by RJ Crayton
My father is doing better this time. He seems sad, but not ruined. And he’s doing good, helping administer the vaccine, helping get word out that people can be people again. They don’t have to live in fear of others. They can come out and do good things as a community. That we can take care of each other as a society. I think that’s good.
Lijah seems happy. Though, who wouldn’t be after spending a month under lock and key as they tested to make sure the vaccine fix my mother worked out had actually worked. It did. After being exposed to the virus, Lijah remained immune, and didn’t turn into a carrier. That had given Josh the impetus he needed to take the fix himself. Josh was in quarantine for a bit, too, but my father offered a nebulous reason for it. I’m not even sure what it was, but it didn’t stigmatize Josh and conflict with Kingston’s earlier statements that got Josh into the immune housing.
Speaking of Kingston, he is alive and well, too. My father has lied about him, and I’m not sure how I feel. On the one hand, it’s good that Josh does not have to go through the pain of losing his father, not just to death, but a public trial and execution for those who helped Thoreaux in his demented plans. But a big part of me is still angry that he isn’t being punished. My father telling people that Kingston was aiding us was a kind thing to do for Josh, but not for the world. I suppose I’ll get over it eventually. Josh seems happy. And that’s all I can really ask for, right.
Alexander Caldwell, on the other hand, got no such reprieve. He was tried as a coconspirator with Thoreaux, and someone had managed to toss in a murder charge for Jenny Rhodes, as Shonda Woodson was already dead. Finding out that he’d be sentenced to death wasn’t particularly reaffirming. It didn’t bring my mother back, yet there was a certain satisfaction in knowing he was being punished. The good news was that Caldwell hadn’t killed Greg. Just gave him a nasty concussion. He’d gone to get his wife and children from out of hiding, and he was considered a hero. That was good.
As for life, things aren’t normal yet. I think it will be a very long time before they become normal. But that’s alright. I’m in need of slow acclimation back to regular life. After the past few months, slowing down is good. It will give me a chance to think and look forward to something. And it’s been entirely too long since I’ve looked forward with hope. I think my mother would like that, too. She raised us to look forward with hope and so it’s how I plan to live as we rebuild this world.
THE END
If you enjoyed Contained, please consider telling your friends or posting a short review. Word of mouth is an author’s best friend and much appreciated. Thank you. Turn the page for a sneak preview of Scented, a paranormal novel by RJ Crayton.
Scented – Sneak Preview
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Prologue - Mother
(Eight years ago)
The last words Bryan ever said to his mother were, “You stink.”
His mother had been leaving for a Friends of the Library meeting. Wrapped in her winter coat and holding her gloves in one hand, she’d said, “Let me give you a hug and a kiss, because I won’t be back until after you’re asleep.”
He walked toward her, fully prepared to meet her request, but as he got nearer, he slammed into a putrid odor. He stopped immediately for it was as if he’d been slapped with funk. It was the worst thing he’d ever smelled. Worse than the “science experiment” he’d done with Tommy Johnson where they’d added turpentine, mud, paint, pond scum and a bunch of other gross things they’d found. At the time he’d thought nothing could out-stink that concoction. Clearly he’d been wrong.
He stopped short of her outstretched arms, just beyond the tips of her fingers. She startled at his abrupt halt, but still smiled at him. Her dark brown hair was straightened, instead of curly, falling just beneath her shoulders, fanning out across the chocolate-colored coat.
“Don’t stop,” she said with a chuckle. “Come on.” She leaned toward him and he realized the smell was coming from her. The odor seemed to multiply a thousand times in strength with each millimeter closer she came. Bryan stepped back two paces.
She knitted her eyebrows, truly confused.
“Mom, you stink,” he said in the unapologetic tone only an eight-year-old could manage.
Hurt flashed across her face and then quickly morphed into a strained expression — though probably it was her attempt at neutral. The sound of the kitchen door opening broke the silence, and both Bryan and his mother turned to see Bryan’s father emerge. He’d been finishing dinner because he’d gotten home too late to eat with his family.
“What’s going on?” he asked, squinting distrustfully at Bryan, and then turning to his wife, trying to interpret her flustered face.
Bryan’s mother pulled her lapel up and sniffed, then lifted her arm and inhaled in the direction of her pit. She shook her head. “Bryan thinks I don’t smell well,” she said, turning an awkward phrase in a clear attempt not to repeat what Bryan had just said so bluntly: that she stank. “I think I’m fine,” she told her husband, though she still seemed to be surreptitiously inhaling the air around her, searching for this odor Bryan detected.
His father walked over to her, passing Bryan with a glare, and sniffed the air around his wife. He smiled. “You’re great, Marina.”
Marina returned her husband’s grin, then looked past him to Bryan. “Guess you’re outvoted, kiddo,” she laughed. “Come on, give me my hug and kiss now or I’m gonna be late.”
