Sicario [Sample]

World's End #0.5

by Kai Tyler

Dear Author,
He is the most captivating creature I have ever seen. A human. So frail in body, yet his strength is undeniable. And though he caught the eye of many, he is mine now. No one else could match my bid. In a couple minutes they will release him to me. And I will never let him go.

I am under no illusions. I know he will look upon my deformations and find me hideous. He will be repulsed by my weakness and wish to belong to a finer warrior. But at least I will not be like the others of my kind. I will not use my greater size and strength to hurt and control him. I will not squash the pride in his eyes, equal to any of my people. His beautiful back will never feel the lash again. At least with me he will be free of the pain. But not free to leave. Never free to leave me.

Photo Description:
A man is bound with coarse, wound rope, hands stretched to the sides and back, body bowed from the waist and head tilted downwards. On the outside he appears beaten. Broken. A man willing to submit to whatever life and his captors have in store for him. But watch his hands. The determined way he grips the ropes. This is a warrior and while the battle may be lost, the war is not over.

This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is an Open Road" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

Genres: M M Romance, Romance, Short Stories, Dystopia, Dark, Novella, LGBT

30 pages, ebook

First published July 12, 2015

About the author

Kai loves writing stories about forbidden men and relentless love, about gangsters with heart, antiheroes who do what they need to do to survive in a crazy world. These men commit to the lives they lead 100%—with heart, body and soul and when they fall in love you can be sure they bring the same level of passionate devotion to the people they love.

Reviews

[Kat · Rating 1 out of 5]

Another lovely, lovely prompt getting butchered by an author abusing the MM Romance Event to plug their work. Resulting in an unfinished story with a cliffhanger, that unfortunately doesn't live up to the prompter's request. But fear not! Its (multiple?) sequels can be bought via Amazon.

Thanks for nothing.

[Optimist ♰King's Wench♰]

I read this prompt and squealed. I marked it as a definite read and tagged it aliens/slavery. I thought hurt/comfort, maybe like a beauty & the beast type situation. All good things. Plus, I'm always down for an auction.

Uh... 5 mos later and...

Yeah, only the auction happened.



I'm sure others interpreted the prompt differently than I. Clearly, the author did which is fine. It just wasn't what I'd hoped for.

Instead it's a post-apocalyptic world that we don't really learn all that much about aside from it being call "the new world" and being run by cartels. Enzo buys Lexan and whisks him away to a cliffside dwelling with glass floors FROM WHICH HE CAN NEVER ESCAPE! He makes some opaque attempts at seduction which go nowhere. Enzo has to go on some sort of secret assassin mission so he drugs Lexan SO HE CAN NEVER ESCAPE then the next thing I knew they were making declarations of love, devotion and a future together.

I don't know when that happened. I swear I read all of it. Maybe it gets explained better in the sequel?

It doesn't end on a cliff per se, but it has a definite to be continued... vibe.

I'm just not sure I want to continue. Characters I can't understand hold little appeal for me. Plus, no aliens. :(

Thanks to the author and her team for contributing to the LOR event.

[Meep · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thanks to the author for participating and offering this freebie, regardless of rating that's appreciated

Odd story that doesn't bother to show progress from captive slave to willing lover, perhaps it's the drugs?

Optimist ♰King's Wench♰ & MANTIES Champion - conveniently wrote what I was thinking so go read her review here ;)

I an very much NOT a fan of all these open endings, to be continued, now buy the remainder stories.

[Reflection · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 very uninspired stars

Unfortunately the short story started with a bang that quickly died in a whimper IMO. The author appeared to hold to the barest outline requested by the prompt for the Male/Male Romance group's Love is an Open Road Event

The suggestion was wonderful and I could barely contain my excitement at what might unfold:
'....He is the most captivating creature I have ever seen. A human. So frail in body, yet his strength is undeniable. And though he caught the eye of many, he is mine now. No one else could match my bid. In a couple minutes they will release him to me. And I will never let him go....'

