Love at the End of the World
by
Jaye Shields
Beth D. Carter
Ashlynn Monroe
Imogene Nix
C. L. Scholey
Love at the End of the World
His Bounty: copyright © 2018, Jaye Shields
Heaven for Us: copyright © 2018, Beth D. Carter
Heart of Survival: copyright © 2018, Ashlynn Monroe
The Reset: copyright © 2018, Imogene Nix
The New Era: copyright © 2018, C. L. Scholey
ISBN: 9781949300017
Publisher: Beachwalk Press, Inc.
Electronic Publication: June 2018
Editor: Pamela Tyner
Cover: Fantasia Frog Designs
eBooks are not transferable. No part of this book may be used or reproduced without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in articles and reviews.
These stories are a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events, or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.
His Bounty
by Jaye Shields
After the nuclear war decimated much of the population, causing widespread infertility, the Stork Company became a billion-dollar industry. Caleb Black is the company’s top bounty hunter, bringing in healthy men and women to contribute to the breeding program and put babies into the hands of wealthy citizens. Few people willingly sign up to be a breeder, so hunters need to be tough and devoid of emotion. But Caleb’s newest target cracks his hardened heart.
Aurora Jones grew up in the Alaskan bush. Adept at living off the land, she’s thrived when others have failed to survive life post-nuclear war. She spends the majority of her time alone at her cabin, so when a handsome stranger shows up, curiosity gets the best of her. And it quickly turns into desire.
Caleb falls for the beautiful woman and decides he’d rather die than turn her into the Stork Company. But when she finds out who he really is and why he’s in Alaska, will the betrayal end the only chance he’s ever known of love?
Dedication
To Bill, Billy, and Will for showing me around Alaska. Thanks, boys!
Acknowledgements
This anthology would not be possible if not for the tenacity and wicked imagination of my fellow co-authors. Pamela Tyner, you are what I consider the Wonder Woman of the publishing industry and I’m in awe of every written word you help bring to life.
Chapter 1
Specimen W7 screamed out in pleasure, her eyes rolling back as a drug-fueled orgasm caused her body to tremble. The man inside of her pumped harder, determined to fill her with every ounce of the seed he’d accumulated while waiting for his moment with the woman.
Caleb Black watched through an observation window as Specimen M2 quickened his pace, yelling as he climaxed inside the woman. Caleb glanced away, unable to watch the display. He knew that the female specimen had probably been offered uppers and that the man had been edged the past twenty-four hours, tied down and teased toward orgasm, only to be reined in just before climax. His employer was a sick fuck, but Caleb had his reasons for doing the company’s dirty work.
The Stork Company was the highest-grossing company in the year 2030, selling babies to the highest bidder. Excessive radioactivity after a nuclear war had rendered most of the world’s population infertile, so now the few remaining individuals that could procreate were put to task as baby-making machines. The Stork Company had gained a reputation for producing the most sought-after babies, American born, and with whatever physical features the parents desired.
Slavery still hadn’t been made legal, but the company used drugs and money to skirt the laws, often seizing and drugging the ‘baby-makers’ into doing their job and giving up the infants. The drugs were an important aspect of keeping the specimens quiet once they were released of their contract.
Caleb watched the woman fall asleep shortly after her orgasm, her body limp on the sterile laboratory bed. The hospital-like room was hardly romantic, but he imagined this was no woman’s idea of a passionate liaison. No woman volunteered willingly for this job. Caleb should know; it was his duty to bring them in.
It wasn’t the most noble job, but the world was already a fucked-up place, so he might as well be on the side that profited. Caleb looked away when lab techs came to retrieve the female subject to take her back to her studio. Specimens weren’t allowed to leave in the event that any part of the modern world corrupted their fertility. The Stork Company residence was basically a glorified prison.
“Caleb, sorry to keep you waiting. Hope you at least enjoyed the show.” The silver-haired man in the expensive suit was the head of acquisition. “Creating a life is a powerful thing.”
He motioned for Caleb to follow him down the hall to the office where Caleb had been handed many assignments in his time at the Stork Company. Walking down the hallway past the laboratory observation windows always served as a cruel reminder of Caleb’s sins.
Caleb entered the office and took a seat. “You have a special assignment for me?”
“Pleasantries never were your strong point.”
“You didn’t hire me to be pleasant.” It was true. Sometimes Caleb did have to turn on the charm to lure women, but it didn’t mean he was a gentleman by any means. No one with half a conscience could do his job.
“You’re right. You’re the best bait-and-reel we have. Let’s get down to business.”
Caleb grit his teeth. The term ‘bait-and-reel’ referred to him being the trap set to lure females on account of his physical appearance. Then he was supposed to reel them in…usually kicking and screaming. It was the company’s job to get them to sign a contract. How they did so was none of Caleb’s business, but he imagined it wasn’t by any ethical means.
“Who’s the target?” Caleb asked.
“Our drones have been scouring the state of Alaska, hoping to discover some females who might have escaped the effects of the radioactivity out in the bush. Reconnaissance has detected a beautiful female with blonde hair and green eyes in good physical health. She’s been on subsistence living hundreds of miles from the nearest store, so we imagine there is a high likelihood that she may be fertile.”
