August Whalen—force Wielder, proprietor of the Black Castle, and smuggler of rare and fine goods—is torn from his sleek and cushy lifestyle by an unwanted discovery in the back alley of his bar: a body. Now, trapped between a male Wielder cult and the Bureau of Wielder Services, the stakes are driven even higher when Kyle, a headstrong young male Wielder, jumps into the twisted mess. The kid's the perfect fresh meat for the insanity of the cults to wreck and ruin, and being a connoisseur of fine things, August will not let them break him. It's a dangerous game with an end goal that shifts from finding a killer to keeping Kyle and himself alive. Center of Deception is the next novella of the Wielder World series—gay urban fantasy full of danger, desperation, and dedication born of trial and blood.