Double Life

by S. Usher Evans

"Because I was the only kid Mother would let him take," Lyssa replied darkly. "As you saw, she obviously didn't care if I lived or died."

  "That or…" Vel said, thoughtfully. "He was using theology to his advantage."

  "How do you figure?"

  "Do you remember the story of Mercurious?"

  "Who?" Lyssa asked.

  "It's a story in the scriptures—you would know if you weren't playing on your damned mini-computer at Temple," Vel snapped, knowingly. "About two brothers, one good and one not so good. The good brother died and the evil brother followed his soul back through the fields of Lethe all the way to the Arch of Eron."

  "Is there a point to this story?" she said, folding her arms over her chest.

  "The point is I would wager Father needed you so he wouldn't suffer from those same hallucinations. They're probably only brought on when a person's soul is not good enough to pass through the Arch, so if he brought you with him…"

  "You're saying he needed me because I had a good soul?" she asked incredulously.

  "I'm saying it makes sense."

  "No, it doesn't," she insisted stubbornly. "If I have such a good soul, how come I still had hallucinations? I mean, I saw Dorst and Sera at Harms' bar for crying out loud."

  "What'd they say?"

  "Stuff," Lyssa muttered. "They were wrong anyway."

  "What'd they say?" Vel repeated.

  "They said I was stubborn, and too reckless, and I push people away."

  "Seems pretty accurate. You are, and you do."

  "Well Relleck and Sage said I was overcompensating and…and can take care of myself," she trailed off, realizing Sage wasn't actually saying anything she disagreed with.

  "Yes, you do." Vel nodded. "And you can."

  "And…" She clammed up. Her self-reflection wasn't something she really wanted to share with him.

  "Some scriptures say the Fields of Lethe are there to help wayward souls figure out their truth and atone before they can reach the Arch of Eron." He paused, smiling. "You looked pretty content when you finally came back to reality. And I didn't see the Arch until you did."

  She shifted uncomfortably, remembering the warmth and clarity she'd felt. It was true, the hallucinations had stopped when she came to realize how wrongly she'd been thinking about herself.

  "Doesn't matter what I saw or didn't see," she said, angrily. "I obviously failed the judgment. As Pymus can attest..."

  "If I recall, Pymus was the one standing closest to the Arch when the judgment was passed, not you. Per the story of Mercurious, that means his soul was being judged, not yours. So if you ask me, perhaps he got what he deserved."

  Lyssa looked up at her blank computer screen, wheels turning in her head. Pymus had been closer to the Arch when everything changed. When she was a little girl, she'd stepped up to the Arch to ask the Great Creator what He thought of her, and her father had pulled her away...

  "If anything, I think it proves how good your soul is. A little wayward, perhaps, but you found your way."

  His words rang in her ear—and she suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

  "Ugh," Lyssa snapped, turning her computer back on. "Can it with the mushy shit."

  "God in Leveman's Vortex, you're so predictable," Vel scoffed "See? The Great Creator was right. The moment someone gets even remotely close to you, you just shut down and start with the sass."

  "Why are you so annoying today?" she whined, hoping they would move on soon.

  "Because I—"

  They were interrupted by the sound of her mini-computer buzzing. To her surprise and slight horror, it was Dissident.

  He'd been calling her for days now, but she didn't want to respond. She knew he was probably going to kick her out of his web for good. She was still stinging from the news that Dissident had told Pymus to hire Relleck to capture her—she didn't know what kind of verbal abuse he was going to send her way this time.

  "Are you gonna take that?" Vel asked.

  She looked up at him, hearing his words, but taking a different meaning from them. For some reason—maybe it was Vel, maybe she was just tired of getting kicked around—she finally felt like standing up for herself with this guy.

  "No, I'm not," she said, gently pulling off her glasses and hair band.

  "What is wrong with you?" Dissident seethed, his face inches away from the camera. "Why didn't you turn him in when you had the chance, you stupid girl? I could've been rid of him for—"

  "Well, I was gonna," Razia responded, tossing a look at Vel. "But you know, I was just so damned pissed that he was hired to capture me."

