Sessrúmnir

T.S. Simons

Description

What would YOU do to protect your children?


After receiving shocking news, the residents of Lewis are forced to take drastic action to protect their children. Freyja and Illyria join with new friends and old to discover who is behind this latest threat and eliminate it, before it takes all of their lives.

Love, loss, and relationships are challenged in this fifth installment in the Antipodes series.

Sujets

• Science-Fiction
• Toute la Science-Fiction
• Post-Apocalyptic
• Apocalyptic
• Science Fiction
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: 4 Horsemen Publications, Inc.
• Date de parution: 15 mai 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781644503829
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 22 Mo

Extrait

Table o f Contents
Acknowl edgements :
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Epilogue
Book Club Questions
Author Bio





Se ssrúmnir
Antipode s Book 5
Copyright © 2022 T.S. Simons. All rights re served.


4 Horsemen Publicatio ns, Inc.
1497 Main St. S uite 169
Dunedin, FL 34698
4horsemenpublicat ions.com
info@4horsemenpublicat ions.com
Typeset by Valeri e Willis
Cover Design by Jen n Kotick
All rights to the work within are reserved to the author and publisher. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 International Copyright Act, without prior written permission except in brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Please contact either the Publisher or Author to gain per mission.
This is book is meant as a reference guide. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. All brands, quotes, and cited work respectfully belongs to the original rights holders and bear no affiliation to the authors or pu blisher.
Library of Congress Control Number: 20 21951238
Print ISBN: 978-1-644 50-383-6
Hardcover ISBN: 979-8-823 2-0215-2
Audio ISBN: 978-1-644 50-381-2
EBook ISBN: 978-1-644 50-382-9
To the special people in my life who are there when I need them most, support me through the tough times, and share in the celebrations, I appreciate you more than I can say. Tha gaol agam ort.








Acknowl edgements :
W ho knew writing was a team sport? I would not have made it this far without the support of my fellow authors who celebrate the highs and share the challenges. Those who lift each other up and share opportunities—you are all wonderful, talented authors, and I am blessed to have you in my world. Debra, Stevie, Serafina, Chelle—you ladies are everything. I look forward to our banter and thank you for checking in and keeping me on track. I wish you every success in your own writing journey and thank you for sha ring mine.
To my family, friends, and colleagues, thank you for the unwavering support. Knowing you have people in your circle who always have your back makes navigating life that little b it easier.
Jen–thank you for the wonderful editing support. I really appreciate all your guidance and apologize for perplexing you with my quirky Austr alianisms.
Caitlin–I hope you like this one, though I suspect you will like The Latitude Series even more. I can’t wait to hear what you think.
If you enjoyed this book, it would mean a great deal to me if you could spare a few minutes to leave a quick review on GoodReads, Amazon, BookBub, or any other platform.
GoodReads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/20861749. T_S_Simons
Amazon: www.amazon.com/T-S-Simons/e/ B08MT6YYDL
Bookbub: www.bookbub.com/profile/ t-s-simons


