by I. T. Lucas
Dark Choices Paradigm Shift
The Children Of The Gods Book 42
I. T. Lucas
Copyright © 2020 by I. T. Lucas
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
Dark Choices Paradigm Shift is a work of fiction!
Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any similarity to actual persons, organizations and/or events is purely coincidental.
Also by I. T. Lucas
THE CHILDREN OF THE GODS ORIGINS
1: Goddess’s Choice
2: Goddess’s Hope
THE CHILDREN OF THE GODS
Dark Stranger
1: Dark Stranger The Dream
2: Dark Stranger Revealed
3: Dark Stranger Immortal
Dark Enemy
4: Dark Enemy Taken
5: Dark Enemy Captive
6: Dark Enemy Redeemed
Kri & Michael’s Story
6.5: My Dark Amazon
Dark Warrior
7: Dark Warrior Mine
8: Dark Warrior’s Promise
9: Dark Warrior’s Destiny
10: Dark Warrior’s Legacy
Dark Guardian
11: Dark Guardian Found
12: Dark Guardian Craved
13: Dark Guardian’s Mate
Dark Angel
14: Dark Angel's Obsession
15: Dark Angel's Seduction
16: Dark Angel's Surrender
Dark Operative
17: Dark Operative: A Shadow of Death
18: Dark Operative: A Glimmer of Hope
19: Dark Operative: The Dawn of Love
Dark Survivor
20: Dark Survivor Awakened
21: Dark Survivor Echoes of Love
22: Dark Survivor Reunited
Dark Widow
23: Dark Widow’s Secret
24: Dark Widow’s Curse
25: Dark Widow’s Blessing
Dark Dream
26: Dark Dream’s Temptation
27: Dark Dream’s Unraveling
28: Dark Dream’s Trap
Dark Prince
29: Dark Prince’s Enigma
30: Dark Prince’s Dilemma
31: Dark Prince’s Agenda
Dark Queen
32: Dark Queen’s Quest
33: Dark Queen’s Knight
34: Dark Queen’s Army
Dark Spy
35: Dark Spy Conscripted
36: Dark Spy’s Mission
37: Dark Spy’s Resolution
Dark Overlord
38: Dark Overlord New Horizon
39: Dark Overlord’s Wife
40: Dark Overlord’s Clan
Dark Choices
41: Dark Choices The Quandary
42: Dark Choices Paradigm Shift
43: Dark Choices The Accord
PERFECT MATCH
Perfect Match 1: Vampire’s Consort
Perfect Match 2: King’s Chosen
Perfect Match 3: Captain’s Conquest
SETS
The Children of the Gods books 1-3: Dark Stranger trilogy—Includes a bonus short story: The Fates take a Vacation
The Children of the Gods: Books 1-6—includes character lists
The Children of the Gods: Books 6.5-10—includes character lists
TRY THE CHILDREN OF THE GODS SERIES ON
AUDIBLE
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Contents
1. Rufsur
2. Edna
3. Eleanor
4. Vlad
5. Richard
6. Kian
7. Kalugal
8. Rufsur
9. Edna
10. Amanda
11. Dalhu
12. Roberts
13. Syssi
14. Rufsur
15. Kalugal
16. Kian
17. Edna
18. Rufsur
19. Edna
20. Rufsur
21. Edna
22. Rufsur
23. Edna
24. Rufsur
25. Kian
26. Richard
27. Eleanor
28. Rufsur
29. Edna
30. Vlad
31. Kalugal
32. Edna
33. Kian
34. Edna
35. Vlad
36. Eleanor
37. Kalugal
38. Edna
39. Rufsur
40. Edna
41. Rufsur
42. Edna
43. Kian
44. Eleanor
45. Rufsur
46. Edna
47. Eleanor
48. Vlad
49. Kian
50. Vlad
51. Rufsur
52. Edna
53. Kalugal
54. Rufsur
55. Edna
56. Amanda
57. Edna
58. Eleanor
59. Kalugal
60. Rufsur
61. Kalugal
62. Kian
63. Edna
64. Rufsur
65. Edna
66. Eleanor
67. Kalugal
68. Rufsur
69. Eleanor
70. Rufsur
71. Eleanor
72. Edna
The Children of the Gods Series
The Perfect Match Series
FOR EXCLUSIVE PEEKS
1
Rufsur
Kalugal swiveled his chair around, turning away from his computer screen to look at Rufsur. “Did you know that long-range acoustic devices are used on cruise ships?”
