“No.” Keen shook his head, pouring sweat. It ran down his face in streams, soaking his collar. “No, Sokolsky. I will never be like you.”
I stared at him levelly, and a few of the soldiers flinched as I lifted my head. “No. You won’t.”
“You’re a monster. And when they tear that demon that passes for your soul out of your arrogant, insolent ass, I’ll be there.” His nostrils were trembling, and so was his shooting arm. “I’ll be there, and I’ll pray for you, and for your friends, and when I find the Garden I’ll go to my knees to beg God to forgive whatever is left of you. Because that’s what godly men do. Even for sick fools like you.”
“You ever wonder why your God is silent whenever you kneel down to pray?” I asked. “Because it’s NO-thing.”
Keen lowered the pistol from my face to my crotch. “One last chance before I blow your dick off to Kingdom Come. Where’s the Garden?”
Angkor, Zarya, the Weeders, and Binah were moving further and further away, much faster than they had before. “I care more about Eden than my dick. I’m almost as much a virgin as you are.”
Keen’s finger trembled. He shot the ground between my knees.
“I’ll be sure to make special care recommendations to the Director.” His voice was shaky with pain and stress and impotent rage. “We will grind you to a fine powder, Sokolsky, and we will find the Garden, whether you give up the secret alive or dead. Theta One and Fourteen, prep him for transport with the vampire. Make sure you ‘forget’ to lubricate him for contraband inspection when we get there.”
I couldn’t help it: I began to laugh, a dry raven’s caw. Vassily was a vampire, the Engine was coming, New York City was being overrun by a corrupted MahTree, and that was the best he could muster? Threatening me with a rectal exam?
Heavy hands cuffed me and yanked me up to my feet. I was still laughing the wheezy, exasperated, dark laughter of someone looking damnation in the face when the rifle butt came down on the back of my neck.
It knocked me out cold.
In the next installment of the Hound of Eden series, join Alexi as he enters the heart of darkness and discovers the terrible secret behind the Icebox, the Vigiles’ supernatural prison. Is he strong enough to survive and reunite with Angkor, Zarya, and his friends?
Join my newsletter to be the first to know when Cold Cell, Book 4 in the Hound of Eden series, is released for your reading pleasure! Visit http://www.jamesosiris.com
Free Prequel Novel: Burn Artist
When shit gets too weird for the Mob to handle, hitmage Alexi Sokolsky is the guy they call to fix it. Get Burn Artist FREE: http://jamesosiris.com/alexi-sokolsky-starter-library/
1986, New York City. The Russian Mafiya is neck-deep in a Wall Street heist worth millions, but things heat up when a mage from a rival gang is hired to force the Russians to back down from the deal. As the magic flies and men burn, Alexi must hunt the murderer in a feverish game of cat-and-mouse to protect his friends. But to honor his contract, Alexi must also save his most hated enemy.
His father.
Set 5 years before Blood Hound, Burn Artist is a prequel to the series which reveals more about Alexi’s past. What were the events that shaped him? Why did he murder his own father? And what are his true feelings for his best friend?
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Major Organizations in the Hound of Eden Series:
The Yaroschenko Organizatsiya
New York’s largest Russian Mafiya organization, based in Brighton Beach and Red Hook.
The Manelli Family (Italian Mafia)
The largest Italian Mafia family in the NY/NJ/PA tri-state area. Most of them are in service to Munificence. They are enemies of the Yaroschenko Organizatsiya and are (mostly) allied with the Crusaders of the Deutsche Ordern.
The Laguetta Family (Italian Mafia)
The oldest Mafia family in New York. Based in Queens. Allies of the Yaroschenko Organizatsiya.
The Templum Voctus Sol
A mysterious Morphorde cult affiliated with a being known as ‘Providence’. They seem to have some kind of relationship with the Church of the Voice of the Lord, an eccentric ‘prosperity gospel’ megachurch.
The Vigiles Magicarum
The FBI agency tasked with handling all supernatural or paranormal crimes in the USA. They were established in 1983 after the assassination of President Robert Rutherford by a ‘magical terrorist’. They work closely with the P-SAD (Paranormal Special Activities Division) and elements of the military.
While theoretically a secular, vetted branch of law enforcement, the Vigiles Magicarum was founded and is controlled by modern-day Crusaders who belong to The Deutsche Orden (Venator Dei, Gottes Jäger), a continuation of the ancient fraternity of Teutonic Knights who show every sign of being Morphorde.
ANSWER
A mysterious pro-GOD militia that operates on different worlds. ANSWER is quite large, with a number of ‘sections’ and several largely-independent agencies. One of these agencies is CEIDR (‘seeder’), who target worlds threatened by Greater Morphorde and Morphordian organizations and seek to prevent them achieving their goals.
For more information (and possible spoilers), visit and submit contributions to the Dermal Highway Wiki: http://www.thedermalhighway.jamesosiris.com/
About the Author
Dragon Award-nominated author James Osiris Baldwin writes gritty LGBT-inclusive, dark fantasy and science fiction. He was the former Contributing Editor for the Australian Journal of Dementia Care and has also worked for Alzheimer's Australia.
He currently lives in Seattle with his lovely wife, a precocious cat, and far too many rats. His obsession with the Occult is matched only by his preoccupation with motorcycles.
Contact James by email: [email protected].
View more books at: http://amazon.com/author/jamesosiris
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Copyright Notice
Copyright © 2015-2016 James Osiris Baldwin
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author or publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
For permission requests, please contact James Osiris Baldwin: [email protected]
A huge thanks to Stacy Schonhardt and her excellent copyediting!
Artwork, layout and design by James Osiris Baldwin.
Gift Horses and the Dermal Highway setting are Copyright © 1980 – 2016 Canth Decided-Baldwin and are used with permission.
* * *
[1] A Consigliere is the advisor to the Don in the Italian Mafia, and usually one of the most trusted members of a mob boss’s inner circle.
[2] The Pakhun (literally ‘Prince’) is the founder and absolute authority of any given Russian Mafiya outfit. Unlike the Avtoritet, a Pakhun is rarely ‘hands on’ and may even be a legitimate businessman, politician, or authority figure. This is one of the major organizational differences between Slavic and Italian organized crime.
[3] Perestroika was the restructuring of the Soviet political & economic system, and a major cause in the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the subsequent collapse of Communism in September 1991.
[4] Suka literally means ‘bitch’, but the connotation is different in Russian than in English. The word is mostly used for snitches, traitors, people who cooperate with the authorities, etc… and if you call someone ‘suka’, you better be able to back it up.
[5] Blatnoi, as the name implies, are people with a lot of blat’, or social status. They trade in favors.
[6] ‘Give it to the Black God.’
[7] Blat’ is the Russian term for ‘face’ or ‘honor’: a very important concept in most Eastern European and Asian countries. Blatnoi are people who have ‘face’ – who are socially importa
nt and able to leverage favors.
[8] A slang term for non-magical people.
[9] ‘My God’.
[10] A cell commander or the leader of a brigada, who answers to an Avtoritet. They are generally hands-on street commanders who lead small teams and directly supervise criminal operations.
[11] The ultimate authority of an Organizatsiya. The Pakhun (literally ‘prince’) is generally a thief-in-law with great seniority.
[12] Also a stereotypical Ukrainian food, hence the touch of guilt.
[13] ‘Sons of bitches!’ Rather more rude in Vietnamese than in English.
[14] Whore, cunt. Like ‘khuy’ (dick, fuck’, it’s used as an interjection.
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