Tag: scarletpen

Categories
Fiction

Abducted With Siri | Short Story

Sarah held her breath as the rope cut into her hands and down her thigh.
How did she end up here? It wasn’t how she thought her life would end… Trapped in a car, being kidnapped and taken who knows where.

The man in the driver’s seat was screaming something to the woman in the front passenger seat, but Sarah couldn’t tell what with the burlap sack over her head.
One moment, she had been feeding her cat at home, and the next….
It was all a little fuzzy.

They swerved around another corner, and Sarah was thrown against the back of their seats. She had been in the same position on her side for a long while, so the movement was a form of relief. As she was flung back into her place along the backseat, she groaned as her elbow hit the seatbelt buckle.

“We need to get to the house. If we don’t, someone will see her in the back!” the man yelled. Sarah tried to listen, having given up screaming for help a while ago.
They had been on the road for about an hour – as best as she could guess – and she had been trying to remember every turn they took.
“I know that Eric! I’m in this as much as you are. Just watch the roads, and let me handle the rest!”

Sarah was sure this wasn’t going to end well for her, but she couldn’t figure out why she’d been taken in the first place.
She was a teacher; a nobody. There wasn’t anything remarkable about her life, finances or relationships.

“We’re only halfway there, and we already need petrol,” the man said. Sarah could hear his frustration, and the car violently swerved again, with honking from another car filling the air.
They stopped and what felt like a gun was slammed into Sarah’s rib cage.
“If you say one word, we’ll kill you,” the woman hissed. A large blanket was thrown over Sarah and she immediately felt the heat around her.
She heard sounds of doors opening and closing, then silence. They had both left the car.
This was her chance.

Sarah moved her tied hands towards her pants pocket, trying to feel for her phone. It was gone.
“What now?” she asked aloud. Wriggling underneath the blanket, Sarah tried to get the sack to slip off her head so she could see around her. When it didn’t budge, she groaned. “Great job Sarah.”

“Go ahead, I’m listening.” The voice was familiar, but Sarah couldn’t place it. Had they taken another woman along with her? Why didn’t she realise before.
“Is anyone there?”
“I didn’t get that. Could you try again?”
The second phrase clicked, and Sarah smiled. Her phone was in the car; it could hear her voice and she had activated Siri.

“Siri, call 000.”
“Calling 000,” Siri replied.
Sarah quickly relayed her situation to the responder on the phone.
When the captors had returned to the car, Sarah left the phone on speaker in hopes that the operator could track her phone.
They sped away from the service station, and Sarah smiled underneath the blanket and the sack.

Finally, when they stopped the car again, she held her breath; this time, not from the rope along her thigh.
Doors opened and closed, and sirens sprang to life. Sarah heard two bodies being slammed against the car, and let out a sigh.
She had been rescued; thanks to Siri.

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

 

Categories
Life

The ULTIMATE Prank…?

“As she ducked behind an abandoned information counter, Hannah set herself up as if she worked there and sighed.
“You know I think this is a ridiculous idea right?” Zeke asked through their communication earwigs.
“Maybe, maybe not. The brain is an interesting maze,” Hannah said quietly as two pilots passed her on the tarmac.”

Okay, maybe we’re not all pulling pranks like pretending to work at an airport (because that would be illegal!), BUT I did want to ask a VERY important question.

I’ve NEVER been one for pranks. I Don’t enjoy being on the receiving end (but who does), but I Don’t enjoy the other side either. Call me a party pooper (many have already done so throughout my life), but I don’t find ‘messing with someone’ – and lying to them in order to have a joke at their expense – fun.

HOWEVER, I can appreciate Watching a good natured prank from afar (very afar).
As my example from a recent Hannah Carmichael instalment shows above, her prank was ULTIMATE stakes. Going to prison, being forced to leave where her mission was located, etc. and she got away with it!

200 (1)

I’d LOVE to know what your BEST prank was, and if you got away with it, or told got away with it without consequences?

