A Snake on a Stick and Gods without Trousers. #army #medicine #romance #excerpt

See serpents around a staff? Think doctors.

Why?

Simply put, because the Greek God, Apollo couldn’t keep it in his trousers.

His half mortal son, Asclepius was taught healing by the centaur Chiron.  The Greeks thought snakes were sacred, imbued with wisdom, healing, and resurrection.  Legend tells us that a snake licked Asclepius’s ear and told him secret knowledge.

Asclepius became a doctor extraordinaire. He carried a staff wrapped around with a serpent in honor of his mentor. Here's how the ancient Bulgarians pictured him on a mosaic.

That’s one stick and one snake, people.

So why does the US Army Medical Corps badge have two serpents and wings.

Because someone messed up. A poor translation of Homer described the staff of Hermes as being able to charm the eye of men and assumed that meant herbs, healing, and alchemy.   

Gods and staffs seem to go hand in hand – apart from Zeus. He had a lightning bolt, of course.

Just look at this statue of Hermes. What is it with gods and trousers.  Anyway, check out the snakes and wings on his staff in his left hand.

Hermes carried a staff with two snakes. It was a symbol of trade, eloquence, trickery, and negotiations. I bet Hermes was a dab hand at Find the Lady or selling the Brooklyn Bridge.

Thanks to that shocking translation, Hermes's Caduceus and the rod of Asclepius had become muddled. 

In 1851 Army Hospital stewards had the Caduceus, the staff of Hermes, and it’s been a symbol of military medicine ever since. 

I leaned this while researching my book, Desire, Deceit, and the Doctor

Tagline

After Adam Montgomery walked away and left her pregnant, dare Mandy trust him with her heart again?

Blurb

Twelve years ago, Mandy Devlin moved away from her friends and family--under threat. If she returned in the next ten years or told anyone who fathered her baby, her boyfriend’s great-aunt would bankrupt her family. She’s a single mom who dreams of her lost love and a good spanking. When she’s finally free to return to Westhorpe Ridge, the last person she expects to see is Adam—the man she loved and lost so long ago. 

Dr. Adam Montgomery doesn’t know he has a son. Thanks to his great-aunt’s will, he has nine months to find a bride or he loses Montgomery Hall and the fifteen million dollars she left him. Although he seduces Mandy on his first night home, he still believes she betrayed him twelve years ago. No way would he marry a woman like her. 

As Valentine’s Day looms, someone tries to kill Mandy. Is Adam trying to get rid of her? Or can Mandy trust him to protect them?

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The books hot and explicit, but this excerpt isn't 

The engine stopped, and she heard a car door slam. She needed out of the trunk, but no one came for her. What if they abandon the car and leave me? I don’t want to die trussed up in a car trunk. A fresh wave of fear washed through her, along with a spike of adrenaline. Her body trembled, but time slowed and her thoughts cleared. She needed to take things one step at a time.

Step one—get her arms free. She wriggled around, hoping the rough ride had dislodged something she could use to cut the rope. Bingo. Her fingers touched a metal box. Maybe it held tools or a knife. She almost wept when she couldn’t open it. The hinge stuck out from the box, so she twisted some more, running the rope against the hinge. Periodically, she stopped and tensed her wrists in an attempt to pull the nylon strands apart.

She’d no idea how long she worked at her bonds. It seemed like hours until the rope finally gave way. Relieved tears filled her eyes. Rather than rub her wrists, she tugged off the hood and pulled the gag from her mouth. She’d never been so thirsty. She’d give anything for a cold beer right now.

Step two—find the release mechanism the law said every car should have in the trunk. She felt claustrophobic, so scared she could barely move, but she forced herself to concentrate. There, in the corner, a glow-in-the-dark lever beckoned. Wriggling like a maggot in a fisherman’s box, she kicked it for all she was worth, and the trunk lid popped open.

The air smelled wonderful, if slightly musty, but silence and utter darkness surrounded her. She listened a while, decided her captors had left, and slipped out the trunk. No lights shone through the darkness. Using her hands rather than her eyes, she found a lug wrench and flashlight alongside the spare tire beneath the space she’d just escaped. She grabbed both, quietly shut the trunk, and headed into the darkness.