Bryan’s father moved aside so the boy could go, but Bryan found he couldn’t move. It didn’t matter what they said. She stank, and he wasn’t going near her or that smell. Bryan shook his head and stood firm. “You stink.”
The redness seemed to burst onto his father’s face like someone had turned on a switch. One moment, he was normal; the next he was filled with anger that had turned him the color of a beet. “That’s no way to talk to your mother,” he screamed.
Bryan took a step back. It had been to avoid his father’s rage, but it had also lessened the pungency of his mother’s newfound stench.
Bryan’s father moved toward him, but Marina’s mocha hand found his shoulder, and he turned back to her. “It’s OK, Jack,” she said soothingly. “Don’t worry about it.”
“What do you mean?” Jack argued. “That’s not how he should talk to you.”
She looked into her husband’s eyes and shook her head. “It doesn’t matter,” she said, softly. “Sometimes kids are like that. And this coat’s been in that downstairs closet, so maybe it’s a little musty.”
“He can still...” Jack started, but she held up a hand and he stopped.
“Goodnight Bryan,” Marina said, peeking around her husband.
Bryan didn’t know why, but he didn’t say anything. Marina said goodnight to her husband, turned and went out the door.
That was the last time Bryan saw her. On the way to the library, an 18-wheeler hit ice and overturned on top of Marina Harper’s Camry. The car was flattened beyond recognition, and the medical examiner said she’d died instantly.
While neither parent had smelled it, Bryan’s mother did stink that night. She was drenched in the perfume of impending death.
Chapter 1 - Father
LAURALINE
It was raining. A gentle pitter patter that would give lawns a tiny taste of the water they’d lacked for weeks. Lauraline was sure their next door neighbor would be ecstatic. She’d seen him scurrying about in the dark after midnight violating the drought-imposed water ban and spraying his rose bushes.
But Lauraline Reese was not like her neighbor. She dreaded the rain. Her father, Milton, wasn’t that fond of it either, but they never spoke of this fact.
“Alright, Lauraline, this is going to be a great school,” her father said, trying to sound upbeat as he glanced out the windshield and upward, toward the sky, rather than in front of him on the sparsely-populated road.
“I know,” she said, anxiety coursing through her. She wouldn’t fully feel ca
lm until the rain stopped.
“You know, this was my high school,” he said, yet again.
Yes Dad, the first 52 times you told me, it didn’t sink in, but now I got it. She was about to verbalize her thought when the rain picked up its pace so it sounded like a steady drum beat smacking into the car window. She swallowed and said only, “I know.”
“I’ll pick you up this afternoon, too, but tomorrow, you can ride the bus,” he said, easing his foot onto the brake as they took a curve in the road at his break-neck rain speed of 14 mph.
“The bus would have been fine today.” Lauraline tried not to sound irritated. She hadn’t needed to be driven like a child. She could’ve driven herself, or at least taken the bus and met some of the other kids. Unfortunately, once Milton Reese had seen the drizzle, it suddenly became an excellent idea for him to chauffeur. He was more resilient in the rain than she was, seeming not to abhor every single thing about it. But he still exercised more caution, insanely extreme caution if she were being honest, during the rain.
“Some kids would love door-to-door service,” Milton said, his tone still upbeat, but clearly irritated that the rain had picked up its pace and was now falling heavily on the windshield. He slowed down as he drove, sped up his windshield wipers.
Part of Lauraline wanted to tell him that this wasn’t helpful, that there had to be a better way to deal. But the other part of her understood his concern. Understood his desire to keep her safe. Understood his desire to make sure what happened before didn’t happen again. She feared it, too. She tried to ignore it, but the fear and anxiety had soaked into her. They were a part of her being now. There seemed no way to shake their effects, so she let him drive her. It was better than the alternative.
She decided to just give in and tell him she appreciated him driving her. “Thanks for the ride,” she said, trying to sound grateful.
They completed the drive to Knightsdale High School in silence. When they finally pulled into the parking lot, the rain was again a gentle simmer. Lauraline hopped out as quickly as possible, then opened the back door and grabbed her backpack from where she’d tossed it earlier.
“Have a good day,” he said.
“You, too.” Lauraline shut the door, ran through the drizzle as fast as she could manage safely and ducked into the school building. Once inside, she took a deep breath. Safe. The rain hadn’t killed her today. It hadn’t succeeded when Lauraline had been three, either. But she knew deep within her that the rain remembered its lost victim and would try again.
END PREVIEW
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Also By RJ Crayton
Prophecy of Light – Trapped
(Book 1)
“Be careful what you say. Words have power.”
Kady can’t remember a time in her life when she wasn’t in hiding.
When Kady awakens in the middle of the night with her house crumbling around her, her aunt hustles her into the night and tries to protect her -- through words, magic words.
While her aunt succeeds in hiding Kady, the woman falls victim to the mage who has been searching for them the past 10 years. Kady knows that she must find her aunt and save her. But will she be able to tap the power trapped within her to do it?