“For what?” Rufsur chuckled. “Announcing that the buffet is open? Wouldn’t that cause a stampede?”
“Against pirate attacks.”
“Are those still a thing?”
“It would seem so. I asked Dandor to compile a brief about the known uses of the device. He didn’t find anything about it being lethal. But that only means that the information is classified, not that it doesn’t exist. If I want to find more, I’ll have to pay the hacker.”
Rufsur was still stuck on the image of pirate ships going after a cruise liner. “Can loud noise really deflect armed attackers? I’m sure that the devices they have on passenger ships are not as strong as what was used on us.”
“It worked to chase off Somali pirates armed with RPGs.” Kalugal turned back to the screen. “The same technology was also used by Japanese whalers against anti-whaling activists. But I doubt that the protestors were armed with anything other than banners and posters.”
“I thought that whaling was banned.”
Kalugal waved a dismissive hand. “It was never banned, only suspended to allow the whale population to recover, but the Japanese found a way around the moratorium. Indigenous groups were allowed to hunt for subsistence, and it was also allowed for scientific purposes. They made full use of those loopholes, and later, they just withdrew from the International Whaling Commission and resumed commercial hunting. Their excuse was that eating whales is part of their culture.”
Rufsur snorted. “So what? Female c
ircumcision is part of some African tribes’ cultures. Does that excuse that barbaric custom?”
“I have news for you. Female genital mutilation is not only happening in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. It’s a global problem. More than half a million women and girls have either suffered it or are at risk of having it done to them in the United States alone. Most are immigrants, but not all.”
Rufsur shuddered. “I can’t understand that. Why would entire populations want to mutilate their daughters, cause them unimaginable pain and suffering, and deprive them of ever enjoying sex?”
Kalugal’s eyes blazed with inner light. “Humans are irrational creatures. On one side, you have the fanatics, who excuse their terrible actions by religion and customs. And on the other side, you have those who cry out about injustice and discrimination in the world, and who then turn around and defend the worst of it in the name of cultural or religious freedoms and the right of the offenders to perpetrate these crimes against their own people. That’s why they need someone with a logical brain to govern them and prevent stuff like that from happening. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
“Meaning you?”
Kalugal lifted a brow. “Do you have a better candidate?”
“Nope. You are the man.”
In the face of such horrors, having Kalugal as the world's ultimate ruler didn’t seem like such a bad idea.
Heck, Rufsur was going to help him in any way he could.
Following a light knock on the door, Jacki walked into the office, and cast them twin glares. “What are you guys still doing here? Don’t you want to shower and change before our guests arrive?”
Kalugal took her hand and pulled her onto his lap. “You look ravishing, my love, and we have plenty of time.”
Rufsur stifled a chuckle. The sly bastard always knew what to say to disarm his mate. Perhaps if he had his boss’s talent, he would have made more headway with Edna.
“Not really.” Smiling, Jacki leaned and kissed Kalugal’s cheek. “Carol called from the airport that they’ve landed and are heading to the baggage claim, which means that they will be here in less than an hour.” She turned to look at Rufsur. “You should wrap things up and hit the shower.”
“What’s wrong with what I have on?”
Jacki shook her head. “Atzil has been slaving all day to prepare a festive dinner, and you are going to show up in jeans?”
Hoping for support, Rufsur cast a sidelong glance at his boss, but the guy wasn’t looking at him. He was too busy gazing adoringly at his wife.
They were so damn lucky. Their relationship had had to overcome just one tiny hurdle to get going, and it had been smooth sailing ever since.
Even Jacki’s transition had gone much easier than anyone had anticipated.
With every passing day, she was getting stronger, more beautiful, and more confident. Naturally, Kalugal took credit for it, claiming that his love and care for her were responsible for how radiant she looked, and not her newly activated immortal genes.
If only Rufsur’s so-called relationship with Edna could be that easy.
He sighed. “I guess I should change.”
“You guess right.” Jacki pushed off Kalugal’s lap.
“Do I need to wear a suit?”
“No, but a pair of slacks and a dress shirt would be nice.”
“No tie.”
She laughed. “No tie.”
Kalugal rose to his feet. “I’ll go now. Did you check with Atzil that everything is ready for Carol and Lokan?”
Jacki nodded. “I did. Atzil has outdone himself. It’s going to be a beautiful dinner. I also made sure that their room is ready.”