If you want to check out the Hannah Carmichael instalment from above, head to this link:
https://atomic-temporary-148610121.wpcomstaging.com/2020/03/16/whatnow-hcc68/

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Fiction

Birthday Surprise.. | Furious Fiction

“New shoes?”
“That’s what it says.”
Emma looked up and frowned. They were in Aimee Park and they were already losing light. “How are we going to find those, when the shops are over an hour away? We only have thirty minutes left.”
Stacey shrugged. “Guess we move on to the next item on the list.”
Even though Emma was nineteen today, a scavenger hunt was still her mothers idea of a birthday party. “Why didn’t mum let me plan my own birthday? We could have gone Sky Diving, or Spelunking, or even the Desert Storm Escape Room I wanted to go to. But no, we have to do a scavenger hunt.” Emma huffed and sat on a bench, crossing her arms. “I say we give up and just go to the final meeting location.”
Stacey turned and shook her head. “Don’t you want to win at your own birthday party?” she asked, putting her hands on her hips.
Emma shrugged. “Who cares,” she moaned, looking up at the sky. The blue was fading into black, and she shivered.
“What if the prize turns out to be your present?” Stacey asked.
Emma looked back at her friend and chuckled. “Then someone else is getting my birthday present. Come on, let’s go.”
Stacey frowned but reluctantly followed Emma back to where they had parked the car.
“Can we at least bring the list with us?” Stacey asked, half a step behind Emma.
She rolled her eyes. “If you have-” Emma froze, and Stacey bumped into her.
She grunted and Emma heard her fall backwards.
“Hey!” Stacey cried from the ground. Her eyes were wide, and her heart was in her throat, but not because of Stacey.
Emma stared at a mysterious man two feet away.
He was tall, with a scruffy beard, and his eyes were hard and dark. She swallowed, transferring her gaze to the pistol hanging by his side. Stacey gasped, and the man took a step closer, snarling and nodding towards Emma’s bag.
“Money.” His voice was gruff and he coughed lightly. Emma tried to move her arm to give him the bag. When it refused to cooperate, he frowned and took another step closer.
“Money!” he yelled, glancing left and right. Stacey moved past Emma and threw her own bag closer to him. He looked down at it and smiled.
Emma swallowed, and Stacey tapped her shoulder.
He looked back to Emma, and nodded towards her bag.
“Your turn.” His voice was low, and he stepped closer again. Emma retreated slightly, feeling Stacey pull the bag off her shoulder and throw it at him.
The man smiled and reached down, picking up both bags and the girls stood frozen, until he was out of view.
Stacey finally exhaled and wrapped Emma in a hug.
When she pulled away, Emma gave a half hearted smile and shrugged. “Happy Birthday to me.”

–I dug deep into my archives for this story! I’m glad I found it, but hope your Birthday’s haven’t been quite as dramatic as this.
I’d love to hear YOUR Birthday Disaster stories though – my worst one was being sick (for the 3rd time in a row) and the dog peeing all over me while I lay in bed… not fun.
YOUR TURN!

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Fiction

Mechanical Issue | Short Story

DeeDee searched her purse again, the frown lines deepening on her forehead.
She knew she had left her keys in that side pocket, but they were nowhere to be found.
With a frustrated groan, DeeDee tipped the entire bag upside down on the cafe table, searching through the contents.
“Are you okay DeeDee?” Andrea, her best friend, was sipping a cappuccino, and had been watching her frantically search for the last five minutes.
“Yes, I just knew my keys were in here.” DeeDee rolled her eyes at the smug look on her friends face. “I didn’t lose them again, they’re just missing.”
Andrea let out an ‘Mmhmm’ and continued with her coffee.

Where had she had them last?
DeeDee dropped the lipstick onto the table and closed her eyes, picturing where she remembered them last.
The Mechanic.
Flipping her eyes open, Andrea frowned with a shrug. “Why the concern? Did you leave them in the fridge?”
DeeDee shook her head. “I think I left them at that mechanic place.”
Andrea shrugged. “Okay, so you left them there. Now you know where they are, and you can go get them, right?”

She knew her best friend was right, but there was something about the mechanic that had made her nervous. Now he had her house keys, along with the car keys.
“What if he copies them? Then comes into my house to burgle me?”
Andrea rolled her eyes. “Oh come on DeeDee, be serious. He’s running a business, just like you do, and just like this cafe owner does. He wouldn’t get repeat customers if he went around robbing them when they left their keys by mistake.”

