Echoes of You

by Margaret McHeyzer

  “I’m sorry,” I say again. Tears are falling hot and fast down my cheeks. My head hurts from where he was pulling my hair, but I don’t dare try to rub the spot.

  “You ugly fuck.” He kicks a boot into my leg.

  The pain is instant and my leg feels like it’s shattered. “Please, Daddy,” I beg again, burying my face into my hands.

  But ‘please’ never seems to work.

  Nothing does.

  I’ve just got to take the beatings, because that’s what stupid, ugly girls do.

  Prologue

  “Is she dead?”

  Groaning, I try to roll over so I can see where the voice is coming from.

  “She’s moving. We have to help her,” someone else says. Their voice is breathy, sounding panicked.

  My limbs are heavy, my head is fuzzy, and I swear I can hear my mother’s voice.

  “Hannah, are you high?” She aggressively holds my chin and stares into my eyes.

  “No, Mom,” I respond, and giggle.

  “Your eyes are bloodshot, and you’re barely looking at me.”

  “I’m just tired,” I say and giggle again.

  “What’s so funny?” she asks as she lets go of my chin and steps backward.

  Shrugging, I look around the room.

  “We need to call an ambulance,” someone says, reminding me that my mother isn’t here with me.

  My vision is blurry. I can’t focus on anything at all. Turning my head, I look straight into the eyes of a girl. She’s probably around my age, but I bet she hasn’t seen half the stuff I have. She kneels beside me, and behind her are another two girls and three guys. One of them looks bored; he’s scrolling on his phone.

  “What do you want?” I bark toward her, but my voice comes out broken, and slurry.

  “Jasmine, she’s a junkie. Look at her. Just leave her. She’s not our problem,” the bored guy says.

  “We can’t just leave her,” she snarls back at him.

  Suddenly, my stomach starts contracting, and my breathing becomes challenged. Gasping for air, my body tightens with spasms, trying to get oxygen into my lungs.

  “Shit, she must be overdosing. We gotta get out of here before anyone finds us,” bored guy says.

  “I’m not leaving her. She’s just a kid.”

  “She ain’t my problem. I’m outta here,” the bored guy says and takes off, the others going with him.

  The girl stays with me, and as I try to focus on her, all I can see is the pretty chain around her neck. It looks like it’s worth a lot, I’m sure I could give it to Edgar for some crystals. Man, maybe a few days’ worth. I need money big time.

  “I’m going to call an ambulance,” the girl says as she takes her phone out of her pocket and dials it. “What have you taken?” she asks.

  Everything is fuzzy. Her voice sounds disjointed and almost robotic.

  Reaching for my pipe, I scream in pain. But she doesn’t seem alarmed by my screams, maybe I’m actually not moving. Everything hurts.

  “I need an ambulance…” her voice is frantic as she tells the operator where she is.

  My eyes keep drifting shut, and she screams at me to open them again.

  “She’s frothing at the mouth, and she’s barely moving.”

  I try to turn over, but whatever those fuckers gave me was strong. It’s weighing me down. I can barely move.

  “Her breathing is shallow…”

  If I can just get up, I’ll find my way back to Edgar’s. He’ll look after me. He always does. Sometimes he asks me to do stuff for him. “I’m alright,” I mumble.

  “She’s trying to say something,” the girl says into the phone. “Okay, I won’t touch her.” Her eyes are filled with pity and sadness. I stare up at her, and can see how concerned she is. I can see her. Can she see me?

  “There’s a syringe beside her. I think she might have injected something. There’s a pipe, too. Maybe she smoked crack or meth?”

  Yeah, baby. Crystal meth. Meth. Crystal. Ice. Tina. Glass. I love it. I love getting iced. It’s the best feeling in the world. Being invincible, even when there are a million people in the room. Being free. Floating. That floating is what I love best. Anything can be happening around you, and when you smoke a bit of ice, you’re floating above everyone. Free and happy and high.

  “I’m here!” The girl jumps up and waves her arms frantically.

  “Thank you for calling, we’ll take it from here,” another woman says to the girl.

  The girl steps back and continues to stare at me. I’m being rolled over, and talked at by someone in a uniform. “What’s your name?”

  “Hannah,” I respond.

  “She’s unresponsive,” the woman says as she looks up to someone. She presses into my chest plate with her knuckle, and a shooting pain rips through me. “She’s barely coherent. Heart rate is down, pulse is weak. She’s overdosing.”

  “Get me back to Edgar’s,” I say.

  “She’s crashing. Administering Narcan.”

  There’s a tightness in my chest. Pain soars through me, every part of me is like someone is stabbing multiple sharp knives into my body.

  A darkness overtakes me.

  A blanket of warmth is thrown over my entire body. My last breath escapes past my chapped lips.

  Suddenly, I feel weightless. This must be what heaven feels like. It’s so peaceful.

  “We’re losing her!” I hear someone yell.

  Who’s losing who? What’s happening?

  “ETA sixty seconds,” someone else says in a calm voice.

