A gang enforcer is sent to Sleaford to snatch back a mobster's woman - and take down his rival...McTeague's once trusted friend and associate, Wheelan, has broken off part of the older mobster's crime empire around the east Midlands. Far worse, Wheelan has also taken McTeague's much younger second wife, Claire, away with him.Knowing the rest of his empire will fall away or defect to Wheelan if he fails to act, McTeague sends his trusted and lethal enforcer, Hennessy, to Sleaford to show Wheelan who is chief and to take Claire back home. So Hennessy starts a campaign of violence until Wheelan has no choice but to return Claire. But that is only the start of both gang boss's problems... 

Taro Takeda had missed out on a university place by one percentage point and had been unsuccessful in every job interview that had required a tie or a skill. All that was left for him was an offer from the Tokyo crime boss, Tokin Mikoto. Could it be an opportunity to find a place in a city that had turned its back on him? Or was he destined to be just another lost nobody, a weed in the jungle?Inspired by a JA Konrath challenge to write, edit, create a cover, and publish a short story in eight hours or less. A Career Move - A crash-landed alien tries to find his career path but isn't having much luck...3072 word short story (teen+ appropriate)Capture At The Hive - The Evil Queen Mother has finally captured General Megatron, Defender of the Galaxy. 421 word flash fiction story (safe for children)

Set in a country in Southeast Asia, three conservation activists - who are unlikely friends - continue in their struggle to save endangered wildlife from being sold and exploited, including rescuing the enigmatic 'Pangolin'.They are unaware that they are being watched and face a great danger, an ancient enemy, once familiar to man, but now forgotten.Set in a country in Southeast Asia, three conservation activists - who are unlikely friends - continue in their struggle to save endangered wildlife from being sold and exploited, including rescuing the enigmatic 'Pangolin'.They are unaware that they are being watched and face a great danger, an ancient enemy, once familiar to man, but now forgotten.At the same time, a Captain in the elite 5th Recon Unit is brought back to face an unspoken tragedy that no one believes happened, whilst elsewhere, recent supernatural events re-activate secretive vanguard for human salvation: The LIMA.

A riveting novel featuring forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan—a story of infanticide, murder, and corruption, set in the high-stakes, high-danger world of diamond mining. A woman calling herself Amy Roberts checks into a Montreal hospital complaining of uncontrolled bleeding. Doctors see evidence of a recent birth, but before they can act, Roberts disappears. Dispatched to the address she gave at the hospital, police discover bloody towels outside in a Dumpster. Fearing the worst, they call Temperance Brennan to investigate. In a run-down apartment Tempe makes a ghastly discovery: the decomposing bodies of three infants. According to the landlord, a woman named Alma Rogers lives there. Then a man shows up looking for Alva Rodriguez. Are Amy Roberts, Alma Rogers, and Alva Rodriguez the same person? Did she kill her own babies? And where is she now? Heading up the investigation is Tempe’s old flame, Homicide Detective Andrew Ryan. His counterpart from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is Sergeant Ollie Hasty, who happens to have a little history with Tempe himself, which she regrets. This unlikely trio follows the woman’s trail, first to Edmonton, and then to Yellowknife, a remote diamond-mining city deep in the Northwest Territories. What they find in Yellowknife is more sinister than they ever could have imagined.

They won't stay dead ... Jesse and Willy are violent people, criminals who drift from city to city, one step ahead of disaster. Jesse has a dream reminding her of a boy who once fell in love with her, a boy named Tom. Tom is no longer shy and withdrawn. He harbors in his house an ugly, devastating secret. Their paths cross ... and the dead rise from their graves - who will survive the encounter?They won't stay dead .... Who will survive the encounter? Jesse and Willy are violent people, criminals who drift from city to city, one step ahead of disaster. Jesse has a dream reminding her of a boy who once fell in love with her, a boy named Tom whose family was wealthy and generous, living a carefree lifestyle. Jesse persuades Willy to drive her to Tom's hometown with the last of their money. She is convinced the images in her head mean something and their luck will change. Willy could not care less one way or the other. They have no idea what they are getting themselves into. Tom has gone from being a shy, but beautiful boy to becoming a hostile loner with murderous intentions. He harbors in his house an ugly, devastating secret. A secret which is the source of great wealth, but also the source of immeasurable pain ... Their paths cross ... and the dead rise from their graves ... who will survive the encounter?

Who needs monsters when you have your fellow humans to worry about? Pirates are the bane of interstellar travel. So when Lora wakes up in a low-ox hold with the bodies of her crew, it’s pretty clear what happened. But why is she still breathing, and wearing an emergency mask that’s not hers?Who needs monsters when you have your fellow humans to worry about? Pirates are the bane of interstellar travel. So when Lora wakes up in a low-ox hold with the bodies of her crew, it’s pretty clear what happened. But why is she still breathing, and wearing an emergency mask that’s not hers?Cosmic Justice is part of a series of thrilling, short genre stories. They can be anything from science fiction, to horror, high fantasy and detective noir. Most will be stand-alone stories, so you don’t have to worry about reading them in order. The description will tell you what to expect in each case, so just pick one that tickles your fancy.This is a short story. A neat, complete package of excitement and thrill that you can read in the time it takes to travel the average commute. Perfect when you’re looking for a dash of entertainment or distraction in a busy schedule. Or when you love stories and spaceships.

In the previous story, Carla suspected her husband Steve was having an affair with Jim's girlfriend Jessica. She enlisted the help of Jim Money to discover the truth.Sometimes, the truth can set you free. And sometimes..The truth can have you RUNNING FOR YOUR LIFE!In the previous story, Carla suspected her husband Steve was having an affair with Jim's girlfriend Jessica. She enlisted the help of Jim Money to discover the truth.Sometimes, the truth can set you free. And sometimes..The truth can have you RUNNING FOR YOUR LIFE!In Bon Appétit, Jim and Carla learned the true nature of Steve and Jessica's relationship. NOW THEY'RE RUNNING FOR THEIR LIVESThe truth turned out to be far more sick and more sinister than either Jim or Carla could have ever imagined. And now, with the truth in hand, the pair must run if they want to live to see another day.THIS IS THE SECOND INSTALLMENT OF THE JIM MONEY STORIES.Here are the other stories in chronological order:Bon Appétit EscapeOn the RunJamesBUSTED: a Prequel to the Jim Money StoriesABOUT THE AUTHOR:Former professional poker player Glenn Gamble is an author from Chicago, IL who doesn't have one of those inspiring stories where he goes to the state penitentiary to discover his gift for writing amazing stories. Instead, he worked on his craft during long romantic dates at Starbucks and Panera Bread with his laptop and a story. His inspiration came from friends who encouraged him to pursue his dreams to become a writer. Without a prison sentence, Gamble has managed to pen A Thousand Chances, Bon Appetit, Escape, On the Run, James, and Busted; and is currently writing future installments of both the Jim Money and Darius Blaylock Poker Series.In his spare time, Gamble likes to watch Chicago Bulls games, drop twitter bombs from the sky, slam facebook with status updates, and bet on low-stakes rat and roach races taking place in various public housing project apartments across the United States.

Whenever you hear the sky rumble, that usually means a storm. In Virgil Flowers’ case, make that two. The exceptional new thriller from the writer whose books are “pure reading pleasure” (Booklist) The first storm comes from, of all places, the Minnesota zoo. Two large, and very rare, Amur tigers have vanished from their cage, and authorities are worried sick that they’ve been stolen for their body parts. Traditional Chinese medicine prizes those parts for home remedies, and people will do extreme things to get what they need. Some of them are a great deal more extreme than others -- as Virgil is about to find out. Then there’s the homefront. Virgil’s relationship wi th his girlfriend Frankie has been getting kind of serious, but when Frankie’s sister Sparkle moves in for the summer, the situation gets a lot more complicated. For one thing, her research into migrant workers is about to bring her up against some very violent people who emphatically do not want to be researched. For another…she thinks Virgil’s kind of cute. “You mess around with Sparkle,” Frankie told Virgil, “you could get yourself stabbed.” “She carries a knife?” “No, but I do.” * Forget a storm – this one’s a tornado.

It's adventure, romance, geography and European culture. Preston and Angie seem to work with angels in fighting evil.Set in the current time or near future in the Benelux region of Europe, this novel explores the geography from the ground level and takes not of native culture while examining a current social problem: child prostitution. The author draws on his actual experience traveling around the Benelux but adds a few fictional elements to create the setting for an engaging story of two people. Preston is an American expat and freelance photographer who stumbles across something sinister and almost loses his life. In the process, he is joined by a Dutch woman who decides to help him. They fall into a powerful romance as they travel around the Benelux, sometimes fleeing pursuit and sometimes chasing the devils of our times. It becomes obvious they have help on more than one level.

A beautiful plantation home in Georgia's Appalachian region bears witness to a horrific murder and hosts a bloodthirsty demon hell-bent on vengeance.This is the first translation into English of the verse drama Germanicus by the Afrikaans poet N.P. Van Wyk Louw. The work was based on the first three chapters of the Annales of the Roman historiographer Tacitus. After the death of Emperor Augustus, his successor Tiberius’ adopted son Germanicus recoils from the cruelty inherent in imperial rule. In the end he helplessly acquiesces, finally welcoming his own death as a means of escape from the burden of empire. The drama has been considered a highlight in Afrikaans literature since its publication in 1956. Its interest lies in its amazing sweep of words, Louw’s sense of history and his portrayal of the inevitability of the corruption inherent in power. Louw’s great monologues dominate the debates between his main protagonists. His poetic Afrikaans had a grand eloquence that swept his audience along in a torrent of densely-argued meaning. Such conciseness offered severe challenges to the translator. Claassen’s colloquial translation manages to capture both the essence of Louw’s dramatic dialogues and the rhythmic cadences of the original poetry. The translator provides a lengthy Introduction, aimed at both a classical and a theatre-going readership, explaining the historical background and discussing Louw’s interpretation of Tacitus’ narrative and the constraints under which a translator works. A brief overview of the contents of the drama’s eight scenes is followed by a select bibliography.

A man wakes up tied to a chair and gets told by two strangers that they will let him go if he gives them what they want.In the world of Mirmina, some people are born with special gifts. They have the ability to control the elements--Water, Fire, Wind, Earth, or Lightning. Endowed with these powers, Elementals must maintain the balance of nature or suffer the consequences: whirling hurricanes and great dust storms that ravage the land. When one Elemental becomes too powerful and seeks to unravel the balance, he inspires fear in the people of Mirmina. Hephaestus, a Fire Elemental, has built a kingdom in the mountains, and he has been killing Water Elementals. Now, he wants the spheres, the source of the Elementals' powers, and he will do whatever it takes to get them. When Sara discovers that she is the last surviving Water Elemental, she learns that she has two choices, to hide herself away forever or to face her enemy. She chooses to fight. Sara sets out on her journey with a group of brave companions. Together, they must battle Sphere Protectors, great beasts that guard the element spheres. Sara plans to stop Hephaestus before he gets the element spheres and uses them to force all other Elementals to their knees. But little does she know, there is a traitor in her midst who can undo everything. Debut author, L. M. Peralta, weaves a tale mystery, betrayal, and the misuse of power.

Some stories end happily ever after, yet in places where reality thins, insanity thrives, and darkness lurks, there are no happily ever afters, just Dead Ends.Some stories end happily ever after, yet in places where reality thins, insanity thrives, and unimaginable monsters live, there are no happily ever afters, just Dead Ends. Introducing the City of West Creek, this series takes you through stories of the macabre, where darkness is at home, and evil is king.The stories within this collection include: Creeping Death, Blood Letting, Crickets, Tall Trees, The Harvest Moon, The Hunters, Looped, The Barking, and SequaWord count including afterword: over thirty five thousandIncludes terrifying situations, descriptions of violence and gore, and such mature themes.

St. Francis knew it, Bobby McGee learned it, and Andrew Thurston meets the realization head on.Eve is a nobody – just a dirty, mentally challenged homeless woman who stands on a street corner in her rags and "prophesies." But she knows exactly what she possesses, what most of those who pity her don't have."Eve's Refusal" is a Flannery O'Connor-esque short story of approximately 3,400 words.St. Francis knew it, Bobby McGee learned it, and Andrew Thurston meets the realization head on.Eve is a nobody – just a dirty, mentally challenged homeless woman who stands on a street corner in her rags and "prophesies." But she knows exactly what she possesses, what most of those who pity her don't have.Eve refuses to take advantage of the social programs and for a good reason. She refuses to submit to the medical procedure and the progress monitoring, preferring instead to keep what she has.Eve has an important lesson to teach Andrew Thurston, Director of the Social Equity and Rehabilitation Department, who is determined to help her. And it's a lesson he learns the hard way."Eve's Refusal" is a Flannery O'Connor-esque short story of approximately 3,400 words.

Sometimes when you get what you want, you realize it isn't what you really wanted.A grain of sand wants to be something else. After becoming a beautiful pearl, the grain realizes it was happier as a grain of sand.