SPARK BOOK THREE - THE STRONGER SERIES J. MARIE CONTENTS Dedication Acknowledgments Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Chapter 55 Author’s Note About the Author Connect with J. Marie Copyright © 2016 J. Marie Self - Published by J. Marie All Rights Reserved No part of this book may be reproduced or shared by any electronic or mechanical means, including but not limited to printing, file sharing, and email without prior written permission from J. Marie. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual events, locales, or person’s living dead, are coincidental. Warning: This story is for mature adults only. It contains violence, mature and explicit content and non- consensual / dubious, graphic sexual activity that some readers may find upsetting. Cover and Web Design by Amanda Simpson Edited by Jenny Sims Formatting by Jeff Senter of Indie Formatting Services ISBN: 978-1-370-84994-9 DEDICATION This is for you. For the ones who have suffered. For the ones who have despaired. For the ones who continue to fight every day to simply stay alive. And for the ones who are already lost. It is my greatest hope that you find your way back to us, for I am not done fighting for you...but only you can make yourself stronger. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This is just a special thanks from me to you, and not just for reading this story. By doing so, not only have you helped spread awareness, but you helped donate to a charity that supports victims of human trafficking. This horrific industry is very real and is happening every day, all around the world. With a little help, we can chip away at it until it's nothing but a dusty, dirty stain in our history. This time, I would really like to thank my fans. You guys have been so patient with me this year and I really appreciate all the love and support. Writing a book while in law school while working a full-time job is not easy, but I did it! And I made it 10,000 words longer than the last book! So, thank you for sticking by me and making this experience my dream come true. I also want to send out a special thank you to my cousin Tara who spent the entire holiday season on the couch thanks to some extensive back surgery and was still able to beta read for me. Turns out you still have use after all, even if you are just sitting on your ass! <3 To everyone else who was there to support me in this, I love you so much for it. Also a super special thanks to my awesome team! Cover and Web Design by Amanda Simpson Pixel Mischief Design Edited by Jenny Sims Editing 4 Indies Formatted by Jeff Senter Indie Formatting Services Promoted by Ebony Simone McMillan Author Support Services 1 BREAK Sunshine peered in through the windows. Its warm glow lingered over my face, yet it did nothing to lift my mood like it used to. I had just woken up from another long nap that took up a good third of my day thanks to the heavy meds I was on; though, to be honest, I didn’t want to be awake anyway. The past three weeks had been nothing but torment, and if there was anything that could relieve me of it, it was the deep abyss of my drug-induced slumber. At least, then, I was too numb to remember my nightmares. Practically shackled to my hospital bed for the first week on this godforsaken island, I’d barely been allowed to move an inch without Darren’s approval. Apparently, he wanted me to get as much rest as possible, so that meant the least amount of movement as possible. And in a way, I was almost grateful … because I had no desire to move even a single muscle. After one week of being bedridden, I had been forced to start moving around again. Apparently, it wasn’t good to simply waste away in my hospital bed. Another lesson in learning my body’s movements were not my own decision. Every move was painful—even breathing hurt—but apparently, sleeping off my injuries wasn’t in my recovery plan. My wrist, jaw, and ribs might be broken, but according to Darren and Sid, my legs worked just fine. I’d fought back winces and tears as I was forced to walk through the halls of the house, straining against the pain of breath, and showing none of it. I refused to let Darren see my pain. Just because he had broken my body didn’t mean I had to act like it. My wrist would remain in its cast for the next few weeks, and the wiring in my jaw proved to be the most uncomfortable and humiliating experience ever. I couldn’t really speak. Only mumbles or inaudible sounds could escape my lips, so I eventually just gave up on my vocals altogether. Nurse Ginsby tried to teach me some simple sign language to help me communicate, but I was only interested in using the one containing a single middle finger. Looking down at my bare left wrist, I found slight enjoyment in the lack of a particular silver cuff on my wrist. There was no need for them here.
