Love at the End of the World - Story Profile

I have been very privileged to work with this talented group of authors before on our Sex, Love & Aliens Anthology (Beachwalk Press).  I loved writing my stories of the alien invaders called the TEV, aliens who are able to alter the DNA of humans to make hybrids. This time around we got to write about finding love at the end of the world. The main theme is hope in an otherwise hopeless world. 

My main character is Jo. She comes from a painful past and is a nurse with a realistic sense of how to survive in a decimated world. When she meets Luke and his teenager daughter Casey, she's suddenly involved. More than she wants to be, because to survive means not giving a shit about anyone.  

I loved this story mainly because Jo is forty. You really don't read about strong heroines out of their twenties or thirties. As I get older I find my heroines are also getting older. I hope readers enjoy Jo and Luke's story as much as I liked writing it!

 

Blurb

Jo was one of the lucky ones. She survived the virus that decimated eighty-five percent of the world’s population and now searches for a sanctuary in a ruined world. She trusts no one, keeping to herself, until she meets Luke and his daughter, Casey.

Suddenly she’s involved, and emotions she thought she had iced over long ago invade her self-imposed isolation. The more time she spends with Luke, the more she wants him, leaving her conflicted. Does she stay with him? Or will she continue her trek to find a heaven among the apocalypse?

Q) Tell us an interesting fact to your story.

The majority of people don’t know their blood types so many may not be aware that about fifteen percent of the population has what is known as negative blood. I happen to be one of those people. Scientists aren’t really sure where this blood group came from, making it an interesting type of mutation and known as the Rh factor. Simplified down, positive blood has a protein on the cell which makes it “positive”. So I came up with a virus that attacks this protein, and as it kills the blood cell it kills the person.  My story takes place about a year after this virus began to spread.

Q) How did you narrow down what catastrophe to use for the apocalyptic theme?

Believe me, this was difficult! I knew that a couple of authors were going the zombieland way, so I wanted to do something different. However, all the scenarios I dreamed up would’ve required a longer version instead of the set parameters of an anthology story. It took me about a month to come up with Heaven For Us.  

Q)  If you were thrust into your story, do you think you’d survive?

Yes, because I happen to have negative blood! I found out when I got pregnant and realized my boyfriend had positive blood. When this happens, the mother must get a shot called Rhogam so if the baby’s blood is positive then the mother doesn’t build up antibodies to the baby’s blood. The shot is administered in the butt and it hurts.  When my son was born his blood was tested and he’s negative as well, so he and I have the two rarest blood types. (And I didn’t need that damn shot after all)

EXCERPT

“Look, thank you for protecting her, but you don’t know anything about us.”

“You’re right, I don’t know anything about you two, but I do know what it means to survive. Turn her from your daughter into your son, if you really want to protect her.”

Jo shook her head and started to march past him to leave the alley, but he grabbed her arm, stopping her. It was the first time in a long time that a man had touched her, and instinct had her trying to pull away, but the small spark of electricity when their skin met confused her so she stopped her struggle. Instead, she glared at him. “Let go of me.”

The man stared at her, hard, and when their gazes met, butterflies fluttered in her belly. “You’re a woman,” he finally said, surprised.

“You don’t have to sound so shocked.”

“I’m not. I mean…you’re a pretty good aim…” His voice trailed off, as if he knew exactly how sexist his words were.

Jo was quite aware of how she looked. She’d cut her once-long hair off and deliberately kept her face a little dirty to disguise her rounded features. His disbelief was warranted, but instead of pissing her off his unease amused her.

“I’m a pretty good aim…for a female?”

“It sounded better in my head.”

“I’m sure it did.”

“My name is Luke,” the man said. “And this is my daughter Casey.”

“I’m Jo.”

“I’m sorry, Daddy,” Casey blubbered through tears. “I didn’t mean any of it!”

Casey’s shaky voice jolted Jo, and she took the opportunity to pull her arm out of Luke’s grasp, stepping far enough back so he couldn’t touch her again. Despite herself, she was curious about Casey’s words, so she waited for Luke to explain.

