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Stop by tomorrow
Sorry about not having the next installment of the blog story done. It will be done for tomorrow I promise. I’m just so close to finishing From Slavery to Freedom, I wanted to focus on it exclusively yesterday. Well, I’ve only got one more chapter to go on it, so I’m happy with that. đ I plan on finishing it up today and tomorrow, then having someone look it over for me, and make sure I haven’t totally gone off the path on this one…lol
After From Slavery to Freedom is done, I have to finish up The Deepest Cut, start Tramps, and work on a story that’s about halfway done to finish it up in time for a 4th of July release…or actually it would be a June 29th release since that’s the Friday before the 4th…lol.
Also, I have some big news, but I can’t say anything until next Wednesday (the end of the month) Wow…I keep forgetting this year is a leap year. How weird is that.
Anyway, I hope you all have a great day…and remember stop by tomorrow because there will be another blog story installment then.
sorry
The next installment will be up tomorrow. đ Yesterday was a weird day. I got some writing done, but didn’t do a lot and was busy with real life stuff. I’m hoping today will go much smoother. We’ll see. lol
I didn’t sleep well either. Had all these story ideas rolling in my head…or it could have been just one story idea and I was seeing different scenes. I wish I had gotten up and just wrote it all down, but I didn’t, so now I have to hope I remember some of it. I certainly remember the two songs I was hearing when the scenes were happening. I’ll listen to them later on today, and see what returns to me. đ
I hope you all have a great day, and tomorrow will be another installment.
They Walk Among Us
They Walk Among Us copyright c. 2012 T.A. Chase
Part Thirty-Four:
âIâm not sure what my answer should be.â Zach held me, but I could hear the hesitation in his voice.
::Donât say anything right now. When the time comes for the choice to be made, then you can say something. We donât even know if my mission will be successful.::
âDo you even know what the jewel looks like? Or where it might be kept in the facility?â
I shook my head. ::No. Iâm not worried about not knowing what it looks like. Iâll know it when Iâm near it or see it for that matter. Iâm hardwired to recognize it, since Iâm the only one who can use it.::
Zach turned me around, and he studied me. âWhy do I get the feeling youâre more than just some random Opalite who got chosen for this particular mission?â
I didnât want to tell him, or reveal the connection we have beyond being lovers and friends. Heâd freak out, and I didnât want him to feel guilty for what wasnât his fault in the first place. Yet I knew I couldnât keep it hidden for much longer. Might as well get it out, so Zach could deal with it before we left for the government facility.
I took his hands and led him over to the bed where I sat and tugged him down next to me. I played with his fingers for a minute while I tried to decide the best way to spill it.
âJust tell me, Raven. Somethingâs telling me I might not like what you have to say,â Zach ordered.
I took a deep breath and straightened my shoulders. ::Your father is a hero to the humans because he sacrificed himself to kill the leaders of the Opalites.::
âYes.â Zach eyed me suspiciously.
::He assassinated them. He became their friend, and then he snuck into their room one night and killed them.::
âI know that. Everyone claimed he was a hero, but I never really thought that. Seemed like cheating to me.â Zach shrugged. âI donât see what that has to do with you.â
::The Opalite leaders he killed were my parents. They knew what was going to happen, so they sent my sister and me away, hoping that would keep us safe.::
Zach jumped to his feet and paced, hands clenched at his side. I watched and waited. Maybe it wouldnât be as bad as I thought. Maybe heâd understand that I didnât blame him for anything his father did.
âIâm sorry he did that to your parents, but how were the humans to know the Opalites came with good intentions?â Zach glanced at me over his shoulder. âHe thought he was defending himself and his family.â
I nodded. ::I know, and believe me, it took me several years to finally accept the truth. I donât know what my parentsâ entire mission to Earth was. I only know what they told me before they sent me away. Iâve come to realize thereâs not such thing as pure intentions.â
He frowned at me. âWhat are you talking about?â
::When I was younger, I wanted to get revenge on the humans who killed my parents and all of my people. It didnât seem right they got away with it, while the children had to hide out in a truly alien world. We had to learn how to be like you and fit in.::
I stood, and moved away from him, staring at the opposite wall. I wrapped my arms around my waist, trying to keep warm.