  Dissident's face changed slightly.

  "And, it turns out, my own runner actually set me up," she continued, watching his face. "Funny story, huh?"

  "Well, you see, I—"

  "Can it," she snapped, her voice full of fire and confidence it had rarely had with him. "Here's the deal, asshole: I'm in your damned web, and if you ever pull a bitch move like that again, or even as much as hint you want to kick me out, I will drag your sorry ass out of the rat hole of an apartment you live in and I will leave you so black and blue you'll be pissing blood for a month."

  "You don't—" he sputtered, his face pale with fear.

  "You live five blocks from Harms' bar. Sixth floor, apartment B," she said, and his eyes widened. "Have a nice afternoon."

  And with that, she hung up on him.

  "That was epic," Vel said.

  She dropped her confident face momentarily. "Was it too much?"

  "Just enough," Vel said, pulling up a chair to sit next to her. "So tell me about this planet you excavated?"

  "No," Lyssa snapped, pulling her glasses back on. "Go bother Dorst."

  "So, about that..." Vel laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. "After you stormed out of the Manor, I may have told Mother she was an unbelievably selfish, hypocritical cow who was going to burn in Plethegon for the way she'd forsaken her own daughter."

  Lyssa swiveled her head to stare at him, impressed.

  "So I'm not sure I would be welcome on Dorst's team right now anyway," Vel said, trying to keep the smile off his face.

  Lyssa turned back to the computer and mumbled, "Well, I guess you can stay a little longer. Just stay outta my way."

  "Wow, don't sound too excited." Vel laughed. "Your air of mystery would be shattered if anyone thought you actually liked spending time with me."

  "I'm not…whatever, you're stupid," she muttered, quickly looking back at the computer in front of her as a blush rose on her cheeks. "I don't care. Asshole. Get sucked."

  "I'm sure," Vel said, gently nudging her. "I love you too."

  "Whatever." She rolled her eyes. But as her little brother sat down next to her, she couldn't help the small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth as they put together her planet presentation.

  Alliances

  Book 2 in the Razia Series

  Sneak Peek

  All of Razia's thoughts came to a screeching halt. A taller woman in a dark suit with a mane of curly light brown hair walked through the door, sat down at the bar, and ordered a drink. She pulled out a small and stylish mini-computer and began playing with it, scrolling through what was obviously the pirate intraweb.

  Razia stared, open-mouthed.

  Who did this woman think she was?

  Razia was the only female bounty hunter!

  Feeling a need to stake her claim, Razia sauntered over to the woman and folded her arms over her chest.

  "And just who in Leveman's Great Vortex do you think you are?"

  "None of your business," the woman replied back, without looking up.

  Razia gaped at her. "I’m sorry, but I don’t think you know who I am."

  "Should I?" the woman said, tossing back her quite lovely hair. Up close, Razia could see the underlying strands of deep brown that clumped together in perfectly curling tendrils, the smooth skin that adorned her cheeks. Leveman's, she looked like she worked for that uppity planet-selling co
mpany!

  "Yes!" Razia said, trying to not be envious of her hair and complexion. "And what makes you think that any runner would allow you into his web—"

  "What are you talking about?" the woman replied. "I’m not a pirate."

  "Then what are you doing here?" Razia asked, spying a pirate's face peering back up at her from the woman's mini-computer.

  "Just leave me alone. You’re bringing too much attention to me," she whispered, hunching over her shoulders.

  "You’re bringing the attention to yourself," Razia pointed out, not bothering to lower her voice whatsoever.

  "And how am I doing that?" The woman rolled her eyes.

  "As I said before, I’m the only woman pirate."

  "And as I said before, I’m not a pirate," the woman snapped back with equal vigor.

  "Yes, but you’re looking at the pirate intraweb," Razia drawled, waving her arms around for effect.

