Unbroken -Part One - A Second Chance at Love Romance: The Collective - Season 1, Episode 1
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The Collective is here…
We’ve set the stage, created the characters, and fashioned a world full of twists and turns. Now it’s your turn to sit back and immerse yourself in this incredible series. Each episode weaves the characters and storylines of five standalone novels together to give you an epic crossover series. We’ve left you breadcrumbs, tidbits of information intertwined throughout our stories. Can you find them? Can you collect the clues we’ve left and become part of The Collective and solve the case?
Season One –
Featured authors in order of appearance-
International bestselling author -Riley Edwards www.rileyedwardsromance.com
International bestselling author - Erin Trejo – www.authorerintrejo.weebly.com/
Best Selling author - Ellie Masters – www.elliemasters.com
Award winning author - Elias Raven – www.eliasraven.com
Award winning author - Chris Genovese – www.eroticmayberry.com
Best Selling author - Carver Pike – www.carverpike.com
Season one releases- April 4, 2017, with a two-week release schedule.
Riley Edwards - Unbroken (part one) 4.4.17 - http://amzn.to/2m4q79L
Erin Trejo - Iron Claw MC 4.18.17 - http://amzn.to/2mnB3C2
Ellie Masters - Learning to Breathe 5.2.17 - http://amzn.to/2mnxbRy
Elias Raven - Shadow & Flame - 5.16.17 - http://amzn.to/2nfHeVr
Chris Genovese - Quills and Daggers 5.30.17 - http://amzn.to/2m4mEIa
Riley Edwards Unbroken (part two) 6.13.17 -Pre order coming soon
Erin Trejo -TBA - 6.27.17 - Pre order coming soon
Ellie Masters -TBA- 7.11.17 - Pre order coming soon
Elias Raven -TBA- 7.25.17 - Pre order coming soon
Carver Pike - TBA - 8.1.17 - Pre order coming soon
Connect with The Collective at
Newsletter - http://eepurl.com/cxCJFb
www.TheCollectiveNovels.com
https://www.facebook.com/TheCollectiveNovels/
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 by Riley Edwards
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 publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover design: Riley Edwards
Written by: Riley Edwards
Published by: Riley Edwards
Editor: Jay C. Layne Monograph Editing
jay@monographediting.com
Unbroken
Part one | A Collective Novel
First edition – March 2017
Copyright 2017 Riley Edwards
All rights reserved
Other books by
Riley Edwards
Nightstalker | Red Team Book 1 http://amzn.to/2nx5imE
Panther |Red Team Book 2
coming Summer 2017
The Gift
A Master and His slave http://amzn.to/2mT2RxM
The Awakening
A Master and His submissive http://amzn.to/2nxaKWG
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, I need to thank my fellow Collective authors - Chris Genovese, Ellie Masters, Erin Trejo, Elias Raven, and Carver Pike. I cannot begin to express how honored I am to collaborate with such a great group of authors. I’ve had so much fun plotting and planning this series with them. They all have taught me so much, and I could not be more grateful.
Chris Genovese, my brother, thank you for always being my sounding board. You are by and far the most creative person I know. Your imagination knows no bounds. It is a beautiful thing to watch your brain work.
Ellie Masters, as always, you pushed me to finish this book. Our word sprints and you reveling when you beat me always pushed me to do better. You have been instrumental in my progression as a writer. Knowing that you will be reading my words and critiquing them is both terrifying and yet comforting. You make me a better writer. Thank you for everything.
Erin Trejo, I was a huge fan of your work long before I ever wrote a single word on a page. You are a mentor, a great friend, and a talented author. It has been so much fun working with you.
Elias Raven, you friend, are a force of nature. You are the tornado that blows through, and all you can do is pray your grip is strong enough to hold on. I have said it a thousand times before, but it bears repeating, you are an outstanding writer. You cross genres, eras, and writing styles with ease. I am so thankful to have had a chance to work with you.
Carver Pike, I can only thank you for the many sleepless nights. ‘Who knew scary could be so sexy?’
The Collective is so blessed to have a huge support team behind us! Thank you to all the BETA readers and reviewers that gave us feedback. It undoubtedly made this series better. We cannot thank you enough for your time, hard work, and dedication to this project.
The Collective PA and Overlord Michelle Thomas, thank you doesn’t begin to cover what we all owe you. You have five authors to keep straight, five authors to wrangle, five authors to promote. It is a wonder how you pull it all off. Thank you.
My PA Stacy Stewart! I know that you get embarrassed when I gush over you, so you’ll just have to grin and bear it. You are the backbone of this operation and the glue that holds the house together. I am grateful to have you by my side through this journey. You are a great friend and inspiration.
Kendall Barnett, Sunshine, I live for our daily chats, even if most of the time you tell me, “I have a bad attitude.” HAHA. You are my ray of sunshine, my partner, and most of all friend. You are huge support and voice of reason. Thank you for all you do for me and everyone around you. You are one of the kindest people I know. The best kind of human. ??
