by Michael Todd
Katie lifted her eyebrows with a grin. “Oh, yeah? And what exactly were you expecting to do?’
Brock blushed and let out a deep laugh. “Actually, I was just wondering if you wanted to grab dinner sometime—hopefully sooner rather than later.”
Katie took a deep breath, smiling seductively at him. He watched her with amusement as she opened a portal. Before stepping through, she smiled widely and winked.
As Calvin headed toward the kitchen to find Sofia, he said, “Nate, you and I are going to have a loooonnnggg talk about what you’ve been doing to me.”
Katie yawned as she stepped through the portal. It snapped shut behind her, and the smell of lavender hit her nose. She looked around her quiet room in the apartment overlooking the Notre Dame Cathedral. There were a couple of lavender-scented candles lit, flickering brightly on the dresser. The shadow of the flames danced over the walls, instantly sending relaxing vibes through Katie’s body.
She turned and faced the beds, finding Pandora sitting on the edge of hers wearing silk pajamas. She had a bowl of ice cream in her hand and held the spoon just inches from her mouth, staring at Katie. Katie burst into laughter and Pandora put the bowl on the dresser. She walked over to Katie and put her hands on her hips, staring into her eyes.
Katie looked back at her with a grin, finding more comfort in being near her than she had thought she would have. She guessed she’d missed her best friend more than she’d realized. Pandora took a deep breath. “Katie, I…”
Katie shook her head. “I missed you too, you stinking whore.”
Pandora laughed and pulled her into a hug, glad she was back in one piece.
It was a quiet night in West Texas. The moon was full and high, lighting the high plains below. Insects chirped in the fields, and the winter air was warmer than most other places. A small cloud drifted through the sky, floating in front of the moon.
Just outside of the town, there was a small cave hidden in the thick of the forest. The sound of water dripping from the walls echoed through the cavernous hollow, and the bats could be heard shifting through the night. Suddenly a low rumble began to shake pebbles loose from the ceiling, and the bats took off, racing out of the cave at a fevered pitch.
Black tentacles of smoke oozed across the slick stone, curving over the boulders and through the small cracks between the rocks. It flowed like a stream, rolling out of the cave and onto the leaf-covered ground beyond.
All at once, and without warning, the entire town woke, sitting straight up in their beds. Blood-curdling screams could be heard for miles.
Pandora entered Katie for only about twenty minutes that night. She was more than pissed to see the gash on her arm, and though it was healing faster than any normal person would, it wasn’t fast enough. She also didn’t want Katie to have a scar, and she knew that the angel magic wouldn’t prevent that from happening. Luckily, Pandora had the talent, and Katie had the need.
Afterward, exhausted, they both went to their separate beds, not far from each other. Pandora fell into a deep sleep with the moonlight drifting through the window. All was quiet for hours, but then Pandora woke up, sitting straight up in the bed with a gasp. She grabbed her chest and blinked her eyes, trying to pull herself from the terror surging through her entire body.
She pulled the covers back and got up, walking over to Katie’s bed. She poked her in the side several times until finally Katie groaned. “What?”
Pandora spoke meekly. “I had a nightmare.”
Katie sighed and rolled over on her back, pulling the covers away from her chest. “Mmhmm. Okay.”
Pandora smiled and dove into Katie, curling up in her spot. Both of them drifted back to sleep.
Protected By The Damned On Audio
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Author Notes - Michael Anderle
February 6, 2019
THANK YOU for not only reading this story but these Author Notes as well.
(I think I’ve been good with always opening with “thank you.” If not, I need to edit the other Author Notes!)
RANDOM (sometimes) THOUGHTS?
I can always learn.
Right now (or at least when I last checked) I am listed as the top Science-Fiction author on Amazon, and frankly, there is a TON of work I have to do to learn more.
I’m pretty damned ignorant right now.
What am I learning right now? About aspects of the story to help create moments that cause us to engage with the choices a character has to make.
Be true to themselves, or accept the dark side? (Jim is talking about Vader, “Join Me...”)
Now, I’m also far enough into my career that I have SEEN enough with my eyes to allow me to accept that not all prescriptive ways to set up a story are sacrosanct (nothing is, truly.)
But just because I have successfully created multiple stories that sell well does not mean that I have the only way to accomplish providing fun stories to my readers. I’m old enough to recognize that I’m blessed beyond what is right. I get to help create stories for readers like you.
The challenge is to make sure that I provide the basics that are true about my writing and yet change enough that it isn’t the same story every single time.
That is important to me as much as it is to the readers.
True, I enjoy lots of different genres, so I have some opportunities, but what is “always” true for most of my stories is that friends stick together and are there for each other.
And those collaborations which don’t work as well? It’s when my collaborator really wants to break this rule.
The Damned universe revolves around the story of Pandora and Katie. Their friendship, their sisterhood...
The fact that they have each other’s backs and neither heaven nor hell will break their bond.
And now, one more diamond chip from Jim Butcher:
“The climax is where you put the kid smashing the action figures together in charge.”
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS
One of the interesting (at least to me) aspects of my life is the ability to work from anywhere and at any time. In the future, I hope to re-read my own Author Notes and remember my life as a diary entry.
Antlers Hotel, Colorado Springs - Superstars Writing Seminars
Right now, Jim Butcher (of Dresden Files fame) is speaking about creating compelling plots and worlds.
I love it.
Unfortunately, I also have to write these author notes for Book 04 and for the most part, I’m hoping that he isn’t dropping a one or two sentence AHA! Moment as I have to split my time between writing this paragraph, ... (knife fight in a phone book? SHIT! What was that in reference to?) Damn, people are laughing, and I didn’t catch the full impact.
Oh, now we are on climaxes... No, not THAT type!
Get your mind out of the gutter.
Damn, now he is calling this “the money shot,” so I might have misspoken.
“The first step of any ending is isolation. Your protagonist stands alone and is the only one who can affect the solution.
Why? Because that is inherently scary.”
If you want to learn more, see about purchasing the audio from this year’s Superstars (I’m honestly not sure if they sell the audio for those who didn’t attend, but they DO sell it.)
That ad is in this Author Notes at no charge for Kevin J. Anderson ;-)
(Yes, I’m going to tell him that later tonight to see if I make him laugh.)
(P.S. - he is now talking about “the dark moment” - terrible, fearful, no space...)
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Ad Aeternitatem,
Michael Anderle
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Books by Michael Todd
PROTECTED BY THE DAMNED
Torn Asunder (1)
Killing Is My Business (2)
And Business Is Good (3)
Sit Down, Shut Up, And Pull The Trigger (4)
Welcome To The Jungle (5)
Metal Up Your Ass (6)
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (7)
For Whom The Bell Tolls (8)
WAR OF THE DAMNED
Resurrection Of The Damned (1)
No Quarter (2)
Dark Is The Night (3)
Dim Glows The Horizon (4)
Waking The Leviathan (5)
Subversive Giants (6)
Juntto (7)
Redemption (8)
WAR OF THE ANGELS
A Sacred Pact (1)
Katie’s War (2)
Baylahn (3)
Personal Demons (4)
DAMIAN’S CHRONICLES
Crucifix (1)
Renegade (2)
Apostle (3)
Books written as Michael Anderle
For a complete list of books by Michael Anderle, please visit:
www.lmbpn.com/ma-books/
All LMBPN Audiobooks are Available at Audible.com and iTunes
To see all LMBPN audiobooks, including those written by Michael Anderle please visit:
www.lmbpn.com/audible