Rufsur wondered what Lokan’s visit was all about. The guy wouldn’t fly over from Washington just to spend an evening with his brother and congratulate his sister-in-law on her transition, which was the official reason he’d given.
Lokan wanted something, and Rufsur knew that Kalugal was well aware of it.
The question was, what?
“Are you coming?” Jacki asked.
“Yeah, in a moment.” He pulled out his phone to check his emails.
“Anything from Edna?” She walked up to him.
“Not today.”
It was embarrassing to admit how many times he’d checked whether she’d replied to his last email.
Jacki patted his shoulder. “Three more days to go, and then you’ll see her again.”
As if he hadn’t been counting the hours.
Since there was no new email from Edna, Rufsur resorted to reading the last one he’d gotten from her the day before.
“Come, my love.” Kalugal took Jacki’s elbow. “I need your help to choose what to wear tonight.”
Right, as if his boss needed fashion advice from anyone. He was probably planning a quickie before dinner.
Lucky bastard.
Rufsur sighed. Long-distance relationships sucked.
He hadn’t expected to go through such torment. The separation from Edna was like a constant ache that wouldn’t go away, and it had only been twelve days.
He often wondered if she’d been right to limit their communication to emails. Would hearing her voice on the phone or seeing her face on the screen have lessened the pain or made it more acute?
The problem was that the woman was stingy even with her emails, returning one to every three or four of his, and not saying much in her short answers either.
Why the hell had he chosen such a difficult female?
Except, he had a feeling that the choice hadn’t been his.
It had been made for him.
Those damn Fates that the clan believed in had decided to play a cruel joke on him and Edna, pairing two incompatible people who had no way of making it work.
Not only that, but it also seemed that he was the only one feeling the pain, while Edna had retreated into her tortoiseshell and was perfectly fine.
No, that wasn’t true.
She hadn’t been okay before he’d pushed his way into her life, and she wasn’t now, which was one more reason for his obsession with her. He needed to fix her, or rather whatever was keeping her from living a full life.
Edna’s entire world was her dual job as a judge and councilwoman. Her only interactions with others were work-related, and she had no close friends and no social life.
It wasn’t lack of confidence or a personality flaw that had made her a recluse. She was an assertive woman, and even though she was pragmatic and strict, she was also compassionate and pleasant to be with.
Her isolation was self-induced, a result of some tragedy that had befallen her a long time ago, an injury so severe that she couldn’t recover from it on her own.
Rufsur was just the guy to help her heal.
But the problem was that Kalugal needed him more than Edna did. Not to run his business or to help him take over the world. His boss could do that without his help. But someone needed to keep an eye on Kalugal in case he slipped into insanity the way his father and grandfather had, and that someone could only be Rufsur.
Kalugal trusted him, which made Rufsur the only one who could stop him from doing crazy shit. Like his grandfather, who’d destroyed half the ancient world in a fit of anger, or like his father, who was enslaving an entire island to his will.
Leaving Kalugal was not an option.
The only way Rufsur could have a life with Edna was if she left the clan and joined him.
As if that was going to happen.
Even though the stubborn woman needed him more than he needed her, she wasn’t obsessing about their separation the way he was.
Rufsur was a fun-loving kind of guy, while Edna didn’t know what the word meant. Even if they could have a life together, what kind of a life would it be?
Not the kind he wanted, and he was old enough and wise enough to know that changing people was not possible unless they wanted to change, and most often not even then.
If Rufsur could turn his stupid heart o
ff and think with his head instead, he could find a clan female who liked the same things he did, and who was perfect for him the way she was.
Perhaps he should beseech those damn Fates to free him from his fixation on Edna, so he could search for a more compatible mate.
2
Edna
Satisfied with the list of comments that she’d compiled regarding the latest revision to the land deal, Edna made a few minor corrections and forwarded it to Kian.
It was a complicated project that involved sixteen different landowners, who couldn’t all agree on the same terms. Hopefully, that was the last round, and this contract would be the one everyone finally signed.
Going over it had taken her most of the day, and since it was already after five in the afternoon, there was no sense in starting on another file. She could put in a couple more hours, but she was hungry, and with every growl her stomach emitted, a sandwich at the café seemed more and more appealing.
Except, Edna dreaded calling it a day so early. With nothing to occupy her mind, it would get filled with Rufsur, and that was the last thing she needed.