Sunday Snippet: Make the Call

Geez. I can't believe January is almost over. It's been a month. Hell, it's been a year and we're only through the first month. Heh.

Had a crazy-busy work week and I'm so thrilled! Several new projects are in my calendar and I'm moving full steam ahead on my new venture. Truly hoping I'll have it ready to launch in the next few weeks.

Solid week of viewing. Didn't quite make it through my full list of shows, but the new work projects are taking priority and I'm totally okay with that.

Started with My Life Is Murder. So much fun to see Renee O'Connor acting with Lucy Lawless again. A great episode.

Enjoyed another Agatha Raisin episode. Nice to have James back even though I have a feeling he won't be a permanent fixture. The episode ended on a cliffhanger so I'm looking forward to picking back up this week.

Watched the first of a two-part Silent Witness. The tension building in this episode ended up being excellent. I'm a bit disappointed in Nikki's story thread. The student seriously screamed creepy stalker from the first moment he popped up on screen. I have a very sneaking suspicion he did something and if true, I really want a major repercussion. I'm also hoping like hell Jack's family isn't going to be smaller by the end of the next episode.

Caught another episode of Death in Paradise and had seen bits and pieces of this one. So glad I got to watch the whole thing. I like getting backstory for the island cast.

Enjoyed an episode of Elementary. Kind of loved Sherlock sort of being there for Watson at the end. The dynamic between the two characters is fun to watch. Getting a glimpse of Jane's backstory is also nice. Makes me wonder about the lawyer guy though. I'm not a fan of fast and loose storytelling.

Started season two of The Batman. I remember being so disappointed they changed the theme song. I do rather like the introduction of Batgirl.

Watched another episode of Classic Rugrats. Loved this the first time it aired and thoroughly enjoyed again. So much fun.

Starting my viewing schedule over again. The Secret Life of Amy Benson, VIP, and Battlestar Galactica will hopefully get a watch this week. I also need to pick back up with Peak Practice in the near future.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Make the Call, a novella that puts a former couple back on track to a reunion.

Here's the miniblurb:

Gia Pimm has everything she wants, but a reminder from her mother—that Gia will always suffer when good things happen—makes her walk away from Nolan Curry. But when she needs antibiotics, she swallows her pride and makes a call to the man who has them—Nolan.

And a sneaky peek…

After finishing his call to the ship, Nolan turned at the sound of someone entering the yurt much sooner than expected. "That was a lot—" He broke off when the colony leader gave him a brief smile.

Lila lifted her chin. "Will I be seeing transfer paperwork for one of my best protégés?" She nodded toward the couch and followed Nolan over to sit.

Nolan winced. "Er, yes. And I should've talked with you before calling up top to get the process started." He shrugged and kept his mouth shut, unwilling to dig a deeper hole.

Lila sighed. "This isn't a complete surprise. Gia hasn't been happy down here, even if she's been an asset to the committee. Her experience on both sides of the fence gives her a unique perspective to work from." Leaning forward, Lila rested her elbows on her knees. "So, I have to ask if you're sure about letting her reenlist." She pinned him with her gaze.

Nolan didn't blink or waver. "I'm sure. Always have been. Gia's the one you should probably ask about being certain." His words lacked heat, but the undercurrent couldn't be missed.

Lila tilted her head, studying him a moment. "Do you know why she cut ties and ran?" She straightened and settled back against the cushions. "Have you ever wondered what she's afraid of?"

Nolan's head jerked back. "Gia?" He snorted. "Pretty sure she has no fear. Have you ever seen her in action?" Gia held her own better than most men.

Lila's lips curved. "I have, yes. But I'm not talking about being a soldier or even a leader down here. I'm referring to her past." She sobered. "I'm not breaking a confidence or anything. My question stems from watching her with you on the way here then observing her with Rand down here. Mr. Simpson is what I call a safe bet. He makes no demands on Gia, and he definitely doesn't challenge her status quo. Instead, he takes passive aggressive action by doing the exact opposite of what he should." Lila met Nolan's gaze. "That's why he's in medical. And it's why she's finally ready to face the truth. They're not meant to be together."

