Sunday Snippet: Hot Rocks

October 19, 2014

Greetings!

Whew. Great television this past week. The Walking Dead premiere didn't disappoint. So happy it's back on my TV. And I'm all caught up on everything I normally watch. The Flash and Arrow are still kicking ass. Sons of Anarchy is totally insane and I can't wait to see how everything ends.

On Demand has me up to date on Haven, Sleepy Hollow, Agents of SHIELD, and Gotham. Pretty thrilled with Gotham so far. Some interesting little twists on the lore I'm quite enjoying.

Tonight's post is from Hot Rocks, a novella where my hero and heroine are put through the ringer.

Here's the tagline:

Ada and Walt are taken by the enemy and subjected to torture. They won't find a better time to examine their long and storied past, right?

And a sneaky peek…

Ava struggled against the restraints. "Look, Walt. I fought beside you. And yet, you still doubt I can survive?" Of course, another round with the electotongs didn't really appeal either.

Walt sputtered. "No. It's not that." His shoulders slumped, pulled hers back. "It's just…" He trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid.

He didn't have to say it. "Right. That chivalrous streak you can't ever seem to shake." Fighting the ache in her arms, she continued working on the tethers, ignoring the blood dripping from her wrists, too pissed off to care. "Well, guess what, Walt? You should take a good long look and realize no one gives a shit about how men treat women. Most don't even consider females the weaker sex anymore."

Walt countered. "It's not about women being weaker… it's about being decent in the face of adversity. I haven't always been."

She stopped trying to escape. "Right. Since when?" The guy ranked doing the right thing akin to breathing.

Walt heaved a sigh. "Logan died because of me, because I didn't wait to retreat." He blew out a hard breath. "I ordered everyone to fall back, but he wouldn't leave."

Ava tensed at the mention of Logan. "Why the hell not? You gave a direct order." She'd loved Logan, but orders were orders.

Walt lifted a shoulder. "We fought about the maneuver. He wanted to clear the village and I accepted the stragglers as collateral damage. We didn't have time to get everyone out and the colonel needed us to hold the line."

Ava shook her head. "Which you could've done with half a platoon, leaving the rest behind to gather up the survivors and get them to safety."

Walt snorted. "Exactly. But I was too cocky and arrogant to even consider another option. I gave my order and he disobeyed it." He paused. "And I left him. Alone. To die."

Ava's eyes slid shut. Son of a bitch. Such a waste. All because Walt couldn't be wrong. Red hot anger surged through her. She opened her mouth to blast Walt for being an asshole, but the heavy clang of the door interrupted her tirade.

Woggins entered, wearing a sinister smile on his face. "Well, my sweet Ava, are you ready for another round?"

Seriously? My money's on Ava this time around. :D

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flip.

ML Skye