Note: This story was inspired by actual events.
She laughed and I looked up from my iPad. The sound reached deep inside of me, breaking my focus on the article I had been reading about the effect of the pandemic on Southeast Asian supply chains. I set the fork down with which I had been absentmindedly shoveling salad into my maw and craned my neck, looking for the source of that laugh. Until then I had been having a typical working lunch at the nice local eatery where I expense my meals to our clients. Nothing would ever be typical again. Read more…
I saw the email at 4:06 PM, December 24. It had been sent at 3:30. “Get here within one hour and you will have the chance for a special reward.” It was from Goddess Marquesa. I sprang from my desk, told the office manager I had an emergency for which I had to leave, and raced for my car. 