Jay- my editor, my friend, my biggest cheerleader. Thank you! YK?
Last but not certainly not least, my family. Without your support and unwavering love, none of this would be possible. 3160!
Thank you to all of my readers! You are, as always, the reason I do this. The reason I stay up until the wee hours of the morning. The reason I agonize over each and every word I type. The reason I pull my hair out during editing. The reason I love what I do. The reason I get to be who I’ve always wanted to be. XOXO- Riley
Dedication
This book is dedicated to our first responders. Those brave men and women who put their lives on the line each and every day. And to the families who stand behind these heroes and support them. Thank you! We are forever in your debt.
"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love.”
- Washington Irving
Table of Contents:
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
*** Bonus Chapter One ***
Prologue
End of Watch
I had news!
Big news that I couldn’t wait to share. I checked my watch for what felt like the hundredth time in the last hour. I was like a kid on Christmas morning, giddy with excitement. I’d been on pins and needles keeping this secret for the last three weeks. But with Jacob’s birthday so close to me finding out we were pregnant, I thought I would give him a birthday surprise he’d never forget. He was going to be over the moon with excitement, and JJ would be thrilled to have a new baby brother or sister.
Today was the day!
“JJ, come here, it’s time to put the frosting on Daddy’s cake,” I yelled for my son. I heard the toy he was playing with hit the floor and his little feet scampering down the stairs. “Slow down, little man. A trip to the ER is not on tonight’s agenda.”
Jacob Junior came sliding into the kitchen with a smile so full of five-year-old enthusiasm I couldn’t help but pick him up and pepper his cute little face full of kisses.
Today was the best day.
“You ready to decorate Daddy’s cake? We have…” I checked my watch again. “…thirty minutes until Daddy gets home. Do you think we can fit all thirty-two candles on his cake?”
JJ’s nose scrunched up in concentration as he tried to puzzle out where thirty-two candles were going to go.
“We can make them fit, Mama. But we have to put on an extra one for the good luck.”
“Silly Mommy, I forgot the good luck.”
“Mama, can I put on the chocolate this time? I never get to use the spreader. Please? I’ll be extra careful with the spreader,” JJ pleaded.
“Sure, baby,” I said, handing him the spatula.
With a kiss to JJ’s forehead, I left him with the chocolate frosting and a cake to decorate. This was sure to be a mess of epic proportions.
I watched as my son made a mess of his father’s birthday cake. When he finished, there were globs of frosting on the top, and the sides were completely bare. It was perfect.
Today was the best day ever.
“Mama, this is gonna be Daddy’s favorite birthday cake ever. Is it time to put on the candles?” JJ beamed with pride as he licked the extra icing off the spatula.
“I think you’re right. It’s perfect. He’ll love it.” Pushing aside my need to smooth out the globs of icing, I grabbed the candles and handed them to JJ. “Here you go. Want to count them out?”
Before he had a chance to answer, the doorbell rang.
“Hold on, baby. Let me see who’s at the door. Don’t touch the cake until I get back.”
I hurried to answer the door. I knew I only had minutes before JJ decided to add the candles himself.
“Who is it?” I called out from behind the closed door.
“Ava, it’s Mac,” Jacob’s best friend from the station answered back.
I quickly unbolted the door and threw it open. “Mac! What a great surprise…” My words died in my throat.
The Chaplain.
I blinked my eyes rapidly and prayed to God they were playing tricks on me. It was at this very moment my world tilted, shattered into a million pieces; jagged and sharp pieces that would forever cut me.
I squeezed my eyes shut, praying when I opened them he would be gone, but when my eyes slowly focused on the men on my front porch, the Chaplain was still standing there.
“No! No, Mac, you can’t be here!” I whispered. “Please, Mac.”
I tried to slam the door, but Mac’s hand quickly shot out and caught the heavy piece of wood before it fully shut.
I knew. I knew what this was. There was only one reason a Chaplain came to a police officer’s home in his dress uniform.
“Mrs. Kelley, please, may we come in?” the Chaplain asked.
“No!” I shook my head.
The tears swimming in my eyes made it impossible to see the two men as they walked into my house uninvited. They had to leave. They couldn’t be here. This was my worst nightmare. This exact scenario had plagued my dreams when Jacob first joined the academy.
A hand was on my shoulder, and I fought the urge to scream, not to touch me. “Ava. Sweetheart. Let’s sit down,” Mac suggested.
“No! Please God, NO! Mac, you can’t be here. Where’s Jacob?”
“Ava, you have to sit down. Where’s JJ?” Mac’s voice was more demanding this time.
I shrugged his hand off, my ears were roaring, my head pounding, and my gut was in knots. This wasn’t real. This wasn’t happening! This could not happen. Jacob promised! He promised me he would always come home. That’s what he said, ‘Ava baby, you know I am always safe. I will never leave you and little Jacob.’