Andrea was right, of course. DeeDee knew that. All the way home, she tried to convince herself of that fact. The mechanic would probably call her in the morning, when her custom work was done and let her know about they keys.
Her driver dropped her off at home, and she thanked him. Ringing the doorbell, her maid answered and let her in.
She’d explain the missing keys to Steven, and he wouldn’t mind of course. As much as she hated to admit it, Andrea was right; she often lost her keys.
Steven would be home tomorrow, the car would be finished, and life could resume as normal.

DeeDee tried to calm her nerves with a drink, then settled in to watch her favourite reality show. As the maid said goodnight, the house became very large, and very quiet.
Reassuring herself over, and over, DeeDee jumped when the sound of a doorknob turning in the other room cracked the silence.
“Hello?” she called out, hoping for no response.

Quietly, she slipped off the couch, and stood beside the door to the small lounge. If a burglar was coming in here, DeeDee would be ready to fight for her life.
She looked around her, and picked up a small bust of Aristotle. It was heavy, but she held it just above her and waited. The doorknob began to turn, and she held her breath, preparing herself.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhh!” She screamed, stepping back and giving a half hearted throw, of the heavy bust. It fell to the floor where her feet had stood just a moment before, and she exhaled loudly.
“Steven! You scared me!”
Her husband stared back at her; confusion and compassion all over his face.
This wasn’t the first time that DeeDee had read into something that wasn’t real; and it probably wouldn’t be the last.

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

CGSP Facebook Live Recap (May2020)

Did you miss the Facebook Live that happened on the CGSP FB site last week?

Most people did, but that could be because it was in the middle of a work day. What with me working from home right now, I didn’t take that into account. BUT, fear not, because aside from moving the day to a Saturday for the next one (which will include a ‘Dramatic Reading’ of the Hannah Carmichael Chronicles COLD STEEL (ONE) chapter), I’m also including the video here for you to Re-watch!

 

Hope to see you at the NEXT FB Live, otherwise…

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

Into the Chopper…?

“Why yes, I’d love to just jump into that flying sardine can above the city with no possible escape. I’ve forgotten all those times we’ve tried to kill each other. It’s all good – let’s go!”

That sounds like the most ridiculous and illogical statement i’ve ever heard; and Yet, it’s just what Hannah Carmichael and her team did at the end of Instalment 70.

tenor

Why? Why would you do that? The enemy inside the helicopter was surely going to kill you over the water near the city and shove you out, right?
For Hannah, she wanted answers, and something in her gut told her it was okay.

For me, however, I don’t know if I would have quite that much trust that an enemy of mine would have MY best interest at heart when they scooch over and pat the seat next to them.

Sometimes it doesn’t look like we have another option, except to jump into the unknown – or the known which seems dangerous – with the outcome something we can only Hope, ends up okay.

What’s the ‘Helicopter Pilot’ in your life that you don’t want to jump into, but have no other options?
Is it that Job that will give you money to support yourself and your family, but give you no fulfilment?
Is it that relationship with a family member or potential spouse, which you know isn’t good for YOU, but you can’t step away without them falling apart on their own?

Whether your helicopter holds potential, or toxicity, sometimes taking the risk will work out (maybe that job will lead to the one you really want), but sometimes we get thrown out of the ‘sardine can’ and into the water below (maybe your relationship is damaging you more, than it is saving someone else).
When it comes down to making a decision, I hope you decide what’s worth the risk (just like Hannah did).

If you want to check out the FINAL HCC instalment for SEASON 1 – head to the link:
https://atomic-temporary-148610121.wpcomstaging.com/2020/03/24/instinct-hcc70/

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Inspiring

What’s Stopping You…?

Hello friends; writers, readers, life livers, everyone really.

WHAT’S STOPPING YOU?

I found myself in an interesting position recently. Along with everyone else, I’ve been in lockdown at home – which means i’ve been able to write more and work on my 1st book manuscript a lot (which is great!).
So, when a familiar writing competition entered my view a month before Coronavirus, I thought

I don’t have time. My manuscript won’t be at a point where I want others to read it. I can’t get it to the ‘good point’ in just a month and a half. My plot is being kept under wraps for now, so I don’t want to share it.

And on, and on, goes the list.

After being able to pay A LOT of attention to the manuscript, I realised that the competition I had seen (and entered several times before – coming in 2nd in 2011 thank you very much!) was still open – For 2 more weeks…

Then you have the excuses like

Will it be good enough in 2 weeks? I can only do ONE solid round of edits – perhaps 2 if I get my butt into gear. 

