writing
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Chapter 7 | le dessert
Griottes noires, pitted and poached in a bitter reduction, served with tonka bean créme, over charred brioche. That’s some story,” John said, scraping the bottom of his metal bowl and eyeing his host’s whiskey jug. Kit, attentive to his guest’s needs, nudged the jug over with the toe of one boot, not bothering to uncork… Read more
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The Hungry Gods
Danu tossed beneath the heavy furs. Sleep would not come, no matter how hard she clawed at it. The sounds of her parents’ coupling came to her over the crackle of the central fire, the slap of flesh on flesh, the husky breathing, her father’s grunt as he spent himself and rolled off her mother.… Read more
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A Betrayal at Clusium
Act 1, Chapter 3 of The Ashes of Rome “Why in the gods’ names are you here?” Brennus asked, thick brows drawing down as he frowned. The three Romans, the source of his consternation, stood before us. Their white togas set them apart from either the colorfully clad Clusians or our own forces. “I am… Read more
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An Offer of Employment
Act 1, Chapter 1 of The Ashes of Rome The summer sun shimmered on the sea in the distance. I took in a great lungful of salt-laden air. It was so different from summer in the mountainsor even the gentle warmth of our homeland. I’d missed Agedincum when Brennus first led us south from Gaul,… Read more
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The Roots That Clutch
“What are the roots that clutch, what branches growOut of this stony rubbish? Son of man,You cannot say, or guess, for you know onlyA heap of broken images, where the sun beats,And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief,And the dry stone no sound of water. OnlyThere is shadow under this red… Read more
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The Untimely Death of Lilly Rainwater
When R. M. Greta and Hylia announced their Hallowtide project, I knew I had to contribute. Make sure to check out the project details here and then enjoy the other ghoulish delights whipped up for your delectation. To: Shauna@HallowtideU.edu Cc: Melissa@HallowtideU.edu Subject: Re: Ethnographic Research Project Body: Hi Shauna and Melissa, My name is Ed Sherman, and I lived in Hallowtide back when… Read more
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The Road Home
The black Mercedes roared down the winding two-lane blacktop. Snow fell thick and fast, blowing across the road in undulating sheets and erasing the faded yellow lines even in the car’s high beams. A green sign, snow caking its edges, stood silent sentinel. New Smyrna, 5 miles, it promised. Beyond the sign, an aging guardrail was the… Read more
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The Stone in the Forest
For the record, the setting is 1930s Britain at the time of the Spanish Civil War. Oscar was eleven when he was sent to live with his Uncle Pelligro on the outskirts of a village called Fane. It was a year fraught with upheavals, and moving into the ramshackle house on the forest’s edge seemed… Read more