Thursday Teaser!

Yield
Mickie B. Ashling
November 2018
All rights reserved

“Have you always wanted to be a soldier?” Peter asked.

“No.” Sami’s tension eased slightly. This doctor sounded genuinely interested, and he couldn’t detect a whiff of condescension. “I wanted to be a journalist, but it went pear-shaped one sunny September morning.”

“Are you referring to the 9/11 attack?”

“Yeah. Our country had been cut off at the knees by a bunch of hateful zealots, and my desire for revenge influenced my decisions going forward.”

“You enlisted right away?”

Sami shook his head. “My parents insisted I go to college first, which turned out to be a good decision. After I enlisted as an officer candidate, the army realized I had an affinity for languages, and I was sent to the Defense Language Institute to learn Arabic, Pashto, Persian Farsi, and Afghan. I even picked up some Russian along the way.”

“They intended to send you to Afghanistan?”

“Yes.”

“Did you become an interrogator right away?”

“No.”

“When did you start noticing a change in your personality?”

Sami wasn’t sure. Could it have been the first time he saw a buddy turn from a living, breathing thing to a lumpy mass of bloody flesh thanks to the Taliban fucks who’d boobytrapped their path with stolen US army-issue grenades? Or maybe it was the time he’d handed over a candy bar to an innocent-looking child who gobbled it up greedily before walking over to a crowded marketplace to blow himself up. The group of enlisted men and civilians caught in the blast had no idea death could come in the form of a cherubic smile. Those were the early days during his first tour.

“I can’t pinpoint the month it began to happen. The longer I stayed, the more horror I experienced and the less I struggled with my conscience. Methods I would have shied away from in the past no longer made me pause. It was the end result that mattered. If my information could save one more American life or derail the enemy’s agenda, it was worth doing. Time flew by, and one tour bled into another with limited breaks in between. The constant diet of hate and treachery took its toll.”

“Were you a sadist before you enlisted?”

“Only in bed, and I wouldn’t call it hard core. I enjoyed dominance mixed in with a little pain. You know, spanking, bondage…the usual stuff. I’ve always liked rough sex, but now it’s more about the pain than the pleasure. You know what I mean?”

Peter nodded thoughtfully. “Are you currently in a relationship?”

“We haven’t labeled it, but yeah, I’m banging someone regularly.”

“Are you concerned he might press charges?” Peter asked pointedly.

“Are you kidding? Jay is a twisted pain slut. And that’s the problem. Every time we’re together, it turns into a…blood bath.”

Peter’s eyebrows lifted. “So you’re into cutting and other forms of blood play?”

“Yeah,” Sami said, feeling a little sick. Saying it out loud made it so much worse. “You need to help me get back to my old ways. When I could stop these crazy impulses. I’m not going to switch to vanilla, but Jay is a bona fide masochist, and I need to control the situation rather than have him take the wheel. He’s not capable of restraint.”

“Perhaps a change of partner is in order?”

Sami shrugged. “Probably so, but wouldn’t that be defeating the purpose? If I don’t learn moderation, regardless of my partner, I’ll never be at peace with what I do.”

“Self-control is vital given your need to draw blood and leave bruises. It’s okay to have a sadomasochistic relationship with a consenting partner, but there is a right and wrong way to do this.”

 Blurb

A promising encounter takes a dark turn.

Captain Sami Soros and Father Jay Blackstone cross paths at a major European hub. When systems shut down due to a cyber-attack, flights are delayed and the resulting chaos is unprecedented.

After having served three tours in Afghanistan, recently discharged Sami struggles with his new civilian status. Emotionally depleted, and dangerously edgy, he views most of his fellowmen with utter contempt.

Jay is returning to his parish in San Francisco after a month-long retreat meant to shore up a crumbling vocation. All vestiges of spirituality melt away when he sets eyes on Sami.

They begin a clandestine affair fueled by a shared addiction to extreme forms of BDSM. Their relationship goes off the rails, and Jay reaches out to Rino Duran, a former seminarian. With the help of Dr. Ethan Marshall, Rino’s full-time Dom, the established couple attempt to separate truth from lies to give Jay and Sami a shot at happiness.

                                            You can pre-order your copy of Yield at Amazon