Welcome to the Exclusive Cover Reveal of Rhys Ford’s Savior, book two in the 415 Ink series!

There are few pleasures in the world that match the scent of green soap hitting hot, freshly inked skin and the cooling sensation of that final wipe down when the artist is done. Every tattoo is its own journey and I’ve tried to capture that sense of unique paths in the newest 415 Ink novel, Savior.

This time around I’ve focused on Mace Crawford, the second oldest member in the band of brothers who’d forged their own family and slowly rebuilt an aging home while soldering their familial bonds. We met Mace back in Rebel (Gus and Rey’s story) and I knew I needed to explore Mace’s need to be… bossy, for lack of a better word. His tightly controlled world goes a bit wonky when he finally realizes he’s cracking a bit and well, sometimes it’s just best to let yourself go.

I am very grateful to The Novel Approach for letting me share Savior’s cover and I am so excited for all of you to meet Mace’s demons and angels!

AND let’s do a giveaway! One lucky winner will get a $20 gift certificate from Dreamspinner Press.

The Cover

Releasing Sept 18, 2018 from Dreamspinner Press

A savior lies in the heart of every good man, but sometimes only love can awaken the man inside the savior.

The world’s had it out for San Francisco firefighter Mace Crawford from the moment he was born. Rescued from a horrific home life and dragged through an uncaring foster system, he’s dedicated his life to saving people, including the men he calls his brothers. As second-in-command of their knitted-together clan, Mace guides his younger siblings, helps out at 415 Ink, the family tattoo shop, and most of all, makes sure the brothers don’t discover his darkest secrets.

It’s a lonely life with one big problem—he’s sworn off love, and Rob Claussen, one of 415 Ink’s tattoo artists, has gotten under his skin in the worst way possible.

Mace’s world is too tight, too controlled to let Rob into his life, much less his heart, but the brash Filipino inker is there every time Mace turns around. He can’t let Rob in without shaking the foundations of the life he’s built, but when an evil from his past resurfaces, Mace is forced to choose between protecting his lies and saving the man he’s too scared to love.

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The Excerpt

“Montenegro!” Mace knew he didn’t have to yell, but the adrenaline pouring through his blood made it impossible to do anything but shout. “Let me do a final check, and then we’re clear. I’ve got 4B and 4A to check over.”

“Copy.” Mace could hear Rey’s amusement loud and clear through their connection. “I’ll hold the hall. You go do it, but make it quick.”

He always made it quick, but Rey liked to remind him, especially when time was tight. This fire was slow moving and losing its power. The call that had begun as an inferno started by a balcony barbecue grill was now a weakening, sputtering bank of flames trapped between two fire crews. Still, nobody would turn their back on the building until it was called in as an all clear.

For Mason, that meant doing one final sweep of every room.

It was stupid… and he got shit for it sometimes… but like a lot of things Mason couldn’t put into a box and lock away, he wouldn’t be able to rest until he checked every door and every closet in the area they’d been assigned. Often there was no need, but the few times he didn’t, he itched beneath his skin for days, and a nagging sense of something left undone haunted him until they went on the next call.

The search was less of an obligation and more of an onus, a burden much heavier than the breathing apparatus and gear he carried into the fire—a legacy of sorts, a sword and shield he had picked up the moment he earned the right to call himself a firefighter.

“Just remember, Crawford, we’ve got a pot of Dungeness crabs over at the house waiting for us.” Rey’s voice echoed through Mace’s helmet. “And I haven’t seen Gus in three days, so… hurry it up.”

“Hold your horses, Montenegro,” Mace scolded back as he opened a hallway closet door. “I need, like, five minutes.”

They were in a part of the building that hadn’t been touched by the fire itself, but the walls showed signs of smoke damage. Dark gray curls of soot brushed over yards of ivory-white paint. The owners had been evacuated before Mace and the others moved into that end of the floor, but there were signs that a child occupied the small, boxy apartment—either that or they had a very spoiled puppy that slept in a bed shaped like a racecar in a room right off the kitchen.

With the power turned off, it was a little dark, and the afternoon sun was hidden by other buildings that crowded in over the apartments, but there was enough light for Mace to see the closet was empty.

He swept through the rest of the apartment, and his boots left deep tracks over the area rug in the center of the living room. There was no avoiding the filth of a fire or spreading it when they walked around. No matter how careful they were, fire brought destruction and everything that came with it. It was part of the job to wade through the mess and pull out what lives they could find.

The carpet was crispy under his feet, but the crunch came from a bag of chips spilled on the floor rather than the scorched remains of a rug. Whoever decorated obviously felt there was no such thing as overkill, because no matter where Mace turned, there was another piece of furniture blocking his way.

“Hey, Montenegro, when I’m done here, can we see if anyone from 4B is downstairs?” Mace’s voice echoed in his helmet, turning him into a Sith Lord when he spoke. “You can tell them their place is intact but just a little dirty. Maybe the chief will let them come up and get some things, but no one’s going to be sleeping here tonight.”

“Can do that. You about finished? Crabs. Family dinner. Gus,” Rey drawled. “You know… just reminding you.”

“Yeah, asshole. I know. You want to get laid,” Mace grumbled back. “I’m coming out after one more door check in here and a quick scan of the other apartment. Then we can call it clear.”

“What the hell is he doing? The floor’s empty.” Another voice broke over the communication, the querulous whine of one of the newbies assigned to the station to earn their chops. “We should have been out of here by now.”

“It’s a thing he’s got to do. Also, we operate under a ‘better safe than sorry’ motto in this house.” Rey’s calm voice dropped a register, and an undercurrent of menace echoed through the line. “So we’re going to wait as fucking long as it takes, because it’s what he needs to call the job done.”

About the Author

Rhys Ford is an award-winning author with several long-running LGBT+ mystery, thriller, paranormal, and urban fantasy series and is a two-time LAMBDA finalist with her Murder and Mayhem novels. She is published by Dreamspinner Press and DSP Publications.

She’s also quite skeptical about bios without a dash of something personal and really, who doesn’t mention their cats, dog and cars in a bio? She shares the house with Yoshi, a grumpy tuxedo cat and Harley, an insane grey tuxedo as well as a ginger cairn terrorist named Gus. Rhys is also enslaved to the upkeep a 1979 Pontiac Firebird and enjoys murdering make-believe people.

Rhys can be found at the following locations: Blog •  Facebook •  Twitter: @Rhys_Ford

The Giveaway

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