::It seemed so wrong when all my parents had wanted to do was simply open communications with humans, and yet you killed them without listening. But then as I got older, I began to wonder if there was to our journey than simply coming here to strike up an alliance or whatever.::
âDid you ever find out?â Zach strolled closer to me.
::No. There arenât any Opalites old enough to remember what our true purpose for being here was. Yet Iâm open-minded enough to entertain the idea the older Opalites might have had alternative reasons for coming here. Maybe they were like the Pilgrims fleeing religious persecution or maybe someone had invaded their home, and they were running from them.::
âIf thatâs true, why are you in such a hurry to find this jewel and go back to whatever planet you came from? Wouldnât you rather stay here?â Zach touched my arm.
I snorted silently. ::Stay here and risk getting captured by the government. To risk being taken to some secret lab where theyâll spend the rest of my long life doing experiments on me.::
Zach chuckled weakly. âYouâre right. It might not be the best idea, but how do you know the agents would be able to find you? You all have done a marvelous job hiding out so far.â
::Not for much longer. We older Opalites are reaching maturity, and when that happens, weâll no longer be able to hide our wings and thatâs just the beginning. Our powers will begin manifesting as well. I donât want to be here when that happens, because theyâd never let me go, and the tortures they could come up with would drive me crazy.::
âWhat powers? And are you the oldest of the refugees? If not, you all must be close to the same age, because I havenât heard any rumors about Opalites showing up, or even stranger, winged people appearing places.â Zach ran his hand over my back, lingering on the bumps where my wings hid under my skin.
I sighed, the warmth of his touch easing the constant ache of my body from fighting the need to spread my wings. I couldnât do it anywhere other humans might see me.
::I am the oldest, and so far Iâve been able to control my need to stretch my wings. The only time Iâve used my powers were when I took care of Gideon.:: I shuddered. ::I donât really want to see that side of me again.::
Monday is here…
So a new week is here, and I’m trying decide if I want to sit at my desk and write, or curl up in my recliner in the living room with my laptop. Guess it really doesn’t matter..as long as I write. đ
It looks like my two YA stories will be out in May and June. Yay! Pursing Hope, my first f/f YA, will be coming out in May, and The Deepest Cut will be out in June. When I get exact dates, I’ll let everyone know, and also the dates are always subject to change…lol. Â I’m at 41k for DC, and it’ll be over 60k when I finish, which is nice. I think it needs to be that long to tell Charlie’s story. He’s got some issues, but he makes it through and gets a boyfriend in the end.
The adult story I’m working on, From Slavery to Freedom, is the sequel to Out of Light into Darkness, and is about Malachai, Andor’s demon bodyguard. I hope you all like it. It’s a little hard in the beginning because Doll, Malachai’s love interest, is in a very bad place. But Malachai, Andor and Sven help save him. I’ll let you know more about it when I get closer to being done with it.
Well, I better get to writing. I hope you have a great day.
Holy February…
I can’t believe January is already gone. Seems like I was just figuring out my New Year’s resolutions. (which I didn’t actually make because I never keep them..lol)
But looking back over the last month, it was a good one. I finished two stories. To be honest, one doesn’t really count because I wrote most of it the last week of December, and subbed it on the second of January. Pursuing Hope was my first try at a f/f story, and it’s a Young Adult one as well. I sent it off to my editor at Featherweight Publishing, and yesterday, they let me know they wanted it. Yay! It’s not very angsty or anything like that. It’s about a girl looking for a date to prom. She just happens to be a lesbian.
