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	<title>Lisa Olsen &#187; Lisa Olsen Official Website</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/category/novels/child-of-mercy/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net</link>
	<description>Writer with a Robot Brain</description>
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		<title>New covers for The Fallen series</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/new-covers-for-the-fallen-series/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/new-covers-for-the-fallen-series/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2015 16:10:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Angel of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercy for the Damned]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercy for the Fallen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercy for the Wicked]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=1057</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Check out these awesome new covers for The Fallen series! If you&#8217;ve been waiting to try this series about sexy fallen angels, book one is #free!!! Angel of Mercy I don&#8217;t know why I got stabbed. I don&#8217;t know why I healed overnight. I don&#8217;t know why I keep seeing the same guy in my]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="highslide img_2" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mercybooks-color.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mercybooks-color-1024x318.jpg" alt="mercybooks-color" width="1024" height="318" class="alignleft size-large wp-image-1058" /></a></p>
<p>Check out these awesome new covers for <em>The Fallen</em> series!  </p>
<p>If you&#8217;ve been waiting to try this series about sexy fallen angels, book one is #free!!!  </p>
<p><em>Angel of Mercy</em><br />
I don&#8217;t know why I got stabbed. I don&#8217;t know why I healed overnight.<br />
I don&#8217;t know why I keep seeing the same guy in my dreams, on the sidewalk, at the minimart near my apartment &#8211; the insanely hot guy with the piercing blue eyes that nobody can see but me.<br />
I have to follow him. I have to talk to him.<br />
And he&#8217;s not the only one stalking me. That guy with the knife? He&#8217;s still out there, and he knows where I live.<br />
I have to know. What am I now? Am I still human? Am I part angel? Or am I something new?</p>
<p>* This is the first book in a completed, five book series about fallen angels and demons, and contains a cliffhanger. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Angel-Mercy-The-Fallen-Book-ebook/dp/B0056A2H4G" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/Angel-Mercy-The-Fallen-Book-ebook/dp/B0056A2H4G</a><br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/angel-of-mercy-lisa-olsen/1103745268" target="_blank">http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/angel-of-mercy-lisa-olsen/1103745268</a><br />
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/angel-of-mercy/id968112762" target="_blank">https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/angel-of-mercy/id968112762</a><br />
<a href="https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/angel-of-mercy-15" target="_blank">https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/angel-of-mercy-15</a></p>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<title>The Fallen books 1-3 now available as a boxed set</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/the-fallen-books-1-3-now-available-as-a-boxed-set/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/the-fallen-books-1-3-now-available-as-a-boxed-set/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 18 Feb 2013 18:08:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Angel of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercy for the Damned]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercy for the Wicked]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nine Steps to Sara]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Novels]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=611</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Fallen books 1-3 are now available as a boxed set for your kindle. I&#8217;ve never done a boxed set before, but it looks awful spiffy doesn&#8217;t it? (thanks James for the lovely pic, as usual!) Easy to navigate between books from the table of contents, this set contains Angel of Mercy, Mercy for the]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="highslide img_4" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/angel-box-set.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/angel-box-set-212x300.jpg" alt="" title="angel-box-set" width="159" height="225" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-612" /></a>   </p>
<p><em>The Fallen</em> books 1-3 are now available as a boxed set for your kindle.  I&#8217;ve never done a boxed set before, but it looks awful spiffy doesn&#8217;t it?  (thanks James for the lovely pic, as usual!)  Easy to navigate between books from the table of contents, this set contains <em>Angel of Mercy, Mercy for the Wicked, Mercy for the Damned,</em> deleted scenes form <em>Mercy for the Damned</em> and a preview of <em>Child of Mercy</em>.  It can be found <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Boxed-Set-Books-ebook/dp/B00BH751IQ">here</a> on Amazon.com for $7.99.  </p>