Nolan narrowed his eyes. "Then why?" He stopped and shook his head. "Actually, never mind. I think I get the point you're trying to make." Pausing a moment, he turned her words over before continuing. "To answer your original question, no. I can't say I've given thought to what she might be afraid of." But he would be now.

Lila nodded. "I kind of figured. That's why I wanted a few moments with you. I don't care about the proper protocols for Gia returning to the military. But I do care about her." She gave him a sheepish smile. "And you, too. The protection you provide by staying in orbit is paramount to our success with this project. I want you and Gia to be happy together."

Nolan lifted his chin. "I appreciate the insight you've given me. It's probably way past time for Gia and me to have a heart-to-heart conversation." He tamped down the embarrassment of not ever doing so before.

Lila arched her brows. "I assume you won't be dipping into the population for your endless supply of female companionship anymore?" Her lips twitched … just a little.

Nolan flushed hotly, but he refused to squirm under her scrutiny. What happened between consenting adults shouldn't concern Lila. And he made sure anyone who came to visit had a clear definition before they set foot on his ship.

He shrugged. "After Gia left, I swore off getting entangled with anyone else." He focused back on Lila. "With her coming back, my time will be spent working on our relationship."

Lila grinned and patted his hand. "I'm very happy to hear that."

I love writing couples who find their way back to each other. Nolan and Gia have a journey to take and they're finally heading in the right direction.

 

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

 

Sunday Snippet: Major Issues

Still bitterly cold in Ohio, but by midweek, we'll see high forties and low fifties and lots of rain. We're going to have a lot of sick people in the near future. The back-and-forth weather is horrible for keeping folks healthy.

Busy work week again, which I'm so thankful for. I'm also working on my new venture and should have news soon. I'm hoping by February.

Decent viewing week. I didn't quite make a full run-through of all my shows, but I got very close.

Started with My Life Is Murder again. Very interesting episode with some fun backstory. I love getting more information about the characters.

Watched a holiday episode of Agatha Raisin. This one kicked off season four and it ended up being a lot of fun. I loved the mix of characters.

Finally continued my rewatch of Battlestar Galactica with the feature of Razor. We had to backtrack a little to pick up with this one. I'd forgotten how much I loved Lee in this special feature.

Caught an episode of Silent Witness, which finished up a two-parter. I feel for Jack, and I loved getting some more details about his family. I feel for what Ryan's been through, but I'm glad Jack is finished covering for his brother.

Watched another episode of Death in Paradise. This is another episode I didn't get to see, and I quite enjoyed following the clues. Looking forward to another episode

Enjoyed another episode of Elementary. Lots of twists and turns in this one. Also loved Joan trying to find Sherlock a sponsor and him not quite being able to just say he doesn't want her to leave at the end of her contract.

Caught the final episode of The Batman season one. Excellent finale with three of the big bads trying to unmask Batman. Also loved the introduction of Commissioner Gordon. Looking forward to starting season two.

Watched another episode of Classic Rugrats. Both vignettes were ones I didn't remember so nice to have something new to me.

Started season two of The Secret Life of Amy Benson and rather liked the first episode. I'm a little curious how much book detail is being left out, but I don't think it takes away from what we're seeing.

Also started an episode of VIP but didn't get to finish it. I'm not even sure what's going on yet.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Major Issues, a novella that cements a couple's relationship by pitting them against an old foe.

Here's the miniblurb:

Ellis Wright, a damn good pilot who works hard at her job, runs into an old nemesis—Major Anton Bernhard—and he tries to put her on the defensive again. But Ellis isn't the same raw cadet from five years ago. This time around she'll bring in her backup—Trey Shuttleworth—if she can convince him the rumor about her affair with the major isn't true.

