Theirs to Ransom Read online

  Theirs to Ransom

  A Marriage Raffle Novel

  Stasia Black

  Contents

  Preface

  Map

  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

  Epilogue

  Epilogue II

  Afterword

  Marriage Raffle Series

  A Note From The Author

  Also by Stasia Black

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Copyright © 2019 Stasia Black

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  In the not too distant future, a genetically engineered virus is released by an eco-terrorist in major metropolitan areas all over the globe. Within five years, almost 90% of the world’s female population is decimated.

  In an attempt to stop the spread of the virus and quarantine those left, a nuclear war was triggered. It’s still unclear who began attacking who, but bombs were dropped on all major US cities, coordinated with massive EMP attacks.

  These catastrophes and the end of life as people knew it was collectively known as The Fall.

  Map of the New Republic of Texas

  Chapter One

  SOPHIA

  Sophia held her purse up on her lap and let out an irritated huff at Finn who’d pulled their truck over to check his compass for the ten millionth time.

  “Oh my God, Finnigan, we’re going west. The sun just came up, so guess what? If we go in the opposite direction, we’re heading the right way!”

  “Oh wow, please do edjumacate me some more, Miss Sophia. Me big dumb boy. Don’t know my ups from my downs,” Finn quipped as he snapped the compass shut and pulled the truck back on to the road to head—you guessed it—exactly where Sophia had pointed out they should go five minutes ago. “It’s not like I’m the one with all the tracking experience who’s been out on about a hundred Scrapper runs. How many have you been on again? How many trips have you taken out of Jacob’s Well, in point of fact?”

  Oh, how she wanted to smack her purse in his superior face. Instead, she smiled sweetly. “You mean the diplomatic missions I’ve been on? Seven. Compared to your… how many was that again?” She held a hand to her ear. “Oh, zero? Hmm. How about that.”

  “And to think, we’re only a day into this little adventure. I thought it’d take at least five before you turned into a harpy fish wife.”

  “Harpy f—” Sophia cut off in a huff, turning her face fastidiously away from Finn. Finnigan Knight was absolutely, positively the most annoying boy on the entire planet.

  She wished she could go back in time and uninvite him from her little diplomatic trek over to New Mexico.

  Except… well, she most likely did need the big, dumb oaf.

  When they’d received the call from the Governor of Santa Fe in New Mexico, she couldn’t have been more excited.

  New Mexico! No one had heard anything from them in years other than the occasional trader who claimed to have passed through on treks from farther lands. They said it was all but abandoned apart from roving herds of bandits.

  There’d been rumors that there was some sort of war between the southwestern states like New Mexico and Arizona around the same time as Texas’s war with the Southern Alliance States. No one had any real concrete information, though. Which was in itself odd and not a little spooky. An entire states’ citizens didn’t just disappear.

  Well, the person who’d called Jacob’s Well’s sat phone had answers.

  There had been a war, which they’d lost to Colorado. Apparently Colorado was the state they’d all been fighting, just like the Southern States had all been ganging up on Texas. And like Texas, Colorado also won—and when they did, they apparently took all the women from the losing states.

  Sophia hadn’t been able to stop herself from gasping at that.

  No women left? At all?

  None, said the Governor. At least none that hadn’t been hidden extremely well. But that was difficult to manage for long since New Mexico wasn’t the most forgiving land.

  New Mexico was finally starting to rebuild, though. At least in Santa Fe. They’d gotten Jacob’s Well’s number from President Goddard’s trade secretary, the man said. And not only was Santa Fe a thriving community that had restored a portion of the power grid there, but they were eager to establish trade relations with The New Republic of Texas.

  They’d give the Texans anything they wanted—in exchange for brides.

  Brides.

  That was the term they’d used. If they’d said women, like they were trying to sell women or barter them like cattle, Sophia might have hung up right there.

  But no, apparently they’d heard of Jacob’s Well’s lottery system. They wanted in. And they’d pay big for the privilege.

  “It’s the future of our nation-state at stake, you understand, Miss Wolford?” the man on the phone had pleaded. “Without you, we’ll disappear in a generation.”

  How could she say no to that?

  But she wasn’t going to just rush in. She had to make sure they were who they said and that they could offer what they promised.

  And she wanted to show them good faith that they could deliver the goods as well.

  So she was going.

  To offer herself as the first bride.

  She’d show Dad she could be more than just a pretty face who could throw wedding parties and work at the soup kitchen. She could be just as brave as any of them and serve her country too.

