Grief’s Trajectory 1 Ultimate Betrayal Dale took a sip of his beer and gave a toast. Life was good. The love of his life had married him. He had been hired to work at by a local contractor. He had good friends to celebrate with. What more could a guy want? He was out with his two best friends enjoying a day in the park. His beloved Cynthia had not felt well and stayed home. Home was a house they had just rented and moved into. They were still in the middle of unpackin

1 The Office Chase looked out to the lake from the bedroom window. The early morning sun made the rippling surface of the lake throw up sparkles as if the lake was bubbling in golden waters. He looked across the bed at Amelia and was amazed that after so many years she still looked the same as when they had first met at the medical school. She had remained single and enjoyed the company of many wealthy men that she had met in Chicago where she lived. He and Amelia were in

Abandoned 1 A Life Worth Escaping Bento thought back over his life and realized that it had been one spent at the bottom of Brazilian society. His parents tried to give he and his eight brothers and sisters as good of a life as they could. Theirs was a hard life being servers of the wealthier. His mother was a maid to several families that were not necessarily rich, but they were well enough off to have a part time maid. His father was a laborer that was often unemployed

Abandoned 1 A Life Worth Escaping Bento thought back over his life and realized that it had been one spent at the bottom of Brazilian society. His parents tried to give he and his eight brothers and sisters as good of a life as they could. Theirs was a hard life being servers of the wealthier. His mother was a maid to several families that were not necessarily rich, but they were well enough off to have a part time maid. His father was a laborer that was often unemployed

Northern Lights 1 Twelve Barrels Grayson unhooked his oil line from the pipeline, came down the ladder with the capped oil line. He slipped the line into its tube mount on the frame above the oil barrels. He put the ladder alongside of the tube and strapped it in place. He made sure all twelve barrels had their fill and vent openings tightly secured. This was the exact process that he had practiced for the past ten years. He took the oil from the pipeline, transported it t

Sins of the Daughter 1.Zelda There was no moon, the surrounding forest was silent, about a dozen leather covered recliners supported the reposed audience out in the middle of a small clearing in the forest. The black silhouettes of several very tall pines seemed to be poking their tops into the millions of stars overhead. The air was cool, and Zelda’s wind break was exactly what she needed to be comfortable. She was impressed by the indigenous young woman, dressed in a tra

Pool of Blood 1 Revenge The pressure of Mason’s foot kept Okani’s head in the toilet. He was sure he was going to drown. Then Mason grabbed him by the belt and threw him out of the stall and kicked him in the side and shouted that if Okani ever looked at his girl again, he would not only beat him to a pulp but would carve up his face so that he would look just like the joker in the Batman movie. Okani stayed on the floor until Mason left the bathroom. Okani woke up in a

Country Road 1 Slate Ethan was looking forward to a late afternoon indulgence that he had come to enjoy every month. It always raised his adrenalin level and the world around him slowed to a pace where his actions seemed amplified. The begging and pleading made it feel even better. Then at the end he often tortured the victim before finally killing her. This was a way of life that had evolved in a natural organic way. He was not sure how it had come to him and how he had pe

Windy City 1 Inside Man The sun was threatening to come over the horizon. The misty fog hanging over the scene of the shooting gave it the feeling of evil. This feeling of evil, lurking in wait, was not unique to only the Windy City but universal in both large and small cities. The history of this evil was rooted in the history of mankind. It was the evil of projecting hate for those that were different. Power was always a key differentiator. With power came wealth and often

Votive Candles 1 A Step Outside Alex sipped on her drink and looked at Matt. He quizilled his eyebrows as he took in her gaze and took a sip of his drink. She smiled and explained that she was thinking about the last case and how significantly being a victim of a hate crime had affected her. She said that it was the first time she had thought of herself as a victim. She explained that it had caught her unprepared to be attacked for her color. She had come to expect and han

Racist 1 Shooter Paul had planned this attack for several months. His friends on the force had shared stories about the new black female detective. It pissed him off that she had earned the name “Cincinnati’s Black Annie Oakley.” The fact that she had also earned the respect of his longtime friend on the force made him even madder. He learned that she had now shot and killed more “bad guys” then all the police department. She was thought of as a phenom! He wanted to think

Maggot 1 Captives She was shoved roughly into a high-backed chair. She felt her wrists being secured to the chair side rails. When the hood was removed…) from her head, Alex took note of the large one-foot wide square, hand-hewn beams supporting the barn floor above her. It was the signature of a barn at least one hundred years old. The only clue as to her location was that it had taken only a few minutes from the time she and Trey had been run off the road and captured t

1 Cold Case by a Hand From Above Alex and Trey, her detective partner, were back in Cincinnati after pursuing a lunatic person in Mississippi. This person had destroyed Alex’s apartment with a rocket propelled grenade. They had almost been shot by this person with a shotgun during her apprehension and later at the local hospital this same woman managed to escape from her hospital bed, take a policeman’s gun, and shoot at Alex. Alex’s swift reflex and deadly aim ended the co

1 The End of the Day Mandy did not realize that she was about to die. She saw herself as top star potential if she could get seen. she knew she would be a top echelon actress. She had fond memories of her mother who had died when she was twelve. Her mother had always let her know how good she was in school plays and had practiced many scenes from various plays with her. Then her mother had been diagnosed with advanced breast cancer. She died a few months later. To this

1 The Invalid Marathon Runner Dianne ran uphill toward a tall scrawny old man that carried a long walking stick and was descending along the trail. The winding trail was little more than a path that was originally formed over the years by the deer. It was clear to her that he was not going to step off the trail to let her by. She was tempted to run into him and knock him over. She thought better since he was at least twice her size, armed with his walking stick, and coming