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  • Cia

    May Signature Author Feature: Calliope's Carousel by Parker Owens

    By Cia

    This month I thought I'd feature something light with variety... like my weather today as I set up this blog which has been hail, rain, sun, rain, clouds, sun, rain, sun, sun, sun... seriously?! I hope you will enjoy @Parker Owens options a lot more!  Length: 2,774 Description: A collection of poems for NaPoWriMo 2024. A reader said:  You sure know how to paint a picture. ~weinerdog   If you want to spread the word about Parker Owen's submission, download the graph
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Busted chapter 67

[Mmmm, remorse!]   Chris took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. He'd spent the whole day Friday either on the phone or digging into police databases. He hadn't anything to show for it but a headache and some vague offers for people to call him back. It wasn't enough
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Busted chapter 66

[This is longer than it actually seems, since there's a lot of missing non-dialogue. And Snuffles makes an appearance courtesy of very clever readers. Thanks guys!]   When Chris got back to the station he found the place in a buzz.   "What's going on?" he asked Steve.   Steve gave him a cold glare. Chris flinched, but not much. He'd been beating himself up the whole drive back to the station, and there wasn't much Steve could do to make him feel any worse.   "Yes, fine, I f**ked up," Chr
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Busted chapter 65

Thursday morning Chris was in a foul mood. He'd half-hoped that Joe would be at the house when he got home Wednesday. Maybe Joe would bitch him out the way he deserved, he could apologize, and they could work something out. The possibility of make-up sex occurred, though he wasn't sure he was ready for that, even if Joe hadn't been hurt.   Joe hadn't been there, of course. Toby had cheerfully let him know that he and Aunt Mary had dropped him off at his apartment, then asked when his new Daddy
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Busted chapter 64

[Kind of a transition chapter. And setup for the future. The guys have been nudging for a vacation. It feels like a good spot for a plateau, before we race into the finish]   Thursday morning Joe woke up and felt like hell. His left arm was stiff, his shoulder hurt like hell, and his whole body ached. The hotel bed had been fine as hotel beds went, but it wasn't his, and it wasn't Chris'. Not that he was going to end up in Chris' bed again. The closest he came was Snuffles. It wasn't the same.
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Busted chapter 63

Joe stood on the sidewalk of his apartment complex and waved at Toby as Mary pulled away. It hurt, watching them go. It was the last time he was going to see Toby. He had a lump in his throat he couldn't get rid of, and it was all he could do to keep from crying. It was better this way, though.   He'd been honest when he told Chris he wasn't going to hide. But Chris had been honest with him, too, at the hospital. He wasn't Joe's boyfriend. And that had hurt. It was a really shitty day when the
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Busted chapter 62

Steve was quiet the whole drive back to the station. That worried Chris. When Steve was quiet it was a sign he was thinking, and Chris really didn't want him thinking about Joe. That was something Chris himself was trying not to do, not that he was managing it.   He'd really f**ked up at the hospital. He knew that. Joe had needed him and he'd pulled away. Need might've been a strong word; Joe clearly could take care of himself. Chris was sure he didn't really need him. Still, he'd seen the hur
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Busted chapter 61

[Ah, you knew it was too good to be true]   "Well, I'm all done," Nurse Dave remarked as he gathered up his things. "Someone'll be along in a bit to take care of you."   "Thanks, Dave," Chris said absently. His fingers were stroking Joe's hand. He wasn't paying much attention. Steve was, and he caught the wry smile the nurse had.   "So what happened?" Steve asked. He'd pulled out a notebook and pen. "Why'd you get carved up?"   Something flared inside Chris. He was feeling suddenly very
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Busted chapter 60

[i keep feeling like I ought to have Chris have a harder time with all this. I dunno, it feels a little too easy]   "What's going on? Dammit Steve, where the hell are we going?"   "Hospital," Steve said. He was driving like a madman. The car's lights were on, and he was weaving in and out of traffic.   "Why ware we going to the hospital?"   "Busy driving here," Steve said as he cut off a green SUV.   Chris spent the next fifteen minutes worrying. There wasn't any point in pressing Stev
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Busted chapter 59

[This probably will end up getting rearranged and merged with chapter 57, but I was feeling cliff-hangery]   "Toby! You shouldn't open the door for
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Busted chapter 58

[Mmmm, banter. And some background, though I'm not sure if maybe it's too late in the book to be adding in background at this point]   Chris and Steve sat at the back of the scruffy conference room. There were two dozen people in it with them. Some of them were other detectives from the city, some of them were detectives from the state police, there were a couple of guys from the Attorney General's office, and some PR guy from the state. They always got one of those whenever something that mig
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Busted chapter 57

[i'm not sure whether I should have Joe have more stuff he pulls down. I do need to go back to the part where Steve stops by and make sure more of this is mentioned]   Joe pulled into his parking spot at his complex. He'd almost parked in the visitor's spot
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Busted chapter 56

[Ah... I got nothin']   "Yes," Joe said. It was a reflex, the word coming out before his brain was at all engaged.   "Don't I get a say in that?" Chris said from behind them. His voice was almost a growl. This was how things had gone with Megan. She'd always done what she'd wanted, and made sure he'd done it too. Whether he wanted to or not. He'd hated that, how insignificant it made him feel. How insignificant he'd let it make him feel.   Joe turned and gave Chris a smoldering look. "Alwa
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Busted chapter 55