  Dad needed troops to fight General Travis and take back the Republic. New Mexico had men. Plenty, it sounded like. And Texas had women. There were all the ones Drea had just freed and even more once they liberated San Antonio.

  Plus, Sophia was sure Daddy wouldn’t let some other jerk take the Presidency. Not another President Goddard. Maybe Daddy himself would be President. He’d done such a good job with Jacob’s Well. Imagine what he could do with the whole New Republic! He’d definitely honor whatever agreement Sophia made.

  Then she frowned. He hadn’t exactly been thrilled with her the last time they’d talked over the phone. And they’d gotten cut off so abruptly and then the battery on her sat phone had run out and she hadn’t wanted to go back to the caves to get another. Nope, she didn’t want to run into Dad again until her mission was a success.

  Besides, she could use the sat phone they had in New Mexico. Or better yet, just show back up with her new army behind her, like a modern day Joan of Arc.

  Sophia sighed happily.

  “Do I even want to know what it is you’re plotting over there?”

  Sophia glared Finn�
��s way, her good mood immediately souring again. Right. Finn. The unfortunate tag-along she’d been forced to ask to help her.

  Because while she might like to pretend she was a warrior-diplomat, yeah… the warrior part might be a stretch. She felt confident of her diplomatic abilities—hadn’t she watched her dad at work for years and welcomed every new girl to Jacob’s Well since she’d turned seventeen?

  But if some bandit or smuggler came after her while she was traveling, she’d have little idea what to do. Dad was so protective of her, he’d taught her basic self-defense moves even though he swore she’d never have to use them in Jacob’s Well. And she practiced them over and over at night in her room after he was asleep.

  But practicing against an invisible opponent and coming up against the real thing? In spite of what everyone thought of her, she wasn’t that naïve.

  So she’d thought carefully about all the people she might approach to help her. Maybe Nix or one of Shay’s husbands… Or maybe Vanessa would lend her those big, burly twins of hers…?

  But talking to Dad had put the kabosh on that. Any of those people would only side with her dad. They’d tell her she should wait. That she should take more people. Or more likely, that she shouldn’t go at all. That was definitely what Dad would say.

  So she had to go before he got back. And take someone with her who was totally reckless with little appreciation for authority or doing things the proper way: Finnigan Knight, ding ding ding ding!

  Because no matter what Drea or anyone else thought, she was more than just Daddy’s little girl. She cared about the future of the Republic as much as anyone else. She loved her country. She’d fight for it. She’d… she’d die for it, if it ever came to that.

  A shudder ran down her spine at the thought, but she only stiffened and sat taller. But it was true. Those courageous boys out with General Cruz fighting in San Antonio weren’t the only ones who could be brave.

  Maybe most people wouldn’t think much of a couple of days travel and then throwing an elaborate wedding… but there was still something to be said for a feminine form of warfare.

  Sophia had dreamed of her wedding for as long as she could remember.

  And obsessed about her lottery so many times she’d about crawled out of her skin waiting for the day to finally come.

  Well, here it was. She turned nineteen next week. And maybe the wedding wouldn’t be exactly as she’d always imagined, in the old Catholic church in Jacob’s Well, with the big bell that rang out over the town and echoed in the hills. And maybe her dad wouldn’t be there standing beside her to give her away. And maybe she wouldn’t be surrounded by the faces she’d known since she was a little girl.

  But she’d be married and finally get a start on her lifetime of loving someone, several someones, and learning what it felt like to be loved back.

  And that was all she’d ever wanted.

  She let out another happy sigh, imagining her future husbands. Would they be big men with lots of muscles? Or sleek and refined? Maybe one of each? Would another be musical and sing her to sleep at night? Ooo, or a poet! She’d love to be married to a poet.

  Sophia, how I do love thee, let me count the ways…

  She couldn’t help the happy sigh that escaped.

  “Are you like, constipated over there?”

  “What?” Sophia jumped in her seat and glared again at Finn even as she felt her face heat. “No I am not— Why would you even say—”

  “I don’t know,” he said, one hand casually on the wheel as he glanced her way before looking forward again. “You just keep making these little noises. Hmmmm. Ooooohhh,” he mimicked.

  She crossed her arms over her chest and huffed, turning her back to Finn and looking firmly out the window.

  “Oh come on, Soph,” Finn laughed. “I’m just joshin’. You’re just so pretty when your cheeks get all pink like that.”

  So— Pretty? Did he just—

  She swung her head back around to look at him but he was watching the road again. He did glance her way, though, and caught her looking at him. He shot her a quick wink, then went back to looking at the road like nothing was out of the ordinary.

