Sanctuary: The Borders War, #5.5

By S.A. McAuley

They were never meant to find peace.

It's been five years since Merq stood in front of Armise's rifle, facing the truth that their relationship would inevitably end this way. Five years since he woke up to darkness but immediately knew Armise was at his side. Both of them are heavily scarred and battling a past they will never be able to fully outrun.

But maybe, against all odds, they've finally found a measure of peace.

Author note: Sanctuary consists of a 23 page Merq and Armise follow up story and previously unpublished stories, images, and additional material.

• Language: English
• Publisher: S.A. McAuley, LLC
• Release date: May 11, 2018
• ISBN: 9781386035077

S.A. McAuley

I sleep little, read a lot. Happiest in a foreign country. Twitchy when not mentally in motion. My name is Sam, not Sammy, definitely not Samantha. I’m a pretty dark/cynical/jaded person, but I hide that darkness well behind my obsession(s) for shiny objects. I’m the macabre wrapped in irresistible bubble wrap and a glittery pink bow, I suppose.

Book preview

Sanctuary

Sanctuary

The Borders War #5.5

S.A. McAuley

S.A. McAuley, LLC

Copyright © 2018 by S.A. McAuley, LLC

Cover art by Black Jazz Design

First edition.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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.

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Trademarks Acknowledgement

The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

Olympics: United States Olympic Committee Corporation

Winchester: Olin Corporation

Contents

About Sanctuary

Sanctuary

Merq

Armise

Thoughts on Sanctuary

The Borders War Images and Character Profiles

The Symbol of the Revolution

Merq’s Tattoo

Is Merq Grayson a Liar?

Writing a Character Who Doesn’t Want to Speak

Merq’s First Kill

About Not Looking Back

Not Looking Back

The Story That Started it All

About Prone

Prone

Index

About Sam

Also by S.A. McAuley

About Sanctuary

Book five-point-five in The Borders War series

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They were never meant to find peace.

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It’s been five years since Merq stood in front of Armise’s rifle, facing the truth that their relationship would inevitably end this way. Five years since he woke up to darkness but immediately knew Armise was at his side. Both of them are heavily scarred and battling a past they will never be able to fully outrun.

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But maybe, against all odds, they’ve finally found a measure of peace.

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Reading Order

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One Breath, One Bullet

Dominant Predator

Powerless

Falling, One by One

Strength of the Rising Sun

Sanctuary

To Ely

Sanctuary

Merq

October 20, 2565

Merq Grayson’s 42nd year

Northern Territories—home

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Armise barely made it inside the front door before I stripped him of his coat so I could drag him into the bedroom. Anger rippled along my skin—barely restrained fury that I hadn’t felt in a very long time. He had to know I was upset because he followed me willingly, silently, his hand entwined with mine.

Boots off now.

I reluctantly let him go, then shoved him onto the bed.

He thumped his boots to the floor without a word and I slid my hands over his shoulders and to the back of his neck, gritting my teeth. His hands gripped my hips and he dropped his forehead against my stomach, his breath coasting over my skin as he breathed deeply. My anger ebbed. Fractionally.

I tugged his shirt off, pushed him down and slid between his thighs, setting my palms on his chest and curling my fingertips into the warmth of his skin. I tugged gently on the hair there. Couldn’t get any words past the tightness in my chest.

Merq—

Just be quiet, I demanded.

We each needed our space—even the expansive, unpopulated Northern Territories felt too small to hold both of us somedays. But he’d been gone too long this time.

Nine days, I rasped out, unable to hide my fear. It shouldn’t have taken you so long.

I know.

I draped myself over him and breathed in the scent of his skin. Of the ozone tinged air of the Northern Territories. Of the Singaporean balms he’d learned how to make on his own here—in our home. I ran my hands over the unmarked skin of his synth, then the scars hidden underneath tattooed flames. I listened to the steady thrum of his heartbeat and pressed my lips to his neck so I could feel his pulse there too.

I’m okay, Merq.

I don’t care, I bit out.

Armise’s shoulders lifted with a silent laugh.

Asshole.

He gripped my biceps, the stone and wood of his bracelets clacking together with the movement. I missed you.

Fuck. I couldn’t hold onto any anger when he said things like that to me.

I inhaled deeply. You ran into complications?

An early blizzard. I had to hole up in the refuge.

A natural complication, not man-made. For the last four days, as I’d counted the minutes slipping past the time when he should’ve been home, all I’d been able to think about was that we’d been found.

For four days I’d been thinking