The Rogue Venator (The Mindbender Series Book 6)

Book summary

Jack is abandoned by The Company in a small Mexican city, where he quickly falls in with the local cartels, betraying everyone around him. When a mysterious young woman with extraordinary powers enters his life, Jack must decide if he’ll risk everything to save her or continue down his destructive path.

THE ROGUE VENATOR is a gritty, action-packed thriller and a spinoff of The Mindbender Series.

Excerpt from The Rogue Venator (The Mindbender Series Book 6)

The Premonition

Suddenly, I was in a corridor. The halls of what appeared to be a school were unsettling. The property needed extensive repairs; pipes were leaking, and lights were flickering. The quantity and variety of football and championship trophies on display indicated that this was a high school. A wall depicting school events was also constructed near a set of offices.

Walking on, I felt like I was looking for something, or someone rather. They were expecting me, and I had to find them. And something was going to happen if I didn’t find what I was searching for. I had to be there; I had to protect them.

Passing a few offices, I could make out the names, but as I neared, the words strangely became blurry. I made out the words “Assistant Principals, Mr. Cl—” before the letters seemed to melt away. No matter what I did to look at them—whether I turned sideways or stood on my head—I could not clearly make the words out. So, I moved on.

Walking a few steps before I turned to look back, to continue down the hall.

Nearing a corner, I heard sounds coming from the end of the hall.

“Hello? Anyone there?” As I neared the end of the hall, I saw a figure standing over a body. Frozen momentarily, I watched another figure walk away. As I approached, he stopped and turned with a grin on his face. Clad in a white lab coat was Dr. Nicholson staring back at me.

My first instinct was to turn back and run away from that man, but he was the one that moved back from the two other figures. He moved so quickly that he seemed to vaporize into the endless hallway. Looking at the other two figures, I realized that the one standing over the other was Johnny.

“John?” I uttered in a tiny whisper and approached. Hurrying over, I could see he was standing over a girl who was lying on the floor. He kneeled as I neared, sobbing. He reached down and took her into his arms. As I came closer, I clearly saw her. Something knocked me over. Then immediately, an energy began pulsating throughout my body with a sudden weakness and strength all at once and took me over. Dropping near Johnny, I stared at her. Why did I feel like I knew her?

Strangely, Johnny began to fade as if he had never been there. His cries faded with him as if he were some strange ghost roaming the hallways. It was just her on the floor, motionless.

I crept up to her side, stealthily. I had no idea what to do. My heart ached because she was so lovely. Was she still alive? Was she all right?

Reaching over, I touched her cheek; her skin was soft and warm on my hands. An electrical charge raced from her skin into me, sending waves of pleasure unlike anything I’d ever experienced. My skin tingled and came alive with a connection that linked us together, and then that awareness that I’d known her all my entire life. Only now did I realize that I had been looking for her.

Pushing back her lovely locks of hair, I stroked her golden-brown face. How perfect she was. I longed to know her.

Who are you? How do I know you? Why do I feel like I’ve always been in search of you—like you’re the one thing missing in my life?

She opened her eyes and raised her gaze to mine. It was both forceful and exhilarating to feel a thrust in my soul.

“You’re so beautiful,” I whispered.

An electrical current surged from her fingertips when she stretched out her hand to touch my face. My eyes were dancing, and my heart was exploding. I felt a flutter in my gut. Leaning close, I wanted to kiss her. My emotions were out of control, and I was losing my willpower.

“Jack,” she whispered my name. That alone removed the last of my constraints. I immediately placed my lips to hers. It was too much for me to bear. I felt like I was drowning in her mouth when her soft lips pressed against mine.

Her hands made contact with my shoulders and she started pushing me back. However, I couldn’t stop myself.

“I need you! Why do I need you so much? Who are you? Tell me, please!” And as I exhaled, an electrified energy was exploding throughout my body. I had never felt so alive!

“Jack, stop!”

There was a hard shove, and I was thrown back. Hitting the lockers, I dropped to the floor on my face. Slowly raising my head, all I saw was her fleeing down the hall.

Shit! Great with the ladies, Jack.

“Jack! Jack! Get up!” A voice said from somewhere around me.

My eyes sprang open, blinking wildly, and I began spinning my head all over the place. One of the cadets was speaking to me in hushed tones, recognizing that I was still in my bunk. He had obviously been the one to wake me up from the best fucking dream. Immediately I rushed to my feet to stand along in line with my fellow cadets. But all I could think of was— what was her name? I couldn’t put it together, but I got the impression she wanted me to find her.

Clearly, there were footsteps approaching, and I realized we had an unexpected visitor. The unannounced guest instilled fear among the other cadets. The staff sergeant was the first to address us. I expected a regular check of the barracks and a lecture about our last leave visit. All the cadets were in alert stance, lining a path for him, as his dress shoes then resonated on the marble floor.