I sent my edits in for Famine, so it’ll be out on the 20th of this month. Also, Bring Him Gold will be out on the 12th. I have two print books coming out this month as well. War and The Longest Stride will be available at some point this month. Woot!
Gypsies went off to my editor at Total e-Bound, and I started working on a short story for them as well. I’ll still be working on it because it’s like halfway done, but I need to start From Slavery to Freedom, the sequel to Out of Light into Darkness today. So for a little while, I’ll be working on three books, until I get the really short story done. đ
Well, at the end of this month, I’ll also have some big news. Nothing bad, so don’t worry about that. Just a few changes happening. All of it will be good (at least I hope you’ll think so.)
Have a great day, everyone.
New story blurbs…
Taruis is a young Trapen carpenter who finds himself captured by soldiers of the Shulye empire. Being in the forest for most of his life, he has no idea of wars or rulers. What he does know is being under the tyranny of one empire is the same as living under the rule of the other. Heâs uninterested in the plotting of powerful men. He simply wishes to live his life as a carpenter and forester.
Victor is a high-ranking general in the Shulye army. After being seriously injured in battle, Victor finds himself reassigned to an unimportant town while he heals. His older brother, a very influential senator, also leaves him in charge of his Sodo, his young male consort. While Victor enjoys and likes Jules, he finds he needs a lover who can stand beside him, instead of kneel at his feet.
Victor and Taruis meet in the village of Osteram, and fate begins to entwine their lives until they canât untangle themselves. Rebuilding the villageâs temple will either meld their hearts together, or it will drive them beyond the limits of their mind into a darkness willing to consume any who try to stop it.
Blurb #2- They Walk Among Us (a futuristic/alien story )
Zach Harliegh was a baby when the aliens arrived. He doesnât remember much about those months, except his parents fighting and his dad leaving. His father died, destroying the aliens, and his mother when Zach graduated from medical school. Heâs alone in the world, working hard to get his career going leaves no time for any kind of relationship.
Pick the blurb you like the most and I’ll see about posting the first installment on Thursday. đ
Have a great day.
Quick Post
Monday morning busy
Sorry about no picture. I forgot about some early meetings today. If I get time later today I’ll post my newest cover for everyone to check out.I’m using my phone to post this, so if it looks weird, that’s why. đ
Have a good day, everyone.
Give me a few more minutes….
There’ll be a slight delay while I finish up the next installment of Why I Love Geeks. It will be posted today, just later than usual. đWhy I Love Geeks….
âOh my God,â Herb groaned as he bit into the spongy yellow cake. He licked the cream from his lips.
The stranger had been right. Twinkies were proof there was a God and He loved humans. Why had no one ever told him about these wonderful little yellow cakes filled with delicious cream? Or those black and white cookies yummy on their own, but when dunked in milk, they became other-worldly.
He moaned again as he unwrapped and ate another Twinkie.
âHerb, whatâs going on in here?â
Looking up, he grinned as Jessie, one of the new hires to the pharmaceutical company Herb worked for, walked in. She eyed the half devoured snack in his hand.
âAre you eating a Twinkie?â
He nodded joyously. âThese are marvelous. Have you had one before?â
She sat down across the table from him. âOf course, I did. My brothers, sisters, and I used to beg our parents to get these as our treats at night. Though my oldest brother always wanted Oreos instead.â
Jessie shook her head, obviously confused as to what would possess anyone to choose a cookie over a Twinkie.
âOreos are amazing. I stopped by the grocery store on my way home last night and bought a bunch of these snacks along with milk and cookies. I never knew how wonderful these could be. All I ever thought about, really, was all the things that are in it that are bad for you.â He bit his bottom lip and paused. âIâm doing it again.â
âDoing what?â Jessie braced her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her hand to study him.
