Sunday Snippet: Broken Down and Maxed Out

Brrrr. It's coldoutside. Thankfully, we only lost power once during the first gusty windstormand didn't lose it all while the wind howled over the last three days. And Ican live with a couple of inches of snow. Not a huge fan of temperatures in theteens but layers help when I have to take the dogs out.

Had a super-busywork week and I'm thrilled to have my calendar filling up with projects. I liketo stay steady because it keeps me motivated and focused. When I have too muchfree time I get lost in a haze.

Not a bad week forviewing. I made a full circuit through my regular shows minus the rewatch of BattlestarGalactica. The power blip caused a delay there.

Started the week withMy Life Is Murder and enjoyed the episode. The mystery ended up beingpretty decent.

Caught the second halfof Agatha Raisin and thoroughly enjoyed. The cast really hits on all cylindersand even though I miss James, I love the vibe of these characters.

Started a new two-partSilent Witness. I'm kind of happy to see Jack's familial issues. Hisbrother is a piece of work and I'm interested to see where things go with him.Rather like the new colleague. Looking forward to seeing how she fits in.

Watched another episodeof Death in Paradise. I didn't really remember this one so I enjoyed it.Fun to see the commissioner on the suspect board.

Caught anotherepisode of Elementary and quite liked the way Sherlock ended up being onthe outs with both Joan and the captain. Fun episode.

Enjoyed anotherepisode of The Batman. I'm nearing the end of the first season and allthe players are established for the most part. And the episodes are holding upfairly well.

Watched anotherepisode of Classic Rugrats. I didn't remember either of the vignettes soreally enjoyed watching both.

Finished out thefirst season of The Secret Life of Amy Benson. I'm intrigued andinterested in how things are going to play out in the next season, which I'llprobably start this week.

Also managed tofinish the episode of VIP that I started last week. Looking forward to anew one this week if time permits.

That's it for thelife update this week. Tonight's post is from Broken Down and Maxed Out,a novella that explores what happens when a couple hits their wall oflimitation at the same time.

Here's the miniblurb:

When Dallas Kirk and Rafe Quinoza, two top agents in theMinistry of Magickal Defense, are broken down and maxed out they turn to eachother to regroup and recharge. But when they reach their saturation point atthe same time, they struggle to keep their connection strong, which isdifficult when they blame themselves for a mission gone wrong.

And a preview snippet…

Rafe waited until Dallas healedcompletely then drifted off for a few hours. He woke up just before dawn and wonderedwhat had happened the previous night.

His hand skimmed her torso, and hismind absorbed the details. "Shit, Marjam had backup." Did I miss akey piece of information?

Dallas could've handled Calla onher own. But the monstrous mercenary gave her a big hurdle to overcome beforeshe could get to Marjam. The guy looked like he ate steroids for each meal …and he had a familiar face.

Rafe grunted when the name came tohim. "Hank Willem. Nasty piece of work." And very expensive.

How the hell could Marjam Callaafford Willem's fee?

A question for another time. AfterRafe got rid of the images scrolling through his brain. Willem worked Dallasover pretty hard. The asshole had his hands around her throat more than onceand used hellfire to keep her busy while Calla tried to escape.

But Dallas prepped in advance andhad the warehouse sealed off. Which meant she couldn't call in for help. She'dfinally used a sage bomb to subdue Willem then went after Marjam. He didn't godown without a fight, flinging whatever he had close at hand in Dallas's path.He'd clocked her with a trailer awning and left a line of abrasions on her jaw.Then he finally got backed into a corner, giving Dallas a chance to get himcuffed and controlled.

She took Calla out to the SUV andreturned for Willem only to find he'd managed to escape the sage containmentfield.

Dallas woke up and met his gaze."You know what happened?" She rolled to her side and propped her headon her hand. "Should've used salt to trap the huge goon Calla had coveringhis ass." She frowned.

Rafe lifted his chin. "Hisname's Hank Willem. A nasty merc that's way above Marjam's ability tocompensate." There had to be another player in the background.

Dallas grunted. "That's what Ithought, too." She narrowed her eyes. "Why didn't we know abouthim?" She waited a moment. "Unless we have a breach in theministry."

Rafe shook his head. "I don'tthink so. I mean anything's possible, but I'd guess Willem was a last-minuteaddition. My information said Calla would be alone." His gut twisted."You think this is on me?"

Dallas rolled her shoulder."No, I don't blame you. I'm pissed because I walked into a trap and setmyself up to fail by warding the warehouse and cutting communication. Not myidea of fun to battle a huge hulking bruiser only to have him escape." Shesat up and ran her fingers through her hair. "Not to mention making me haveto mess with my hair." Sliding to the edge of the bed, she stood andheaded for the bathroom.

Rafe tracked her movement, gettinga look at the uneven and ragged edges of her hairline. "I'll call Adam andlet him know you'll be in later than expected." He reached for his phoneand dialed their direct superior.

I love how thisstory is coming together. Rafe and Dallas are pulled right to the edge and it'sfun to write that angle.

 

That's it for thisweek.

Cheers!

Skye