A Paradox of Fates (Prevent the Past #1)

From USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Hefner

One woman bred to save the world…

Dr. Elaine “Lainey” Randolph was born with one sole purpose: to prevent the past. With her brilliant mind and unwavering spirit, she works tirelessly to solve the equations that will finally unlock the mystery of time travel. Then, she will leave the post-apocalyptic future her grandfather created and travel back in time to prevent his calamitous actions.

When handsome military captain Hunter Rhodes appears at Lainey’s remote scientific hub, he offers her protection. But there are strings attached to the mysterious soldier’s proffer, and Lainey finds herself wary of the man who stokes unwelcome longing and desire in her unemotional heart. For Lainey is a scientist, obdurate and dispassionate toward the notion of romantic love.

As Lainey’s band of ragtag scientists and loyal soldiers endeavor to escape the dystopian future, the evil New Establishment threatens to destroy them all. In their unpredictable timeline, the nefarious regime has become all-powerful and will stop at nothing to ensure complete world domination…

This novel is brought to you by a self-proclaimed science dork and lover of romance, fantasy and sci-fi. The reader can expect time travel shenanigans, smokin' hot chemistry between main characters in their late 30s and 40s and twists along the way. Enjoy the journey!

Lainey awoke, drowsy, in her double bed, the mattress firm against her back as she preferred. A soft mattress would invite the possibility of relaxing back into the cool sheets, allowing her to daydream for a while. Daydreams had no place in the post-apocalyptic world her grandfather had created.
Tossing the comforter aside, she sat up and touched her feet to the worn rug atop the concrete floor. Groaning, she maneuvered her neck around her shoulders, circling while the bones creaked and popped. Thirty-eight wasn’t doing her any favors, and she morosely wondered what forty would look like. Good grief, she might as well have Sara start manufacturing the arthritis medication now.
Sighing, she stood and padded into the small bathroom. After a quick shower, Lainey gathered her thick, wavy mahogany hair into a bun atop her head. It would dry that way, ensuring rings of curls fell down her shoulders whenever she chose to release the bun. Probably not until later that evening, when she would be alone in her room once again.
Staring at her amber eyes in the mirror, she absently rubbed lotion over her face and skin. Grimacing at the stretch marks across her hips and the slight pooch under her navel, she told herself to silence the inner critic. She tried to take walks with Cyrus around the compound each day, as much to exercise as to ensure they weren’t being surveilled, and those walks kept the space above her navel relatively flat and smooth. Below her navel? Well, she’d just attribute that little slice of flab to the fact she had other priorities in life besides winning beauty contests.
No, there were a few other things to accomplish, for Dr. Elaine Randolph had been born and bred for the sole purpose of saving the world.
In her mind, that sounded quite dramatic, and Lainey was sure her parents hadn’t intended to blaze the path of her life in such a systematic and determined manner. But it had happened anyway, and once she was a teenager, Lainey understood her place in their dystopian world. Whereas many other children were tucked away in the communes that now comprised their deadened ecosphere, Lainey had been raised by her parents on the scientific hub. This had afforded her both extravagances and disadvantages other children would never know.
Lainey had never known starvation, nor had she known true despair as others on the planet did now. She’d been sheltered on their commune, safe from danger, with access to the electricity and education so many other humans craved. She’d understood the equivalent of a high school senior by age twelve, a college graduate by fourteen, and enough to be bestowed a Ph.D. in theoretical physics, calculus, and mathematics by seventeen. In her early twenties, Lainey realized she’d surpassed her father when she solved an equation in three days that he’d been trying to elucidate for years. Lewis had looked upon her with such reverence as he held the solved equation in his hands, tears glistening in his eyes.
“The student has now become the teacher,” he’d said softly. “You’ll save us all, Lainey. I’m so proud of you.”
Elation had filled Lainey as she’d clutched her father in a strong hug, for her greatest wish was to please him. Her father’s approval was the driving force of every decision in her life.
Even now, although Lewis had passed away over five years ago, Lainey ached to gratify him. To achieve success with the time machine and travel back to 2035, to prevent her grandfather from detonating the atomic bombs that had set off the events resulting in the death and destruction of so many lives.
It was all she cared about; all she’d ever craved.
She would seek that outcome until her dying breath exited her lungs.