Path in the Darkness by M.D. Cooper (an excerpt)
“Path in the Darkness by M.D. Cooper ” Excerpt
It had been over a decade since she last set foot on Mars. She still remembered that fateful day where her family had sided with her ex-husband and all but ostracized her.
In retrospect, with a more measured eye cast toward her former spouse, she wasn’t surprised he had cut ties.
But she never expected her father to cut her off as well.
The urge to check in on him was strong, but she closed that train of thought off, that part of her life was over. Soon she would leave Sol and they would be a part of her past, nothing more.
<I’m sorry,> Angela said. <I know we agreed not to talk about this, but you were thinking it so loud…I’m just…sorry.>
Tanis sighed. <It’s OK, I should try not to think of it while I’m here. Seeing home…even if it was from thousands of miles brought back a lot of memories.>
<There are good memories there, don’t forget them.>
Tanis nodded and turned her mind to work, sifting through reports to take her mind off thoughts of family.
Thirty minutes later the jump jet touched down in the city of Albor. Tanis hailed a groundcar and gave it the name of the restaurant the captain had provided.
When she arrived Tanis saw that it was a small street-side café with flowers overflowing its planters and the smells of good cooking coming from inside.
She entered and spotted the captain sitting at a table beside a window. He was wearing a plaid shirt and the image made her think of an old woodsman.
“Good morning, Jason,” she said as she slipped into the booth.
The captain smiled and ran a hand through his hair. “A good morning indeed, Tanis. I’m glad you could make it on such short notice.”
“Coffee, dear?” A slim woman wearing an apron with the café’s logo on it asked Tanis.
“Yes, cream and sugar, please.”
The woman poured a glass and as Tanis reached out to take it, the captain put his hand on hers.
“Was the trip pleasant?” He asked.
Tanis had a moment to wonder if this was some elaborate ruse to get her alone and make a pass at her before she detected the nano he had slipped into her hand.
They contained a coded message and Tanis decrypted it as she replied, “It was nice enough, I took the scenic route down the Pavonis elevator, it’s nice to see the valleys one last time.”
The captain nodded as he sipped his coffee. “I remembered that you grew up there. I’ve sailed on them a few times, amazing views.”
Tanis read the message as the captain spoke about his adventures on Mars’s high seas.
Buy on A Path in the Darkness (Aeon 14 Book 2)
About the author:
Michael Cooper has been writing since the day he closed Return of the King and wanted more. He’s written a lot of fantasy that he never tried to get published, but one day decided to try his hand at science fiction, of which he has published one book (Outsystem) and is working on the sequel, A Path in the Darkness.
Michael is a software engineer at a company which builds sites and services around the open-source CMS named Drupal and enjoys the creativity involved in building web applications.
When not writing stories or code Michael is spending time with his wife and daughter, or doing carpentry–a hobby which he has been growing over the years.
His other interests include astronomy, cars and racing, blacksmithing, movies, and just about any creative work one can do.
Follow M.D. Cooper:
Facebook / Website / Amazon
Make sure you get your copy of A Path in the Darkness Today!
What's Your Reaction?
