Lana Hancock has spent the past year and a half struggling to put her life back together after almost dying at the hands of a terrorist group. Part of what has kept her going during her struggle to take back her life is the burning hatred for the man who rescued her. Caleb Stone is the man who stood by as she and her friends were tortured. He did nothing to stop it, nothing until his undercover mission was complete and the terrorist group, the Swarm, was wiped out of existence. Then he could rescue Lana. Back home in Columbia, Missouri, Lana's life is a day-to-day struggle to forget the past and dedicate her time to the First Light Foundation. She's slowly coming to grips with what happened to her, until the past walks through the doors of First Light and her life is once again spiraling out of control.
The last thing Delta Force operative Caleb Stone wanted to do was disrupt Lana's life. Still, if the terrorist chatter his bosses have intercepted is to be believed, the Swarm is regrouping and out to tie up loose ends. And number one on the list is Lana Hancock, the only hostage to get out alive. Guilt-plagued by the role he'd been forced to play when she'd been a hostage, Caleb will do anything to protect Lana, even if it means dogging her every move. It's only when Lana's dearest friend is shot and almost killed that she begins to believe she may still be in danger. And with what she knows about the Swarm, things she hasn't shared with another living soul, she realizes they won't stop until she's dead. Caleb may be her only savior, if she can learn to trust him.
NO CONTROL by Shannon K. Butcher is a thrill-a- minute roller coaster ride of suspense! Grabbing the reader by the throat in the first few sentences, it doesn't let go until the final chapter. Lana is a strong woman, willing to do what she must to protect those she loves, even if it means trusting a man she once loathed. And Caleb is a tarnished knight, so caught up in doing the job he's been trained to do that he struggles with being human and dealing with the emotions that go along with the attraction he feels for a woman with every reason to hate him. Their relationship is painful, erotic and emotionally charged as each learns to trust. I couldn't put this one down!
Prologue:
Armenia: Lana Hancock prayed for a swift death. The hood over her head made it hard to breathe, as did the smell of her friendsβ bodies. Through a tiny slit in her hood that her captors didnβt know was there, she could see Bethanyβs lifeless eyes staring at her.
Lana tried to turn away, but even the smallest movement sent pain screaming through her broken limbs. The man who had broken them, Boris, came back into the cave and she knew this was the end. Whatever her abductors told Boris to do, he did. Sheβd heard them order him to kill her right before they left, and sheβd been lying here, waiting for the end for what seemed like days.
She was going to miss her family. Her friends. Her fiancΓ©.
She wanted to see her nephew grow up and spoil him with loud presents that would drive her sister crazy. The little drum set Lana had bought him for his birthday was tucked in her closet. She hoped theyβd find it and give it to him when her family cleaned out her apartment.
Boris pulled out his gun and crossed the dusty cave to where Lana lay. He was a skinny man with bright blue eyes and dimples that made her stomach turn. A sadistic killer shouldnβt have dimples.
His booted feet stopped only inches from her face. Part of her was afraid, but most of her was simply grateful he was using the gun instead of the pipe again. At least this way would be fast. She hoped.
She saw a shadow cross the mouth of the cave, then another and another. Maybe her abductors were back to watch it happen. Maybe she was hallucinating. Lana couldnβt bring herself to care. She was too tired. Too weak.
He reached down and ripped at the tape that was holding her hood closed around her neck. The movement caused broken bones to grind, and her dry scream echoed against the cave walls.
She must have passed out, because when she opened her eyes, her killer was looking down at her with a concerned frown, patting her cheek as if to revive her. When he saw she was awake again, he nodded once as if satisfied and stood up again. Apparently, he didnβt want to kill her if she was unconscious.
His gun aimed for her head, thank God. Like with the others heβd killed, it would be a headshot. Quick and painless.
A thick arm appeared from nowhere and wrapped around Borisβs head, pulling it back while a second arm sliced his throat open with a knife. Blood spewed out from the manβs neck and his gun clattered to the hard ground.
Lana tried to figure out what was happening, but she couldnβt move her head. Couldnβt keep her eyes open.
'Weβve got to get you out of here,'said a deep, tight voice sheβd heard somewhere before.
Pain sliced through her and she realized she was being lifted. Her broken legs dangled painfully over a manβs arms, but she kept herself from screaming. She couldnβt alert her captors that she was escaping.
Lana forced her eyes open just as he carried her out of the cave. Light seared her retinas, but she welcomed it. Light meant freedom -- something she thought sheβd never again experience.
He laid her down and spoke in a quiet voice to someone nearby. 'Sheβs the only one alive.β
'Not for long, she isnβt,'said a second man. 'And not if they find out she made it out alive.β
Lanaβs body throbbed in time with each beat of her heart. He was right. She wasnβt going to last much longer. She could feel herself growing weaker by the second. Maybe she was bleeding somewhere.
At least she wasnβt going to die in that cave.
'Our team took down three of them.β
'How many were there?β
'I donβt know. I only saw two, and not closely enough to ID them. I got orders from that skinny bastard, Boris. There could be another dozen for all I know.β
'You took care of Boris?β
'Yes.β
'Our men are in the hills. Theyβll find anyone who got away,'said the second man.
'Theyβd better.β
Lana wasnβt sure what that meant, but she knew she should. What they were saying meant something to her, but her brain was too foggy to figure it out. She was using all her strength just to keep from screaming.
If she screamed, they could find her.
A shadow fell over her face and Lana looked up into the face of Miles Gentry -- the man her abductors had hired to bomb a U.S. elementary school.
Lana couldnβt breathe. She wasnβt safe. Not with him. He was a monster -- a man willing to kill children for money.
He must have seen her fear, because he smoothed her matted hair back from her face and said, 'Shh. Itβs okay. Iβm a U.S. soldier. Iβm not going to hurt you.β
Liar! Lana tried to pull away from his touch, but her body wouldnβt move, wouldnβt cooperate.
'Back off, Caleb. Youβre scaring her,'said the second man.
Caleb, or Miles, or whoever he was moved away. Behind him, from high in the rocky hillside she could see twin flashes of sunlight reflecting off glass. Binoculars.
With a painful stab of clarity, she realized she was being watched.
She tried to tell the men, but her lips were swollen and stuck together with dried blood and she couldnβt seem to form a coherent word.
The wind kicked up and dust choked her lungs. She tried not to cough. Someone pulled a sheet over her head to keep the dust out. It didnβt help. She couldnβt keep from coughing and as soon as she did -- as soon as her broken ribs shifted -- the pain ricocheted inside her until all she could do was gasp for air.
All the pain and going without food or water for days was too much. She had to give up and let go. She couldnβt take any more.
Lanaβs mind shut down and she welcomed the oblivion as it came to claim her.
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