Six paragraphs from MY BATTLE LORD'S PASSION, The Battle Lord Saga, Book 9.1. “Because Mattox just killed one that had managed to get inside Misty’s crib.” The battle lord held up his hand, fingers spread. “Damn thing was as big as my hand. Fortunately he managed to plunge a knife into it before it reached her. I dread to think what kind of bite that thing must have.” A shudder went through him at the thought of the creature feasting on his daughter.
2. “No, it hasn’t, because Atty never came into my life here. Or, if she had, the other me was too enmeshed in his hatred of all things Mutah that he overlooked her. It was due in part to Liam’s guidance that she and I…” He raked his fingers through his hair. “I guess, when Liam died, that’s when all that changed. That’s where my present and this present split, like a fork in the road.”
3. “My real reason for coming down here is two-fold. I intend to free you. Hopefully. Eventually. But it has to be done in a way that will not cause any problems with my people. Tosh Karv is on the verge of trying to overthrow me, and claim Alta Novis as his. If he succeeds…you know his first order of business will be to have you all killed. Which is why this has to be done gradually. Unfortunately, I won’t have a lot of time do what I hope to do. I’m going to have to go back to those caverns in a few days. I’m going to go back with the announced intent of making sure we’ve eradicated the spiders, or at least caused enough damage to prevent them from invading us and other compounds in the future.
4. D’Jacques sat back in the chair and let out a big sigh. “At first, when they started telling me their stories, I thought it was to educate me. Like I was someone who’d been in a deep coma, and they needed to bring me up to speed on what’s been happening while I was out of it. Then, after a while, they weren’t so much as trying to reeducate me as it had turned into some sort of grand party. We were a bunch of guys sitting around a table, in front of a fire, sipping our ales and beers. We were reminiscing about the good times, and the bad times, and the times when it seemed all hope was lost until Atty and I brought everyone through the fire.” He studied the man who was studying him. “Liam, in my present, I never met Atty. After we torched that compound and rounded up those Mutah who looked decent enough not to upset my people here, we came back home. We held your funeral, and I’ve never stopped grieving over your loss. You were…are my surrogate father.”
5. Atty wrapped her arms herself as she kept a smile pasted on her face. She wasn’t cold, but she felt no warmth. Every word he spoke, and every gesture he made confirmed him to be Yulen D’Jacques. He wasn’t her Yulen, but he was. He was everything her Yulen was, but without the scars or the experiences they’d endured and survived. And she knew his body intimately. His love filled her veins. Their passion flowed through her bloodstream. She couldn’t breathe without him, yet somehow her body was managing to get by without his presence pillowing her heart. She was surviving, but she wasn’t alive.
6. Atty sighed and walked away. He watched her head back to where the caulking was being mixed. For a second he almost called out to her, reached out to her. By some miracle he stopped himself short. Yes, she was Atty, but not his Atty. To him, any attempt to touch her, hold her, or kiss her would be a betrayal to his wife.
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