… the third book in her exciting Flash series. Coming soon in 2018!
EVOLVED, book 3 in the Flash series, is gearing up for release! The ending of IMMUNE had readers grasping for more. I’m excited to say the day is coming closer. If you can’t wait that long, then look at the first sneak peek of EVOLVED! Sign up for my Newsletter to keep up to date of releases and sales!
EVOLVED SNEAK PEEK (Unedited. YOU WILL find misspellings and grammar errors)
Chapter 1
Ian
“Lillie!” I scream, as the Infected push the boulder back into place, sealing me away from my heart. Pausing for a moment to glance at Mason, making sure Azami’s okay, I ready myself for a fight.
“Go!” Mason yells, his eyes wild with panic, holding my crying daughter in his arms.
I waste no time running out the entrance, James hot on my heals. The snow is coming down in blankets, visibility only a handful of feet in front of me. Frantically searching our surroundings for their trail, I holler her name again, James echoing my call. Silence is the only thing that greats us. They’ve practically vanished.
“Over here!” James demands my attention.
Rushing to his side, I see the trail they’ve left behind. Foot prints, along with a large drag line. We follow the fast diminishing path to the best of our ability, but the weather is making it impossible. The snow begins to run with glitches of red, I slow a moment to inspect, needing to confirm my suspicions.
Blood.
Rage consumes me as I charge forward. After a few more yards her marks disappear, replaced with only footprints. With their speed and the shape she’s undoubtedly in, he must have picked her up, leaving only footprints behind. The snow is filling up my life line and her emotions are growing further away. My heart plummets to my stomach, as dread crawls through my veins. I’m losing her.
Luke barrels through the snow, taking the lead. Hope surges through me, knowing he’s the best in our group. No more than fifty yards later, he slows to a stop, searching the ground. His breathing is fast, like the rest of us. He’s searching for a hint, anything that’ll lead us to her. Watching his face, I know before he looks at me that he’s lost her. The snow’s coming down too thick, covering any sign of their escape.
When Luke finally meets my eyes, regret swimming in their depths, I already know. A crushing weight slams into my chest, knocking the air from my lungs momentarily. When I’m able to breathe again, I open my arms wide, and scream at the heavens.
“Lillie!”
I drop to my knees in the snow, shortly after, my hands plant themselves in front of me. The cold barely registers as it sinks into my palms, numbing them like the rest of me.
A sob echoes behind me, bringing me back to my senses. Climbing to my feet, I turn to meet James’s glistening eyes.
“She’s gone.” He manages, before breaking down completely.
“We’re not giving up.” I growl, moving ahead.
“Ian…” Luke steps in front of me, blocking my pursuit. “We don’t have their tracks and you’re not dressed for this kind of search.” He points to my lack of coat or warm clothes.
None of that mattered. Lillie was out there with the same clothing. I push past Luke and continue anyway. James’s teeth start to chatter behind me, alerting me to the fact we’re in below freezing weather. I’ve not seen a track for about an hour and am blindly searching our surrounding woods.
“Ian?” Luke starts, softly. “Ian, I know you don’t want to stop, neither do we, but we’re not prepared for a search like this. James is only in a t-shirt.”
His statement stops me in my tracks. I’m so busy with my own emotions and concentrating on finding anything to help us track her down, that I didn’t notice James and his underdress. “Take him back.” I order.
“No.” James states, but his shivering jaw chops the single word.
“There’s no choice in this. Take him back.” I say again.
“What about you?” Luke asks.
“I’ll be fine. I’m not giving up until I find her.”
“You’re not dressed any better.” Luke points out.
Turning back to them, I pin him with a stare that holds no room for argument. “I’m not going back. I can’t leave her out here alone. Jeff has her Luke. You remember Jeff, right? What he tried to do the last time he had his filthy hands on her!” My emotions are becoming a living thing. A monster wanting to climb from my skin. “Now take him back!” I turn back to the dark open forest.
Before James turns to leave he pauses in front of me, tears freezing on his lashes midfall. “Don’t freeze out here. We still need you. Azami needs you. This isn’t your fault… and it’s not your fault if you can’t bring her home.”
My heart slams in my chest at his words. He knows as much as I do that my search is pointless. Their trail is cold, buried beneath several inches of snow. If I find her it’ll happen on blind luck. They’re twice as fast and probably miles ahead of me already.
I swallow the lump in my throat and whisper, “I have to try.”
James nods, understanding better than anyone. If I let him, he’ll stay out here with me, but the rational part of my brain is still partially functioning.
Luke claps my shoulder with his hand, a sign of support, before they turn to leave.
I continue into the night, searching in all directions. There’re smaller tunnels in the area that don’t connect with ours. I search them all. Everything coming up empty.