<p>In other news, I&#8217;m already deep in planning for my next book which I hope to begin in early March.  It&#8217;s a stand alone novel about a demon hunter and his too-curious-for-her-own-good neighbor.  It&#8217;s got sexy demons, magic, missing girls, a brooding hero with a dark secret, intrigue, body switching, mythology, tattoos, cheese whiz, you name it.  I&#8217;m thinking of calling it<em> In Darkness Bound</em> or <em>Let Darkness Bind Them</em>.  </p>
<p>Psst &#8211; <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Nine-Steps-to-Sara-ebook/dp/B008FIEO56/">Nine Steps to Sara</a></em> is also free today on Kindle.   </p>
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		<slash:comments>9</slash:comments>
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		<title>Child of Mercy is out in print!</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/child-of-mercy-is-out-in-print/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/child-of-mercy-is-out-in-print/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2012 05:51:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Novels]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=595</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Things have been crazy busy for the past few months, but I&#8217;m thankful to report the hard work is paying off. Child of Mercy is currently sitting at number 18 on the Hot New Releases list in paranormal fantasy for Kindle at Amazon.com! It&#8217;s available in print now as well through Amazon here (just in]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="highslide img_6" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy-191x300.jpg" alt="" title="Child-of-Mercy" width="100" height="160" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-574" /></a></p>
<p>Things have been crazy busy for the past few months, but I&#8217;m thankful to report the hard work is paying off.  <em>Child of Mercy</em> is currently sitting at number 18 on the Hot New Releases list in paranormal fantasy for Kindle at Amazon.com!  It&#8217;s available in print now as well through Amazon <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1481153900/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&#038;camp=1789&#038;creative=9325&#038;creativeASIN=1481153900&#038;linkCode=as2&#038;tag=greenemagenet-20">here</a></em> (just in case you&#8217;re looking for a nifty last minute present to slip under the tree).  I admit, I buy most of my books for the Nook or download them to my computer these days, but there&#8217;s still something to be said for having a physical book in your hands every now and again.  Plus, they&#8217;re so pretty to look at on my shelf!</p>
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		<title>Child of Mercy is available online!</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/child-of-mercy-is-available-online/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/child-of-mercy-is-available-online/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 21 Nov 2012 15:40:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Angel of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Novels]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=585</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The next book in The Fallen series, Child of Mercy is now available for sale on Amazon and Barnes and Noble! It’s out as an e-book for $3.99 but you don’t have to have a Kindle or Nook to read it, they have free downloadable apps so you can read it on your PC, or]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="highslide img_8" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy-191x300.jpg" alt="" title="Child-of-Mercy" width="100" height="160" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-574" /></a></p>
<p>The next book in  <em>The Fallen</em> series, <em>Child of Mercy</em> is now available for sale on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00A9PI9ZO/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&#038;camp=1789&#038;creative=9325&#038;creativeASIN=B00A9PI9ZO&#038;linkCode=as2&#038;tag=greenemagenet-20">Amazon</a> and <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/child-of-mercy-lisa-olsen/1113826125?ean=2940015752991">Barnes and Noble!</a>  It’s out as an e-book for $3.99 but you don’t have to have a Kindle or Nook to read it, they have free downloadable apps so you can read it on your PC, or even your phone. It’ll be available in print as well in a couple of weeks through Amazon.</p>
<hr />
<p><em>“Have you ever gone to sleep one night and woken up and it’s two months later? Okay, not literally, but I swear it felt like two months went by in the blink of an eye. Still no word from Adam, but each day got easier to accept his absence, and I started to believe he might never come home. I started to think… maybe I didn’t want him to anymore.” </em></p>
