by P. A. Wilson
“I didn’t want you to judge. I was messed up on drugs and Andy was helping me. I thought you would be mad that I needed his help.”
Just like Didi, reading his emotions into her behavior. Had it always been this way? Had he been afraid of her judgment?
“Didi, I wanted you to get well. I don’t care if someone else helped you. I’ll be here for you now that you are ready to get completely clean.”
“I think Andy can do all the supporting I need, Nique. I don’t want to put you out.”
Her temper soared. This was just like Didi, making her feel guilty even when she tried to help. Andy was right. He needed to grow up and she wasn’t helping. She needed to fix herself before she took on any more of Didi’s problems. “Didi, stop being an asshole. I never walked away from you. I always put everything aside for you when you needed me. I have put up with your addiction all these years and never asked you for anything. Why don’t you give me a call when you grow up?” Monique clicked the phone shut. She felt a mixture of relief and regret in her heart. Knowing she was doing the right thing for her brother didn’t help her feel good about it. It made her wonder if this what it felt like when you let yourself feel something. Was it all anger?
Monique found a table in the back of the restaurant, one that was beginning to feel like her table. Jack put a coffee in front of her before she could ask and took her breakfast order with a smile, but none of the usual banter. Was that her fault? Did she look pissed off?
She blew out a breath and stirred sugar into the mug. She couldn’t spend the rest of her life lashing out. She’d call Didi later and try to make peace. Try to meet him and Andy for coffee and find a balance in that relationship.
A stack of pancakes slathered in syrup helped to soak up the remaining irritation. Monique phoned Tess when she couldn’t stuff another bite in her mouth.
“Can you get Maisie or someone to cover for a few nights?”
“Monique, you haven’t had more than a day off in the last two years. Why don’t you just take a week like a normal person?”
Rest sounded great, but she knew that she would be spending most of the time working out her relationship with Didi, and maybe doing the same thing with Rafe. “A week sounds about right. Are you sure?” She felt a little niggle of doubt, was Tess trying to ease her out?
“A week is as much as I’m sure about. You’re my biggest draw. I don’t want you going anywhere else. You need anything?”
“No, a week is fine. I’ll drop by for a drink in a couple of days to see how the new girls are doing.”
Tess said she’d hold Monique to that promise and then hung up.
Monique slid the phone into her pocket. Finishing her coffee, she tossed enough for the bill and a tip on the table, making sure Jack saw the money. She started walking to the hospital. Tess’s question ran through her mind. Did she need anything?
Maybe it was time to go back to therapy.
Tess wasn’t the hard businesswoman Monique thought she was. Could she be wrong about other people? Could she be so screwed up that she couldn’t imagine people were able to be kind as well as something else?
Fifteen minutes later, Monique put her head around the curtain that enclosed Rafe’s hospital bed. He was laying there with his eyes closed.
He had been beaten badly. His left eye was swollen and his lips were cracked. Under the blanket, his right arm looked too thick. It must be in a cast. That was going to be a problem for him in his line of work. A keyboard needed two working hands.
Another cast covered his leg.
Maybe if he couldn’t work, he’d take some time off too. Monique smiled at the thought of what it took for either of them to take a break.
His right eye opened. “Monique? You’re okay.” The relief came through the pain on his face. “Those guys are really dangerous. I thought you were dead.”
She touched his good hand under the blanket. “Nearly, but the cops came at the last minute. I’m a bit sore and bruised, but you…”
“I’ll be fine now that I know you’re okay. Is it over?”
She pulled up a stool that was tucked into the corner by the head of his bed. “I guess no one brought you up to date. Sorry about that.”
“Not your fault. I’ve been out of it for most of the night anyway.”
Monique placed a kiss on Rafe’s forehead to hide her sudden tears. She wiped her eyes before sitting on the stool. “The guy who killed Snake, and those two other guys across the hall, is behind bars along with his boss. He’s not happy to find out that he’s been working with a war criminal all this time. I’m hoping he’ll turn on the guy and let me off the hook for testifying.”
Rafe gave her hand a squeeze. “So it’s over.”
Monique swallowed to loosen her throat. “He said my dad was his role model.”
“What the hell. He said he knew your father? That he was a…”
Monique nodded. “Well not exactly, but my dad changed his name. Do you think it could be true?”
“We can find out,” Rafe said. “I can find out.”
Monique felt the heat of tears on her cheeks. Did she want to know? Would it change anything? “No, leave it. I think it’s better left in the past. Maybe I can start remembering the dad I had before he killed my mother.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” Rafe looked at the curtain around the bed across the room. “So, I guess you’ll be moving back into your place? That is, if you ever moved out.”
Monique’s heart squeezed. Was he giving her an out, or hoping she’d give him one? Being beaten up so badly could have changed his mind about wanting her to live with him, or even to be with her.
“I kind of half moved in. I had my stuff with me when I got to your place. You were gone. But your place isn’t livable right now. You can stay at my apartment until the cops are finished with it.”
He turned his head to look at her again. “I know you want us to be independent, but could you try living with me? At least for a while?”
She blew out a breath. “I don’t know if I can be who you want me to be. I do know something has changed in the last week.” She shook her head. “Oh my god, has it been only a week.”
He reached for her hand. “You only have to be you, Monique. I was just mad when I said those things. I know you can’t let people close. I’ll settle.”
Tears welled and she bit her lip to stop the sob. When she had control of her throat, she said, “You shouldn’t have to settle. I think I can try to embrace the dragons. I’m just going to need a lot of help.”
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OTHER BOOKS BY P.A. WILSON
MYSTERIES
Closing the Circle:
In the dark places of San Francisco, a serial killer ignores the Wiccan Rede. As the festival of Mabon nears, Sam and Felicity have to stop the final sacrifice.
Hubris: A Charity Deacon Investigation
For Charity, danger is just a way of life. She witnesses a car crash that covers a murder. Her latest client is a teenage hooker with a missing sister.
Greed: A Charity Deacon Investigation
France is unfamiliar territory for Charity and Lu as they race to find Audrey alive. French smugglers and police corruption all conspire to stop them from solving the case.
Ambition: A Charity Deacon Investigation
In this community of secrets, Charity and Val risk their lives to catch a killer with grand ambitions and a willingness to do whatever it takes.
SCIENCE FICTION
Breaking the Bonds:
25 years of brutality f
rom the Meta is enough. Three young colonists become unlikely rebels. Serena wants a future. Oisin wants Serena, and Michal wants freedom.
REBUILDING HOPE
A new series coming in 2016 exploring the way a small group of people rebuild a life of community as the towns die out for lack of people, resources, and hope.
A Need To Breathe: follow me on Amazon, or sign up for my newsletter so you can be notified when it’s available.
Lena can’t take it any longer. The rules are suffocating her and there is no future for anyone in New Surrey. After the measles plague and the suicides that followed, the world is a lonely place. She gathers a group of people who are desperate to escape to a freer life and they begin the journey to a place where they can breathe and build a future.
URBAN FANTASY
Imperative: The Quinn Larson Quests book 1
One dead human is a problem, and three is something Quinn can’t ignore. Someone has to stop the Fae before the humans commit a second genocide.
Compulsion: The Quinn Larson Quests book 2
The ancient druids have awoken and they have a hidden agenda. Quinn has an apprentice and a bossy fairy adding to his woes. Can he stop a meltdown and save the world again?
Obsession: The Quinn Larson Quests book 3
Dionne needs to be trained before the prophecy demands her life. The druids are on his back again, and Quinn is the only wizard standing between war and survival.
Imbalance: The Quinn Larson Quests book 4
Lionel is trapped in the horror of the Gur amulet. Dionne is about to change the world. Now Quinn has to help Trahaearn, Arch Druid of the west. He can’t find his followers.
All four books are available in a collection titled The Quinn Larson Quests
Druid: A Real Folk of Vancouver Novel
Trahaearn, longs for the simple times when a battle with vampires was his biggest worry. Now, Since the prophesy, all the fairies, sprites, sidhe glow and he has to stop the coming genocide.
FANTASY
Off Track: The Madeline Journeys book 1
Madeline has a purpose: to make partner at her law firm. Fate and powerful magic pull her off track and into a world she must save, but no one knows how.
The New Normal: The Madeline Journeys book 2
Her enemy from the law firm has been kidnapped to Cartref. Madeline’s magic is unpredictable, so it might be her fault. Can she save her enemy without killing her?
A Twist of Power: The Madeline Journeys book 3
An attacker with malic in his heart aims to destroy a child and lay claim to the Summer Lands. While Madeline searches for the attacker, someone is hunting her.
End of The Tunnel: The Madeline Journeys book 4
Pregnant and without her magic, Madeline is running out of time to save the world. An ally will betray her and a sacrifice will beak her heart, will it all be worth it?
All four books are available in a collection titled The Madeline Journeys
Family: The Elven Stones book 1
A mysterious contract and an oath that will kill them if they share the secret are the starting points on the quest to find the truth behind the myth of the stones.
ROMANCE
The Alice Street Inn: The Riverton Romances book 1
For Niki Winston, losing her job was like losing her whole life. Set adrift, she takes a chance on a job with someone she’s never met, and a second chance at love.
Cabin Fever Craving: The Riverton Romances book 2
Alicia is a PI who doesn’t make mistakes. But thinking of Max distracted her and now her target is on the run. Mountains, bears, or love won’t get in the way of fixing her mistake.
Room For Another: The Riverton Romances book 3
A grieving child and a vow to put him first leaves no room for Celeste to fall in love. She asks Flynn to do the renovation of her Victorian to save time, not because he’s sexy.
NON-FICTION
Write the Book Inside You:
Discover the secrets of getting your book from an idea to a fully developed story.
Writing a book starts with an idea. Learn the tips, tools and techniques to manage that stream of ideas. When you can manage your idea flow, it’s time to start drafting the story.
Having a book inside you crying to be told doesn’t go anywhere without a little help. Knowing what the 'experts' do isn't always helpful. Sometimes you just need a coach to lead you through the aspects of storytelling. This book will give you insights into how YOU write, and then a path to creating great characters, interesting story, and solid conflict.
Now that you have your first draft on the page, it’s time to revise. You might think revision is a chore, but having a great process to analyze the manuscript and tighten up the characters, plot, and tension is vital to polishing your gem and getting it ready to sell to a publisher, or to self-publish.
It’s an open world today for writers new and experienced. This book will give you everything you need to understand your innate talent and the tools to give you the help you need to get your story ready to sell.
Tired of wondering if you have a bestseller inside you? Buy this book today and stop wondering.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Perry Wilson is a Canadian author based in Vancouver, BC who has big ideas and an itch to tell stories. Having spent some time on university, a career, and life in general, she returned to writing in 2008 and hasn't looked back since (well, maybe a little, but only while parallel parking).
She is a member of the Vancouver Writers Social Group, The Royal City Literary Arts Society, and The Surrey Writing Workshop. Perry has self-published several novels. She writes the Madeline Journeys, a fantasy series about a high-powered lawyer who finds herself trapped in a magical world, the Quinn Larson Quests, which follows the adventures of a wizard named Quinn who must contend with volatile fae in the heart of Vancouver, and the Charity Deacon Investigations, a mystery thriller series about a private eye who tends to fall into serious trouble with her cases, and The Riverton Romances, a series based in a small town in Oregon, one of her favorite states. Her stand-alone novels are Breaking the Bonds, Closing the Circle, and The Dragon at The Edge of The Map.
Visit her website http://pawilson.ca/ and sign up for the newsletter subscription to get news on upcoming releases and book recommendations.
Check her out on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorPAWilson
She tweets between writing and creating on-line courses. Follow her @perryawilson for odd comments and retweets.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
People think that the process of writing is solitary. That’s not the case for me. I have help from so many people it would be hard to acknowledge everyone, but I’ll give it a try.
The support and inspiration I get from my writer’s groups is incalculable. The Vancouver Writers Social Group opens my mind to other ways of telling a story. The Royal City Literary Arts Society gives me the opportunity to meet and share with other writers who have more knowledge than I do. The Other 11 Months group is where I learn about getting the words on the page. And my critique group who helps me find the best parts of the story I want to tell. Thanks to all of the members of these great groups.
Last of all, but definitely a huge part of the process, my beta readers. These are the people who love stories and are willing, and more than able, to tell me if my finished story is ready for you, my readers.