by the realization she knew how he liked his coffee if he didn’t know it was only because she’d served him so often at the restaurant.


Chapter 51