<p><em>Child of Mercy </em>continues the saga of angels and demons in Book IV of <em>The Fallen</em>. Left to raise a child on her own, Mercy contends with normal pregnancy woes, and a slew of dangers as new enemies and old vie for a piece of the child. Her heavenly cousins don’t seem all that pleased with her impending motherhood either, and Mercy needs all the help she can get to keep her baby safe. Luckily, she has friends and family around to help out (a little too much family if you ask Mercy), especially Parker who is more than happy to fill Adam’s vacant shoes. The question remains &#8211; will Adam stay away? And more importantly, if he waits too long, will Mercy want him to?</p>
<hr />
<p>I’m taking a little bit of a break before starting my next in the <em>Forged Bloodlines</em> series, <em>Find Me When the Sun Goes Down</em>.  I can&#8217;t wait to get back to Anja and Bishop and I hope to have it out by Spring of 2013</p>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
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		<title>We have a winner!</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/we-have-a-winner-5/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/we-have-a-winner-5/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 08 Nov 2012 05:46:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Angel of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Find Me When the Sun Goes Down]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Novels]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=582</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Thanks to everyone who chimed in with baby names for Child of Mercy, I love all the great suggestions! Now I have a bunch more names to add to my fave names spreadsheet for future characters. I&#8217;m happy to say I picked a name suggested by Beckie (though I won&#8217;t say which name I picked]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="highslide img_10" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy-191x300.jpg" alt="" title="Child-of-Mercy" width="110" height="170" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-574" /></a></p>
<p>Thanks to everyone who chimed in with baby names for <em>Child of Mercy</em>, I love all the great suggestions!  Now I have a bunch more names to add to my fave names spreadsheet for future characters.  <img src='http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' />   I&#8217;m happy to say I picked a name suggested by Beckie (though I won&#8217;t say which name I picked for now, I don&#8217;t want to spoil the surprise), and it&#8217;s a perfect fit!  </p>
<p>I have to say I&#8217;m excited to see what you guys think of this one, the characters completely hijacked my plot and took over &#8211; but in a good way.  What they came up with is way better than what I had planned.  <img src='http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' />   Right now the book is working its way through my editing team and then it comes back to me for my final edits.  </p>
<p>Next up will be the third book in the <em>Forged Bloodlines</em> series, <em>Find Me When the Sun Goes Down</em>.  I can&#8217;t wait to get back to those guys and take Bishop and Anja overseas.  </p>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
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		<title>Name That Baby!</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/name-that-baby/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/name-that-baby/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 02 Nov 2012 04:17:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Novels]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=578</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Spoiler alert! (don&#8217;t read on if you don&#8217;t want to know a little something about the bun in Mercy&#8217;s oven) Hey guys, I&#8217;m having the hardest time naming Mercy&#8217;s baby. The first draft is done and it literally says *insert name here* whenever she&#8217;s mentioned. Oh yeah, that&#8217;s my spoiler, the baby is a girl!]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a class="highslide img_12" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Child-of-Mercy-191x300.jpg" alt="" title="Child-of-Mercy" width="110" height="170" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-574" /></a></p>
<p>Spoiler alert!  (don&#8217;t read on if you don&#8217;t want to know a little something about the bun in Mercy&#8217;s oven)</p>
<p>Hey guys, I&#8217;m having the hardest time naming Mercy&#8217;s baby.  The first draft is done and it literally says *insert name here* whenever she&#8217;s mentioned.  Oh yeah, that&#8217;s my spoiler, the baby is a girl!  I&#8217;ve gone through a list of possibles, but nothing&#8217;s grabbing me.  Ideally I&#8217;d like a name that is also a word (like Mercy) so I could possibly use it in titles in the future.  The obvious ones like Hope, Faith and Grace come to mind, but too obvious I think.  </p>
<p>So, here&#8217;s where you come in.  I&#8217;m taking suggestions for baby names.  If I go with your suggestion (you must be the first one to suggest it if there are multiples), you get a signed copy of the book when it&#8217;s out and a shout out in the acknowledgments. </p>