“We had an argument,” Luke said over Casey’s head. “She said she wished it had been me who died instead of her mother.”

“Ouch,” Jo said, wincing.

“I didn’t mean it!” Casey wailed.

“Keep your voice down,” Jo said. “Sorry to hear about your mom, Casey, but this new world sucks and girls like you are worth a lot of money, so try to put the teenage angst behind you in order to survive this messed-up world. ’Kay?”

Casey nodded. Jo turned to the dad. “Now, the chance of someone not hearing those gunshots are about zero to nil, so I suggest you skedaddle and forget about—”

Before she finished what she was saying, the sound of another gunshot ripped through the alley. Luke gasped and grabbed his side, stumbling forward into her and trapping Casey between them. As a shrill whistle pealed through the night, Jo instinctively raised her gun and fired, causing the whistle to abruptly end, followed by the dull thud of a body hitting the ground hard. For a split second, Jo couldn’t believe she just killed one of the haven guards.

Love at the End of the World Anthology

 Five stories of couples who just might find love at the end of the world. That is, if they can survive.

His Bounty by Jaye Shields

After the nuclear war decimated much of the population, causing widespread infertility, the Stork Company became a billion-dollar industry. Caleb Black is the company’s top bounty hunter, bringing in healthy men and women to contribute to the breeding program and put babies into the hands of wealthy citizens. Few people willingly sign up to be a breeder, so hunters need to be tough and devoid of emotion. But Caleb’s newest target cracks his hardened heart.

Aurora Jones grew up in the Alaskan bush. Adept at living off the land, she’s thrived when others have failed to survive life post-nuclear war. She spends the majority of her time alone at her cabin, so when a handsome stranger shows up, curiosity gets the best of her. And it quickly turns into desire.

Caleb falls for the beautiful woman and decides he’d rather die than turn her into the Stork Company. But when she finds out who he really is and why he’s in Alaska, will the betrayal end the only chance he’s ever known of love?

Heaven for Us by Beth D. Carter

Jo was one of the lucky ones. She survived the virus that decimated eighty-five percent of the world’s population and now searches for a sanctuary in a ruined world. She trusts no one, keeping to herself, until she meets Luke and his daughter, Casey.

Suddenly she’s involved, and emotions she thought she had iced over long ago invade her self-imposed isolation. The more time she spends with Luke, the more she wants him, leaving her conflicted. Does she stay with him? Or will she continue her trek to find a heaven among the apocalypse?

Heart of Survival by Ashlynn Monroe

McKaye Tanner lost everything when the world ended. She grew into adulthood without anyone she could trust. She’s not sure what’s left of civilization, but from what she’s seen, it’s not much.

Reece Rogers has worked hard to keep his small band of survivors alive. He doesn’t take any bullshit or risks. But when he sees a young woman running from a group of the contaminated he can’t turn his back on her and takes a gamble to save her.

Can two battle-scarred, lonely people find love in a world that wants to destroy everything good about being human?

The Reset by Imogene Nix

Elaine is just an ordinary woman, but when the apocalypse occurs, she must find a way to survive in an increasingly hostile world. Enter Liam, the policeman who saves her at their first meeting and provides assistance as they try to cope with the zombie outbreak brought about by an unknown infection that’s spreading out of control.

Together they form a community, trying to save as many lives as they can, a place where people can be safe. Even in the throes of disaster though, emotions creep up, taking both of them by surprise. Who knows? They might just get their happy ever after...if they can survive.

The New Era by C. L. Scholey

By the twenty-third century much of Earth was destroyed. Mother Nature played a significant part, but so too did the numerous meteors that slammed into the world. The Superiors, a self-aware intelligence, went online soon after their creator, Jason Superior—a kind man who abhorred violence or suffering of any kind—sent a signal to a lone satellite. The system’s intelligence grew as Jason continued to add his own ideals until his passing.

The Superiors began to take control of the world and the few remaining survivors. Their approach to saving life was to destroy those who were capable of misguided influential acts. Only the innocent were allowed to live. Until they became not as innocent. This is their story.

 Content Warning: these stories contain sexual content