  I’m not sure what’s happening, all I know is I like the quiet.

  “Breathe, damn it, breathe!”

  “Great, another dead junkie,” someone snickers.

  “I haven’t lost her yet.”

  “She’s just a junkie, Sally. Who cares if she dies? It’s another one off the streets.”

  “Hey, she’s someone’s daughter. You want to be the one to knock on her parent’s door?”

  I hear a grumble from behind me. More like a pained sigh.

  Who’s talking?

  What the hell is happening?

  As it turns out, this is far from the end of my story.

  A Bump in the Road

  Pregnant at 15.

  These are the words I didn’t think I would ever have to live with.

  Alex and I thought we were careful.

  Becoming accidentally pregnant was obviously written in the stars for me.

  I can’t know what the future holds, or if Alex will even stick around.

  But the one thing I know for sure; I’ll turn this hardship into a blessing.

  With or without anyone else.

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  Luna Caged

  I often stare at the walls and wonder what’s beyond them.

  The Elders tell me that nothing but sin, sadness, and disease lie beyond the wall.

  Sometimes I hear things, noises that are strange to me. They’re often faint, and when I ask the Elders what those sounds are, they tell me they are the tortured souls of thousands of people behind the gates of hell. I don’t know what they mean.

  I dream of leaving these walls, but the Elders insist this is the only place we’re safe. They talk about danger, hatred, and the devil himself waiting just beyond. They tell us the walls were built to keep us safe.

  Although I believe the Elders, I want to see the outside world for myself.

  But there’s no way out.

  Or so I thought…

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  Luna Freed

  I often stared at the walls and wondered what was beyond them.

  After my first escape, I realized that everything I'd believed, everything the Elders told us, and everything I thought I knew were all calculated lies.

  Now I know the truth will set me free.

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  Addiction
r />   Drugs ruin people’s lives.

  I should know, they destroyed mine.

  I’m Hannah and I got hooked on ice. What started as a trickle, ended with a tsunami washing everything away; my family, my life.

  I’m not sure you’re ready to read my story; it’s real and confronting.

  Open the book, read the pages and see how easy it is for anyone to get addicted.

  Ice affects all types of people. It doesn’t discriminate.

  It will SCREW. YOU. UP.

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  Drowning

  I’m a cutter.

  I cut because I find solace in it.

  I cut because it helps calm my frantic mind.

  I cut because the voice inside my head tells me to.

  I cut because this is the only way I know how to handle life.

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  The Gift

  I have something people want. I have something they cannot take or steal. I have something they'd kill for.

  The something I have, isn't a possession, it's more.

  Much, much more.

  It's a gift.

  It's part of me.

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  The Curse

  It's been the butterfly effect.

  I changed the course of my life because I warned a man.

  I thought what I had was a gift, but it's quickly turning into my curse.

  Now I realize I'm much more than a girl with an ability.

  Because now... I'm becoming a weapon.

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  Dying Wish

  I have three major loves in my life: my family, my best friend Becky, and ballet. Elijah Turner is quickly becoming the fourth.

  He's been around as long as I can remember. But now he's much more than just the annoying guy at school.

  My life was working out perfectly...until it got turned upside down.

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  Mistrust

  I’m the popular girl at school.

  The one everyone wants to be friends with.

  I have the best boyfriend in the world, who’s on the basketball team.

  My parents adore me, and I absolutely love them. My sister and I have a great relationship too.

  I’m a cheerleader, I have a high GPA and I’m liked even by the teachers.

  It was a night which promised to be filled with love and fun until…something happened which changed everything.

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  Ugly

  *This is a dark YA/NA standalone, full-length novel. Contains violence and some explicit language*

  If I were dead, I wouldn't be able to see.

  If I were dead, I wouldn't be able to feel.

  If I were dead, he'd never raise his hand to me again.

  If I were dead, his words wouldn't cut as deep as they do.

  If I were dead, I'd be beautiful and I wouldn't be so...ugly.

  I'm not dead...but I wish I was.

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  Chef Pierre

  Holly Walker had everything she’d ever dreamed about – a happy marriage and being mum to beautiful brown-eyed Emma - until an accident nineteen months ago tore her world apart. Now she's a widow and single mother to a boisterous little 7-year-old girl, looking for a new start. Ready to take the next step, Holly has found herself a job as a maître d' at Table One, a once-acclaimed restaurant in the heart of Sydney. But one extremely arrogant Frenchman isn't going to be easy to work with...

  Twenty years ago, Pierre LeRoux came to Australia, following the stunning Aussie girl he'd fallen in love with and married. He and his wife put their personal lives on hold, determined for Pierre to take Sydney's culinary society by storm. Just as his bright star was on the upswing, tragedy claimed the woman he was hopelessly in love with. He had been known as a Master Chef, but since his wife’s death he has become known as a monster chef.

  Can two broken people rebuild their lives and find happiness once more?

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  Smoke and Mirrors

  Words can trick us.

  Smoke obscures objects on the edge of our vision.

  A mirror may reflect, but the eye sees what it wants.