Oh dear. In brief, Lexan buys Enzo and whisks him off to an island from which escape is impossible. No explanation about motives, no reasons provided for the 'chemistry' between these guys, no world building, no character development, no discernible plot.

One moment Enzo is feeling attraction but not acting on it because of his repulsion about being enslaved, the next he is caressing Lex's scarred body and promising a full blown relationship should Enzo be allowed some family time and a spot of revenge. Not exactly a cliff hanger (I found the story too insipid to be bothered greatly about what the characters decide to do). I feel like that's an hour of my life I won't get back.

Hopes raised and then quickly dashed with this short story. The author promises all will be revealed in the next no doubt longer book available for purchase (that seems to me to be very poor behaviour, and completely at odds with the spirit of the Love is an Open Road Event). Thanks but no thanks.

[K]

Short introductory story to the planned longer work by the author
(yes, cliff hanger, or rather, sudden ending with no resolution)
Set in, well, possibly post apocalyptic or AU futuristic society (hard to tell, there isn't really any world building) we are introduced to Lexan, a former hit man (supposedly from the prompt disfigured but this seems to have been lost) as he goes to buy a slave at an auction house. Enzo has been taken from his family (again, no reasons given as to why or what he's done to deserve this) and is being sold, but his mind is on escape and vengeance. After buying him Lexan takes him to his private island home (separated from the mainland by shark infested waters) where the pair start to get to know each other.... and that's kind of it...

I do appreciate the authors that volunteer their time and talent for this event, and I have no problem with people using the event as a spring board for further published work. But I really don't think it's fair to the prompter, who is expecting a full and complete story, to leave it half finished like this.

[Didi · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Damn. I just realized from seeing the cover that this was Part One of something - a new series? So that's why it felt like an incomplete story. It was a beginning of something.

I actually liked the author's writing and the story did catered to what the prompt asked. However I couldn't grasp the world building and there were still a couple of unclear issues such as why Enzo was taken and forced into captivity and slavery, and the what pull he had over assassin to draw him coming to the auction.

[Alaska · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wished the setting was a different one because the prompt strongly suggested a sci-fi story to me with an alien/human pairing. I hoped for that because it's one of my favorite themes.
But instead the author chose a post-ap world where slavery is a common occurence again and cartels rule the world or something like that. You don't learn much about the Why and How. There was suppsosed to be an epidemic which whiped out half of the world but it's just mentioned in passing. There is barely any world building or character depth.
I hoped, like the prompt writer, for a slow-burn but no...Enzo was just sold and is about to be taken to a unfamiliar place by an unknown owner when he "smelled his clean masculine scent and had to fight the urge to lean into him. Having him so close made me picture our bodies aligned, writhing together." I wanted to stop reading right there and bang my head against a wall. Why do people think that after weeks of torture, degredation and being sold against your will you feel attraction for your new owner instantly? Although Enzo tries to escape once it's very poorly done. Where does he think he can go in a helicraft after he knocked out the pilot? Does he land the thing himself? Jump out? That was his big escape plan? If so he deserves to be a slave.
If not insta-love it was insta-lust, IMO. It's never really believable to me in this kind of settings.
I have to admit I forced myself through the rest of the story. It all just didn't add up. How Lexan offered himself up and later acted like the slave himself by obeying Enzo's demands. How he suddenly has to do another job although he is retired. How Enzo suddenly wants to stay with him. And then suddenly...the end. I was so disappointed in this whole story and (I know I'm being mean) it felt more like "I want to promote my upcoming series and try to force my plot into the prompt" instead of "I want to take this prompt and fill it with life". It just read like the first attempt of a fanfiction by a teenager.

[Kira · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel like I've just read a rough outline of a book with a few key scenes sprinkled here and there. The only reason why I made it to the end is because the story is so damn short.
There's also a light-speed jump from "You drugged me, I don't trust you, I need to escape" to "I care about you so much, let's spend the rest of our lives together." There's maybe a couple of paragraphs between the two.

[Queue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a lot of books but it’s not very often I find something truly unique and original. However, that is exactly what happened with these two stories. The plot and world are totally special and Kai Tyler’s writing voice is completely fresh and distinctive.

The world of World’s End is a futuristic, dystopian one where criminal cartels have taken over and rule their lands with varying degrees of iron fists. Some bosses allow drugs and prostitution, others do not. There isn’t much discussion about the past but the world building of how it currently is is magnificent.

Sicario is a short story and currently free on Amazon. It’s basically an introduction of the World’s End series, but just a primer. It was enough to make me request Duce so I could continue reading more about this fascinating world.

Enzo, a slave, is purchased by Lexan. He expects certain things from his new owner and is confused when Lexan is nothing like he anticipated. He expects to be raped but that isn’t what Lexan is going to do.

“…I would never think about topping you. Not unless it was what you wanted.”

When they do have sex it’s without pressure and completely consensual. It’s also extremely erotic and very hot. It’s not long until both men are bonded in a way that will change them forever. Not even Lexan’s career as a hitman can get in their way.

In Duce we meet mafia underboss Dante Orsini, heir to a large crime family. He’s also gay, something that isn’t widely known. One of the changes in The New World is that being gay is once again frowned on, in fact it can get you killed. He still manages to find lovers such as Carl, a mouthy twink he picks up at a bar.

Dante and Carl engage in some VERY hot sexin’ of the BDSM-lite variety. Dante is dominant and loves giving orders, while Carl is submissive and adores following orders. They have a lot of fun without realizing who the other really is. It’s not spoiling anything to reveal that Carl is really Carlos Carmichael, the playboy son of one of Dante’s rivals.

Carlos is the youngest son of Juan Pablo Carmichael, aka The Baron, a brutal and harsh mob boss. He’s the younger of The Baron’s sons and his brother Marcos is definitely the favored son. The Baron doesn’t care that Carlos is gay, he hates it in fact, and forces Carlos to choose an arranged marriage or be jailed for being homosexual.

Carlos finds himself in the middle of a mob war between his father and Dante and ends up a slave of Dante’s. Dante doesn’t abuse Carlos in anyway, he still cares for him, he just wants The Baron to remove the death warrant he put on Dante’s head. However, Dante and Carlos’ time together brings them even closer.

There are quite a few little surprises sprinkled throughout the book that made for an engaging read. I don’t want to ruin any of them, but I loved each and every one of them.

I adored Dante and Carlos’ relationship even if they seemed to fall in love before I really bought they were there. In lust and even like, but not love. That’s just a tiny niggle though.

The author’s ability to describe a scene is absolutely phenomenal. One scene that stands out is when Dante meets with a man regarding the warrant out for his life. Every last detail is mapped out and I was able to perfectly picture everything.

The world building is similarly amazing. It’s all worked naturally into the story with no large info dumps or boring exposition. That sort of thing normally bores me, but that did not happen here.

I’m a big fan of first person POV and the book alternates between Dante and Carlos, just as the first book did between Lexan and Enzo. We really get deep into these guys’ heads and emotions.

Toward the end of the book there’s a chapter that switches to third person POV. I’d normally bitch about the switch but it worked here perfectly.

There are really no good guys here. Just anti-heroes and bad guys who aren’t as evil as other criminals. It will be interesting what the author does with future stories. She set it up for many more stories down the road with lines such as….

Wait, I don’t want to ruin it for you. Just go read it. You will not regret it.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay. I'm intrigued with this short story especially with the twist in the relationship between Enzo and Lexan. Wasn't expecting that and I want to know more about them, about their pasts and how the New World affects them in the future. Great introduction. Can't wait for more.

[Raina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked both of the male leads in Sicario. I went to Amazon and preordered the second book.

