CHAPTER 1 Out of work actress Beau Brooke (24) learned what it was like being a battered woman. The guy she'd been living with arrived home drunk late just after 10:00 and reacted angrily when he found his dinner in the trash bin. He pulled Beau out of bed and mauled her. Responding to her screams two men in the next apartment rushed in through the open do...
Who Killed Cornelius? A cereal murder mystery to jumpstart your day. Author's Note: I hope that if you figure out the killer early in the story, you'll stick around to see how the team solves the mystery. It's not an episode of Criminal Minds, but I hope you'll find it to be a fun trip down nostalgia lane. It's a Halloween Contest 2015 entry. Vote, if you l...
Those who have never travelled, are an underprivileged bunch. They will never know the thrill of new things, and discovery, and the wonders of the world. I know it's a bit of a bold statement, but that is truly how I feel about it. I have done it whenever time and money have permitted it, and even sometimes when they haven't. Being young and a student also...
The twins continued to lead her to her bedroom, talking quietly to themselves the entire time. They kept their conversation low, careful not to let her in on their plans. One of them would look back and flash her a warm smile every so often, letting her know she hadn't been forgotten. Kara, meanwhile, became lost in her own thoughts. Spending the night with...
Chapter Three -- Truth and Consequences The package arrived overnight and was waiting for Adele when she arrived early at the office. It was a plain brown padded postage bag with no markings on it. It was addressed simply to Adele Edwards and marked urgent. Adele put the package down on her desk and deliberated. She guessed what was inside it and she knew...
EDUCATIONAL REFORM Skjold "Golden Arm" Odinsson was late to his class on Diffeomorphic Transformations of Nonlocal Semi-Logical Quasi-Riemannian Manifolds. Again. He tried to enter the lecture hall as unobtrusively as possible. Not an easy task given the circumstances. He took his usual seat directly behind the girl with the golden cornsilk hair. She turne...
Chapter 11 -- Another Star Lights Up Roy sat in one of the more comfortable chairs on the patio with a circle of friends around. Elise returned to her chair with a glass of water for Roy, and a Southern Comfort Manhattan for herself. He looked longingly at the alcoholic drink as she sipped and talked to Pam. Dave said, "So, what is your physical therapy al...
Thank you Noel for all your help. It wasn't my idea to move to Phoenix; well it really was my choice on where I would live. But it wasn't my idea to quit my job as a commodity broker on Wall Street. That's not exactly a true statement either. It was my idea to quit my job after the doctor told me either I find some other job that was less stressful or die o...
Consciousness was starting to seep back into Blake's mind as he awoke with his head pounding and his limbs full of numbness. "Uhhhhg," he groaned, trying to get his body to move, "Okay, that wasn't one of my better landings." Blake slowly moved his arms and legs to make sure they still worked and were still attached to his body, each movement resulting in...
Mike & Karen Disclaimer: All characters are 18 years of age or older while actively engaging in sexual activity. This story is a prequel/sequel (sprequel?) to my other work, Alex & Alexa. As always, many thanks and gratuitous panty shots from Freja and Jeanie to my long-suffering editor and beta-reader for their assistance in polishing up and improv...