infected [in-fekt-ed] noun

a person that has been given a specific formula that subtly alters biological aspects. The formula was created centuries ago by a man named Philo Castor, and he has generated many cult followings in the years since his death in 1352 C.E.

1. Prominent cult following: an organization led by a man named Donovan Alexis

Origins are unknown, though rumor has it he and his secondhand man Vladimir Jefferson came from somewhere in Eastern Europe. Traces of their organization have been found around the world, and though they largely remain ghosts, each government has a specific department for tracking them down.

2. U.S. Department: The Office of Cultist Intelligence

The agency hasn’t had much success lately, which limits their funding and credibility. One of their prime targets is Alexis’ protégé, a dangerous young man with an undocumented background that never leaves a trail.

3. Mr. Sark: the youngest handler in Alexis’ organization

Rather than rising through the ranks like his coworkers, Alexis took a liking to him and fast-tracked him through promotions. Determined to prove himself, Sark pursues his assigned infected relentlessly with the hope she’ll lead him to what his boss is hunting.

4. Arie: Sark’s assigned infected

She ran away from her home in New York in an effort to escape Sark, only to find he follows her everywhere. He’s relentless, cold, and violent, and will go to brutal lengths to extract the information he believes she might be keeping.

Only she knows that she’s the one he’s looking for.

Begin the journey of Arie’s Story:

Novellas in the series:

THE KIDS AREN’T ALL RIGHT
A Novella in the Arie’s Story Series

Meet Leslie. She’s a junior in high school out to make a reputation for herself that doesn’t revolve around her last name. After all, her mom is the most successful district attorney in the state, her older brother Peter is a star football player set on the fast track for scholarships, and her dad owns the biggest car dealership in town with eyes only for his son’s college ball. Leslie’s learned the hard way that most people—besides her best friends Amanda and Chet—want to be her friend for two reasons: money or Peter.

Leslie’s sick of the politics and superficiality that comes with the world she lives in, and she’s eager to leave it all behind. Just one more year and then she can get out of her suffocatingly huge home, go to a community college out of state, and work on her art, even though her mom would rather die than send her daughter anywhere other than Yale. Leslie feels trapped—trapped by her mom, trapped by her arrogant brother and his spiteful girlfriend, and trapped by society. She just wishes that something would change.

But then she gets caught in the middle of an act of revenge gone wrong, throwing her menial life into chaos. READ MORE

THE SCIENTIST
Free eBook

In this short story, Arie’s best friend Alaina deals with the aftermath of the events in Surviving on a Whisper.

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