  "Really?" The woman put her mini-computer down and twirled around in her seat to face Razia. "I’m looking at the pirate intraweb? I couldn’t tell. I thought that I was looking at the universe's ugliest sons of bitches."

  "Good, then you can leave," Razia folded her arms over her chest.

  "I was being sarcastic."

  "I couldn’t tell."

  The woman made a face. "If I pay you, will you leave me alone?"

  "The only way I’ll leave you alone is if you leave this bar and don’t set foot in any pirate bars ever again," Razia said with a menacing glare, "because you are definitely not going to capture the guy that I'm here to get today."

  The woman was about to retort when the bathroom door opened and Cree Hardrict walked out. Satisfaction rushed over Razia and she forgot all about the horrible woman she was arguing with. She’d outsmarted another bounty and now it was time to—

  "Cree Hardrict," the woman said, standing up and brandishing a badge. "I am Lizbeth Carter with the Universal Beings Union Intelligence Agency, Major Crimes Directorate, Insurance Fraud Division, Piracy Branch, and I need you to answer a few questions."

  "God in Leveman's Vortex, lady," Hardrict said, rolling his eyes. "Leave me alone! I ain't answering any of your questions no more!"

  "Hold up," Razia blinked. "First of all—government?" She snorted. The government was about as big of a joke as the U-POL. "And second of all, you can arrest Hardrict after I’ve turned him into the bounty office."

  "You ain't turning me in nowhere, stupid bitch," Hardrict spat at Razia.

  "I'll show you stupid bitch," Razia snarled, advancing toward Hardrict. Before she got two steps, a small hand had latched onto her jacket arm.

  "Lady, you're interfering with government business, and if you continue to do so, I’m going to have to arrest you," the other woman said, fire in her eyes. "I suggest that you—"

  "And I suggest that you let me get my bounty before I pin you to the wall with that shiny badge of yours." Razia ripped her arm out of the woman's grasp. "I can drop your ass so fast, it'll make those pretty curls of yours go straight."

  Alliances

  Piracy is a game.

  Whom do you trust?

  Now available

  As always, thank you, dear reader, for going with me on this adventure. As an indie author, I rely on my awesome folks like yourselves to help share the word about my work. Please consider leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or any other fine book retailer. I am so excited to hear what you think—even if it's a short review. And don't forget to check out my other work below and subscribe to my newsletter to get all the latest info from yours truly.

  The Madion War Trilogy

  He's a prince, she's a pilot, they're at war. But when they are marooned on a deserted island hundreds of miles from either nation, they must set aside their differences and work together if they want to survive.

  The Madion War Trilogy begins with The Island, now available free for Kindle Unlimited subscribers and also for paperback and hardcover. Book 2, The Chasm, will be available July 12, 2016 and Book 3, The Union, will be available Valentine's Day 2017.

  Empath

  Lauren Dailey is in break-up hell, but if you ask her she's doing just great. She hears a mysterious voice promising an easy escape from her problems and finds herself in a brand new world where she has the power to feel what others are feeling. Just one problem—there's a dragon in the mountains that happens to eat Empaths. And it might be the source of the mysterious voice tempting her deeper into her own darkness.

  Empath is a stand-alone fantasy that is available now free for Kindle Unlimited subscribers and also for paperback and hardcover.

  About the Author

  S. Usher Evans is an author, blogger, and witty banter aficionado. Born in Pensacola, Florida, she left the sleepy town behind for the fast-paced world of Washington, D.C.. There, she somehow landed jobs with BBC, Discovery Channel, and National Geographic Television before finally settling into a "real job" as an IT consultant. After a quarter life crisis at age 27, she decided consulting was for the birds and writing was the bee's knees. She sold everything she owned and moved back to Pensacola, where she currently resides with her two dogs, Zoe and Mr. Biscuit.

  Evans is the author of the Razia series, Empath, and the Madion War Trilogy, all published by Sun's Golden Ray Publishing.

  Check her out in her internet home

  http://www.susherevans.com/

  Or on Twitter

  @susherevans

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