Assassins and guards. The hunted and those seeking redemption. Card players and mobsters. Kids having fun, and adults confronting their nightmares.

Some stories end with victory, others end in tragedy. Some erupt in action, many hinge on small details. But every time, lives are changed.

Twenty stories for your reading enjoyment. Just don’t expect happy endings.

The first collection of short stories, this can be downloaded as an ebook, for free, here. Alternatively, stories can be read online.

Never Only One Side  There’s always more than one side to a story

Investigation  Sometimes thing’s aren’t what they look like.

Artificial Intelligence  The code doesn’t do what is expected, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.

High Stakes  Only play for what you can afford to lose.

Safe  Who keeps you safe … and why?

The Customer Is Always Right  If customers come for more than food and drink, you have to give them what they want.

Patients  It’s better when they have something to keep them occupied.

The Offering  They found the offering after a night of heavy rain…

Release  Everything has a cost, everything must be repaid.

Just A Bit Of Harmless Fun  Games are always serious.

The Greatest Fraud  If you lie for a living, can you stop lying to yourself?

Allegiance  Some jobs demand allegiance, but so do friends.

Escape They say escape is impossible, but there has to be a way out.

Influential Friends  A business proposition, but who has the most influential friends?

The Weather Report  If the weather could be controlled … should it?

The Gardener  All life is precious … to someone.

Work Units  Business can be murder.

Missing   An absent cat, a departed woman, and an old man with a dark secret.

A Lesson In Death  Rodin gets interrupted at work by an inquisitive child‌—‌not what you want when you’re an assassin.

The Job  Only the best need apply.