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		<title>Deleted Scene &#8211; Mercy for the Damned</title>
		<link>http://www.lisaolsen.net/deleted-scene-mercy-for-the-damned/</link>
		<comments>http://www.lisaolsen.net/deleted-scene-mercy-for-the-damned/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 06 Oct 2012 03:26:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lisa Olsen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Child of Mercy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercy for the Damned]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Novels]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.lisaolsen.net/?p=575</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[October is shaping up to be busy, but productive. My diet/exercise regimen is still chugging along, I&#8217;ve lost nearly 18 pounds since mid August and still going strong. If I can just keep from getting this cold that&#8217;s starting to threaten, I think I&#8217;ll stay on track. Child of Mercy is going well, about 30K]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>October is shaping up to be busy, but productive.  My diet/exercise regimen is still chugging along, I&#8217;ve lost nearly 18 pounds since mid August and still going strong.  If I can just keep from getting this cold that&#8217;s starting to threaten, I think I&#8217;ll stay on track.  </p>
<p>Child of Mercy is going well, about 30K words done so far.  I&#8217;ve got a vacation coming up at the end of next week (we usually take a week off in May and one in Oct), so we&#8217;ll see if that derails things, but I&#8217;ll try to keep the words coming.  Mostly because Mercy keeps chattering along in my head demanding I fix things for her!  </p>
<p>I&#8217;m pleased to announce I&#8217;ve got a new proof reader I&#8217;m adding to my editing team.  A good friend who is a fantastic writer in her own right, has professional editing experience, and a generous heart.  So hopefully I&#8217;ll get some typos and minor grammatical errors cleaned up in the books.  I&#8217;ll also be going back through Angel of Mercy again once I finish Child of Mercy for another deep scrub.  Angel of Mercy was the first book I published, and hadn&#8217;t quite gotten the editing process we have down now, so I know it needs a little more love and attention (just haven&#8217;t had the time!).  </p>
<p><a class="highslide img_14" href="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/MercyForTheDamned.jpg" onclick="return hs.expand(this)"><img src="http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/MercyForTheDamned.jpg" alt="" title="Mercy for the Damned" width="120" height="190" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-465" /></a></p>
<p>As promised, here is a deleted scene from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007IPMBIY/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&#038;camp=1789&#038;creative=9325&#038;creativeASIN=B007IPMBIY&#038;linkCode=as2&#038;tag=greenemagenet-20">Mercy for the Damned.</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=greenemagenet-20&#038;l=as2&#038;o=1&#038;a=B007IPMBIY" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />  It takes place between chapters 4 and 5 in the book when Mercy plans to break into Ben&#8217;s place with Sam.  I cut it for length, but I still love the idea of Sam dressed up for the break in with a black watch cap and face paint, plus&#8230; it continues some issues that definitely come into play in the next book.  <img src='http://www.lisaolsen.net/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
<hr />
<p>I parked a few blocks away from Ben’s townhouse after work, glad I’d brought a knit hat and leather gloves, because it was cold enough to make my eyes water as I stepped out of the car.  Making sure to hide myself from human eyes, I approached on foot, keeping an eye out for Sam.  I wasn’t sure if he planned on meeting me outside first or going straight for the windows when he arrived, and I was running a little late as I approached the door to the garage.  </p>
<p>Leaning against the side of the house, I settled in to wait, my gloved hands shoved deep into my pockets.  The side door opened with a sudden jerk, and I suppressed a squeak of surprise when Sam popped out, dressed like an old fashioned burglar from a movie.  In addition to the black pants and turtleneck, he covered his bright hair with a black knit cap.  He even had his face liberally smudged with something black to better blend in with the shadows.</p>
<p>“What are you supposed to be?” I whispered, moving past him into the garage to shut the door.  </p>
<p>“I’m incognito,” he whispered back.</p>
<p>“You’re also invisible, or at least you have the ability to be if you choose to.  Why the need for the get up?”</p>
<p>“You don’t like it?” his face fell.</p>
<p>“No, it’s perfect.  Thanks for doing this, Sam.” I patted his shoulder comfortingly.  </p>
<p>“I don’t mind, Daphne is staying at her grandmother’s tonight to help her tie up some tubes,” he followed me up the stairs to the main living space.  </p>
