Twisted Beauty by Maggie Blackbird

His community or his enemy. He can’t have both.

Deep in the badlands, long after the fall of modern civilization, Hunter patrols the area as the war chief for his Lakota community. His latest mission is to hunt down a marauder who robbed his neighbors of their precious goods. He’ll act as this man’s judge, jury, and executioner.

Having lost everything at his former Ojibway encampment, Chassis is far from home. He wanders the badlands, a grim reaper bringing death to those with what he needs to survive. But there is one man courageous enough to challenge him.

When the duo faces off, neither expects the sizzling chemistry to erupt between them, nor for their duel to touch what both have denied themselves. Now they must choose to either remain together and sacrifice their beliefs, or go their separate ways, losing what they’ve spent their lives searching for—love.

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Excerpt

The ember stirring in Chassis grew stronger, most likely because the man wasn’t a coward and had pursued him with the cunning of Nanabush. There was more going on here than a mingling of pure exquisiteness and bold masculinity. The stranger was as determined as Chassis. Most would have ignored his supposed crime. But something told him his opponent not only believed in an eye for an eye, the fucker wanted both, which was why the man had stalked him here—to kill him.

For some strange reason, he admired that.

Or he could be wrong. The people he’d robbed might be his opponent’s parents, as he’d surmised earlier. Any other reason to hunt down someone who’d robbed a couple of their food and gasoline was ludicrous.

Chassis moved the knife again but applied minimal pressure. The man’s incandescent eyes widened for a brief second and then were masked by an emotionless façade. Fear lingered, though, since he sat on the man’s chest. The vibrations coming from his captive’s rapidly pounding heart were present in Chassis’ groin.

Again, he peeked at Waabooz. Her presence reminded him why he couldn’t allow himself to become vermin. He licked his lips. But it’d be so easy to take what he wanted…

“Turn over.”

The man’s upper lip curled into a snarl. “Forget it. You want my life? Then you stare into the eyes of the man you’re gonna murder.”

“Is that what you do?” Chassis couldn’t help the amusement from creeping into his voice. It was sort of funny. The man’s ruffled feathers were about as stupid as some hero swooping in to save the day. Heroes didn’t exist. Not anymore. “Is that what you were going to do when you came here? Stare into my eyes before you killed me?”

The man snorted.

“Well?” Chassis again ran the blade across his opponent’s throat.

“Your question doesn’t merit an answer. Vermin like you don’t—” The man’s reply had spit to it.

“Vermin? I’m vermin?”

This son of a bitch was no better than Chassis. At least he was honest about what he was. He didn’t hide behind a mask, pretending to be an avenging angel out to save the day.

“That’s exactly what you are—vermin.”

Enough with the pleasantries. “Turn over,” Chassis coolly ordered.

“No.”

“Then I guess you leave me with no choice…”

About the Author

An Ojibway from Northwestern Ontario, Maggie resides in the country with her husband and their fur babies, two beautiful Alaskan Malamutes. When she’s not writing, she can be found pulling weeds in the flower beds, mowing the huge lawn, walking the Mals deep in the bush, teeing up a ball at the golf course, fishing in the boat for walleye, or sitting on the deck at her sister’s house, making more wonderful memories with the people she loves most.