I hope everyone had a wonderful Turkey Day, filled with family, friends, great food, and amazing traditions. With Christmas and the New Year looming ahead of us, may everyone take a moment to rest and recover from the hustle and bustle of the wonderful meal. While I don’t deal with the commercial side of Thanksgiving, at least not on Black Friday, may those who enjoy shopping for the deals find the gifts they’re hoping to secure for their loved ones.
The moment I finished Departure and Hidden Treasure, I turned my attention to my patrons’ last story for November, a drama. Unlike the comedy, I knew where I wanted this story to go. Back in September, my patrons asked for a crime caper, a mystery and a piece of science fiction. With Jessica and Kyle Rickman, I had the first two genres taken care of, and the resulting stories, Security Audit and Warrant’s Execution, quickly flowed through me. While the two stories have satisfying conclusions, I had a third installment in works. Unfortunately, it didn’t fit into the final genre for September, nor the ones for October. Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait long to bring you this wonderful interaction between Jessica and Kyle Rickman.
Find a comfy spot and join me as we get a peek at a conversation between Jessica Calhoun and Kyle Rickman, from the former’s point of view.
After a recent job, Jessica is going through the spoils of her work, but is derailed by both her protégé and Kyle Rickman…
“That’s a pretty collection of stones,” Jessica’s protégé said as he leaned against the doorframe of his mentor’s office. When her head turned toward him, he scurried over to her desk, where his finger immediately hovered over the scattered gemstones. “Where did you pick these up?”
A soft chuckle emerged from her lips as she forced her student away from her loot. In the same motion, she flicked a hand toward the office’s entrance. “Wilson, you should know better than to leave my door open for these conversations.”
With a groan, the young man obeyed the unspoken command before returning to loom over the loose gemstones. He dropped to his knees as his gaze drifted to his mentor’s. “Sorry, Jess, but you didn’t answer my question. And before you deflect it away, with your help to master the tricks of the trade, I’ve gotten well versed in distinguishing between collections, and I don’t recognize this set.”
“There’s no way you could discern the difference between two random sets of assorted gems,” Jessica said, grabbing the leather pouch on her desk as she drew the scattered stones into a singular pile.
“Don’t you remember your lecture about obfuscating your sources of knowledge?” As Wilson’s lips curled into a devious grin, he reached out and tapped the small bag. “You should know the difference I’m using isn’t the rocks, rather their container.”
A hearty laugh filled Jessica’s office as she slid the gems into the sack. “It’s good to see that despite your reticence to embrace my lectures, they’re still sinking in.”
.
.
.
To continue reading head over to my Patreon page and become a patron, $2 a month will give you access to this and other flash fiction stories.