Free Age of Mystics (Saga of Mystics Book 1) by Chris Walters

tried to get up.”
    Emma pulled him into a hug. “I know you did. I saw you moving to help, before she even swung down. Shit happens Jordan, people die, even when we try our best. This is not your fault.”
    Jordan stayed in the hug for a bit, and Emma tried not to think about how much she needed the comfort of another person’s touch. She held him for him, but she also held him because she needed it. She needed that comfort just as much as Jordan did. After a few moments more, Jordan pulled away and grabbed the bloodied axe. He used it to clear a space, and pulled his fellow soldier into the shallow grave. This area was all top-soil on top of concrete, so there wasn’t much depth to bury her in. Jordan grabbed some bags of soil from the nearby stand and poured them over Harris’ body until a mound of soil appeared. He then said a sweet goodbye to a woman her hardly knew.
    “PFC Donna Harris was brave, and good at her job. She was kind to those she met, and helpful to those who needed it. She died trying to help her team get to safety. We honor her today.” Both Jordan and Emma bowed their heads for about a minute. Emma had grabbed a flowering plant from the other side of the garden. It was the only thing she could think of to honor this woman who loved gardening.
    Emma planted it atop the mound. In her mind, she imagined the mound fully covered in the flowering vine. She pictured it in her imagination in full bloom, with tiny pink flowers sprouting up to honor this woman.
    Emma Pare could not go back to her plants right away. The sadness and shock of seeing Donna die right in front of her made her sit in a corner and sulk. A short while after that, Jordan came and sat next to her.
    “That is a beautiful plant, Emma. Donna would have really liked it.” He patted her arm.
    “I hope she can see it, whatever our life after this one means, I hope she can see those flowers today and carry them with her into eternity.” Emma didn’t really believe in that stuff, but today she hoped she was wrong.
    “She does,” Jordan said softly, “she does.”

CHAPTER NINETEEN
    Alton Tooney had been a handyman in the Black Forest area for over seven years. He, and his nephew Craig, had mowed lawns, fixed roofs and painted barns in the area the whole time. He was practically a fixture in the area. To his benefit, people didn’t really check the sexual offender registry. Seven years before, Alton had been released from prison after serving fifteen years for rape. There had been no time off for good behavior. Alton was a sexual sadist, he enjoyed the pain he caused others, but what he reveled in was their fear. He had raped several men while in prison. Alton was not a homosexual, he was not a heterosexual, Alton was only interested in hurting others. He received sexual gratification from this. Since his release, he had made a good living doing chores for the people in this small community of rich, religious folk until about a month before.
    Alton had kept himself in check, and so had not been hampered by this past, by finding a recipient for his vices. His half-wit nephew Craig had been his only victim for seven years, and it tore Alton up. He wasn’t even sure it hurt Craig anymore, and Alton had taken to peeping into the windows of his customers and fantasizing about binding and raping everyone, while making the others watch. It was only a matter of time before he was able to find one alone, and take her to the dungeon he had prepared under his trailer park. This was where he forced Craig to do his bidding, but Craig didn’t even cry any more. It was pathetic.
    A little over a month before, the cops had come calling. This uptight Christian bitch, who wasn’t even one of his clients, had checked the sexual offender registry and had begun hanging signs to “warn” people about him. The cops had almost caught him peeping once, and had searched his house, but not found the dungeon. They had begun doing weekly checks on him and