âIâm babbling. I have a bad habit of talking a lot without letting anyone else talk. But God, I canât believe my cook at home never gave me one of these. You know, the guy I met yesterday afternoon, was the one who told me about them. I thought, hell, he was so incredibly gorgeous, these treats canât be all that bad. Of course, he ate two hot dogs from a vendor on the corner.â He wrinkled his nose.
âWow, he must like to live dangerously. I wouldnât eat one of those if my life depended on it. Iâve heard all the horror stories about whatâs in those things. Two of my siblings are doctors and theyâve given the rest of us a list of all the foods that are really bad for us.â
Herb held out one of his Twinkies to her. She took it with a smile. He liked her, even though he hadnât had much time to talk to her. They would probably end up working together. His research section needed more man-power and Jessie came highly recommended from her college professors. She still had to finish her doctorate, but Herb knew it wouldnât be long until people would be calling her Dr. Jessie Davidson.
âHmmm…â Jessie hummed as she bit into the cake, as enthralled with the Twinkie as he was.
âI know. Arenât they marvelous?â He tossed his empty wrapper onto a pile of transparent plastic.
Poking the pile, she glanced at him. âHow many of these things have you had, Herb?â
âOh, I donât know. I bought two boxes last night. I must have eaten one whole box last night, then I brought the other box for lunch today. Plus I have Oreos as well. Would you like some of those?â He pushed over the lunch box heâd brought with him. âJessie, have you ever been kissed?â
âUmmm….â
âMaybe I shouldnât be asking you these things. I mean, we just met the other day, but youâre the only person close to my age, though you are older than me. If Iâm making you uncomfortable, please tell me. I donât have any idea of how to talk to people. I was an only child and went to a private school where the other kids laughed at me. Iâm way smarter than most people, which makes them jealous, so they tended to make fun of me.â
âHerb.â Jessie reached out and placed her hand on Herbâs. âTake a deep breath. Iâm thinking so much sugar might not be a good thing for you.â
âThe sugar doesnât have anything to do with my talking. I always talk this way. Gosh, youâre pretty. You remind me of the guy I met yesterday. He kissed me. Did I tell you that all ready?â
And what a kiss it was. Perfect in every way, though Herb had no benchmark to compare it with, but it was wonderful. He got hot just thinking about it and the guy who kissed him.
âYou kissed some guy you just met that day?â Jessie frowned. âDo you usually work that fast?â
âFast? What are you talking about? I didnât kiss him. He kissed me. Wait, was I not supposed to let him do that? It wasnât like he was a serial killer or anything. I mean he had a badge, so I assume he was a cop or something like that. I guess he could have been a security guard. Do security guards have badges?â
His thoughts dashed through his head. There hadnât been anything threatening about the guy. God, if he had been a jerk, he would have walked away from Herb as he rambled on, but though he looked a little shell-shocked, much like Jessie did at the moment, he didnât seem irritated by Herbâs diarrhea of the mouth.
âI told him he was totally hot, and then I panicked because he could have been straight and I didnât want to get my ass kicked. Thatâs happened a few times to me.â He slumped in his seat, fingering one of the plastic wrappers.
âI have been kissed, but you have to promise not to tell my brothers. Iâm the baby of the family and they donât like to think that Iâve grown up. Iâm not a virgin either.â She winked at him and stood, wandering over to the vending machine to buy a soda.
As much as he wanted to blurt out that he was a virgin, he managed to gain control of his wayward tongue before he admitted his shame. He fidgeted while Jessie returned to the table.
âSo what did this man among men look like?â She crossed her legs and settled back, folding her arms over her chest.
Herb closed his eyes and brought up an image of the man in his mind. âTall. I mean really tall, like 6â5â or so, and big, but not fat big. He seems really muscular. He wore a suit, and I didnât get a really good look at his body, though he seemed fit. He had dark hair and dark eyes like you. Heâs older than both of us.â He grimaced. âNot like middle aged old or anything like that. Heâs mature and didnât treat me like a complete idiot.â
A low chuckle burst from him and Jessie raised an eyebrow at him. He waved his hand.
