Love for the world, and its many beautiful niches, heals a young girl's heartache after a short affair with an older man.Have you ever wondered why you were born? You know deep in your soul that life has purpose, but answers to your questions are illusive. We are all searching. A million years before the Florida peninsula existed, a chain of small islands arose from Earth’s primordial oceans. Today, people call it the Florida Ridge. It was there an ancient and highly advanced civilization established a final sanctuary containing an underground library with historical records and remnants of technology. The archaeological site was discovered in 1930 by French explorer Claude Gautier, but remains a closely guarded secret to this day. Sleep was difficult for Haley King. For as long as she could remember, her nights were filled with recurring dreams of a strange civilization. Everyone in her community knew her. They all loved the little blind girl, everyone except Brian. He learned of her true identity from a strange old man with glowing eyes, but he didn’t dare tell anyone; they would laugh at him. She was the biological offspring of two full-blooded Hopi Indians, but her DNA was very different. Her eyes were fluorescent yellow, hair blond, and her skin was pale. An ancient Hopi legend predicted her birth, but the tribe’s partial conversion to Catholicism in the late sixteenth century resulted in a serious misinterpretation of what to do with her. The medicine man took Haley from her mother and gave her to the Catholic Church. Haley was adopted and moved to Florida when she was twelve years old. She became close friends with five boys who had the suspicious happening of all being born on the same day. While the boys were on a fishing trip celebrating their sixteenth birthday, their boat was struck by lightning. Four of them (including Brian) were nearly killed. A tattoo of a leafless tree was burned on their feet. The fifth boy experienced a vision of the future. They were all changed by the incident and their lives became more intermingled with Haley. Views: 415
Haden Maxwell is scared someone knows he’s been dealing drugs. He is directed to go to a diner where he meets a mysterious woman who knows all about his dark past and informs him he must make an impossible choice. The path he walks from then on brings him to the man who ruined his life and a past he thought he had buried.Haden Maxwell is scared someone knows he’s been dealing drugs. He is directed to go to a diner where he meets a mysterious woman who knows all about his dark past and informs him he must make an impossible choice. The path he walks from then on brings him to the man who ruined his life and a past he thought he had buried.It's the second story I released to the public back in November of 2011. If you enjoy this story, check out my others. If you really loved it, look into my first novel, Void Star. Thank you so much for reading and supporting indie authors!-J.P. YagerOtterbored.com Views: 415
A home invasion turns deadly when Dr. Steven Peters is forced to face the world he has helped to create.Maybe it will all be better tomorrow.Maybe things won’t have to be this way.Maybe, at the edge of all of this sickness and sorrow,Is the dawn of some brighter day.I don’t feel like I can go on any longer.I don’t know just how to make this right.The pain and the strain of a loss of hope Getting only strongerIs strangling me ever so tight.I’m on the verge of giving up on life altogether,Leaning over a precipice.I’m pushing and inching further and nearer,And if I go off of the ledge, it could be better.It sometimes seems the only offering of relief,And if I try, I won’t miss, and me, you won’t miss. Views: 415
Blake opened the door and took his first step into Hell. He had come to his apartment with a lilt in his walk, pleasantly burdened with candy and flowers. This was to be a reconciliation with his wife, Stella. Stella, who hated private investigators—“private snitches,” she called them.So he had resigned from the firm of Bricker and Blake: Investigators. Too bad it had to be in the middle of the tough Arrenhower job. But Stella was worth it.The room was in shambles. There was Stella, battered and bloody, sprawled on a chair. She had been brutally bludgeoned to death.I’m dead, Steve black thought, and I can’t cry. Who will I cry for? For Stella, who’d never hear me now? Maybe I’ll cry for the man who killed her. Maybe I’ll cry for him when I find him—and maybe God himself will cry for him before I’m through... Views: 414
From USA Today Bestselling Author, Tara WestWinner of the eFestival of Words Best Action/AdventureBorn with mark of the Mighty Hunter, Markus saves his village from the brink of starvation-for whenever he releases an arrow, his aim is true. But despite his skill and strength, Markus is unable to confront his tyrannical father. Shamed by his cowardice, he distracts himself by needlessly shooting the forest creatures.When Markus takes no heed of the village prophet's warning that his actions will attract The Hunter's Curse—for every animal Markus kills, his loved ones will suffer the same fate—the Sky Goddess unleashes her ice dragon.Now, Markus must flee the dragon without killing it ... or his beloved brother will be the next to die. Views: 414
A hilarious and witty collection of quotes from twentieth century literary icons. "Stop looking at the world through rose-colored bifocals." "His mind is so open, the wind whistles through it." "You can't teach an old dogma new tricks." Ever wonder where these sayings came from? For decades, the dining room of New York's legendary Algonquin Hotel was a hub of letters and humor. Cocktails were swilled as writers, humorists, actors, and critics poked fun at culture, the arts, and one another. In this lively tribute, today's readers will come to understand why Robert Benchley, George S. Kaufman, and Dorothy Parker represent the epitome of quips and comebacks—wit that still packs a punch decades later. Views: 414
(hints) is a collection of ten poems. Each piece features a unique hint in parenthesis at the end of each title. These hints vary in how they are set up, and offer different views to consider while reading. Themes include specific religious beliefs, and a glimpse into my story of living with bipolar disorder. My goal with these poems is to walk the line where delusion and reality collide. Cheers.Status updating…Time and Space breached…Data leak detected…The archives of The Numbered Entity Project have opened in this membrane of existence for the very first time. Inside the, at once both infinitesimal and infinity-spanning, data stores wait the tale of rogues, outcasts and 'others.' Those whose time was numbered but refused to 'know their place.' Those who tried, for better or worse, to change their respective worlds of swords and magic, steam and musket, or nanotechnology. The Project records all, in tribute to Time and Space.Jaime has waited his whole life for the chance to change the world. Armed with a discrete bio-weapon, he prepares to assassinate the Great Sir of the Seven Systems and free millions from industrial serfdom. But Jaime is on a one way trip, a journey that will force him to sever his ties to the one he loves most. His ideals will be tested to breaking when brought to bear against that love, a love which could tear Seven Systems apart. Views: 414