Walking for what seems like miles and finding nothing but blinding snow, I slump against a tree and blink tightly, collecting my senses. My frozen fingers trail down my face without feeling, as I shake my head.
The cold is beginning to sink into my bones, my fingers and toes numbing. If I don’t head back soon this weather is going to claim me. I’ve been at it for hours, my clothes solid and hard to move in.
I blink again and Lillie is warm in front of a fire, laying on a plush pallet of straw and soft branches. I smile down at her, wishing she’d look at me, but not wanting to disturb her at the same time. Seconds later, she opens her beautiful green gems and smiles at me. Once she’s taken me in her eyes narrow in confusion.
“Why are you out freezing in the snow?” She digs her fingers into her bedding, surveying her surroundings.
“I’m looking for you.” I whisper, reaching for her. She’s only a step away.
Her fingers tighten in the bedding, realization and then shock crosses her face. “Go home, Ian.”
Her voice is firm but fading as I lunge for her, attempting to catch her in my grasp, but I slip through her as if she were a ghost. “No.”
The murmured word and body convulsions shiver me awake. The sky is turning pink with the sun peaking over the mountain, the snowfall tampering down its brightness as it blinds me. Somehow, I sit up and move away from the tree, each piece of me is breaking, frozen. My heart is numbing right along with my body, knowing there is only one option other than death. I must head back. Without Lillie.
Shuffling in what I hoped was the right direction, I finally hear the voice of salvation.
“He’s back!” James alerts the others.
Mason and Michael join him as they engulf me before I can make it to the entrance. My entire being is frozen, speaking is not an option, as I let them shuffle me inside.
“What the Fuck, Ian! You’re fucking freezing, man.” Mason points out the obvious.
“James, run ahead. Stalk the fire in his room, grab extra blankets, and start to warm some water, but don’t boil it.” Michael orders.
James glances at me one more time, probably to make sure I’m still alive, before going ahead without us.
Mason and Michael are practically carrying all my weight. Mason is cussing under his breath, telling me how foolish I’d been not to return for supplies. He’s right, I should have, but the thought of her alone is tearing me apart. Each time I think about it, my heart rips open again, pouring salt on my wound.
My jaw is chattering, hacking my words. “She’s alone.” The words slur and echo silently between us as we reach my room.
A handful of people are awake and follow them. Deagon and Luke stand at the door, asking if they can help. The rooms small, so five adult men crowds our place, but they all squeeze in.
“Get his shoes off. Be careful. Don’t know if he’s got frostbite.” Michael warns.
Luke and Deagon bend down as Mason and Michael hold me up.
“Don’t get used to this treatment, princess.” Luke smirks up at me.
I close my eyes and huff, appreciating his humor.
The laces are crisp to untie, their frozen state noisy as they come undone. They pull the laces almost all the way down, loosening the boots before attempting to remove them. My feet are too frozen to feel any of the movement, that is until they pull to remove them. A burning pain engulfs me and lances up my legs, as if my feet were breaking off.
“Arrrg!” I holler. “Stop! Fuck, stop!” The pain is so overwhelming, I’m about to pass out. At this point it’d be a blessing.
“Don’t stop.” Michael tells them when they hesitate. “It’s good that he feels the pain, that means his feet are still alive.”
They continue to rip my feet off my body. When the boots are finally released, the pain remains, causing my vision to blur. In-between blinks I see James fill the entrance, panic on his face, staring at my feet. He glances at me, relaying a silent message, letting me know it’s bad. He carries a pot of warm water, Sarah bringing in several other smaller ones behind him. I must have passed out, because the next thing I know, Michael is warning me that this next part will hurt. As if what’s happening now is a walk in the park.
“We’ve got to thaw your hands and feet. I don’t think you’ll lose anything, but they’ll probably blister.” Worry lined his brow.
“K.” I manage, letting him know I heard him. This is my penance for letting her go, for not protecting her. I close my eyes and brace myself.
My appendages rise into the air, all four at the same time. Slowly they’re lowered into the fiery pits of hell. My blood boils upon contact, needle stabbing every inch of my submerged skin.
The scream that erupts from me is foreign, the pain all consuming. Tears leak from my eyes as the darkness consumes me. “I’m sorry.” I whisper the plea, hoping she’ll forgive me.
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Check out her Flash series now and the Undead Worlds anthology.
Jessica Gomez is a bestselling author of Dark Romance & Paranormal, Apocalyptic books. She’s best known for her Paranormal novel, INFECTED. She independently published her first book, After the Before, in 2014, and reached #1 in Bilingual, Suspense, & Romance genres. She’s currently working on book 3 in the Flash series, EVOLVED, which is to release Winter of 2017. Keep your eye out in 2018 for a new Dark Romance filled with Alpha male addiction. For more about Jessica, visit one of the sites listed. She enjoys hearing from and chatting with her readers, who have the same passion for reading.
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