[From the mouths of babes, and suchlike things]   Joe came downstairs, his hair still wet from the shower. Chris had gone first, as he needed to get ready for work. The smell of fresh-brewed coffee hit his nose as he walked into the kitchen.   Toby was sitting at the table. Chris was at the stove. Joe could hear sizzling.   "Breakfast?" Chris asked. There were two coffee cups on the counter next to him.   "Thanks. What is it?"   "Scrambled eggs and toast. You like them soft, right?"  
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Busted chapter 54

[Less angst here than I expected. Chris is taking this all remarkably well]   Joe woke with the sun in his face and a warm body spooned up behind him. It was a nice way to wake up, and the erection pressed up behind him was nice too. They'd gone to sleep back to back, but at some point Chris had rolled over and wrapped himself around Joe. It was something he hoped he'd have a chance to get used to.   He shifted a little, so he could look at Chris. The motion made Chris stir, and his hand sli
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Busted chapter 53

[And we get all cuddly. Awww... ]   Joe yawned. He was surprisingly comfortable, sitting on the floor, his head on Chris' lap, with Chris stroking his hair. He probably could have stayed there all night. Chris needed to get up in the morning, though.   "Chris?"   "Mmm?" Chris had fallen into a daze. He was feeling secure in a way he hadn't really ever known. Everything just felt so right, in ways he'd only ever felt with Toby. This was different, but just as good. Better, really. He felt
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Busted chapter 52

Chris just watched Joe dumbly as he walked past him and into the living room. It was like he owned the place. That felt natural. It also annoyed him a little.   "What are you doing?" he asked.   "Sitting," Joe called back.   Chris moved to follow and found Joe in the recliner.   "What are you doing there?" Chris asked.   "If I sit on the couch, I'm going to be next to you," Joe answered. "If I'm next to you I'm going to touch you, which means I'm going to be kissing you, and from there
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Busted chapter 51

[The beginning of this harkens back to the missing chapter 45. Chris ran into his ex, and the guy she'd cuckolded him with, and caught enough of the last encounter between Joe and Alex to realize they'd split, just not the exact circumstances. Short section too -- seemed like a good place to stop, and I've not had a lot of time to write]   It was late, and Chris was lying on his couch wondering how things had managed to get where they were. He wasn't a bad guy. He was pretty sure of that. He w
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Busted chapter 50

[so much cliffhanger material, so few words to make it work. This is definitely going to need a good edit and rewrite. It's very rough, and didn't quite go where I had planned on it going (mostly, but not quite) but it's solid enough to work with. Later.]   The remainder of Monday had been miserable. Joe had tried drinking in his apartment, but that hadn't worked too well. He was feeling abandoned, and lonely, and drinking made that feel worse. It helped numb the pain some, but not enough.  
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Busted chapter 49

[beware the bear, man!]   Joe drove home by reflex, his brain numb. He'd had the presence of mind to call in sick for the rest of the week. That was about all he could manage. He hadn't said why to Joan, but she knew. He could tell.   He just sat in his car when he got to his apartment. He should go in, maybe go lie down. Maybe go drink. Drinking had a certain appeal. It was safe enough, in his apartment. The monsters never came out when he did. He'd made sure of that. There were enough char
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Busted chapter 48

[Yes! I know how to menace Joe now! Not that it's in here, but that's fine. Dashing for the home stretch now, I think. Three or four big scenes and we're done. Woohoo!]   "They gave me the key because the apartment was vacant, and has been since February."   Joe was paying almost no attention.   It wasn't just that the apartment was empty. It was that it was huge. He was looking into a good-sized living room, at least the size of his own. There was a large kitchen off it, and there had to
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Busted chapter 47

[Y'know, I think I like this cliffhanger thing...]   "I'm surprised you came here willingly," Steve said as he slid into the booth across from Joe.   "Yeah, well," Joe said, "it seemed like the best place. I ordered already."   "Not a salad, I hope," Steve said.   "Learned my lesson," Joe said as the waitress came over.   "Hey, hon," she said. She put a pitcher of Coke and a pair of water-spotted glasses on the table. "Pizzas are up in a minute."   "Thanks," Joe said. He gave her a b
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Busted chapter 46

[Right, you'll notice that chapter 45 is missing. I'm working on that, and it's turning out to be more involved than I thought. I'll post it when it's done, but in the mean time... 46!]   Monday morning Joe was a wreck. His conversation with Alex had not gone anywhere near where he thought it was going to, and now he was questioning his whole relationship. He thought things had been going fine. Sure, Alex was a little flighty, but he hadn't expected him to just
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Busted chapter 44

[The first of a few short ones. Probably ought to be collapsed together into a single chapter when they're done. There's also going to be an out-of-order thing going in, since I realized this evening that I need something before this, but I don't have it written. Ah, well, discontinuity works]   Joe had begged off coming over to Steve's that weekend. More than anything else he wasn't ready to face Chris again. When he was alone he could keep things under control
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