Here's another short scene from my latest novel and first space opera Galaxy Rand:
To be honest, I didn't wanna talk about Esperance any more'n the bot wanted to talk about his master's murder. But by this time I knew Blackie well enough to realize he'd never let the subject lie. He'd keep chipping away at me 'til I gave in.
I took one deep breath before answering, "Because that's where Torrance's most likely to hole up--the one place he'd hide if things are too hot for him."
"And exactly how did you come by this remarkable piece of information, Rand? Did your snitch tell you this?"
"Naw! Just another one of my hunches, and I believe in playing my hunches."
The sound Blackie made came damned close to a human snort. "A hunch? What remarkable detective work! Hunch indeed!"
With a helluva lot of effort, I managed to ignore him, but I couldn't ignore the funny feeling gnawing at my gut. "How much d'you know about Esperance, Tin Man?" I asked, as casually as I could, testing him.
The bot cocked his shiny black dome to one side, for all the Cosmos like a human trying to recall some half-forgotten info. "Again, if memory serves, Rand, Esperance is a small barren planet orbiting Milo's Sun. Once rich in metal ores, the planet was heavily mined in the past--and of course, it was the site of the infamous Esperance Massacre."
That all too familiar term struck a raw nerve. My jaw clenched; so did both my fists. Had to take a couple real deep breaths, trying my damnedest to relax. "That's why Esperance's also known as the Death Planet," I muttered. Even to my own ears, my voice sounded grim as death.
"And that is where we are presently headed?"
"You got it, Tin Man."
"Marvelous indeed! I cannot imagine there is much demand for conducted tours of Esperance."
copyright@2014
Well, that's it for now. I'm presently hard at work on my next novel--a prequel to my Tartarus Trilogy.
Hopefully, it will be ready for publication by the end of the year.
Until then, keep on writing; keep on reading!
MRTighe
