Faline's encounter with a bear teaches her a hard earned truth.

Gall learns to live the consequences of his decision.

Gall's quest for vengeance against Commander Ekhart leads him down a dark and dangerous path.

Gall decides to leave Master Brennan's apprenticeship for revenge against Commander Ekhart.

The hammer struck true, sending chips of granite skittering across the workshop floor. Gall wiped sweat from his brow and examined the stone block before him. Three months under Master Brennan's tutelage, and his hands had finally learned the rhythm—strike, turn, strike again. The calluses that had formed over his palms were a craftsman's badge, honest proof of labor. "Good," Brennan grunted, running thick fingers along the edge Gall had shaped. "You're learning to let the stone tell you where it wants to break." The master stonemason was a boulder of a man himself, all thick shoulders and weathered hands, with gray threading through his dark beard.

Ed gasped, his body jerking upright. He was in his bed, in his trailer, tangled in his blankets. Pale light filtered through the window. He scrambled for his watch. 6:47 AM. December 25th. Christmas morning. He'd made it. He was alive. He had time. Ed threw off the covers and stumbled to the window. The Pines Trailer Park was still standing—trailers whole, windows intact, smoke rising from chimneys. Christmas lights blinked on porches. Children already played in the snow. "It's not too late," he breathed. He dressed in a frenzy, fingers fumbling with buttons, and burst out of his trailer into air so cold it burned his lungs.

Ed meets the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, a frightening specter of consequences and bad acting

The knock on the door was half-hearted, like someone had forgotten why they were knocking halfway through. Ed opened it. A cloud of skunk-smelling smoke rolled into the trailer, followed by a figure in a tie-dye hoodie, board shorts, and flip-flops. The Ghost of Christmas Present looked like he'd gotten lost on the way to a beach bonfire and somehow ended up in Virginia in December. "Duuuude," the ghost said, his voice the vocal equivalent of a warm bath. "Is this... wait, who are you?" "Ed Ruje. This is my trailer."

Ed's encounter with the Ghost of Christmas Past reveals his lost potential, relationships, and the consequence of his choices, highlighting the price of emotional detachment.

Ed encounters the ghost of his former business partner, who brings a warning to him.

Ed Scott Ruje, a cold-hearted trailer park manager, faces a haunting visit from his former partner's ghost, warning him of the consequences of his selfishness and impending loneliness.

Knee deep and sinking fast

Independence day, where the community is free of electricity and moral values.

Hicks cooks stuff. Brings over "friends."

Faline chooses a path and leaves behind a challenge for Gall

The Captain's interest in Larah leaves her with a growing sense of dread.

I wanted to tell him before he left, now I may never get the chance. The thought kept replaying itself in my mind. The trip had been to say goodbye to Dad, now ninety years old, and no longer in good health. Since my exit from that hell-hole of a town he lived in, I had allowed time and distance to erode our relationship. Slowly, age took away our means of communication—aches and pains made Dad turn away from typing or writing, hearing loss made phone conversations repetitious shouting matches, my job and kids took all my available free time.

Riasean and Gall face a choice, and their decisions reflect their priorities, a choice between the head and the heart

Larah discovers the cost of the decisions she's made

Book 2 of the Westfal series, Dragon Heartstone, has been released and is available in hard copy and in eBook formats on Amazon. Check out my Amazon site for purchasing options.

Gall discovers the art of disguising the truth

Larah escapes from Landros, only to find her talents conspire against her.

In a desperate battle for Bretagne's survival, Gall and Riasean struggle against overwhelming Drachnorian forces. The Dragon Heartstone's powers offer flickering hope amidst chaos and loss.

The sun sank beneath the horizon, and with it, the last vestiges of light vanished from around Gall, Riasean, and Larah as they attempted to reach Landros before the invasion force from Cazidor. Overcast skies smothered the usually present moon, making the darkness around them thick as tar. "We'd best stop for the night," Riasean offered. "We need to reach Landros," Gall retorted.

From the depths of the reservoir, a lifeline emerges