This is part one of a four-part series. Kady’s story continues in subsequent books. Available on Amazon. FREE for Kindle Unlimited subscribers.
PROPHECY OF LIGHT – UNLEASHED
(Book 2)
This is book two in the Prophecy of Light series.
Kady must learn to unleash the magic trapped inside her if she is to help the mage Pylum rescue her aunt.
As Kady learns her way around the Temple of Light and takes classes to help her understand magic, she makes new friends like Jasper and learns more about the mysterious mage who helped her in book one: Akilah.
Will Kady be able to unleash her power, and what else might she find when her bonds are broken?
Order it on Amazon. FREE for Kindle Unlimited subscribers.
SCENTED
Scented is powerful tale about life, death and love, woven through the tapestry of characters with unique abilities. If you enjoy stirring, supernatural tales with love at their center, you'll adore Scented.
Sixteen-year-old Bryan Harper has felt alone since the day eight years ago that a sickening, unfamiliar scent wafted from his mother. When he realized too late the new odor was a prelude announcing death, he knew his new sense of smell is a gift, not a curse.
At a young age Lauraline Reese escaped death, yet its specter still haunts her. Unable to let go of the feeling that death has not forgotten her, Lauraline finds it hard to find peace with the storm that almost took her life.
When Lauraline walks into his life, Bryan knows instantly that she is different from the others. He doesn’t know why she appeared, but there is one thing he is sure of: his life is about to change. He just doesn’t know how.
As the two grow close, Lauraline helps Bryan discover a vital message, and Bryan finds himself in a race against death to set things right.
Can Bryan live a normal life despite his talent in scenting death? Or will he be forever marred by the curse of knowing when someone will die next?
Grab it FREE when you Subscribe to the Mailing list or Order it on Amazon.
CONCEALED
(Virus Series, Part 1)
They said we were safe. They were wrong.
When pandemics destroy the world above, the safety promised underground proves elusive. Start this page-turning series today.
Seventeen-year-old Elaan Woodson was supposed to be one of the lucky ones. She got one of the few spots in the subterranean protection unit designed to keep select families safe from the deadly virus ravaging the world above.
She's found happiness in the routine underground, and even a budding a romance with a boy who's also down below.
But, as Elaan hears snippets of conversations from those closest to her and those in charge, she's beginning to think things aren't as safe as she thought. While Elaan has heard that what you don't know can't hurt you, she's beginning to think otherwise.
The truth may be the only thing that can keep Elaan safe. But, can she discover it in time?
Order it on Amazon
(FREE for Kindle Unlimited Subscribers)
EXPOSED
(Virus Series, Part 2)
She is their chance for safety. Now they must find her.
The safety of the underground bunker is left behind. Elaan and her friends are out in the open, exposed to the world above. Exposed to a world that has been ravished by the virus. Can they make it to the one person they’ve been told can provide them safety?
Order it on Amazon
(FREE for Kindle Unlimited Subscribers)
LIFE FIRST
"I was completely intrigued by this book from the very first page. There were fairly few characters in-keeping with the story, but they were all extremely well thought out. I really think RJ Crayton should be expecting calls for film rights because this played out in my mind as I read it like a really great film.... It gripped you like King Kong and would not let go until you had finished the book."
- BestChickLit.com
Strong-willed Kelsey Reed must escape tonight or tomorrow her government will take her kidney and give it to someone else.
In this future forged by survivors of pandemics that wiped out 80 percent of the world's population, life is valued above all else. The mentally ill are sterilized, abortions are illegal and those who refuse to donate an organ when told are sentenced to death.
Determined not to give up her kidney or die, Kelsey enlists the help of her boyfriend Luke and a dodgy doctor to escape. The trio must disable the tracking chip in her arm for her to flee undetected. If they fail, Kelsey will be stripped of everything.
FREE from Amazon.
SECOND LIFE
“This thriller based on government conspiracies and lives th
at are twisted around is captivating! I just can’t give the twists away but you will be sat on the edge of your seat.”
-Amazon Customer Review
Susan Harper is being held captive by her government. As the normally feisty Susan's hopes of freedom dwindle, a mysterious stranger sneaks into her room and promises to help.
Susan and mystery man Rob grow close as he tries to orchestrate her escape. When the duo discovers the truth behind Susan's captivity, they realize they must act quickly if they're to save her. Susan and Rob will need more than passion for each other and their wits to succeed. They will need help from old friends, including Kelsey Reed.
In the previous book, Life First, Susan gave Kelsey a chance at a second life. But now will she get her own?
Get it from Amazon.
Third Life: Taken
"This was the best book of the series and the perfect conclusion to the story. It was a stomach churning, tension filled rollercoaster of emotions as you followed the two distinct but intertwined plots."
-Chuckles Book Cave
When Kelsey Reed fled her country to escape a forced kidney transplant, she was sure she’d never return. However, when her brother-in-law shows up on her doorstep, he commits an act of betrayal that changes everything.