Sunday Snippet: The Jade Claw

It's been a wild week of big letdowns in my area of the universe. I'm not sure where things will land but I have decided to launch my side project sooner than expected. More details to follow in a separate blog post.

I started a new work project and picked up with one that's been on the back burner. I also tentatively scheduled three new projects for November. Here's hoping they all pan out.

Had a pretty good week of viewing. I got most of my current slate of shows watched. But … I also got distracted by *waves at everything going on right now*.

I caught an episode of The Batman and rather enjoyed the Green Lantern guest spot. Also enjoyed having one of Batman's rogues nose his way into the storyline.

Watched another episode of Classic Rugrats and it was the Rugrat's Kwanzaa. I'll have to find the other Rugrats holiday episodes and get ready to rewatch.

Enjoyed another episode of Mr. and Mrs. Murder. It featured a behind-the-scenes look at a theater show, which is fun for me because my daughter majored in theater for undergrad.

Caught the first season finale of London Kills and, wow, some twisty-twists and big turns happened. Looking forward to a behind-the-scenes special this week.

Watched the season ten opener of Death in Paradise. I'm still annoyed by DI Parker and sad to see Ruby no longer with the team. Thrilled to bits to have Florance back. Looking forward to seeing more.

Started a new two-part Silent Witness. Terrific guest stars in this episode. I'm very interested in seeing where this case goes.

Enjoyed most of an Elementary episode. I'll get it finished up today and start over with a new run of my current episodes.

That's pretty much it for this week's life update. Tonight's post is from The Jade Claw, a paranormal mystery that brings a couple together over a missing artifact.

Here's the miniblurb:

Skyrah Yule is caught in the middle of a paranormal mafia grab for power when several artifacts are stolen from the museum she works for. The agent investigating the break-in, Clay Wellstone, intrigues her, especially when she discovers he's got close familial ties with the suspected culprits.

And a preview snippet…

Agent Wellstone dropped Skyrah off by her car and she entered the museum through the rear entrance, passing the ident crew on its way out. She appreciated their attempt at discretion, but the break in and theft would be all over the wireless with the early news. She groaned. Good gods, when Glen Bench got a hold of the details, he'd have a field day. The man considered himself the primo source for bringing culture to the masses. Thinking of the fodder he'd get for his late-night chat fest made her head hurt. Didn't help she'd had a brief—very, very brief—hookup with the guy before seeing his true colors. The man enjoyed digging up sordid details and parading them all over the airwaves for others to see.

Too bad he rarely got to the actual truth. She got a little nauseous thinking about the damage he could do to the museum's reputation. She figured she'd better get everything cleaned up and back into a semblance of order then ready herself to field phone calls from the board before she left to teach her afternoon classes.

Almost dawn by the time she finished, Skyrah got pissed off all over again about the staggering loss. Most of the artifacts taken had a connection to the Herac conflict. An important time in the history of the Twelve Provinces, before true unification, she not only hated to lose the value of the objects but their significance.

She brewed a pot of strong coffee and grabbed a shower in the bath adjoining the office. Not the first all-nighter she'd pulled. Too bad it couldn't have been for more a pleasurable reason … like nonstop sex with a hot guy. An image of Clay Wellstone flashed in her head, and she shook it off. Figured her brain would go to him. The guy shut down and locked up tighter than a drum after she mentioned Helena Cassus. When something piqued her curiosity, her interest rose.

Shrugging into a clean shirt, she sat behind her desk and opened a browser. She could take a few minutes and see what the initial reports looked like. Going out into cyberspace, she scanned the headlines. Romero Lightkin's byline caught her eye. It didn't surprise her the guy would be right up in the story. The man had a serious hard-on for the truth and nothing but. It could be a huge benefit or a complete nightmare, depending on how the board reacted.

Gods … she did not want to think about the benefactors of the museum, especially since her diplomatic skills left a lot to be desired. She could play at tact and diplomacy, but hated how it used up every ounce of her patience. She'd much rather be left alone to do her work than meet with the six-person committee, especially under the crappy circumstances.

Shrugging off the thought, she started a search for information on the way too good-looking to be with the CDA, Agent Clay Wellstone. Waiting for the results, she poured a mug of coffee, thinking about the rapid way he shut down. Her gut said he had something to hide, and she had a powerful urge to find out what it could be. The contrast between the affable, open agent she started out with didn't match with the closed-mouth, wary man who dropped her off.

She might enjoy the challenge of figuring him out. Sipping her coffee, she scanned the search results. Her eyes narrowed when Clay's named popped in a Romero Lightkin exposé on the He'ra'cic mob. Skyrah clicked on the detail bar and read through the seven-part series, which chronicled the more visible, lower-level enforcers who liked to hang out in Little Heiro speakeasy joints.

The last article had her sitting up straight, a sick ball of dread in the pit of her stomach. She finally discovered the reason Agent Wellstone's name showed up in this particular story. And nowhere close to why she thought it would.

She shook her head. "Shit. It couldn't be something simple like he'd pulled in a bunch of the gangsters for questioning." Skyrah's mouth twisted. "Nope. Agent Clay Wellstone has a very intimate connection with organized crime in Cantor City."

Lightkin didn't go for sensationalistic journalism. Instead, he relied on using veiled references when the absolute truth could get him killed. And cold, hard fact made a bitter pill to swallow. The leader, big boss, man in charge of the He'ra'cic, known mainly as the Heras … happened to be none other than William Wellstone.

Agent Clay Wellstone's father.

"Son of a bitch."

And the avid collector full of questions about the antiquities, Helena Cassus? Lampkin's piece implied she belonged to the inner sanctum. Rarely seen, she apparently made things happen behind the scenes. Skyrah didn't need to know what that entailed, her mind supplied lots of vivid possibilities. No wonder Agent Wellstone shut down the interview as soon as Skyrah mentioned the name. The woman had probably been a presence in his life from an early age.

A dull throb started at the base of Skyrah's skull and bloomed into a full-blown headache. The board would go beyond insane when they figured out the connection. And they would. It took her all of thirty minutes with a basic web search. No wonder he'd shuffled her out and dropped her off in such a hurry.

Agent Wellstone had some big questions to answer. The biggest being where his loyalties would fall. She damned well wouldn't lose her job if he attempted to steer the case in any direction but directly at the mob. Skyrah wouldn't let him try.

Taking a gulp of the now cold coffee, she picked up the phone and dialed CDA headquarters. No time like the present to make her position clear.

Skyrah won't be happy because Clay isn't quite ready to play nice with her yet. But she'll make sure he comes around.

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: The Jade Claw

Ugh, so far September is kicking my butt. I've been down with the flu pretty much all week because of course I haven't had a chance to get a flu shot yet. Lots of chills, fever, aches, and long slogs of sleep. Here's hoping I'm over the hump and on my way to recovery.

Very slow week in television. I started the week with New Rugrats and thoroughly enjoyed both episodes.

Also caught another episode of Chicago Med. I think this might be my favorite of all the Chicago shows.

Watched another episode of The Brokenwood Mysteries. Once again, this show makes me so happy. A great mystery that had a few twists.

Started another two-parter of Silent Witness and vaguely remembered the first episode.

Enjoyed the first arc of Five's run on Classic Who. So far, I have to admit I like the trio of companions and how they're interacting with each other and the doctor.

Caught the second episode of UFO Conspiracies. I'm enjoying how the stories are presented in this series. There's a theme and the conspiracy revolves around it, with usually at least two different scenarios.

Watched two more episodes of The Muppet Show. Spike Milligan and Leslie Uggams were the guest stars, along with a special appearance by Big Bird.

Last but not least, I started the second season of Prime Suspect. I'd forgotten just how messy Jane could make things and I'm enjoying that angle.

That's pretty much it for television this week. Tonight's post is from The Jade Claw, a novella that sends my characters on a merry chase of cat and mouse.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Skyrah Yule is caught in the middle of a paranormal mafia grab for power when several artifacts are stolen from the museum she works for. The agent investigating the break-in, Clay Wellstone, intrigues her, especially when she discovers he's got close familial ties with the suspected culprits.

And a preview snippet…

Skyrah rode to CDA headquarters in silence. Her anger simmered at a slow boil, but she refused to take it out on the handsome agent. Even though her adrenaline pumped into high gear over the destruction of so many artifacts, the rapid kick of her heart had more to do with the man next to her. She fought to keep her gaze from lingering too long on his profile. The guy had a face artists dreamed of … and her fingers itched to trace the angular lines and planes, to sketch them on a million pages, or to mold them into clay for posterity.

Agent Clay Wellstone definitely had killer looks … and keen intelligence. But he also had more. Her trained eye didn't miss the practiced ease he used to secure the scene when he arrived. Complete confidence and a smattering of arrogance had the uniformed officers jumping to get things done.

He even handled her, something she usually didn't appreciate. She didn't want to admit she'd been shaken and shocked, but she had been. Agent Wellstone deftly maneuvered her off to the sidelines and put her mind to work on something concrete. Tangible. It helped clear her head and she had a solid appreciation for the gesture because it enabled her to let the anger in, and she wanted to feel something instead of being numb.

She glanced in his direction. "Thanks." She shrugged when he shot her a questioning look.

She couldn't put the gratitude into words.

The astute Agent Wellstone figured out what she meant and gave a nod. "You're welcome." He turned his attention back to the road.

He said nothing else, which kicked her respect up a notch. She didn't need inane chatter or empty platitudes. The man intrigued her and Skyrah couldn't decide if she liked it or not. She really shouldn't get tangled up with anyone on a personal level.

So far, this story is all over the place but it's coming together in interesting ways. I love the dynamic between Skyrah and Clay.

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye 

Sunday Snippet: The Jade Claw

October 14, 2018

Wow, what a difference a week makes. The crisp feeling of fall has definitely arrived and I'm actually a little chilly at the moment. We'll probably have at least one more warm up before we settle into the true briskness of autumn in Ohio. Or… we could have one more nice week and then have a blizzard by Halloween. It's always hard to say. LOL

Got quite a bit of television watched this week. Some shows premiered their new seasons and I'm excited to settle in for the ride.

The Last Ship is crazy good and crazy wild. I'm always stunned when the credits roll because it doesn't seem like an hour should have gone by.

For premieres, I caught the new episodes of The Flash and Riverdale. Gotta say I ended up really enjoying both. Having Nora around could prove pretty interesting. And the whole situation with Archie is way over the top but, honestly, a ton of fun. Can't wait for Arrow this Monday. Also watched Chicago Fire and have mixed feelings on the episode. Maybe more on this next week.

And, of course, the Doctor Who premiere with Thirteen! What a great launch of the new doctor. Can't wait for more. After the disappointment with the last two seasons of Twelve, I'm excited to see where the show goes now.

I continued my rewatch of Babylon 5. The first season is so hit and miss but it also plants a lot of seeds for the following seasons. I'm always finding something new that ties into a future episode.

In other science fiction fare, I watched The Sarah Conner Chronicles, Birds of Prey, Lexx, Wynonna Earp—a Christmas episode, and The Dresden Files. Also caught Luke Cage and Penny Dreadful.

In military fare, I caught another episode of Pensacola Wings of Gold and Strike Back. I'm starting to gel with the new cast of Strike Back and I also need to go back to season two and do some sleuthing. I have a feeling there's a connection that's deeper than I realized. More later on this too.

Caught some mystery shows with The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, Murdoch Mysteries, and a couple of episodes of Peter Gunn. I started an episode of Midsomer Murders but didn't get to finish it yet.

I also watched episode five of Driven. I'm actually thrilled with this series and I'm so excited for more from Passionflix.

On a final note, I finished up Canal Road and what a satisfying ending. I'll be starting a new Australian series in the very near future. Looking forward to it!

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from The Jade Claw, a novella that brings a cop and a museum curator together over an artifact.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Skyrah Yule is caught in the middle of a paranormal mafia grab for power when several artifacts are stolen from the museum she works for. The agent investigating the break-in, Clay Wellstone, intrigues her, especially when she discovers he's got close familial ties with the suspected culprits.

And a preview snippet…

Clay escorted his witness to an interview room and tried to make her comfortable.

"Can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea?"

She lifted her brows. "You wouldn't happen to have a bottle of ambrosia handy, would you?"

He shot her a grin. "Um, no." He had a feeling a spitfire lurked under the surface of the collected woman. "Can't do that one. Not on the approved list." He considered making an exception with her and fought an urge to dig out the bottle of confiscated liquor Director Teague kept buried in his drawer.

Skyrah sighed. "It oughtta be."

Clay propped a hip on the table. "No argument here."

Skyrah glanced up. "Let's just get this over with. How long before I can start cleaning the mess up?"

Clay chuckled. "I'm supposed to be asking the questions." He settled down in the chair across from her. "Don't know now long, but the ident teams work quickly."

She didn't like his answer, but he couldn't give her an exact timeframe. He had an impression she'd kick the stragglers into gear as soon as she got back to the museum.

He'd love to stick around and watch.

Skyrah rolled her eyes. "Right. Fine." She slouched down in her seat. "What do you need to know?"

"Let's start at the beginning again." He dug out his notebook and prompted. "Your class ran late?"

Skyrah repeated everything she said earlier.

She gave Clay a fairly accurate rundown of everything missing, all Tauric artifacts. She also mentioned she'd been approached by an interested collector—one Helena Cassus—a few weeks prior to the heist.

Clay's back went up and he leaned in. "Wait. You had a visit from Helena Cassus?" He scribbled furiously in his notebook. "You're sure you have it right?" He knew the name well.

He should. Helena Cassus happened to be in his father's inner circle. Didn't that just put Clay's balls in a vice? And the theft now made a sick kind of sense. When had he become an idiot? He should have immediately suspected…

Skyrah frowned and moved forward, so close her forehead almost touched his. "Agent Wellstone, I catalog multiple crates from twelve provinces on a daily basis and teach hundreds of students per semester. I'm very good with names." She met his gaze, her eyes full of challenge.

Clay eased back. Too close. She made him feel boxed in. He couldn't give his suspicions or anything away… not yet.

He gave Skyrah a curt nod. "So noted." He laid his pen on the table and rose from his seat, deciding to end the interview. "We'll track Ms. Cassus down and pull her in for questioning." Walking to the door, he twisted the knob to push it open. "That'll be all I need from you right now."

Skyrah narrowed her eyes, clearly expecting more. "You sure about that?"

Clay nodded. "I have your contact information if we have any other questions."

She stood up and fished her keys out of her pocket, then remembered she didn't drive. "Right. You're my ride." Moving toward the door, she stopped and started to say more then shrugged, exiting into the squad room.

Clay exhaled a deep breath and hoped he had it wrong. Somehow, he doubted he did. And he didn't want to think about the repercussions. Not tonight.

Instead, he watched Skyrah stride toward the exit doors, his lips quirking into a wry grin. Following her out, he blatantly admired the view she presented from behind.

I'm having fun with the cat and mouse angle on this one. Looking forward to finishing up and getting it out there.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: The Jade Claw

Ugh. Got hit hard with a nasty cold / flu something. It's been a miserable week trying to hit editing deadlines and maintain my sanity at the same time. LOL

This week's Teen Wolf brought back an old, well… I can't really call the character a favorite, so let's say a familiar face instead. I like having some old school peeps back on my screen. Nothing wrong with the new crew, but eh, I think a lot can be said for taking care of the roots, too. Hopefully, I'm not being too spoilery.

My shows are back this week. The Flash, Arrow, the premiere of Legends of Tomorrow, and maybe even Agent Carter. Not sure about the premiere date for X-Files, but I'll be checking to make sure I don't miss it.

And that's it for this week on the TV front.

Tonight's post is from The Jade Claw, a novella with paranormal intrigue and a dash of humor where my main characters jump through flaming hoops to accomplish their goals.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Skyrah Yule is caught in the middle of a paranormal mafia grab for power when several artifacts are stolen from the museum she works for. The agent investigating the break-in, Clay Wellstone, intrigues her, especially when she discovers he's got close familial ties with the suspected culprits.

And a preview snippet…

Cantor Defense Agent Clay Wellstone surveyed the wrecked and damaged area of the Tauric Antiquities room with a critically discerning eye. He noted the presence of the curator, an Art History professor at Cantor University. Her agitated state suggested impatience to restore order. Not that he blamed her. Whoever pulled off the heist of the museum did so with precision, leaving a path of destruction behind to muddy the waters and slow things down.

"Excuse me, Ms. Yule." Clay pulled the curator of the Museum of Cantor History off to the side of the crime scene. "Can you give me basics of what happened here?"

The harassed but seriously beautiful blond stared at the ugly scene before her, broken glass, overturned display cases and empty stands. Her devastated eyes blinked several times, as if that might make the carnage go away. No such luck.

"Ms. Yule?"

She focused her gaze on him. "What? Oh, the basics. Right."

Turning, she scanned the area with different eyes. This time they were keenly intelligent and sharp, and just a little pissed off. Exactly what he’d been going for.

Her lips thinned into a straight line. "I got here late, my class ran over."

Clay had already run a background check, following protocol. "You're a professor at Cantor U?" He asked the question for confirmation.