“You want me to go deep into the Alaskan bush to search out a female who may or may not even be able to have babies just because she has green eyes?”
“You know very well that babies with blue or green eyes fetch a high price. Green eyes are especially rare these days. You’ll be paid just to find her and send in a sample. If she is fertile and you bring her in, it’ll be a record bounty.”
Caleb listened to the amount and tried not to look stunned. It was twice the highest sum he’d ever been paid. “Am I the only hunter on this assignment?”
“Don’t worry about that. Just do your job.” The acquisitions manager rose from his desk and handed over a file.
Caleb stood, towering over his boss. He took the file, flipped it open, and appraised the photo of his target that had been taken by a drone. The woman was incredibly beautiful. She had no idea that a plane over a thousand feet in the sky had captured her image, and yet a huge smile was spread across her face. Curiosity sucker punched him, taking his breath away. What had made her smile so?
His boss cleared his throat. “Yeah, she’s a pretty one. Her offspring will fetch a high price.”
Caleb shut the file. “Guess I better be on my way. I think there’s a red-eye to Anchorage.”
“That’s the spirit. I knew you were the bait-and-reel for this one.”
As Caleb left the building, h
e mentally prepared a pre-departure checklist of the things he needed to pack before he headed to the Los Angeles International Airport. Caleb retrieved his satellite phone and dialed the only woman that had ever mattered to him—his little sister. He got her voicemail, so he made it short. “I’ve got an assignment. I leave tonight. Call the sat phone if you have any trouble.”
He’d have to hurry in order to make the flight, but Caleb had a feeling he needed to rush to Alaska. If any other acquisition companies had the same intel, he’d be lucky if he was the only bounty hunter to go after her.
Caleb pondered the job that lay before him. A woman that beautiful surely had a man living with her. And if it were Caleb, he would die before he let anyone take her from him. This acquisition might end up being a tricky one. Good thing he liked a challenge.
* * * *
Icy wind whipped past Aurora Jones’s cheeks like tiny daggers as she sped across the snowy tundra on a sled pulled by her dogs. Her furs and mukluk boots kept her body warm, but the recent spring snowfall made for a chilly ride to meet her friend Kallum.
This was their bi-monthly meet up to exchange meat for fish and, of course, conversation. Kallum lived sixty miles away in the nearest village to her habitation, so they met halfway at the caribou hut. The three-hour journey meant Aurora was usually chilled to the bone when she arrived, so as she neared the camp, she was happy to see that Kallum had beat her there, a smoke stack rising from the tree line evidence that he had a fire going.
The snow-covered valley gave way to forest, but her huskies, Belle and Beast, navigated the trees with ease. Together as a team, they’d probably traveled this route a hundred times. The amazing thing about the Alaskan wilderness though was that every day the same trail looked a little different.
Aurora smiled as the hunter’s hut came into sight along with her good friend Kallum. Her dogs barked with excitement when they saw his team there. Kallum’s dog team was much bigger than her own, but Aurora wasn’t sure she could feed as many huskies as Kallum’s ten dog sled team.
“Easy,” Aurora called out to her huskies, commanding them to slow down. They obeyed her, already knowing they were nearing their stop. “Whoa.”
The dogs halted in front of the cabin, and Aurora waved to Kallum. This bi-monthly meet up was usually the only human interaction she had since she lived off-the-grid. On rare occasions, she went into town with him, but it was seldom.
The dogs barked wildly, equally excited to see each other. Aurora laughed, tickled by her dogs’ audible glee. She called out over the ruckus, “Kallum! So good to see you.”
She hopped off the sled and did her best to give her friend a proper hug despite the puffy coat limiting her movement. Kallum used a gloved hand to push back her hood and muss her hair. “Hey, neighbor.” He grinned, the gap between his two front teeth endearing as usual.
Kallum was several years younger than herself, but it was rare to find anyone from Generation R. People just weren’t having kids these days, so it was unusual for her to encounter anyone around her age, especially out in the bush where it was mostly old-timers and hermits.
“Let me see you.” Aurora looked her friend up and down playfully. “You look different than the last time I saw you. Beard an inch longer?” she teased Kallum, knowing his thick scruff was probably the same as always.
Kallum frowned. “I trimmed it just for you.”
“No need to try to be dapper on my account.” She laughed, knowing there wasn’t a pretty-boy bone in the Alaskan male’s body. He was all Carhartts and Xtratufs, the typical outfit out in the bush. And no way would he ever shave.
Aurora untethered her dogs and smiled as she watched them mix with the other huskies, greeting each other in a flurry of wagging tails and tongues.
“Come on.” Kallum put an arm around Aurora. “I’ve got coffee on.”
“I knew I loved you.”
Aurora trudged through the snow to the tiny hunting hut. Inside were the bare essentials for a hunter to take refuge from any weather and cut down his bounty. But today neither Aurora or Kallum were hunting, they were trading. Aurora wasn’t much for hunting unless she absolutely had to, but she was an excellent fisherman and usually was able to keep herself and her dogs fed from her catches. Still, a little variety was nice, so she and Kallum would trade her salmon for his caribou or other game meat.