Peering over, I noticed him in his nice white coat walking by the cadets. He proceeded down the line. The cadets’ features reflected their nervousness and the questions that were likely on their minds. They were all wondering the same thing. They were curious as to why Dr. Nicholson, the director of the science sector, was present.

Dr. Nicholson came to a halt beside me and turned. A few others gasped. He fixed his baby blue eyes on me and greeted me with his slightly odd, arrogant smile. You could almost hear a pin drop. The cadets in my group looked at me in bewilderment.

“He’s here to see Jack,” they said quietly.

They realized I wasn’t normal after seeing what I was capable of. There was something unusual about me. Why wouldn’t he pay me a visit? After all, I’d come from the other side, and he was Dr. Nicholson, the ADA director. He was the most feared of all the top scientists. You sought his attention while also attempting to escape it.

“Walk with me, Jack,” his voice was like nails on a chalkboard. The accent both familiar and distinguished. He walked. I followed, receiving a few curious looks before hearing the staff sergeant’s voice admonish the other soldiers.

“This doesn’t concern you, ladies. At alert!”

As Dr. Nicholson and I exited the cadet barracks, the staff sergeant’s voice faded. Dr. Nicholson remained silent until we exited the building. It wasn’t long after we walked, that same familiar voice with the German accent began to speak. It was harsh as always, and Dr. Nicholson bold and straight to the point.

“I’ve heard you’ve been making quite a spectacle of yourself among the other cadets with the use of your capabilities,” he stepped aside and turned to face me. His blond tresses danced in the fingers of a tiny breeze.

How in the world did he know? That was the look in my eyes. Obviously, I was resisting the need to voice the question aloud.

“They respect me, sir, unlike others,” I explained instead.

“You call that— respect?” Dr. Nicholson’s displeasure was evident as he turned and glared away, then back.

“They hold me in high regard,” I rephrased with a frown.

“They see nothing but a mutant with a gift,” he replied, even harsher. “One who will comply upon their request in order to gain acceptance from his peers. You’re far more than that.”

I suppressed my wrath.

“You’re an embarrassment. I didn’t create—” He didn’t complete his sentence, instead taking the time to gather himself. That took me by surprise. When he spoke again, it was nothing like I had anticipated. “You are a valuable asset, Jack,” he said after a brief pause to gather his thoughts.

“How so?” I was quick to say. I actually didn’t expect an answer and was surprised when I received one.

“You were born with a flaw that would have killed you if I hadn’t been able to produce a treatment.”

This was the first time I’d heard anything about it. Curiously glancing over, he continued. This had been more than he’d ever disclosed about my past or why I was the way I was. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear it.

“When the drug was administered into your body, a unique aberration appeared and mutated within you and John. It made you much more powerful and superior to others. You and John are unusual; the chemistry of your bodies embraced the medication and saved you. This medicine has bestowed gifts upon you.”

“Unique? Gifts? Whatever you want to call it. This is far from a gift. Why us, and why me?”

“I already explained everything to you, Jack. You and John were born with a disability, and you would have died as children if it hadn’t been for the—”

“I know, the drug you invented. You rescued us. Why do you keep feeding that shit to John?” His brows furrowed slightly with each stubborn retort and response from me.

“Do you not believe?”

“I don’t think a silly medicine rescued us. I don’t think we were ever sick, or that our bodies could bond with the drugs you provided us.”

“What makes surviving a terminal disease or the concept of a mutation impossible?” I loathed it when he looked at me with those bright blue eyes. To him, Johnny and I were lab rats.

“Because of what I am capable. No one can take something and transform it into this—no ailment bestows a gift on you. This is reality, not a child’s fantasy. Not Spiderman or any bogus superhero.”

“I’ve already explained, Jack; you, like John, are anomalies. Your body’s chemistry has mutated features that have given you and John an advantage over ordinary people. You are exceptional.”

“Bullshit,” I snapped.

Dr. Nicholson’s brow wrinkled. It could have been my tone or the phrase I used. In any case, I wasn’t believing his nonsense. He would not give me a straight response.

As he inhaled, Dr. Nicholson’s lips tightened into a thin line. He wanted me to believe the fairy tale he had fed us for so long. I’d had enough of it. My defiance had made him furious, since I had opted to play by my own cards. Yet, he had always appeared uninterested in me. Although I hated to admit it, I was envious of his attention to John. The man had been the closest thing I had ever known to a father. And I felt forgotten in comparison to John, his prize hunter. There was never a day he wouldn’t constantly compare me to him in some way. I’ve never measured up, so why even try? I wasn’t going to be anything other than what I was— a fucking renegade. I had my position, and John had his.