  Sophia let out an infuriated huff and swore to herself that as soon as she was married, she would have nothing to do with Finnigan Knight ever again so long as she lived.

  Chapter Two

  FINNIGAN

  “Finn, I need to go,” Sophia said, that little breathy whine in her voice that drove Finn crazy. “I need to go. Bad.”

  Finn clenched his hands on the steering wheel and repeated what he had the last million times. “It’s not safe to stop around here.”

  They were close to the border with New Mexico and this whole area was notoriously dangerous. There was a reason there wasn’t open trade with Texas and whatever the hell was left of New Mexico.

  And a reason people considered everything past the Texas border to be wildlands where only fools or the insane dared tread.

  So naturally Sophia had come into his cavern two days ago declaring she was going not just over the border, but deep into the wildlands. All the way to fucking Santa Fe.

  She wasn’t normally a fool but when it came to the real world outside Jacob’s Well, the girl didn’t have the good sense God gave her. Or shoulda gave her.

  So if she was gonna survive the trip, he was going to have to go with her. Get the girl to Santa Fe. Come hell or high water, he’d get her there. And get her there in one piece.

  “You said it wasn’t safe to stop around Fort Stockton.” Sophia threw her hands up. “And then it wasn’t safe to stop around Pecos. But we passed Pecos twenty minutes ago. I’m seriously gonna pee my pants if we don’t stop soon!”

  Finn glanced her way. By the way she was twisting on her seat, it looked like she wasn’t just being dramatic.

  He looked back at the road. “I told you not to drink that whole bottle.” Any Scrapper worth his salt knew you rationed your water intake so you weren’t forced to stop somewhere you didn’t want to. Either that or you got real familiar with pissing into a bottle.

  Sophia let out a little exasperated huff and Finn shook his head. After thirty hours in a car together, he was becoming more than familiar with all her little noises. For the most part, they were damn cute.

  Not that he’d ever tell her that.

  “Look, Soph, it’s just another three hours till we get there—”

  “Three hours! No way. Finnigan Knight, you will pull this truck over right this instant.”

  He glanced her way again. “It’s cute that you think you’re the one in control here.”

  Her mouth dropped open for just a moment before she clapped it shut and ground her teeth together. “This is my mission. You just happen to be along for the ride.”

  “Oh is that so?” Finn laughed. “How do you figure it? This is my truck. And you’re depending on navigational expertise. Seems to me like if it’s anyone’s, it’s my mission. So we’ll go by my rules. Which means no stopping on the most dangerous stretch of road we seen yet. Here, if it’s that bad…”

  He rustled around the seat behind him and then held out an old plastic Big Gulp cup toward her.

  “Don’t be crude.” She yanked the cup out of his hand and threw it back behind the truck seat.

  “I was being serious.”

  She made another huffing noise. “Why are you being so stubborn? There’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s flat.” She flung an arm out toward the front windshield. “We can see for miles in both directions and There. Is. No. One. We’re perfectly safe stopping for five minutes so I can relieve myself. Now stop the damn truck!”

  Oh shit. The perfect Sophia Wolford had just cursed. Sure it was just damn which was like the most Mary Sue of all curse words but still. She was really upset. Looking at her, he could see she did look almost panicky.

  This time it was him huffing out a loud breath. He spent all his time around guys. It was hard to remember that chicks might work differ
ent. Sure whipping out your dick and peeing in a bottle was nothing for dudes but Sophia? Prim and proper Sophia? The idea of losing her composure like that? Or worse, actually pissing her pants?

  Goddammit. A guy would just laugh it off and Finn would make a joke about having to scrub down his seats but fuck, this truck had seen a lot worse. Johnson almost died on that seat, guts half falling out, blood everywhere. The seats were that fake leather so it mostly came off. Johnson survived too, so wins all around.

  But a girl like Sophia? She had a working shower in her house for Christ’s sake. She cared about, like, dignity and shit. Something most folks he knew had given up on long ago.

  Finn checked the rearview mirror for about the tenth time in as many minutes. Like she said, it was clear. Road ahead, too.

  “Fine,” he said. “But you get two minutes, not five.”

  “Thank you, Finn. Thank you.”

  Well damn, she really must be desperate if she was actually thanking him.

  He pulled the truck off to the side of the small country highway and jammed it into park. “Go,” he said, reaching under his seat for his rifle.

  “Don’t look,” she said as she pushed open her door and he rolled his eyes and did the same

  “Oh yeah, I can’t wait to get a view of your backside as you squat and—"