Sunday Snippet: Standing Out

Whew. What a week. Ohio got a lot of the smoke from the Canadian wildfires, and it was kind of eerie seeing the hazy gray skies for most of the week. Good time to stay inside due to the high danger air quality alerts.

The weather at least stayed just under sweltering. My garage cleanout went much smoother since the temperatures weren't as high as they have been. Going out very late at night and only staying there for under an hour also helped.

Work projects moved along. I finished up a few odds and ends and started a new copy edit. I also touched base on a few back burner projects. I got to review some back cover copy and book blurbs, which is always a fun change of pace.

Had an okay viewing week. Didn't quite make it through all of my usual shows but made a decent stab at them. Between the cleanup and a lengthy run with my own writing, my watching took a back seat.

Started with another bonus episode of Foyle's War behind the scenes. An interview about the details of the final episode with the writer and the show historian. Very much enjoyed it.

Also finished up Tales of Irish Castles. Really liked this series and its deep dive into the seriously large number of castles in Ireland.

Caught an episode of Silent Witness and made it about halfway through. I'm going to take a break, I think. This season is kind of dark, which I enjoy most of the time but, in all honesty, I kind of need something lighter right now.

Watched another episode of Poirot and really enjoyed it. It's always fun when familiar people pop up in these movies. And this one was very twisty, which I enjoy.

Elementary ended up being really good. I really like getting backstory and even though Marcus's is full of strife and pain, it tied into the current happenings really well. Also loved Sherlock being there for Marcus at the end.

That's all for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Standing Out, a follow up novella to Blending In.

Here's the miniblurb:

Wren Bingman and Ethan Scott stop a planned attack on their fae city and take down some key members of the group responsible. But when Ethan is kidnapped the following week, Wren suspects retaliation and vows to bring him back. To do so, she'll have to dig deep into the hierarchy of the ruling council, because she's convinced there's a mole in the organization.

And preview snippet…

Wren got up and went to the window to watch Ethan leave, feeling pretty happy about being with him. When he went to cross the road, a dark van drove up, and three masked guys jumped out and dragged him inside.

Wren stared in open-mouthed disbelief. "Fuck. What the hell just happened?" Stupid question.

She knew exactly what happened. Someone kidnapped Ethan.

Her heart jumped. "Someone kidnapped Ethan."

Fuck.

Wren's brain spun with rapid-fire questions. Do I call this in? Why Ethan? What the hell is going on? But the biggest, scariest, deepest, darkest question flared like a beacon in her mind.

"Who the hell can I trust?"

Right now? Not one single person. And as much as she hated the idea of doing nothing … she couldn't risk his life … and maybe hers … by raising the alarm.

Unless she planned carefully before she did.

She paced back and forth. "Something smells rank." Did anyone know Ethan would be with her?

If so … how?

She decided to play the situation like her day should have started … as if she hadn't spent the night with Ethan. Her phone alarm chirped, and she turned to grab it from the nightstand beside the bed. Heading for the bathroom, she grabbed a quick shower and dressed for a normal day. Even if her skin itched with inactivity. She waited another fifteen minutes before she sent a text to Ethan's superior officer, Zeb Marconi. "What's up with Ethan? He was supposed to pick me up this morning." Her knee bounced up and down with impatience.

Her device vibrated with an incoming call.

She swiped to answer with raised eyebrows. "Hey, Zeb. What's going on?" She tried to make sure she sounded curious instead of catty.

Marconi gave a surprised response. "Ethan's not with you?" Something in his voice sounded off.

Wren frowned, a small gleam of unease. "I wouldn't have sent the text if he was." She added a layer of truth. "He was supposed to bring coffee with him." She stalked toward the window and glanced outside.

Zeb huffed out a breath. "Huh. That's strange. I sent him out really early this morning to a drop site and he should've been back by now." His chair creaked loud enough for her to hear it. "Let me make some calls."

Wren's gaze narrowed. "Yeah, fine. I'll head out alone then." She waited to see what he'd say.

