Sunday Snippet: Ker and Moros

Getting a later than usual start on my blog post today. We lost power for about four hours. Finally got some rain after about ten days and the power blips. It's not even storming. Go figure.

Still moving along on my work projects. I'm so excited about the two manuscripts I'm editing. Both are part of a series with two different authors. Can't wait for the rest of the world to see them!

Had a pretty good week of viewing television. I'm still in the midst of the great clean out so not a huge amount, but a few extra hours.

Started the premiere episode of Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. So far, I'm loving it. I paused mid-episode mainly because I want to be able to watch uninterrupted.

Caught another episode of Brokenwood Mysteries. Quite a good mystery for this one. Thoroughly enjoyed the episode.

Watched another episode of Peak Practice and enjoyed it. This one had some action, which doesn't happen often.

Enjoyed the penultimate episode of Classic Who's season twenty-six and I'm looking forward to the finale. Then I have to decide if I'm jumping into New Who or taking a break.

Caught the first half of a Silent Witness two-parter. Intriguing episode with some odd little twists. Looking forward to seeing how it ends.

Continued my rewatch of Battlestar Galactica with "The Farm". I have mixed feelings about this episode. Loved the creeptastic look into what the cylons are up to on Caprica. Hated the deeper dive into my most disliked character in the entire series. So, enjoyed watching with my co-watcher but tempered that with knowing what will come later with the most disliked character. Should be doing a double-header next week!

Watched another episode of Death in Paradise. I'm very happy to be starting this series from the beginning and working my way through in the established order. This is such a fun watch.

Enjoyed another episode of Only Murders in the Building. Such a great episode! Things are moving into place, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Caught the first episode of Madam Blanc Mysteries' second season. It's a holiday themed episode and actually quite terrific. I'm kind of wondering if Dom and Caron will be vying for Jean's affections, which I hope won't be the case.

And that's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Ker and Moros, a novella that got a start with a writing community prompt about putting a modern spin on characters from a pantheon.

Here's the mini-blurb:

When they meet on the hiking trail, Leticia Sutton and Dustin Pierce carry guilt for past transgressions that weighs them down. The new acquaintances are at their lowest point and agree to meet each week for friendly therapy, which developments into an attraction between the two. By the end of their journey they have to decide if they have a solid foundation to build a relationship or if they should remain friends.

And a snippety peek…

Leticia Sutton veered off the marked trail. "There's no challenge if you stick to the tried and true." And she needed to do something punishing right now.

Pushing through some underbrush, she edged her way into a dense copse of scrubby trees. The gnarled trunks twisted and wound together, leaving no doubt they sprang up from sprouts of older growth. The mass provided an odd reflection of her life. Conflict surrounded her—at least it had for going on five years now.

Lettie squeezed through a trio of cottonwoods and winced when a limb scratched her arm. "I wanted difficult and definitely got it." She started an upward climb, carefully picking her way along the inclined land.

The hike would be good. Great if she ended up exhausted enough to sleep. Bad news always amped her anxiety up to a twelve. And the news about her ex-boyfriend Mark couldn't be worse. He'd posted about his terminal test results on social media three days ago.

Lettie closed her eyes a moment. "That's number three. The third person I've been close to who's had an awful medical diagnosis." She exhaled slowly and started walking again. "I swear I'm cursed." Or she had the ability to curse others.

First her mom with heart attack that led to her death five years ago. Then her cousin had pancreatic cancer that took him a year ago. Now Mark had a grim diagnosis.

Lettie angled upward again, using the trees to aid her ascent. "We didn't work together as a couple, but we had some good moments." Unfortunately, the not so great outweighed the fewer and far between good times.

Still, she wished him well when they ended their relationship nine months ago.

Pausing to catch her breath, she shook her head. "Probably should've just said good-bye and left it there." But she wanted to go out on a pleasant note.

Because Mark got snarly and snappy when things didn't go his way and that became the sticking point that drove a wedge between them. And even though they didn't work, she couldn't stop from feeling the weight of guilt. Which made zero sense but rational didn't always work in her brain.

Reaching out for the closest tree, Lettie's fingers missed the trunk and she stumbled, her feet slipping on the loose dirt. She tried to correct her balance, but overcompensated and twisted her ankle in a jumble of exposed roots. Sliding sideways, she lost a battle with gravity and ended up tumbling down the hillside in a heap of flying arms and flailing legs, her fingers scrabbling for anything to stop the fall.

She finally came to a stop when she crashed into a pair of sturdy boots attached to solid legs in khaki dungarees.

Blinking to clear her vision, she glanced upward and met the green gaze of a guy dressed in a red flannel over a T-shirt that matched the color of his eyes.

He stooped down, peering closely at her. "You okay? That was one hell of a drop." He held a hand out, seeking permission to check her over.

Lettie gave a nod, trying to find her voice. "Uh, yeah. Not exactly what I had planned." She straightened her leg and grimaced when her ankle screamed in agony at the movement.

His palm ghosted over her head, shaking twigs and leaves loose. "Ack. Looks like you might've done some damage. Hold still and I'll check it out." He moved down and gently picked her leg up.

The motion had her fingers curling into the ground and she hissed out a breath. "Yeah. That hurts." Tears sprang up behind her eyelids.

The guy gave a nod. "Probably sprained." He dragged his phone out. "And we're out of range here, but there's a signal on the main trail. Can I help you get there?"

She met his gaze for a brief moment and gave a shaky nod. He didn't need to get tangled up with her, but she did his assistance … at least long enough to get a call out.

He thrust his palm forward. "In that case … name's Dustin Pierce. Happy to be of service." He tucked his shoulder under her arm and got her to her feet.

She wrapped an arm around his waist. "Uh, Leticia Sutton. Glad I'm not the only one who went off the trail today."

I'm not sure where this story is going yet, but I love the possibilities. The couple meets under odd circumstances and it's fun to play with that angle.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin