R.W. Van Sant's Blog, page 3
June 2, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 40
The iFactor Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Matt’s palm alarm woke him early. Jill was up and almost dressed. “Trying to leave me already?”
“How could I, I’ve waited my whole life for you.” She leaned down and kissed him. “Teachers, though, can’t be late. It sends a bad message and gives the children an excuse to be late themselves.
“Can’t have that.” Matt bounded out of bed and ran to the shower. “Hold on; I’ll walk you to…
May 26, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 39
The iFactor Chapter 39
Chapter 39
Matt couldn’t recollect the last time he’d felt as tranquil, certainly not since before the Dallas incident. He’d had sex numerous times since arriving in Sirius, but it had always felt forced, confined, as he had to hide his true self from his lovers. He had to hide or risk driving them away in fear of revelation. With Jill, it felt natural, right. He held her close and felt her…
May 19, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 38
The iFactor Chapter 38
Chapter 38
Hand in hand, they walked back to the colonial security office, stopping only for a quick shopping run to get the food Jill promised to cook for him. It had been a very long time since he’d had any food not of his own concocting, or from a cafeteria or restaurant.
The walk from the psychiatrist’s office was uneventful, almost relaxing. Matt tried to keep his guard up, but he took one…
May 12, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 37
The iFactor Chapter 37
Chapter 37
Jill was at the mall, waiting for him at Say Soy. She looked a little tired, but she was still alive and, for the moment, that made Matt’s heart leap. He conjectured that shopping could be arduous, especially when someone was forced to do it for ten hours straight. He was loath to tell her that their date had to be delayed. He waited until they were halfway to the office, and there…
May 5, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 36
The iFactor Chapter 36
Chapter 36
Matt confronted Perry before they went into the daily meeting.
“Perry?”
“Yes, detective.”
“The chief scheduled a mandatory meeting with my shrink. I’ll need your help moving stuff afterward.”
“Yeah, sure. I have something coming out of the oven in a little while. I’ll bring it with.”
“Sounds good.” Perry was one of the few people that he trusted. He thought about telling him that…
April 28, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 35
The iFactor Chapter 35
Chapter 35
The forensic team found nothing conclusive on either the balcony or the body. The entire exercise had proven futile. Matt spent several hours with an artist to try to get any details they could on the killer. In the end, the picture was a dark hazy ghost, about average size and shape for a human blur from the upper chest to top of his head.
Discouraged, Matt returned to his desk to…
April 21, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 34
The iFactor Chapter 34
Chapter 34
The briefing was short and boiled down to a simple truth, the powers that be were freaking out. No one in the Governor’s office nor the corporate boardrooms was happy with the lack of progress the department had made on finding the serial killer. The last killing was hard to hide, they tried to pass it off as an accident, but several witnesses, including Jill, had seen too much for…
April 14, 2022
The iFactor
Chapter 33
At the station, everything was bustling. If he didn’t know better, Matt would have sworn that he walked into a military operation. As far as he could tell, every officer on the force was at the station. At the front of the entryway, Rishards stood, clipboard in hand handing out duty assignments. Matt stood with his back to the wall near the main doorway.
He walked along the walls…
April 7, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 32
The iFactor Chapter 32
Chapter 32
For the first time in many years, Matt awoke to a kiss and a sweet soft, caring voice. “Matt, sorry, but it’s time to get up.”
Matthew Dales responded with the graceful tongue of a poet, “Huhuguh!”
“Come on, the office called. It’s time for you to get to work. They didn’t say why, but it sounded urgent. I told them I’d have you out the door within ten minutes. You like me too much,…
March 31, 2022
The iFactor Chapter 31
The iFactor Chapter 31
Chapter 31
“Keep an eye on those close to you.”
The handwriting had become disturbingly familiar. That was what Perry had told him. Was it Perry leaving the notes, could Perry be the killer? He knew that he was on the case. Hell, he knew about the blackouts. He had enough knowledge of the synapsis to cover his tracks. Perry? It was possible, and that possibility stripped him of one of the few…