[Angela · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 Star

Did not finish.
Was not what I expected. The blurb is nothing to what I had started reading.
Sorry not my cup of tea

[justanya · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this story but it was very difficult. This was a very short read that ended on a cliffhanger which was very disappointing. The second issue I had was with the relationship itself between the MC's. I didn't the chemistry. There's no rhyme or reason provided for why these two should be together. Where's the glue? Why is Enzo an angry slave one minute then turns on a dime to being a committed lover and companion? I read this and I felt let down because the story left me with more questions than answers. The bones are there for a phenomenal book if Kai Tyler takes to time to combine all the parts I saw on Goodreads into one awesome cohesive novel.

[Una chica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es una historia corta, la sinopsis (no la que está aquí en goodreads) me llamó la atención, si bien no soy fan de la temática de esclavos pensé que está historia al menos me mantendría entretenida un rato, lo cual logró.
Claro, todo pasó muy rápido, fue medio insta-love lo que detesto, pero es una historia corta, no podía pedir mucho, de todas formas tengo esperanza de que mejore, esto solo fue un vistazo a los personajes, la historia continúa en el libro dos de esta serie. 😌

[Luis Fe Domínguez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lo malo con Sicario es el sin sentido inicial y el posterior encuentro fortuito y sin proyección de los protagonistas. Es que no hay historia que contar, ni hilo donde agarrarse ni verdades a medias. Todo está descrito desde la euforia menguante. Es una ola en calma qué pasa sin más por el océano.

[Hrtnsoul28 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this short bit and will be reading more of this story.

[DebbieReadsBooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian I Dig Good Goods. I was gifted my copy of this book for review.



This book was written as part of the 'Love Is An Open Road' event on Goodreads and is based around a photograph.



Photo description: A man is bound with coarse, wound rope, hands stretched to the sides and back, body bowed from the waist and head tilted downwards. On the outside he appears beaten. Broken. A man willing to submit to whatever life and his captors have in store for him. But watch his hands. The determined way he grips the ropes. This is a warrior and while the battle may be lost, the war is not over.



Lexan buys Enzo at auction. Enzo's body had been tortured, beaten, broken. But his mind was still his own, and he knew as soon as he was able, he was going to kill Lexan and get his revenge. But Lexan is...unexpected. And Enzo begins to feel for him. When Lexan is faced with having to return to the life he worked so hard to get away from, Enzo decides to stand by Lexan.



SO!



Short, so very very short! 36 pages (according to Amazon) about half hour reading time for me.



Its also lacking a great deal. I UNDERSTAND that short stories often are, but this one left me with more questions. It talks of the New World, but never fully explains what that means.



I didn't connect very well with either character, and I didn't get into either man's mind, emotionally, they were both very distant.



BUT! If you want a quick read, that isn't too taxing on the brain, too complicated, a lunch break/bath tub read, this is just the thing.



I just wish it were longer.



I will be reading Duce, book two shortly, but the blurb has different characters. We shall see if Lexan and Enzo appear.



**Same worded review will appear on Goodreads, Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com**

[Jeanne 'Divinae' · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating 2.5 moved up to 3.

The world as we know it, is no more. Half the planet had been wiped out and now criminals run the world. If you are wealthy, you buy anything. Lexan has been living a solitary life, until something piqued his interest. He attended an auction and spent a ton of money on the one item he had been looking for.

Enzo.

Now, we never find out why. Why Enzo? Is it someone Lex had come to know about? Why did he come to that auction for that person. We don’t find out. We do know that his home is very isolated from the rest of the world. People leave him alone.

Now he has Enzo, but he doesn’t treat him like a slave. If nothing else, Enzo is the ‘Master’. Despite being kept there, Enzo runs the show. Enzo finds out a lot about who Lex was before the ‘New World’ came.

We don’t find out lot about Enzo. We just know he was taken by force from his home. He left his friends, family and fiance behind. We also know that apparently it is punishable to lust after a man, or so it comes across that way.

It is definitely a HFN, with lots of questions that are left unanswered.

[2kasmom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enzo and Lexan meet when Lexan purchases Enzo from human traffickers who sell him into slavery. Lexan is just not that type of owner and has different plans for Enzo. Only catch - he can never leave.

Enzo is upset from the beginning. He wants to go home. Check on his family. He does not understand the goodness in Lexan and why he allows him to be normal and not his slave.

Lexan had purchased Enzo, yes. He has never seen anyone as beautiful as Enzo and is seriously attracted to him. He flirts with him all the time. He even takes care of him.

This is a short, yet sweet story introducing the series. I am interested to find out what happens in the next installment. Almost felt too short. I liked the connection between them but I need more story to figure this out.


***This copy was given in exchange for review purposes only.

[Rachael Orman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting little story for sure. However, while it was interesting, I felt like a lot of it was only half developed.

The writing style was very smooth and it was easy to read, however, we are left with so many questions unanswered, not to mention how fast time progresses. I understand the progression and the desire there, but it could've used more development between the characters.

There was a lot of promise in the story, but it needed to answer all the questions that were left open at the end of the book. What happened to these characters? Will we ever know? It would've made more sense to me if the next book in the series had been about what happens with them, but as it is about other people, I was left greatly disappointed.

I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Inked Rainbow Reads.

[Amy Crull · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had promise but it just fell flat for me. There were a lot of holes in the storyline. I also didn't really get into the story nor did I connect with the characters. I love a good mafia and M/M book but this wasn't it. Lexan, was a contract killer but he was a bit soft for me. He was so concerned about that, that I don't think he let his guard down until the end. He was so afraid of what Enzo was gonna say, when really if he truly loved him, it wouldn't matter. Enzo, on the other hand, was a good man but was so afraid of his feelings. He didn't automatically want to come out. His story is also full of holes especially when he was a slave. I'm not entirely sure I'll be reading anymore from this story.. I'm also pretty sure I'm giving this a higher rating then I should. I'm part sure I'm being nice here.

[Shy Gawerecki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting little teaser for this series. It definitely caught my interest but it was clearly unfinished. The relationship needed a little more development. For example, why was Enzo taken? Why did Lex buy him? What happened to progress the relationship from the first meeting animosity to the willing to have a physical relationship stage?

I hope all these questions are answered in the upcoming stories. But I look forward to reading more.

[Kevin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel cheated. This snippet does not belong in this collection. It is not an actual story, just a brief introduction intended to get you interested in buying the upcoming novel.
Very little happens here and almost nothing is explained. You have a guy who buys a slave but treats him like a master. Then it ends.
I did like what little I read though.

[Katy Beth Mckee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A world that has been turned on it's side these men are figuring out their roles and even reversing them in a way that their society won't understand. Not usually a fan of the dystopia genre but I might just have to be on the watch out for more of their story because frankly you could but their story in many different settings.

[Debby · Rating 2 out of 5]

buset deh cerita kaga ada ujung pangkalnya.
tau sih buku gretong, tapi tolong yah gimana caranya mau tertarik dengan buku selanjutnya kalo buku 1 nya aja begini.
berita bagusnya sih, untung daku enggak keluar duit untuk buku ini.

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who Is The Slave

This beginning of this series was an interesting read. Subsequent books will let us know why this man was taken and sold. Hopefully we'll also find out Lex's story also. It is a short entertaining read. Enjoy I did.

[Aya · Rating 1 out of 5]

★☆
Had the potential to be something. I was interested to see how it continues but it all seemed incomplete. There was no continuity it seemed rushed. Read ike a rough plot outline rather than an actual story.

[Kai Tyler]

I wrote this. Go and download it for free.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking forward to the next one!

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has great potential but it's a cliffhanger of sorts. Too bad it wasn't an entire story.