And a sneaky peek…

Trey Shuttleworth stood outside his dad's quarters ready to knock on the bulkhead. But his hand paused midway to the metal framing. The elder Shuttleworth had the handset to his ear and his head bent over a fitness report.

Trey lowered his arm and waited … interrupting Will Shuttleworth, commanding officer of the ship, never went well. Not even if Trey happened to be related to him.

"Yes, admiral. I've got the jacket right in front of me. Ellis Wright, ensign." He flipped through several pages. "Looks like she's more than qualified. Her scores are damn close to my son's."

Trey's eyes widened. "Shit. I'd like to meet this Ensign Wright." Especially if her stats almost matched his.

Because he worked his ass off to top the roster when he went through flight school. Anything less would've been untenable. When your dad sets the bar high, you learn to hit altitude at an early age.

That had been his reasoning. He wondered what Ellis Wright had to prove…

"She did what with whom?"

Trey risked a quick look inside his dad's quarters. His dad quickly flipped to the last page of the file and scanned the contents. Trey bit back a groan when Will frowned.

Not a good sign.

Will leaned back in his seat. "Is this information verified? With qualifications like hers, she wouldn't need to—" He broke off and listened for a moment. "Right. Okay. I appreciate the heads-up, admiral. I'll keep this in mind." Another pause then a quick nod. "Yes. Thank you." He ended the call and heaved a sigh.

Trey tried not to form any judgments about his dad's new pilot, not when he only had one side of the conversation. But the part he'd overheard sounded pretty damning. Whatever Ensign Wright did and who she did it with—and frankly, it wouldn't be much of stretch to guess—an admiral felt the need to warn her new commanding officer.

His dad pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

Trey took the opportunity to knock on the bulkhead. "Hey, Dad. Did I catch you at a bad time?" He took one step into the quarters.

Will glanced up with his eyebrows arched. "You're here early. You made good time." He closed the file and absently tapped it with his forefinger.

Trey tucked his cover under his arm and nodded. "I did, yeah. I can come back later if this is a bad time." He'd like to catch up with his old man, but only if he wouldn't be distracted.

Will lifted his chin. "Why don't I meet you in the mess? I've got a couple of things to check on then I'll be free to visit." He rubbed his palm over the file.

Trey put his cap back on. "Sure, Dad. You want the usual spicy noodles with stir-fried veg?"

Will's lips curved. "Sounds good. Thanks." He glanced down to the fitrep again.

Trey turned and headed for the hatch.

His dad picked up the handset but called out. "Hey…"

Trey angled his head around. "Yeah?"

Will gave him a tired smile. "It's good to see you, son. I won't be long."

Trey flashed a quick grin and exited quarters. His mouth twisted into a frown as soon as he cleared the threshold. He had a new mission as soon as he got back to his ship … track down whatever information he could get on Ensign Ellis Wright.

I like how this story is coming together. Trey is going to have a lot of fun trying to figure Ellis out.

 

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Luck Runs Out

Brrrr. It's cold outside. Thankfully, we only lost power once during the first gusty windstorm and didn't lose it all while the wind howled over the last three days. And I can live with a couple of inches of snow. Not a huge fan of temperatures in the teens but layers help when I have to take the dogs out.

Had a super-busy work week and I'm thrilled to have my calendar filling up with projects. I like to stay steady because it keeps me motivated and focused. When I have too much free time I get lost in a haze.

Not a bad week for viewing. I made a full circuit through my regular shows minus the rewatch of Battlestar Galactica. The power blip caused a delay there.

Started the week with My Life Is Murder and enjoyed the episode. The mystery ended up being pretty decent.

Caught the second half of Agatha Raisin and thoroughly enjoyed. The cast really hits on all cylinders and even though I miss James, I love the vibe of these characters.

Started a new two-part Silent Witness. I'm kind of happy to see Jack's familial issues. His brother is a piece of work and I'm interested to see where things go with him. Rather like the new colleague. Looking forward to seeing how she fits in.

