Sunday Snippet: Veritas

November 3, 2019

Hello, November. The temperature dropped significantly, which kind of sucks for my household since we can't get our new furnace until the middle of next week. That said, with some careful placement, space heaters are doing an excellent job of keeping the house comfortable. As long as we don't dip into single digits, we're golden.

Not a bad week for television. I have a heavy workload right now but still squeezed in some decent viewing.

I started out with Riverdale and, wow, what a great episode. I'm still catching up from last season so this episode featured FP's fiftieth. Cole Sprouse and Skeet Ulrich brought their A games. Also loved the linked montage of Archie's king of the mountain battle with Cheryl and Toni's hot session in the speakeasy. The breakup ended up being a lot more painful than I anticipated but excellent work from the women. Reggie and Veronica's falling out also packed a punch. Reggie is very much growing on me as a character. A few random notes… I absolutely hate the entire farm storyline. I also dislike Hiram with the passion of a thousand suns going supernova. Don't see that changing anytime soon.

I finally got to sit and watch Arrow's season finale. I can honestly say the ugly crying didn't stop after the credits rolled. Everyone acted their collective asses off—Stephen and Emily in particular. Stephen, quite frankly, blew me away. Watching him evolve as Oliver over seven seasons has been a true joy. Seriously… I'm going to miss this show so much. My one main disappointment is not getting any scenes with Oliver and Mia. I'd love to see the two actors interact.

I thoroughly enjoyed Murdoch Mysteries. Nice to see George's family tree expand and with such a terrific character (pun intended). I have so much fun watching this show.

Frankie Drake Mysteries also made me smile. I'm still getting used to the new opening and the somewhat different shift in the show's dynamic. That said, it's growing on me and I like the fabulous foursome and their interactions.

Caught a new story arc on Sapphire and Steel. This show is usually background noise for me when I'm working and I have the horrible feeling I'm really missing a lot. I'm going to make an effort to really focus when I start the third assignment.

Watched the beginning of series nine with Classic Who. The daleks returned to be a huge pain, per usual. I always enjoy episodes that feature them.

Should be catching another episode of Midsomer Murders in the very near future.

That's it for this week. Tonight's post is from Veritas, a novella that got a start with a writing community prompt.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Tillie Cruz has a moment of veritas when she shoots Faxon Jarvis in a friendly fire incident. The realization she wants a life with him may be too late because Faxon has a new relationship and Tillie doesn't want to mess it up. But she may not have to—her bullet may have done the trick.

And a snippety peek…

Tillie leaned into the window of the car. "Thanks for the ride." She pounded her fist lightly on the door then turned and started for the precinct house.

"Hey… can I get your number?"

Tillie closed her eyes and paused. Damn… so close to a clean getaway.

She pivoted and went back to the car, only ducking down this time. "Look, I thought I made it pretty clear and we agreed to scratch each other's itch. Let's leave things there, okay?" She met his gaze, trying like hell to even remember his name.

Max. Right.

Max rolled a shoulder. "Didn't hurt to try. Look me up again if you need another scratching post." He put the car in gear and rolled away from the curb.

Tillie breathed a sigh of relief. Six months out from her break up with Faxon and she still had zero desire to get tangled up with anyone else. The guy du jour thing worked just fine.

No it doesn't.

Tillie yanked the door to the precinct house open and ruthlessly ignored her inner voice. Her pushy inner self could get bent. Tillie would focus on her career and prove Faxon wrong about everything.

Why does it matter if he doesn't anymore?

Tillie tossed her bag into her locker. "Argh. Shut up." Dragging out a fresh shirt, she quickly tugged the one she wore over her head and traded it with the new one.

Jensen Gates poked her hear around the end of the row. "Uh… I didn't say anything." She gave Tillie a raised eyebrow. "Rough night?"

Tillie rolled her eyes. "Depends on how you define rough. The sex was fantastic. The drop off this morning not so much." She sank down on the bench and grabbed her work shoes.

Jensen's lips quirked. "That's the third one this month. Are you sure you're telling them you're only interested in a one-time, mutually satisfying romp?" She braced her shoulders against the opposite row of lockers.

Tillie shook her head. "Always." Shoving her foot inside a closed clog, she reached for the other one. "Maybe I'll see what's available in undercover work right now. I need something different." She smoothed down her pants, pressing against the fabric.

Jensen nodded. "You could also look into some task force openings. I heard there were two spots coming up." She fell into step beside Tillie after they exited the locker room.

Tillie pursed her lips. "Hmm. I like the sound of that. I'll check into it." She parted company with Jensen at the causeway. "Thanks, Jen."

Either area—task force or undercover—would take up time and give her focus. She'd check with her lieutenant to see if he'd put in a good word for her.

You're still trying to fill a Faxon-sized void.

Tillie growled. "Shut. Up."

If she didn't know better, she'd swear her inner voice guffawed.

I like Tillie's inner voice. It's so much fun to write internal conflict, especially when the inner self is snarky and almost always right.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin