A Surprise in the Mist Writing Prompt

This seems like an odd photo to post on such a sunny day, but I love the mood of it!

Imagine yourself standing on the edge of this foggy lake. You think you see something moving in the mist beyond the bend. Are your eyes playing tricks on you? You squint and see someone - or something - you never expected to find there. Who - or what- is it?

And before you take off, I have a quick announcement. The BestsellerBound Short Story Anthology, Vol. 1 was just released as a free download yesterday! I'm a member of the BestsellerBound forum, a support network for indie authors, and a few other members put their heads and skills together to get this off the ground. It features 10 short stories from various genres, including my story, "Stained." Please support these authors by downloading the anthology (totally free) on Smashwords.

The New Title Showcase at BEA 2011

My friend and fellow author, S.C. Harvey, and I took a day trip yesterday to New York City to check out the New Title Showcase at the 2011 BookExpo America. Her first release, Sand Castles & Seashores, is featured as part of the Trafford Publishing display. I wanted a glimpse of the action and I have to say it was well worth it!

Sam with her new book!

The energy and activity at the center invigorated me to get to work. So when I got home, I pulled up my upcoming novel, The Jester's Apprentice, and finished revising the ending. I still have a lot of editing ahead of me, but taking a little time out to pop in at the BEA stoked the fire to revise and make plans for the release!

Activity around the New Title Showcase

Now I wish I'd gotten a photo, but outside the front of the center they were giving out free mini red velvet and strawberry whoopie pies to promote Sarah Dessen's new novel. The strawberry one was delicious!

Later this week, you can catch the next chapter of Decode and see how Veronica does with her first spying attempt!

Decode, Chapter 7: Business Affairs

Chapter 7: Business Affairs

Lieutenant Guarini sat in Maddox Felton's office, admiring the way the sunlight lit up dust particles floating through the air. Without the light, you'd never know they existed. Maddox crashed into his chair, the wheels squeaking as he pulled up to the desktop. Guarini observed that Felton had no photos, no memorabilia, no awards. Just the desk, a wall-sized book shelf, and two chairs for guests. It was modern and stylish, but hardly the plush CEO office Guarini expected. Maddox apologized for the wait, and they got down to business.

"David was an efficient project manager," Maddox said, folding his hands on his desk. "And well-liked, near as I could tell."

"Did you like him?" Guarini admired Felton's tone-on-tone shirt and tie and thought he should try that look sometime himself.

Maddox tilted his head quizzically but his chiseled features stayed neutral. "Of course. I wouldn't say we were friends, but we got along just fine."

Guarini nodded. "Did you know David had some financial problems?" Guarini watched him, but if any recognition crossed his eyes, he'd missed it.

"No." Maddox laughed quietly. "I can't imagine he would have told me."

"They had incurred some major debts after building a new home. David had taken on a second job to keep them afloat."

"I had no idea."

"It seems to me this kind of financial desperation could lead to other activities."

"You mean illegal activities."

"If not illegal then let's say unethical. What would an unethical business practice be to you, Mr. Felton?"

Maddox kept his eyes on the Lieutenant while he processed his question. Guarini admired his unflinching stance, but really just wanted into his mind. "I would have to say using others to get ahead."

"Good answer. But I'm thinking along the lines of selling company secrets."

Maddox' eyes flickered. "That would qualify," he said calmly. "Are you suggesting David was involved in something like that?"

Guarini shrugged. "I can't really say. I'm just looking at the evidence and David's life and your company and thinking corporate espionage for some reason."

Maddox smiled. "Sounds glamorous."

"And expensive. You go to a lot of trouble to keep your employees quiet."

"Containing what we develop is a non-stop project in and of itself. But I take care of my employees and I trust them not to share what they know with our rivals."

"Do you?" Guarini checked his notes. "I guess that's why you have everyone sign multiple confidentiality agreements."

Maddox laughed. "It's still a business."

"Very well. Business for me is questioning every one of your employees."

Maddox nodded and stood up. "Then I'll let you get to it."

***
Pick up Decode from the beginning here.

Decode, Chapter 6: Secrets

Chapter 6: Secrets

Seeing Jesse made Veronica feel all the import of the last day. It felt like they had talked years ago, not days. They swapped stories while walking the quiet side streets near Veronica's home. Though the sun burned, she could still see her breath blow out in white clouds.

"You're not kidding about Guarini," Jesse said, running his hands over his curly brown hair. "He brought up my arrest and inferred that I hacked into the systems at Maddox Tech and stole information to sell it."

"I'm not surprised."

Jesse shifted his gaze, looking at her suspiciously from the side.

"I mean, they would know your background and all." Veronica cursed herself for speaking so quickly. Her boyfriend knew nothing about her meetings with Maddox Felton and she couldn't tell him she was going to spy for him. Not if the spying was going to work anyway.

"I was seventeen!" Jesse shook his head. "I didn't hack into anything. And Guarini's a fool if he thinks Felton would keep anything that secret around to take in the first place."

Veronica's heart stung with that assessment of the Lieutenant. Not that she'd had the best feelings of him either, but still. "He's doing what he's paid to do. Besides, part of the process is elimination and that means asking tough questions."

Jesse scowled. "Where's the love, V? I haven't seen you in a week!"

"You haven't given me much to work with either." She gave him a sharp look out of the side of her glasses. "I did hit someone with my car if you remember."

"I know. But he was already dead."

"And that makes it okay?"

"No, but you didn't do anything wrong so what difference does it make?"

Veronica flung around. "What difference does it make? I discovered the body of a human being. That's a big difference!"

"Okay, okay. You don't have to freak out. I'm just saying everything worked out fine in your case. You're best friends with the Lieutenant now and no harm's done. But I'm not out of the hole yet."

Veronica examined him coldly. "No, you're not."

"You know, I should be mad at you. Why didn't you call me about what happened until today?"

They stopped walking and Veronica scanned through her memories, wondering how to explain without mentioning any of the real reasons. "I just...it was just...." She sighed. "I was kind of worn out and didn't want to talk anymore."

"Well, you talked to somebody. Who?"

"You know, my brother, sister-in-law...Guarini."

"And you couldn't squeeze me in?"

Veronica licked her lips. "Honestly, no. But that's why I wanted you to come over." She could feel her ears turning red and hoped her hair covered them. "So let's stop fighting and you can tell me more about all the conspiracy whisperings at work."

Asserting it was all nonsense, Jesse still went on to relay everything he'd heard since learning about their colleague, David Moore's, death. Veronica listened more intently than she ever had to his office gossip, hoping that hiding what really happened the day before would pay off in the long-run.

***

If you're just joining Veronica's story, catch up with the previous five chapters right here.

Decode, Chapter 5: Revelations

Chapter 5: Revelations

Maddox and Veronica huddled around his laptop on the couch. She squinted to see what books Maddox kept on the floor-to-ceiling shelves butted against the brick wall in front of her, surprised to spot a few poetry anthologies. Maddox tapped her arm, pointing to a few lines of code on the screen.

"Someone inserted these lines and unless you're looking for something specific, you won't catch them." He leaned back, his shoulders slumping. "It took me two sleepless nights to find this, and there have to be more."

"So what does it do? I mean, is this just code for one of your programs?"

Maddox nodded.

"It's the program that put Maddox Tech on the map. The original." He half-smiled. "My baby."

Veronica leaned on her elbow and yawned.

"I don't know what these lines of code do yet," he said, his smile disappearing. "This program is in the hands of companies across the country. And there could be bits of whatever this is," he pointed at the screen, "on previous versions and we never knew."

"How did you discover it then?"

"By keeping my eyes open for anomalies. I poked around until I found something. Of course, it wasn't the something I expected."

"You expected to find someone stealing information, meaning you spied on your employees."

Maddox shrugged.

"I don't know that I can trust anybody that works for me. So I'm careful."

"How did that lead you to this?"

"When I couldn't find what I wanted by casually looking around, I started examining things more closely in programming. It took a while, but I found this planted code eventually."

Veronica rubbed her forehead, pacing around the espresso coffee table.

"How did I get mixed up in this? I don't even work for you!"

"Do you think I would trust one of my employees to help me?"

"Well...no."

"I need an outsider, but one who can be an insider."