Watched another episode of Death in Paradise. I didn't really remember this one so I enjoyed it. Fun to see the commissioner on the suspect board.

Caught another episode of Elementary and quite liked the way Sherlock ended up being on the outs with both Joan and the captain. Fun episode.

Enjoyed another episode of The Batman. I'm nearing the end of the first season and all the players are established for the most part. And the episodes are holding up fairly well.

Watched another episode of Classic Rugrats. I didn't remember either of the vignettes so really enjoyed watching both.

Finished out the first season of The Secret Life of Amy Benson. I'm intrigued and interested in how things are going to play out in the next season, which I'll probably start this week.

Also managed to finish the episode of VIP that I started last week. Looking forward to a new one this week if time permits.

That's it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Luck Runs Out, a novella that fits into the Queen City, Mars universe established in the Furlough 99 series.

Here's the miniblurb:

Domino Montgomery and Webb Wellesley are totally different personally and professionally, but they work seamlessly together. When they land an off-world transport assignment, they have to babysit a condemned prisoner and deal with an impish captain who's hiding a wee bit of a secret of his own.

And a sneaky peek…

Alarm bells went off in Webb's brain. "What's the situation?"

Bilar lowered his voice. "Your guy is in an induced coma, and he needs to stay that way."

Domino frowned. "Not exactly SOP, but also not out of the ordinary realm. What's going on, Captain."

Webb winced a little. She always took liberties. And often demanded things out of their reach.

Captain Christian held her gaze. "The prisoner is the zoner who released Sheen at the Underground. He's altered because of the reaction." Bilar leaned forward. "He went from basic fun guy to full on sociopath because of the drug." He held up a hand when Domino opened her mouth to ask a question. "The concern here is his access to a trust account, which means he could try to buy his way out of facing charges. His family already got him relocated to Venus for his trial."

Webb caught the brief flash of something—a mix between rage and pain—in Domino's gaze. Wonder what that's all about? Then a memory hit him. She'd lost a friend at the rave.

Domino kept her voice steady. "I'm supposed to keep this guy sedate and comfortable when he caused more than a hundred people to die?" Her fingers gripped the arms of her chair, her knuckles going white.

Bilar grunted. "You're supposed to do your job. I know this is a tough one, but you've never let me down and I'm counting on both of you to not start now." His tone softened. "The change in venue isn't going to save him from prison. Doesn't the idea of him never seeing the light of day mean something?" His eyebrows arched.

Domino slumped. "Yeah, I suppose it does." She exhaled on a long, slow breath.

Webb braced his forearms on his knees. "The only thing better would be a one-way journey to the underworld." The image of dragging body after body out the rave reared up in his mind.

Captain Christian agreed. "True, but we won't he sending him there." He picked up the panels with their briefing notes. "Wheels up in ten. We're flying you to the Lucky Shamrock and you'll pick up duty from the prison medics."

Domino slipped her device into her rucksack. "Sir." She got up and quickly left the room.

Bilar gave Webb a long look. "Goes without saying she'll get the job done but keep an eye on things."

Webb nodded. "Copy that." He slung his duffel over his shoulder and made a quick stop on his way to the hangar.

He definitely needed to get that deck of cards.

This story is coming together and I'm excited to see where it ends up. Very pleased with the progress so far.

 

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Lover's Lament

Well, January in Ohio has been the usual weird warm one day, cool the next, and hey, let's throw some snow into the mix. It's not a lot of snow, but it's enough to be annoying until we get the first really good blanket of the white stuff.

Solid work week. I had a bunch of projects going and added a few to my calendar. I'm kind of excited to be delving into some new territory. I also got a lot done on my new venture and updating my website, which is very much needed. I've neglected it for far too long.

Had a decent week of television. Didn't quite make it through every show, but I got most of my current slate watched.

Stared the week with My Life Is Murder and kind of liked seeing a bit of Alexa's past even if her friend ended up being the culprit.

