Deadly Betrayal (23 page)

I obeyed. After a metallic clang and a small bump as we left the other ship, we were free.

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Coming soon in 2016

The Crabhead Nebula looked nothing like a crab.

It didn’t matter. The view was spectacular.

“You’ve been staring at that for a long time.”

I ripped my eyes from the miracle outside our little ship and flashed as smile as John entered, carrying two mugs with coffee.

“Thank you. Bourbon-free?” No harm in checking, just to be on the safe side.

“Yours is.” He winked and shook his hair out of his eyes as he sat down. John was tall, strong, and handsome, with hair that had grown just a little too long, warm hazel eyes, and perpetually stubbly cheeks. He personified the concept of charming rogue space pirate.

To make life more complicated, he was also one of the builders behind my android husband, Adam, and sort of my father-in-law. John insisted I was his little girl, which unnerved me since he couldn’t be more than five years older than I. If that.

This would have been intricate enough, but became even more so when we ran away from the rest of the family almost exactly three weeks earlier. Not the most mature thing to do, but we were clearly happier on our own than amongst the complications of people.

I sipped the dark brew and coughed. “Wrong mug.”

As a little girl, Maria was fascinated with books. Before she could read or write, she made her mother staple papers together to resemble books. She drew suns in them and claimed they were “The Sun Book.” They were all about the sun. The four-year old also claimed her existence on Earth was a mistake, a result of a horrible mix-up, and that her real family would come to bring her home to her own planet at any time. This didn’t happen, but her fascination with both books and other worlds stayed with her.

Originally born in Sweden, she moved to Florida late 2008, and today she lives in the Tampa Bay area with her husband Mike and their rescue dogs. Her biggest interest besides writing is playing bass, and through the years she has played in a number of Swedish rock bands.

Maria also writes screenplays, and has won a number of awards.

For more information, visit Maria’s website: www.hammarblad.com

With Desert Breeze Publishing

Kidnapped

Undercover

Flashback

Operation Earth

Shadow of a Man

Courage and Retribution

Covert Identity

With Sadowski Media

Embarkment 2577: Arrival

Embarkment 2577: Brand New World

Embarkment 2577: High Gravity

Embarkment 2577: Adam and Eve

Embarkment 2577: Interstellar Conflict (release 2016)

Embarkment 2577: Anguish and Hope (release 2016)

Touch of the Goddess

Wrath of the Goddess

Return of the Goddess

Conversion