Aurora sat by the hearth and took the steaming cup of coffee that Kallum handed her. “So what’s new?” she asked.
“You know, same ol’, same ol’.” Kallum took a seat, but Aurora noticed it felt a little closer than usual, his shoulder just brushing hers.
She scooted over. “Such is life in the bush.”
“Speaking of that. I was thinkin’, why don’t you come hang out in the village for a bit? You can stay at my parents’ cabin if you like. Or in mine.”
“Nah. You know me, I’m not much for the village.”
“Well, do you need my help around the cabin at all?”
Maybe it was just the fire warming Kallum up, but she could’ve sworn his cheeks were getting more pink by the minute. “Oh no, I’m good. But thank you.”
In truth, she did have some minor chores that she wasn’t looking forward to, but Aurora would rather do them herself than have company at her small, one-bedroom cabin. It wasn’t that she didn’t adore Kallum, but she also relished her solace.
“Does my company suck so bad?” Kallum laughed, but she caught the disappointed furrow in his brows.
“Of course not.” Aurora struggled to find the right words.
Before she knew it, Kallum closed the distance between them, his lips descending toward hers. Aurora moved away so quickly that she fell backward off her stool and flung her coffee into the air.
“Shit! I’m sorry, Aurora.” Kallum rushed to help her off the ground. “You didn’t get burned, did you?”
“No, I’m okay. I’m sorry, I was just...” Extremely freaked out. Aurora thought of Kallum as a little brother. He was only twenty-two, which somehow seemed way younger than her own twenty-six years.
“I’m so sorry. I thought you knew that I liked you. And lately the guys have been sayin’ I should give it a go.”
“Give it a go?” She almost choked on the words. “Give what a go exactly?”
Kallum blushed a deep shade of pink, and despite the beard, he looked every bit of a young boy. She had her answer.
“I think I should go.” Aurora stood to leave, but Kallum grabbed her elbow.
“I’m sorry, ’Ror.”
“I thought we were friends. I thought I was more to you than some young, single woman out in the bush for the taking like all the other men in the village think. Why do you think I never want to go into town? They all look at me like a fresh piece of meat.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“I’m gonna go. The salmon is on my sled if you want it. I’m going to leash up.”
“It’s going to be dark soon, ’Ror. Just stay the night, I’ll go.”
“We’ll be fine if we leave now.” True, but she imagined Belle and Beast wouldn’t be happy to leave their friends so soon.
The minutes ticked by awkwardly as Kallum loaded her sled up with meat and brought her salmon in. Aurora didn’t hug Kallum goodbye like she usually did, and it pained her more than she thought it would. As Beast and Belle led her away, she began to feel bad for judging him so harshly. She shouldn’t blame him for feeling lonely and pressured to seek out the company of a woman.
Sometimes Aurora felt lonely herself. But she’d decided long ago that fantasizing about a man was probably way better than the real thing. It was safer. So instead of ever having a man from the village, she relied on the romance from books to keep her company. The happily ever afters lining her bookshelves in the cabin were practically memorized she’d read them so many times.
As her team ran across the snowy tundra, slower than usual, Aurora realized that she’d left so suddenly the dogs hadn’t had any time to rest or f
eed. Should I turn back? Feeling too ashamed of how hard she’d been on Kallum, she let the dogs continue on. Some husky teams did one hundred miles in a day. Belle and Beast would be okay, and they’d have a hearty meal when they got to the cabin, but there would be no place to camp in between.
Snow began falling from the sky, and within minutes it was blowing sideways and she could barely see in front of her dogs’ noses. Aurora trusted her canine friends knew the route well enough to take her home.
The journey passed by slowly and fear began to set in, her heartbeat quickening. The temperature was below freezing, and despite her layers and gloves, her body shook from the cold. And she could only hope they were on the right path as it was still snowing so hard she couldn’t see. The wind made the trek worse for her huskies, who were already tired from the initial journey to meet Kallum.
As time clicked by mercilessly, Aurora wasn’t sure where she was or how much longer until she reached her cabin. Thinking of how hungry and tired her dogs must be, she realized she also hadn’t eaten. Her vision blurred, and she fought to stay conscious. Not sure if it was real, the clearing where her cabin was came into view. Aurora could have sworn she made out the shape of a man in the distance. That’s strange. Was she just imagining it?
As the dogs took her closer to the cabin, the outline of the man remained. Kallum? Before she got close enough to find out, Aurora’s world went black.
Chapter 2
The blizzard rolled in just as Caleb landed his skiplane in a valley near the location of his bounty’s cabin. He’d been shocked when he’d knocked on the door and received no answer. With the snow gusting around thirty knots, you’d have to be crazy to be outside.
Deciding he didn’t care to wait in the cold, he let himself into the home, easily picking the lock. Obviously this woman wasn’t worried too much about company. He imagined the lock was just a formality for unwanted animals.
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