My wife and I have been best friends with Jim and Nancy Peterson for about 15 years. Jim and Nancy have a 20-year old daughter, Abby, who we have treated like our own daughter and have watched grow up since childhood. One night the phone rang and my wife answered. It was Abby, home for the weekend from college, and she told my wife that the plumbing in her h...
I shuffle my feet down the painstakingly long hallway to my hotel room. I've just arrived in San Francisco and the lateness of the hour is quickly catching up to me. The floral patterned carpet beneath my shoes swirls in a psychedelic frenzy as my groggy eyes struggle to keep their focus. The hallway is brightly lit, annoyingly so, but the décor is tastefu...
The small non-descript boat skimmed across the water, turning east out of the broad strait toward the docks. Although the sky was clear and blue out ahead, the squall line sitting behind it was dark and opaque, indicating the strength of the downpour that came with it. And although the shoreline was only a mile away, it was clear that the boat was going to l...
Volume 4: Dereliction of Duty Chapter XIII: Worth Bleeding For? There was no Felicia. There was only a muzzy awareness of pain and a cripplingly slow thought process trying to get itself in order, to form a thought and if it wasn't too much work, to orient the person who'd given it form. . . But that was wishful thinking on a good day. Felicia knew who...
The next day was Friday, and Georges was due back from Paris. The two women had gone to the local market to collect groceries; the cook had the weekend off and Georges was a celebrated amateur chef, Vivette told Laura: he would want to cook dinner for their guest himself. The man that came home that evening was not who Laura was expecting. He was tall, almo...
The Rajmata (Queen Mother) sat behind the thin veil of a curtain and watched as her daughter-in-law, the Maharani spread herself out under the looming figure of Samar Singh, the Chief of the Royal Guard. Samar Singh, just twenty years old and a virgin had been drafted by the Rajmata (Queen Mother) to impregnate Maharani Samyukta. The lad was a battle-scarre...
Yet another waltz began to play in the grand ballroom of the military academy that was my personal hell. Cadets and their partners moved onto the dance floor to resume the mocking imitation of a good time. An endless see of military uniforms and pastel dresses, each as bland and unimpressive as the next. I stepped back behind a potted plant and tried to sink...
LETTER XIV While Fred and I were lounging in the delightful shade on the terrace, a neighboring young gentleman, a connection of the family, called to ascertain the particulars of the marriage day. Seeing Fred, he came up to us and stated his errand, and so he and Fred went off to consult with Mamma. I saw dear Louisa looking out from an upper balcony of th...
It was the summer after high school graduation. Mandy's steady boyfriend, Danny, was at Annapolis, just starting his junior year. She was looking forward to summer vacation. It might be her last time with friends before she went to college in Baltimore. She seriously didn't intend to sit at home pinning for Danny. Sure, she thought that they were almost enga...
For 6 years since the eve of her twelfth b-day, Maria has been plagued by dreams of a horrific monster who chases her only to try and ravage her. One afternoon, after school, she finds a package on her bed. Inside are some toys from a childhood friend. Among them is a cute lil grey clown puppet. She awakens in the middle of the night to find the puppet sitti...