Stories

Thomas has his own secrets from his past, who he used to be. Zack, Thomas's manager at work, has his own secrets too, with his health declining. At first, they both support each other in their secrets, physically and mentally. However, things get a lot more complicated when they begin to develop feelings for each other and Thomas's past gets more violently involved in his present and Zack's health keeps getting worse. Can they be there for each other, despite all that life throws at them?

I remember my life now as if I'm looking out a window. Streaks of my life flash by me. I try to open the window and catch them, but the window won't open. So, I sit and watch them, and I wonder did they really happen or was it just a dream? Take a journey back in time as 78-year-old Phil Reid relates his life experiences to a younger man.

Book Two of The Last Statue follows on from Heart of Black Ice Bay and traces the lives of five new characters across roughly similar timelines.

• Marica is almost duped by a night caller accelerating her future plan to escape the palace;
• Jasmar's instincts tells him to accompany Marica’s siblings on their escape to Loq;
• Tad, a menial in Aulderly, stumbles upon the missing Lore of Invocation;
• Brokerman has to help deal with an emerald explosion that rips through the grounds of the Aulderly;
• Duke Ervine holds together a fragmented empire while a new ruler is being agreed upon.

The story was inspired by Prompt #211:

You’re a closeted gay man at a company gathering, for example, a conference of some kind. The company brought in a unique kind of entertainment and you’re attracted to one of the entertainers. With their costumes, you can’t tell if they’re male or female. You decide, what the heck, and ask them to meet you later. They’re not what you expected.

Wanted criminal Hong Shen finally meets his end after being stabbed in the back by a comrade. As he makes his final resting place under a dead plum tree, he submits to death.

Instead, he receives two choices: die, or be given a second chance.

To take the second chance means he must complete a trial in the past in order to return to the present. But what he doesn't know is that the trial isn't only difficult for him, but even more difficult for the person he must be to fulfill it.

We catch up with Larry after he cheated on Ken.

Dani is a vampire with a special mission. Crafted in a sterile lab, he has never been human. Kept from society under the watchful eye of Vinicius, his enigmatic mentor, he's naive to the way of the world.

When Vinicius is suddenly taken from him, Dani is left woefully unprepared for the real world. His sheltered existence shattered. Now, thrust into a bustling vampire high school, he must navigate the treacherous halls of adolescence while grappling with the desires of his non-beating heart.

Former policeman Dan and art critic Vaughan’s relationship has an unfortunate start, but second time around they find that life has something different in store for them. Amidst interfering family members and lively friends, their relationship develops. But then Dan’s employer, Francis Heyward starts to take an interest. Heyward is seemingly stupendously rich, a giver of notorious parties and the possessor of an enviable art collection. There’s a question of whether a line should be crossed, and whether Heyward can even be trusted at all.

Grey, a young werewolf, has left his pack to find answers in a small Oregon city. When he steps into The Lunar Haven Bed & Breakfast, his life changes in unexpected ways. It is here where he meets Dave, the bartender, and Clara, the perceptive owner. All three are thrust into a world of supernatural mysteries and curses, and have their destinies intertwine in the most unexpected ways.

This is a story full of wolves and magic, love and family. About finding the people that matter the most.