"That clarifies everything."

Maddox laughed.

"Look at you. Would anyone suspect you of spying?"

Veronica glared, then slumped over. "No, they wouldn't."

Maddox grinned.

"What do you want me to do?" Veronica said.

"Nothing extravagant. But you might get access to more personal information because of your boyfriend."

Veronica's eyes flashed.

"Ha! I knew you had ulterior motives for targeting me. You want me to get gossip about your workers through Jesse."

Maddox leaned back, surveying Veronica.

"That's one of the reasons."

Veronica flushed, realizing she hadn't even brushed her hair when she flew out of her apartment. Maddox lowered his eyes, swiping his hand across his mouth.

"I'm sorry about the break-in," he said. "I don't think I said that earlier."

"Me too." She smiled slightly. "You'll figure this thing out and fix it, I'm sure. That is if half the stories I've heard about you are true."

He smiled. "They're not."

Maddox walked Veronica out to her car and watched her drive away into the night, hoping he could live up to her expectations.

***

If you've just tuned in to Decode, catch it from the beginning right here. And stay tuned each week for more!

Fun Desktop Wallpaper Downloads

I had some fun this weekend designing desktop wallpaper using my stories as inspiration. I've uploaded them for anyone to decorate their desktop with. I plan to add more in the future, including wallpaper for Decode. To download, browse what I have up so far here.

Here are snapshots of two of the wallpapers:

As a side note, Dead Locked is now also available on Amazon Kindle.

New chapter of Decode coming later this week!

Decode, Chapter 4: It Takes a Thief

Chapter 4: It Takes a Thief

The door opened and Maddox Felton stood there shirtless in track pants.

"Someone broke into my apartment!" Veronica paused, flitting over his torso. "You're not wearing a shirt."

Maddox smiled, a twinkle lighting up his hazel eyes. Veronica flushed despite the below freezing temperatures, her brown hair stuffed into a messy knot on her head.

"Did the person steal the disc?" he said, steering her to the gray couch.

"No. I scared him away. Or her."

"What do you know about the person?" he said. "Ramble, if necessary, but give me everything you saw, heard, smelled."

Veronica sighed.

"Sighing doesn't count as information."

She glared at him then closed her eyes to better visualize the scene from just a little while ago. It happened so fast and she was unprepared to pay attention. But as a designer, Veronica tended to absorb her surroundings automatically. While she concentrated, Maddox took the opportunity to admire how her face glowed in the lamplight. She was attractive even when disheveled.

"A ponytail." Veronica's eyes snapped open onto Maddox, who looked back at her intently. "I saw something swing in the moonlight and it had to be hair."

"We're looking for a woman then. That's interesting."

"Wait - you were at the scene when David Moore died. Did you see someone else?"

Maddox scratched his jaw.

"I saw a young woman - a brunette with a ponytail - walking in that area. She looked like she was out for an afternoon run."

"More like an afternoon murder."

"Not necessarily. David had a contact." He shook his head. "I saw her and didn't even know it. Or think about it for that matter."

"Yes, but the key word there is saw. You saw her. What did she look like?"

Maddox sighed.

"Sighing is not information."

He grinned, his eyes twinkling in a way that Veronica was fast getting used to.

"I deserve that," he said. "But you're right. It was only a glimpse, but that's more than we had a minute ago."

"This is all your fault, you know. I lived a simple, quiet life until you came along. Now I have people dying on top of my car and breaking into my house in the middle of the night! What is your problem?"

Maddox peeked at her slyly.

"If you worked for me, you'd find out."

Veronica crossed her arms over her chest.

"Tell me what you have that's causing all this hysteria and I might consider it."

Maddox rubbed his hands together.

"That's why I need your help. I've been suspicious for about six months now and did my own investigating. I thought we had a spy looking to steal information. But things took a turn, and I'm positive that's not what's going on."

"Then what is going on?"

Maddox pulled his glasses off, examining the lenses in the light.

"I won't agree to do anything until you give me the full story," Veronica said.

Maddox traipsed over to the kitchen.

"You'll need coffee for this one," he said. "Buckle up."

***

Come back next week for more Decode! If you missed the first three chapters, go here to catch up.