Eventually though, I committed to it, and edited the crap out of that manuscript! I surprised myself and did 2 good rounds of edits, AND made the deadline with 2 days to spare 😀

I stepped out of my comfort zone, where I felt my work was ready to show, where I felt I didn’t have time, where I wasn’t sure of the outcome; and jumped head first!

So, what’s stopping you from chasing that dream you’ve been pushing off? Is it fear of failure, or because you just don’t have the time (or won’t prioritise the time…??)?

I’m so excited to have thrown my hat in the ring this year, and I know that my work is heads above anything i’d ever entered before. Regardless of the outcome, I did it. I stepped out and wasn’t afraid of failure.

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

Tear My Hair Out!!!!

This past week, i’ve had the joy of tearing out my hair with frustration.
I’m sure you can relate somehow – but EVERYTHING went wrong with something in particular.

I had a short turn around writing deadline this week for another project (more on that another day), so I was already under the pump with a Packed week of work! So, when I had pre-planned the Hannah Carmichael Chronicles eBook release, it was something I’d already arranged, I had ready to go, and all I had to do was upload and GO!

I WAS WRONG! 

It came to Friday (release day), and I logged on thinking it would be easy street. Nope. Almost anything that I could have thought of went wrong.

FRIDAY – RELEASE DAY

  • I couldn’t use the eBook platform I had planned on, and had to quickly change it to Amazon Kindle (not a biggie, it was already on my list. I can do this – just a minor change)
  • I couldn’t upload in the BEAUTIFUL PDF version I had worked HOURS to create. So I had to transfer everything to a Word Document (Hours, and hours, and hours, wasted on formatting, making it look good etc… I’m feeling disappointed but we can still do this!)
  • Spent about an hour transferring it into a word doc, and still making it look good – picked nice fonts, tried to make it look snazzy etc. Uploaded it, previewed it, then realised – NONE of my fonts transferred over, and it looked crap! (Definitely frustrated at this point. All the normal fonts are bollocks, I want the pretty ones. Another hour down the tubes…)
  • Noticed also, that there was no Table Of Contents for people to find each chapter (great… another thing to change)
  • Went back and re-formatted AGAIN – added the TOC, changed all the fonts to an acceptable ‘staple’ font that Amazon would have (Another hour of my life gone, and i’m starting to run late with all the other things I had planned that day)
  • Uploaded it AGAIN, and previewed – only to notice that in the transfer, Some of my titles and words which were supposed to be capitalised were NOT! (Wouldn’t annoy some, but for a nit picker like myself, it was excruciating. Screaming out in frustration at this point, and very close to hair pulling)
  • Fixed. Uploaded. Proud of how it looks. Pending review. (Wait, what?? It could take a few days!! I hadn’t factored that in.)
  • Posted an update to everyone on Social Media that my book was officially delayed. (Waiting until tomorrow – it’s another day!)

SATURDAY… FINGERS CROSSED

  • Woke up to see that Hannah Carmichael is LIVE and ready to go. (Fantastic! Yesterday is behind me)
  • Went onto Facebook to set up some promotions. Realised that the eBook cover was not in line with advertising policy. Ad account deactivated. (What!!?? How was I supposed to know a crime book cover would make Facebook crap themselves?? All the frustration of yesterday is coming back. NOW is the hair pulling!)
  • Put in a review for Facebook to re-activate my account. Book still Live, hardly anyone knows about it however. Found out that it can take from 2 weeks to 6 months to re-activate (NOW the hair pulling is in full swing!)

SUNDAY… LAST CHANCE

  • Woke up to a message that the advertising on Facebook is now activated once again. Uploaded the ads. Approved (1, not both). Finally sorted…

Sometimes we plan something out TO THE LETTER, but life, circumstances and other people can de-rail out plans. It’s how we deal with it that matters.
I joked about pulling out my hair, but the truth is, although all of that was frustrating, end of the day? It’s all okay. Set-backs are a part of life, and I’m glad I had them – because now I can learn from the frustration of my writing weekend.

If you want to download the Hannah Carmichael Chronicles eBook – head to the book preview link below! I’d love for you to get lost in the spy journey!

I WANNA READ IT

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace