As above, so below, except when referring to the underground Refuge Inc. compound.
A century after an asteroid impact and merely fifteen years after a second collision that turned the world into a noxious wasteland, Cadet Connor Nichols and other Refuge facility residents are making the most of their spherical underground utopia they call home.
But when a breach threatens to poison the occupants with toxic air, Connor is forced to make life-altering decisions in an attempt to save lives and his only home. With help from best friend and training partner, Vince Moore, he’s reminded that good leadership requires responsibility.
His struggle intensifies as everything he knows about the facility, the leaders, and himself becomes twisted, distorted, and turned into the unimaginable when his efforts exposes shocking secrets that threaten their future.
*A standalone in the Refuge Inc. series
Excerpt:
My eyes snapped open to a bright red light, similar to the lights that announced our failure during tactical training in the simulation, but accompanying this crimson glow was the ongoing piercing ring of an alarm. It took a second for it to register, but thanks to the dozen or so drills we’ve had, it finally clicked that there was an emergency. A fire? Some sort of outbreak? Contamination?
A deliberate chill crept down my spine.
Throwing the sheets aside, I tossed my legs over the edge of the bed. Still a bit disoriented from being awakened during a deep sleep, I sniffed the air for a trace of smoke but instead detected fear in the form of sweat and body odor. I stood and caught the glow of the hour on the wall: zero-three hundred.
A shout came from nearby and blurred figures rushed left and right. Shadows passed the open room door like wisps of dark mist accentuated by the red hue of the emergency lights. A voice called out orders, “Move it, cadets. To your gear. Move, move, move!” The commands mingled with the distant noise of pained whimpers, panicked cries, and the nearby sounds of rapid and flustered breathing.
Chaos.
I scanned the space for the source of the orders. Then a tug of my arm pulled me from the room.
Not sure, I wondered aloud, “Vince?” Not recognizing much but his slender fingers around my forearm.
“Snap out of it, asshole.” Vince pivoted, gripped my shoulders and shook. “We got a job to do.”
“What’s going on?” The frightened expressions on many of the resident’s faces kick started my adrenaline, and suddenly my legs were keeping up with Vince as he hastily made his way down the hall, passed more panicky people and toward our lockers.
Inside the locker room I met some of the other male cadets. They each were in various stages of removing sleeping garments to slip on the tough, stretchy combat gear with their last names stamped on the left breast directly below the red Refuge Inc. emblem. Some were already suited and were quickly securing their helmets, weapons belt, and … armored vests?
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About the Author:
The author of several books of fiction and fiction with spice, Leslie Lee Sanders resides in Queen Creek, Arizona, with her husband, three daughters, and a wild beast she calls her imagination. After writing erotic romance, mostly in the gay and ménage categories, she’s recently plunged into writing deep, dark, sci-fi with her LGBT post-apocalyptic and dystopian series, Refuge Inc.
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