Chapter 1
T he long, low whistle from behind me signaled approval.
“Where are you off to, all t arted up?”
Putting the hairbrush down, I smoothed the flyaway strands near my face and checked the results. “Dinner.”
“With?” Illy as ked coyly.
“Stefan, if you m ust know.”
“Well, haven’t you come a long way. You said you couldn’t stand him. Called him an arrogant twat. Now he is getting all this.” A sweep of her hand illustrated this. My better clothes, to be sure. It wasn’t like I had a lot of opportunities to wear them. But it was enjoyable to dress up occasionally, even if it was just my newer jeans and a heather gray cashmere sweater that set off my g reen eyes.
Ignoring Illy’s taunts as I pulled on my cleanest boots and zipped up the sides, I had to admit she was right. Initially, Stefan had got on my nerves, been blatantly rude and arrogant, and he and I had more than one raging argument. I had come far too close on multiple occasions to throwing something solid at his head and storming out, telling him where to shove his traineeship. As the senior orthopedic surgeon on Clava, they had assigned me to him, and he took every opportunity to let me know his seniority and that he considered me underqualified. Despite my veterinary training and years of experience, shifting to orthopedic medicine had been a steep learning curve, but one I had enjoyed immensely, after I had overcome the weeks of sleeplessness and brain overload. Lewis had finally recognized that the community needed a specialist, broken bones being a common occurrence, and Clava had offered a six-month traineeship. The medical team had chosen me, despite my lack of medical training on humans. As head of the medical team, Sorcha had insisted I take the opportunity to train for six months on Clava after six years of working in that role in a de facto capacity on Lewis, especially now that the original population had more than tripled. The intention was that I would remain a full-time vet and only assist in a medical capacity when needed, and specifically on orthopedic cases. Despite this agreement, I found myself increasingly working on humans for more routine surgeries and felt guilty for Isla shouldering the veteri nary load.
Illy was still watching as I checked my reflection one last time and turned. “You know he was one of the men they trotted out for me as a potential partner on Clava?”
I snorted. “He told me. You weren’t interested. Why? Do you want him now?”
Illy neatly dodged the question. “What a bout Cam?”
“What about him?” I was not engaging in this line of questioning, especially not with my be st friend.
“No cha nce then?”
“Why? Do you want him now?”
Illy raised her eyebrows at me derisively but sai d nothing.
“He is available, you know. You wanted him once before. You have been single for nearly seven years. If you want to go there, I won’t stop you.”
Illy raised her eyebrows at the insinuation. “I think we both know that will neve r happen.”
“Not my business if you do. Is Summer feelin g better?”
“She is okay.” Illy’s abrupt tone indicated she knew I was deflecting and didn’t want to engage.
“She is a lucky girl. Whatever it was she ingested, it was prett y potent.”
“Well, she can chew iron and spit rust, as Luca used to say. He always said she would turn into a keg on legs when she hit thirteen. I suspect her size may hav e helped.”
“I wish he could see them now. All of them.”
Illy smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Even after all these years, losing Luca was still foremost in her mind. How could it not be, with four children to raise? Two of whom he had never met.
Shrugging on my jacket, I placed my hand on the doorknob, still thinking of Luca. The love he and Illy had shared. The love I thought Cam and I had shared. But twenty years is a long time. Maybe we have just grown apart, I rationalized. We were so young wh en we met .
“Don’t wait….” My last words were cut off by the harsh bleeping of the radio going off in the kitchen. Knowing it was likely for me, I lingered in the doorway. Maybe this was a stroke of luck. Kissing me goodnight two nights ago, Stefan had invited me to stay over, his intentions not disguised. I had struggled to make excuses and get away, still feeling awkward around him. While he was self-assured and confident, now that he treated me like an equal, he was also knowledgeable and easy to talk to. Why am I so scared of this? I berated myself. I never had issues with shagging a stranger before. And it isn’t like Stefan is even a stranger.
Illy returned, radi o in hand.
“No dinner for you, glamor puss. Mike has been thrown from a horse. They need you at the med cen ter. Now.”
Peeling off my cashmere sweater and heading into my room to change, I called back over my shoulder, “Did they say what injuries?”
Illy whistled after me. “Got the sexy stuff on. Planning to get lucky, were we?”
Ignoring her, I quickly changed into work clothes and looked at her ex pectantly.
Illy scanned my old t-shirt and jeans before responding, “Complicated fractures of the clavicle, arm, and seve ral ribs.”
Smiling, I nodded.
Illy grinned. “I know you enjoy your job, but you probably shouldn’t smile at someone else’s mi sfortune.”
Quickly rearranging my face to something more appropriate, I saw Illy’s nod of approval. “I’ll make your excuses for you.”
“Thanks, Ils. Appreciate it. Don’t wait u p for me.”
“Try not to wake the kids when you get home.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean it. I fell over one of the cats…”
“I know. Go.”

Driving one of the uncomfortably tiny two-seater electric cars over to Garynahine, I pondered moving permanently into the main village. Caitlin, age six, was the only one of my children who couldn’t drive one of the many cars gifted to us by Clava. Allegedly given as thanks for re-activating the portal, part of me firmly believed it was an apology for what they did to me. Shaking my head to dispel the awful memories, I thought aga