Shay rolled her eyes. He could send her a text without the complicated set-up.
Her phone chimed again.
Oh, and if you’re wondering why I didn’t just send you a text, I wanted to test the new system. It has applications other than sending messages.
Shay snickered. Boys and their toys.
She wandered into the office to take a seat in front of the computer. No job or tracing alerts defaced the screen. Everything was calm for once.
After risking Peyton and her own exposure in New York, Shay welcomed a little tranquility. Between the Harriken and her recent tomb raids, it seemed like she didn’t have time to catch her breath.
A soft smile came to her face. Money was flowing in, and her tomb raider reputation was only growing. She’d established more contacts, including a gnome, and she’d managed to tweak the nose of the New York underworld without them having any clue it was her.
Her life plan was starting to crystalize into an actual achievable goal. She could earn the money she needed to retire in safety, and much faster than she ever thought possible.
Shay hadn’t planned on a few road bumps, including Peyton, Brownstone, and Alison, but she’d dealt with the situations and not ended up dead or exposed, which was all that mattered. She smiled at the thought of all her new friends.
Shay stood so quickly she knocked the chair back. Friends?
She turned the word over in her mind a few times. Yes, friends. It wasn’t like Bella and her crew, who were just a nice group of girls she could pretend with for a few hours. Peyton and Brownstone knew the brutal truth of Shay’s past and didn’t flinch away. Alison could peer into her very soul and declared it beautiful.
These people weren’t work contacts to be ignored except when on the job. She’d even helped Brownstone avenge his dog and Alison her mother.
There was one unescaped truth confronting Shay.
“Fuck. I don’t just have a life plan. I think I actually have a life.” She burst out laughing as a smile spread across her face.
FINIS
Author Notes - Martha Carr
Written May 20, 2018
It’s 8:29 p.m. on Sunday night and Zen Master Steve is waiting for these notes. I’m bleary-eyed tired from all the reading, writing, editing, typing I’ve been doing lately but I’m in the home stretch. Throwing in getting the house ready for sale (and a surprise open house this weekend that I found out about on Monday…). It’s true what they say – buying and selling a house is one of the most stressful things you can do. Pile on top of that collaborating in the LMBPN world where time burbs regularly happen and we step through the tardis and BLAM! another book is coming out.
It’s all felt like an at home science experiment on endurance – still worth it! I haven’t been on the Facebook groups that much this past week but I’m still here, typing away and the snippets totally got away from me. (Does this count as one giant snippet?)
The good news is there are now four, count ‘em FOUR series that are all connected to each other in Oriceran. The Unbelievable Mr. Brownstone, I Fear No Evil (that’s Shay), Rewriting Justice (Leira 2.0) and The School of Necessary Magic (hello Alison). I get to see a behind-the-scenes sneak peek at how they’re all connected, what’s coming next and who’s doing what to who and it’s some good stuff. Stuff I cannot tell you and will blow your mind when we all get there stuff. That’s what keeps me up late at night still typing.
Besides, you guys are funny and touching and share your lives with me online and we’ve all grown to be a very large, raucous family who share pictures and events – and favorite lines from books. It’s the best.
In other news… the new house is coming right along. Drywall is up… brick has not arrived. A few couples came through for the open house and then in dry central Texas the heavens opened up and buckets of rain fell. Still all good. One way or the other we’ll all get to the finish line together. Have I said I’m looking forward to when it’s the Fall?
Until then, thank you for reading this story. BLAM! Another Brownstone is coming out this week, and then a Leira 2.0 – first one! is coming out next week – and then the first School of Necessary Magic – Dark is Her Nature is out. Then we start it all over again.
In all the 30 years I’ve been writing I wished, prayed, begged for a time like this and it’s more than I could have ever hoped for – I say it all the time but it just keeps getting better and so, I’ll say it again. Grateful for all of the Great Fans and for Michael Anderle and LMBPN and his magic Tardis. BLAM! More adventures to follow.
Author Notes - Michael Anderle
Written May 20, 2018
OOOOOO HHOOOOLLLY CRRRRAAPPPPP…
Before I wax philosophically on the right or wrong way to publish and push the envelope, let me say THANK YOU for not only reading this story, but you read all the way through to these authors notes, as well. We try to bring you characters shaped into stories that you will enjoy.
Now, a bit about what is going on…
EXPLOSIONS (of books.)
Here we are, with Shay #2 having already released TUMB 03 (TUMB 04—Bring The Pain due out Friday May 25th) and pushing on Shay #3 and Alison’s first book, Dark is her Nature—School of Necessary Magic Book 01.
We are trying to put out three different connected series (Mr. Brownstone, Shay, and Alison) close together. Mind you, we are trying to do this simultaneously, and further, we hope you find them interesting.
In all, we will do up to thirty-two books. Possibly fewer Alison (four) / More Mr. Brownstone (twelve) and Shay (twelve) if the Alison
