A single choice can change everything.
Bitzers aren't supposed to get involved in conflicts between slaves and their masters, let alone get involved in ways that end in blood. Nickel Cly has known that ever since he joined the Bitzer life, and never questioned it, until a chance encounter preys on his sense of honor. With a single arrow, he saves a non-magic wielder, from the master that almost killed her. But Bitzers don't normally keep slaves for themselves, and acts of mercy aren't always simple, especially when they make him question himself and the life he's lived for the past decade. Now, he has a choice to make: send her back to the Republic, send her back to the slave trade, or protect her from those who wish to harm her, all while threats from her past close in.
After spending the last two years confined to the Republic's prison, Trapper Cayuse wants nothing more than to walk free again. The conditions for his supposed freedom: simple, tell the Republic's Army where the rest of his Bitzer gang is. However, when the opportunity to escape presents itself, Trapper takes the chance and pays a heavy price. Injured and shackled with a device that makes him unable to use magic, Trapper now faces a long road out of enemy territory, a road that just happens to lead him to an unlikely ally in enemy territory.
CONTENT NOTE: THIS BOOK CONTAINS DARK THEMES THAT SOME INDIVIDUALS MAY FIND UPSETTING OR DISTURBING. THESE THEMES INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO DEPICTIONS OF GUN VIOLENCE, SLAVERY, KIDNAPPING, MENTAL ABUSE, PHYSICAL ABUSE, VERBAL ABUSE, SLURS, GASLIGHTING, ALCOHOL USE, INCARCERATION AND PARENT LOSS, AS WELL AS REFERENCES TO ATTEMPTED SEXUAL ASSAULT AND RAPE. ADDITIONALLY, THIS BOOK CONTAINS INSTANCES OF ROMANTIC AND/OR SEXUAL ATTRACTION BETWEEN CAPTIVE AND CAPTOR.