<p>Not sure how to untangle that statement, I decided to leave it alone and ask Daphne about it later.  But it did give me an opening to bring her up.  “Listen, Sam… about Daphne…”</p>
<p>“She will be back home tomorrow.  She’s promised me to share lunch in the park.”</p>
<p>There was so much simple joy in his face, I hated to bring up the subject of consequences, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that some things needed to be said.  “And I’m sure you’ll have a great time.  I need to ask you though… are you in love with her?”</p>
<p>“I… Why do you ask?”  His expression became guarded, and I hated that he felt like he couldn’t talk to me about it.</p>
<p>“Come on, Sam.  Your entire face lights up whenever you talk about her.  I almost never see you anymore because you’re always with her, it doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together.  The fact that she’s the same way around you paints a pretty clear picture.”  </p>
<p>“It is true; I have become very fond of Daphne…”</p>
<p>I could guess why he didn’t want to say the words out loud, particularly if he hadn’t even said them to her yet.  I plunged ahead anyway, as if he’d given me the confirmation.  “I want to give you some advice, you can choose to take it or not.  You once said to Adam that it wasn’t a sin to love, and I agree with you, I don’t think it’s a sin to love.  But you have to think about what your love would bring for Daphne.”  </p>
<p>“Daphne is in no danger on my account.”</p>
<p>“It’s not fair to put her at risk though.  Don’t you remember what happened to Mariah?”</p>
<p>“Do you truly think I could forget what damned me for all eternity?”  His eyes blazed with azure fire, and my heart twisted in sympathy at I saw that anguish there.  </p>
<p>“No, no I don’t,” I said softly, sending out soothing Grace with a touch to his shoulder.  “But I think you’re more than half in love with her already.  I think it gets harder and harder for you every day to remember the penalty for giving in to that love.  I just want to make sure you both understand what it could mean if you take things to the next level.”</p>
<p>“Would you willingly give up Adam if it meant the same fate for you?”<br />
I’d often asked myself that same question, especially after meeting Raziel, and I knew the answer without having to think twice.  “No.  But I’m not her.  I wouldn’t go down without a fight, and I’d do my damnedest to survive.  Daphne’s too gentle a person for that, she wouldn’t stand a chance.”  </p>
<p>“I told you, Daphne is in no danger.  I will not risk her for all the earthly delights to be had.”  The resolve was clear.  </p>
<p>“Does she know that, or is she expecting things to… progress as they normally would in a relationship?”</p>
<p>“We have not discussed it.”</p>
<p>“Don’t you think you should?”  It seemed like a pretty important discussion to me.  Sam was either in deep denial, or didn’t feel like hashing it all out with me.  I missed that easy confidence with him, but I could understand why he wouldn’t want to broach the subject with me.  </p>
<p>“You have no more need of me?” he paused on the stair on the way to the third floor.</p>
<p>Somehow I thought he’d be staying with me, but I released him with a nod.  “I’m good.  Thanks again, Sam.”</p>
<p>“I’ll be near.”</p>
<p>With Sam gone, I got down to brass tacks, searching in the darkened house for Ben’s laptop.  It wasn’t too hard to find, in the spare room that he used as an office on the top floor.  Careful to keep my gloves on, I sat down, powering up the computer without turning on the lights.  The backlight made me squint as the login screen came on, and I entered Ben’s password… only it didn’t work.  Checking to make sure the Caps Lock wasn’t on, I tried it again, moving more slowly, but nope, he’d changed the password.  Thinking for a moment, I tried a couple of other options, his birthday, his mother’s name, anything I could think of, but nothing worked.  What the hell was I supposed to do now?</p>
<p>As I sat there, the screensaver came on, a slideshow of pictures from his files, starting with one of his empty living room, a bunch of painting gear in the middle of the floor.  Next came a picture of his car, and then one of us together at the park feeding the ducks.  With a pang I watched the pictures fade from one to the next, realizing most of them were of me.  At the club, in my apartment, in his bedroom… I hadn’t known he had that many candid shots of me, or that he would still keep them so readily visible.  </p>
<p>“Oh Ben, I’m so sorry,” I sighed, powering the computer back off.  There were plenty of relationships in my life that I wasn’t so proud of, but Ben… how many girls could say they’d completely ruined the life of their ex?  It didn’t matter than I hadn’t meant to, his life was now literally a living hell because of me.  I had to find a way to give him back his life, or I’d spend the rest of mine trying to make amends for it.  </p>
<p>Only we were really striking out on all fronts and I wasn’t sure where to turn next.  In an interesting twist of fate, help came easier than I thought it would, wearing a navy blouse and pencil skirt with kitten heels.  </p>
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