A quick nod and she continued. "I entered the back way. I always come in from the employee parking area."

She ran the steps she'd taken, walked him through her discovery, providing a solid amount of detail. His respect level raised another notch. She’d make a good agent if she ever wanted a career change.

He flashed a rueful smile. "I appreciate the information and I'm sorry to ask, but we'll need you to come down and make a full statement when you're up for it."

She looked around the display area again. "Now's good. Everything's fresh in my mind."

Clay smiled. "Great. I can give you a ride and drop you back here after we're through." He admired her tenacity and get it done now attitude.

As if he needed more to add to the list of things he liked about her.

Skyrah nodded. "Yeah, that works." She picked her way toward the door, careful not to disturb anything.

Clay watched closely, as much to figure out the intriguing puzzle she appeared to be as to enjoy the determined set of her shoulders.

He had a feeling Skyrah Yule would be quite a challenge.

This one may end up being a full novel by the time it's all written. And it's been so much fun I can't wait to finish and get it polished up and ready to publish!

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: The Jade Claw

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving, if celebrated. For my family, it's the official beginning to the holiday season and we come up with a new theme for our tree. My middle kidlet is choosing this year and he's decided to go with a sports-related color scheme. Should be interesting because we're mixing scarlet and gray; green, blue, and white; and brown and orange. I have a general idea of how to make it work, but we'll see what the final result is.

A lot of years, we've waited until December 24 to do the actual decorating, but I think we'll be getting it done earlier this season. We also have a big puppy in the house for the first time and I can't wait to see what she does around the tree. LOL

Not much on the TV front this week, but The Flash turned in a great episode. Gotham and Sleepy Hollow were pretty good, too. I'm very much looking forward to the fall finale of Walking Dead tonight. I have a feeling someone's not going to make it… but we'll see. Thankfully, I'll have Chris Hardwick's Talking Dead to soothe whatever gaping wounds I might have. J

Tonight's post is from The Jade Claw, a novella that might be the first of a series, depending on where the story takes me.

Here's the tagline:

Skyrah Yule is caught in the middle of a paranormal mafia grab for power when several artifacts are stolen from the museum she works for. The agent investigating the break-in, Clay Wellstone, intrigues her, especially when she discovers he's got close familial ties with the suspected culprits.

And a preview snippet…

Capricorn Defense Agent Clay Wellstone surveyed the wrecked and damaged area of the Tauric Antiquities room with a critically discerning eye. He noted the presence of the curator, an Art History professor at Capricorn University. Her agitated state suggested impatience to restore order. Not that he blamed her. Whoever pulled off the heist of the museum did so with precision, leaving a path of destruction behind to muddy the waters and slow things down.

"Excuse me, Ms. Rule." Clay pulled the curator of the Museum of Cantor History off to the side of the crime scene. "Can you give me basics of what happened here?"

The harassed but seriously beautiful blond stared at the ugly scene before her, broken glass, overturned display cases and empty stands. Her devastated eyes blinked several times, as if that might make the carnage go away. No such luck.

"Ms. Rule?"

She focused her gaze on him. "What? Oh, the basics. Right."

Turning, she scanned the area with different eyes. This time they were keenly intelligent and sharp, and just a little pissed off. Exactly what he’d been going for.

Her lips thinned into a straight line. "I got here late, my class ran over."

Clay had already run a background check, following protocol. "You're a professor at Capricorn U?" He asked the question for confirmation.

A quick nod and she continued. "I entered the back way. I always come in from the employee parking area."

She ran the steps she'd taken, walked him through her discovery, providing a solid amount of detail. His respect level raised another notch. She’d make a good agent if she ever wanted a career change.

He flashed a rueful smile. "I appreciate the information and I'm sorry to ask, but we'll need you to come down and make a full statement when you're up for it."

She looked around the display area again. "Now's good. Everything's fresh in my mind."

Clay smiled. "Great. I can give you a ride and drop you back here after we're through." He admired her tenacity and get it done now attitude.

As if he needed more to add to the list of things he liked about her.

Skyrah nodded. "Yeah, that works." She picked her way toward the door, careful not to disturb anything.

Clay watched closely, as much to figure out the intriguing puzzle she appeared to be as to enjoy the determined set of her shoulders.

He had a feeling Skyrah Rule would be quite a challenge.

Looking forward to diving deeper into this one and I do sort of hope it turns into a series.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye