Fiction

Shadows in Velvet - Part 1
The city of Verashtel didn’t sleep. It dreamed. Gilded bridges arched over canals where swan-headed gondolas glided silently, their lanterns glowing in shades of rose-gold and sea-glass green. Perfumed smoke curled from rooftop hookahs. Courtesans and spies wore mirrored masks that shimmered with spells to hide their true faces. Even the moon, pale and proud above the city’s spires, seemed half-masked behind silver clouds.
By Richard Baileyabout a year ago in Chapters
Businesswoman Chapter 161
With an incredulous eye, Atkinson looked at the headline on his smartphone. “‘Hometown hero saves the day at high school graduation,’” he read aloud.
By Skyler Saundersabout a year ago in Chapters
Clear Water: The Deputy
Andrew Holt didn’t take calls before 5AM. But, when he saw Ellie Elridge’s name on his phone, he picked it up on the first ring.
By R. B. Boothabout a year ago in Chapters
Businesswoman Chapter 160
Light perspiration formed at “Entrepreneur Paul” Atkinson’s temples. The graduates sat before him as he and the rest of the panelists on the dais surveyed the thousands in the crowd. There existed the irony that Atkinson would deliver the commencement speech to the high school in which he dropped out not too long ago. He had memorized his speech. He had spent enough time at the school to know the hangout spots and the rituals that some of the upperclassmen participated in during this time.
By Skyler Saundersabout a year ago in Chapters
The lord's Silent Bride Part 2
The golden light of morning spilled gently through the open silk curtains, casting soft patterns across the polished floors of the castle dining hall. The clink of porcelain echoed faintly, delicate and refined, as breakfast was served in elegant lacquered dishes.
By Tsume's talesabout a year ago in Chapters
A Ship Was Gaining
1782 Mary Read. Calico Jack. Anne Bonny. Our names were known to many upon the seas, and outside of them. We were wanted, dead or alive. Although if we were to be brought alive, we would just end up dead. Really, the saying should be dead or deader; you can’t win either way.
By Lunaabout a year ago in Chapters
Mary Read
1782 The day we met Mary Read, we were anchored at another dock, to resupply and celebrate our newest spoils. Our usual method of celebration was enjoying the pleasures of the local tavern, drinking our fill and flirting with anything that had legs.
By Lunaabout a year ago in Chapters
Businesswoman Chapter 159. Top Story - June 2025.
As the trio rode to the ThruMotors site, electricity hung in the air. Excitement abounded. Their pay cuts didn’t mean as much as the value of further extending the reach of privatization in Delaware of various government organizations. Atkinson peered out the window.
By Skyler Saundersabout a year ago in Chapters
Pirate Queen. Content Warning.
APRIL 2025 It takes time for their tears to dry, but dry, they eventually do. However, the sadness clearly still lingers in the air between them.
By Lunaabout a year ago in Chapters
SlenderPump Rules
The walls of PUMP hadn't changed in four years. The neon still pulsed soft pink. The booths still felt velvety soft. And the smell--spiced alcohol, polished leather, and something else faintly unnatural--still hit the same way when you walked in.
By Shannon Writes about a year ago in Chapters
Businesswoman Chapter 158
Federal agencies disbanded. One of them, the United States Automobile Department (USAD) , had been sold to a private company called ThruMotors. Loreen hosted Lisa and Atkinson.
By Skyler Saundersabout a year ago in Chapters
Businesswoman Chapter 157
Preparation for speeches gave Loreen time to think. She understood the role it played in her psyche. The order, the timing, the way she could earn three hundred million dollars for just delivering a message. When she had laid down the first draft of the speech, she journeyed to the firing range on her property and left off a few rounds.
By Skyler Saundersabout a year ago in Chapters