“Where’s my husband?” I screamed, ignoring his suggestion to sit.
In hindsight, I should’ve sat down. I should have listened. Instead I continued to stand. Screaming and stomping my foot, demanding answers I knew I didn’t want to hear. Demanding he confirm my worst fears.
“There’s been a shooting. I am so sorry Ava, but Jacob didn’t…”
I heard nothing after that. My husband lied to me. He was a Goddamned liar. He wasn’t coming home.
He left us.
My body was cold, and I was numb. I continued to stand even after I felt my knees shake and my body sway. I realized my mistake too late. I should’ve listened. I was falling, and there was no time. No time to protect my belly before I hit the corner of the coffee table on my way down.
“MAMA!” I heard JJ scream before my world went black.
Today was the worst day of my life.
***
Five days later.
Miles and miles of flashing red and blue lights lined the streets. Officers and citizens stood shoulder to shoulder on the sidewalk as the funeral procession crept by. JJ sat next to me in his new suit, gripping my hand with a strength I didn’t know a five-year-old could possess. His little face was pressed against the window of the limousine, watching all the people on the street.
I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t be strong for my son when I was so broken. I tried not to cry in front of him, be the strong mother that Jacob would want me to be. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t hide my tears; they were never ending.
I was hollow. My heart was shattered. I was literally empty, the baby I had been carrying ruthlessly stolen from me as well. A child I would never get to hold, never get to watch grow. He or she would never know my love. In an instant that was taken from me too.
Fire trucks, police cars, ambulances, and EMT vehicles had taken over the cemetery. I had barely made it through the church service. How was I going to watch my husband being lowered into the ground? JJ sat next to me, stoic yet blissfully unaware. Five. He was five-years-old and could not begin to fathom what forever meant. He would forever be without his father. He would forever have a mother who was half the woman she once was.
We were forever changed.
The limousine came to a stop at the graveside. The large mound of dirt next to my husband’s gravesite was covered with fake green carpet. Why did they do that, hide the dirt; was I supposed to pretend that my husband would not be lying at the bottom of a hole with all that dirt on top of him?
Jacob’s casket was already out of the hearse. Six pallbearers held the flag covered casket. All in full dress uniform, all staring straight ahead. Emotionless.
Mac made his way over to us. I had refused to allow him to ride to the cemetery in the limo with us. It was just JJ and I now. I had to learn to be on my own. I didn’t have Jacob anymore.
I couldn’t stop the tears when Mac knelt down in front of my son with a black leather badge holder in his hand. I knew what it was. I had seen it on the nightstand almost every night.
Wordlessly, he placed the chain over JJ’s head. The badge fell over JJ’s heart, and Mac put his hand over it. “Always, JJ. Your daddy will always be right here, inside of you.”
“Thank you, Uncle Mac.” JJ wrapped his little hand
around his father’s badge and stood tall and proud. My brave boy.
Mac stood and wiped the tears from his face.
There were hundreds of people gathered around the gravesite. Some in uniforms, some were dressed in black. Some were softly talking. Others were crying. I wondered who all these people were. I didn’t know but a handful of them.
“It’s time, Ava,” Mac whispered.
Afraid of my own voice, I nodded my head in acknowledgment.
This was it.
With my first step the bagpipes started, and I closed my eyes, taking in the first chords of Amazing Grace. Every officer was standing at attention, saluting as we passed. I knew my husband’s casket would be right behind us as we walked to the graveside. His fellow officers carrying him to his final resting place. My strong, brave husband was being carried. I was completely numb.
I cannot remember how I got to my seat, who spoke when, or what was said. It was all a blur. Through it all, JJ sat quietly between Mac and I, staring at the casket. JJ and I both jumped when the buglers started playing, breaking the silence as Jacob’s flag was being folded.
I didn’t want to be here. I didn’t want to hear the kind words spoken about my husband, about his service and bravery. I didn’t want any of these people to know these things about him. Not because he wasn’t every bit of what they said, and more. Not because he didn’t deserve to be honored. I just didn’t want to have to honor him.
I wanted to be curled up in bed next to him. Breathing in his scent. I wanted to feel his strong arms around me and his lips on my neck. I didn’t want to hear the bagpipes, I wanted to hear his laugh. What I wouldn’t have given to have him call me, ‘Ava baby,' one more time. He promised me I would never be here. He had sworn I would never have the folded flag.
“Mrs. Kelley?” An officer knelt in front of my chair.
I opened my mouth and tried to answer, but no words came out.
The officer took pity on me and continued. He leaned in, speaking only to JJ and me. “On behalf of the City of San Francisco, the State of California, and all of its citizens, I would like to thank you for your husband’s exemplary service. It is with the greatest respect and deepest condolences that I present this flag to you. May God be with you and keep you.” The officer turned to JJ. “Your father was a brave man, Jacob Junior. He is a hero and loved by all. Always remember, son, greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”