Macaferty Jahn, one of the proud ferret-like tahvic, is a warrior on a mission. Fiercely proud despite his diminutive size, he nonetheless has to face incredible odds owing to far more than just a disparity in height. But as he fights against a band of brigands, a change arises: a change that impacts his life in a truly gigantic way.The Skylands are floating continents, islands in the sky, of a fantasy realm known as Talvali. It is a patchwork world into which pieces of other lands are taken. In this world, the proud ferret-like warrior, Macaferty Jahn, must deal with magic, battle, his allies, his enemies, and the frustrating nature of those not native to his beloved world.Jahn is a warrior on a mission. Fiercely proud despite his diminutive size, he nonetheless has to face incredible odds owing to far more than just a disparity in height. But as he fights against a band of brigands, a change arises: a change that impacts his life in a truly gigantic way. Views: 414
All her short life, Lydia dreamed of being a baker. As an apprentice she greeted each day with joy and wonder. Until the day a magical little beast entered her predictable world, and turned everything upside down...All her short life, Lydia dreamed of being a baker. As an apprentice she greeted each day with joy and wonder. Until the day a magical little beast entered her predictable world, and turned everything upside down. Meeplar the fuzzling, a being of pure magic, singled out the young baker's apprentice and marked her as a mage-to-be. Filled with reluctance, Lydia must leave her happy life in the bakery and learn to control her mage abilities. She arrives at the magnificent Hall of Lights in nearby Caissa determined to learn the minimum amount of control possible and then run back home to the bakery. Little does she know fuzzlings only appear to those with the strongest of mage talents, the kind of person destined for things other than baking... Views: 414
A short story about brothers, basketball, growing up, and growing apart.Rob was the wonder kid growing up, so his older brother Danny took on the role of slacker. It's the middle of the night, but Danny is fighting with his girlfriend again, so there he is at Rob's door. A few beers later, they're playing one-on-one basketball for the first time in years, and it's feeling a little bit too much like old times for Rob. Views: 414
a novel by edward j. rathke: more information can be found at www.kuboapress.wordpress.comBy 2050 the country has gone through some slight changes thanks to a dramatic shift in the makeup in the country's populace giving liberals, referred to by various uncomplimentary names, control over Washington. In that thirty years the country becomes the veritable paradise moonbats have long sought to create, but more resembling a third-world banana republic where English is replaced by twenty-five variations of gang slang, no one gets beyond third grade, rioting and something resembling football with hockey sticks are the national pastimes. There is now a "Forever President," welfare moms have replaced small business, corn is the cornerstone of industry, and people drive around in either battery-powered bubble cars or Latino lowriders. All the while, non-thinking Schwartz is led around on a doggie leash, and has become a 'pinball,' with names ranging from Vic to Dick to Bic, and spends his day bouncing around the fenced playground of a former elementary school turned asylum for the insane. One fine spring day the gate to the compound suddenly opens and Schwartz, along with a hundred or so inmates, unthinkingly escape. While walking aimlessly down a highway, he is struck by another truck (an electric bus) and suddenly awakens from his long sleep to find the liberals' variation of paradise has really arrived in America! Schiessen! Views: 414
Payton thought she had a normal, everyday life. When a mysterious man suddenly appears, he shatters her world telling her that her entire life has been a lie. She is a god with the Guardians having lived for 1000's of years. The Anords know where she is and he needs to protect her at all costs. Payton holds the key to saving humanity. However, a mysteriously familiar woman complicates everything.Young and beautiful hairdresser, Payton, thought she had a normal, everyday life, no different from anyone else. When a mysterious man suddenly appears, he shatters her world by telling her that her entire life has been a lie. She is a god among many having lived for thousands of years. She is a key member of the Guardians! The Guardians seek only peace, unity and balance between all good & evil but the Anords want full control. To protect her from the Anords, the Guardians replaced her memory dropping her into her not-so-normal life. Now, the Anords know where she is and he needs to protect her at all costs.Payton holds the key to bringing all of them together as one, working together for the good of humanity. However, a mysteriously familiar woman complicates everything. Views: 414
The stories in Who's Irish? show us the children of immigrants looking wonderingly at their parents' efforts to assimilate, while the older generation asks how so much selfless hard work on their part can have yielded them offspring who'd sooner drop out of life than succeed at it. With dazzling wit and compassion, Gish Jen—author of the acclaimed novels Typical American and Mona in the Promised Land—looks at ambition and compromise at century's end and finds that much of the action is as familiar—and as strange—as the things we know to be most deeply true about ourselves. Views: 414
Sand must stop an arms dealer from expanding his business from murder to genocideEven the finest samurai occasionally needs to hone his skill. Robert Sand is in Japan, pushing his body to the limit under an aged sensei's guidance, when he gets the message that practice is over. A French arms dealer named Valbonne has gotten ambitious, and is about to start selling something rather more deadly than a bootlegged Kalashnikov. He is building an atomic bomb.Valbonne's prospective buyer is a Japanese man who has never forgiven the United States for killing his family at Nagasaki. To take revenge, he plans to detonate the black market warhead somewhere in New York City. His contract with Valbonne earns him the support of the Frenchman's mercenary army, and the cunning of a bloodthirsty Native American who's handy with a hatchet. Unfortunately for them, this is just the kind of fight that Sand's been training for. Views: 414