Marconi sputtered. "Wait 'til I get back with you. I don't want Ethan to have to go looking for you when I track him down." The sound of papers rustling followed his statement.

Wren feigned agreement. "Right. Okay. I'll stand by for now." She ended the call without signing off.

Yeah, no way would she stick around at this location. "Something's hinky." She stashed her phone under the pillow then grabbed the burner and exited the room.

She'd stop by the studio apartment, grab some extra weapons—and coffee—then head back to the room above the diner.

She would also hold off on updating Sutcliffe until she had more information. If Ethan didn't turn up or if Marconi sent up a flag for a missing undercover operative, her captain might pull the surveillance on the SoO. And she'd lay odds they were the ones who took Ethan.

She headed out into the chilly morning. "And I will get him back … no matter what."

Kind of happy with where this story is going. Wren and Ethan have to dive deep to figure out who they can trust.

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: Standing Out

Had a weird week. The weather is still doing the yucky back and forth stuff, which makes me unhappy. My sinuses go insane when the temperature rises and falls and won't make up its mind.

Still super busy with work projects. I think I'm slowing down productivity-wise and that's disappointing, but I also tend to not work on three projects at the same time.

Not a bad week for television but I didn't get a lot watched. I did finish up the Silent Witness episode I started last week. Nikki ends up in trouble on a frequent basis and I like that she's always willing to put herself out there to solve a mystery.

I started a new season of Strangest Things and should have it finished up later this week. I kind of love digging into weird things from history and watching the group of commenters explain what they think things are.

I also caught another episode of Battlestar Galactica. "Water" is a terrific episode that lays the groundwork for a lot of what follows in the rest of the season. Frankly, the first season of Battlestar is as close to perfect as anything I've seen. There's not a wasted episode in the batch of thirteen. There are stronger episodes, obviously, but every installment has important information and terrific character moments. I'm so excited to watch another episode this week!

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Standing Out, a follow-up to Blending In.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Wren Bingman and Ethan Scott stop a planned attack on their fae city and take down some key members of the group responsible. But when Ethan is kidnapped the following week, Wren suspects retaliation and vows to bring him back. To do so, she'll have to dig deep into the hierarchy of the ruling council, because she's convinced there's a mole in the organization.

And a preview snippet…

Ethan Scott didn't like being held captive—especially when he'd finally found his perfect match.

Shit. Wren could be in danger.

Not that Wren Bingman couldn't handle herself in dangerous situations. She absolutely could and did on a regular basis. She had an enviable skill set of blending in with the lowest of the low, which served her well in their line of work.

His lips curved. "And it's a big part of why I fell for her."

And damn if he didn't miss her and get pissed off every time he thought about not being with her … or bringing her the promised coffee after he'd left her bed at three a.m.

A full damn week ago.

He'd been sitting and cooling his heels in a cold, dark cell for that same duration.

At least he'd put the time to good use. "I know who my captors are." The Sons of Orion. "I know their weak spots." He'd had plenty of time to learn their habits, strengths, and how to hit them where it would hurt—which he planned to do soon.

He needed a little more time to figure a few things out. Like how the three-man team found him at Wren's. He'd received a call from his superior officer to come in for an important briefing, which meant Wren probably got a call from her commander for the same thing, hence the reason she could be in danger or already be a captive in a different location. The main reason he hadn't made an escape yet … he wanted to find out if Wren got snagged, too.

When he did get away from the Sons of Orion, he had a plan. "As long as Wren isn't caught up in this mess, she's the only one I'll trust." His kidnapping reeked of an inside source.

Which meant his SO could be involved … whether the guy knew it or not.

Ethan got up and paced the six-by-ten space again. "Forty-eight hours then it's so long, dickheads. Just try to find me again…"

I'm having a lot of fun with this follow-up. Ethan is going to give Wren a run for her money with being covert and cagey.

That's it for this week.

 

Cheers!

Skye