âI think I saved his phone from meeting an untimely death. Iâd been following him for a block or two, watching as he grumbled and fiddled with the thing. When he stopped at the curb and clutched it in his hand, I just had this feeling he was going to throw it into the street. I couldnât let that happen. It was a really nice piece of technology.â
Jessie narrowed her eyes. âWhere did you meet this paragon?â
âUh.â He screwed up his face, trying to remember where heâd ended up on his walk from the library to the subway station. Herb tended to get lost easily because he didnât pay close enough attention to where he was going.
âI think I was about three blocks away from one of the police stations. The only reason I remember that was because I saw several uniformed men wandering into one of the buildings. God, some men shouldnât be allowed to wear uniforms. Itâs enough to make a man drown in drool.â
A curious expression passed over her face. âDid you get a number or a name even?â
âNo. I completely forgot getting anything like that, and I donât think, even though he kissed me, heâd be interested in me. I do know his mother was upset about him not having seen his baby sister in a month and the fact that he hasnât been to family dinner for a while. He said he had a big family and he was the oldest.â
Heaving a sigh, Herb crumpled the wrappers up and pushed his chair back to stand. He tossed them away in the trash and packed up the rest of his lunch. Jessie chugged her soda and threw the can in the recycle bin. They left the lunchroom and wandered back toward the lab where theyâd been working.
Herb needed to get his head back on his experiments, but thoughts of his first kiss wouldnât leave him alone. Grabbing his lab coat off the hanger from the back of the door, he slipped it on and handed Jessie hers.
âYou know what? I think you should come with me to one of my family dinners. I have a pretty big family as well. My mom would love you and Iâd love for you to meet my oldest brother.â
âWhy? Is he gay? Are you one of those people who try to set your gay brother up with every gay man you meet? Because I donât think thatâs right. I think the two people should have something in common before they go on a date. You didnât say a date, did you? Iâm making assumptions. You just said to come for dinner.â Herb took off his glasses and polished them carefully before setting them back on his nose.
Jessie started laughing, arms wrapped around her stomach and bent over, barely managing to stay on her feet. He ignored her and went back to his tests. Finally, when she wiped the tears from her cheeks and caught her breath, she walked over to him and set her hand on his shoulder.
âIâm not laughing at you. I think youâd be perfect for my brother. He tends to be a very serious kind of guy and you would shake up his perfect little world.â Jessie hugged him. âJust come to dinner with me one Sunday. I promise you wonât regret it. Even if things donât work out between you and Chuck, Iâd like you to meet my family. You and I are going to be good friends, Herb.â
âDo we have anything in common? Chuck must be smart. He is your brother after all. I might be inexperienced, but I have to think there needs to be more than just both of us being intelligent.â
âOut of the Twinkies and the Oreos, which ones do you like better?â
What kind of question was that? He thought about his answer carefully.
âAfter having tasted plenty of both of them, I have to say my favorite is the Oreos.â
She clapped her hands in triumph. âThere you go. Chuckâs favorite nighttime snack is Oreos and a glass of milk right before bed.â
Hmmm…he wasnât convinced that sharing a favorite snack food was the best basis for a relationship, but he was tempted to go and experience a true family dinner. Heâd never had one when he was still living at home. Heâd more often than not eat his meals alone or in the kitchen with the cook.
It could be an interesting field study to see how normal families interacted with each other.
âI guess I could come sometime. Iâd have to check my schedule to make sure I didnât have anything else going on.â Herb lied through his teeth.
He didnât have a schedule because he rarely did anything besides work and hang out at his apartment playing video games. He was pretty sure he could fit dinner in at some point.
âGreat. Iâll ask my mom what day would be best for her and get back with you.â
She sounded excited and Herb couldnât help getting a little hyped up about it as well. Maybe heâd get a new friend out of this, if not a date.