  A delicate scent can evoke another time and place, a memory from the past.

  And a sentence can deceive you, even as you read it.

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  Grit

  ***Recommended for 18 years and over***

  Alpha MC Prez Jaeger Dalton wants the land that was promised to him.

  Sassy Phoenix Ward isn’t about to let anyone take Freedom Run away from her.

  He’ll protect what’s his.

  She’ll protect what’s hers.

  Jaeger is an arrogant ass, but he wants nothing more than Phoenix.

  Phoenix is stubborn and headstrong, and she wants Jaeger out of her life.

  Her father lost the family farm to gambling debts, but Jaeger isn’t the only one who has a claim to the property.

  Sometimes it’s best to let things go.

  But sometimes it’s better to fight until the very end.

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  Yes, Master

  **** THIS PROLOGUE CONTAINS DISTRESSING CONTENT. IT IS ONLY SUITED FOR READERS OVER 18. ****

  ALSO CONTAINS M/M, M/M/F, M/F AND F/F SCENES.

  My uncle abused me.

  I was 10 years old when it started.

  At 13 he told me I was no longer wanted because I had started to develop.

  At 16 I was ready to kill him.

  Today, I’m broken.

  Today, I only breathe to survive.

  My name’s Sergeant Major Ryan Jenkins and today, I’m ready to tell you my story.

  A Life Less Broken

  ***CONTAINS DISTRESSING CONTENT. 18+***

  On a day like any other, Allyn Sommers went off to work, not knowing that her life was about to be irrevocably and horrifically altered.

  Three years later, Allyn is still a prisoner in her own home, held captive by harrowing fear. Broken and damaged, Allyn seeks help from someone that fate put in her path.

  Dr. Dominic Shriver is a psychiatrist who’s drawn to difficult cases. He must push past his own personal battles to help Allyn fight her monsters and nightmares.

  Is Dr. Shriver the answer to her healing?

  Can Allyn overcome being broken?

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  My Life for Yours

  He’s lived a life of high society and privilege; he chose to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a Senator.

  She’s lived a life surrounded with underworld activity; she had no choice but to follow in her father’s footsteps and take on the role of Mob Boss.

  He wants to stamp out organized crime and can’t be bought off.

  She's the ruthless and tough Mob Boss where in her world all lines are blurred.

  Their lives are completely different, two walks of life on the opposite ends of the law.

  Being together doesn’t make sense.

  But being apart isn’t an option

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  HiT Series Box Set

  HiT 149

  Anna Brookes is not your typical teenager. Her walls are not adorned with posters of boy bands or movie stars. Instead posters from Glock, Ruger, and Smith & Wesson grace her bedroom. Anna’s mother abandoned her at birth, and her father, St. Cloud Police Chief Henry Brookes, taught her how to shoot and coached her to excellence. On Anna’s fifteenth birthday, unwelcome guests join the celebration, and Anna’s world is never the same. You’ll meet the world’s top assassin, 15, and follow her as she discovers the one hit she’s not sure she can complete – Ben Pearson, the current St. Cloud Police Chief and a man with whom Anna has explosive sexual chemistry. Enter a world of in
trigue, power, and treachery as Anna takes on old and new enemies, while falling in love with the one man with whom she can’t have a relationship.

  Anna Brookes in Training

  Find out what happened to transform the fifteen-year-old Anna Brookes, the Girl with the Golden Aim, into the deadly assassin 15. After her father is killed and her home destroyed, orphan Anna Brookes finds herself homeless in Gulf Breeze, Florida. After she saves Lukas from a deadly attack, he takes her in and begins to train her in the assassin’s craft. Learn how Lukas’s unconventional training hones Anna’s innate skills until she is as deadly as her mentor.

  HiT for Freedom

  Anna has decided to break off her steamy affair with Ben Pearson and leave St. Cloud, when she suspects a new threat to him. Katsu Vang is rich, powerful, and very interested in Anna. He’s also evil to his core. Join Anna as she plays a dangerous game, getting closer to Katsu to discover his real purpose, while trying to keep Ben safe. Secrets are exposed and the future Anna hoped for is snatched from her grasp. Will Ben be able to save her?

  HiT to Live

  In the conclusion to the Anna Brookes saga, Ben and his sister Emily, with the help of Agent rescue Anna. For Anna and Ben, it’s time to settle scores…and a time for the truth between them. From Sydney to the Philippines and back to the States, they take care of business. But a helpful stranger enters Anna’s life, revealing more secrets…and a plan that Anna wants no part of. Can Anna and Ben shed their old lives and start a new one together, or will Anna’s new-found family ruin their chances at a happily-ever-after?

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  Binary Law (co-authored)

  Ellie Andrews has been receiving tutoring from Blake McCarthy for three years to help her improve her grades so she can get into one of the top universities to study law. And she’s had a huge crush on him since she can remember.

  Blake McCarthy is the geek at school that’s had a crush on Ellie since the day he met her.

  In their final tutoring session, Blake and Ellie finally become brave enough to take the leap of faith.