Caught the first part of a two-part Agatha Raisin. Enjoyed it for the most part. I'm not a fan of the whole lack of progress with Bill and Toni, but I loved having Roy back.

Finished up the second part of Silent Witness and I'm disappointed they lost Adam after a handful of episodes. What a twist though.

Watched another episode of Death in Paradise, starting the fifth season. I'm very much enjoying being able to watch all the episodes in chronological order.

Enjoyed an episode of Elementary. I kind of like the lack of boundaries and the need to establish them. This episode kind of brought that idea home in a big way.

Caught another episode of The Batman. "Grundy's Night" ended up being so much fun and it's one I didn't quite remember from my original run through.

Watched another Classic Rugrats. I actually didn't remember either of these, so it was fun to watch.

Finally, started a new episode of The Secret Life of Amy Benson. I'm enjoying this series, but I also feel like a lot is being left off the screen. Probably the biggest fallback when adapting books for viewing. That said, I love that Passionflix is doing this. So many books to choose from and they've chosen some of the very best.

That's it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Lover's Lament, a novella that explores what happens when things are stretched too thin.

Here's the miniblurb:

Taryn Untied and Holmes Selari, two soldiers under a constant stream of pressure, start making mistakes due to lack of any kind of down time. Their superior officer finally orders them to take R&R on the Lover's Lament and promises to conveniently forget their location if anything else goes wrong. Thirty-six hours of alone time should clear up their cranky attitudes.

And a sneaky peek…

Holmes Selari attempted to tighten a bolt on the landing strut of his bird. "Come on, dammit." The wrench slipped and his knuckles grazed the undercarriage of the craft. "Son of a bitch." The tool went sailing through the air and skidded across the floor, which did nothing to ease Holmes's frustration. "Why isn't there a number five hex wrench over here?" Is it too much to ask to have the most commonly used tool available for repairs?

Holmes riffled around the pile of equipment, searching for the elusive size he needed to finish the job on his landing gear. Unable to locate a number five, he whirled around and came face-to-face with the chief. The wrench Holmes tossed got placed on the workstation.

Newman folded his arms over his chest before he spoke. "We're short on the size you need, so you'll have to check the station next door." He stomped over and grabbed the correct wrench then returned. "I'm going to suggest you save the temper tantrums for the rec room, sir. Tools do not get thrown on my deck." Robbie stepped in and tightened the bolt on Holmes's plane.

Which only pissed him off more. "Maybe if you had the tools we need while we're covering your ass, shit wouldn't get thrown." Okay, I'm being a dick, but damn, it's been a day.

Taryn strolled over with her head tilted to one side. "Yeah, chief. This crap with your deck crew not catching things and having empty workstations is getting old."

Robbie leaned in closed, his voice dropping to a snarl. "They're doing their best. Doesn't help when you guys come down here and do nothing but bitch the entire time … from the moment you step foot until you leave."

Holmes snapped, his voice rising. "Don't talk to me about doing your best when you're the one asking my pilots to help out." They couldn't be stretched any thinner and the deck chief knew it.

Robbie pushed back. "None of your other pilots put my crew at risk by throwing shit."

Taryn added her two cents. "Is that right? How about your crew putting us at risk because they're not doing thorough evaluations?" She stared Newman down.

Say, what?

Holmes growled. "Why am I hearing about this now? When did this happen?" If he missed a memo or an after-action report, his ass would be in a sling.

Taryn held up a hand. "It happened earlier today, and I'm on the hangar deck so I could find you and fill you in."

Robbie rolled his eyes. "Nice, lieutenant, don't even give me a chance to address the concern with the crew. Terrific." He flung an arm out.

Holmes lost his cool. "Goddammit, chief. This is—"

"Enough!" A voice boomed from the direction of the corridor.

The XO poked his head out from the briefing room, a harsh glare on his face.

Holmes sighed. Well, fuck. Now shit'll get interesting.

Having a bit of fun with this one. Holmes and Taryn definitely need a break, but at this point, they're hoping it won't be in the brig.

 

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye