Thriller fiction and Non-fiction
Merry Christmas to you and your friends!
If you buy a paperback copy of one of the Mike Scott adventure novels through Amazon, you will get a Kindle copy of the same book for free. If you give the print books as gifts, no one has to know you kept the ebooks for yourself.
If you want to save the trees and send ebook gifts, the first four novels in the series also have a new, lower price. You can get each of the Kindle versions of the books for $2.99. (Heart of the Maya is still $3.99).
Just in time for winter weather, I’ve released a special collection of Withrow Key dive adventure short stories on both Kindle and in softcover. And right now, you can get the Kindle version for half what it will be next week — $1.99
Get Tales from Withrow Key now!
Over the years, many of my readers have said my books read like a television show or a movie and that they can “see” my stories as they read them. That got me thinking about what it would be like to actually create a television show. And that was where Withrow Key came from.
I toyed with setting a story in the islands somewhere, but for logistics and quirk, it made more sense to go to the Florida Keys. The first story in this series, Going Down With the Ship, was originally published as a serial on ScubaRadio.com by my good friend Greg Holt. We had fun promoting the story each week on his syndicated radio show. A few of the later stories were originally published on ScubaDiving.com, the home of Scuba Diving Magazine, where I’ve been a regular contributor for several years.
The Withrow Key characters have evolved and changed over the years. The one constant has been Jackson Pauley, a New York City firefighter who left the city after 9/11 to find some peace. Instead, he found plenty of adventure, but wouldn’t have it any other way. In Queen Conch, I decided to write a crossover story and Mike Scott, the main character from my novels, came to visit.
The last story in this collection, Life Under the Sea, is also available as a standalone ebook, but it is brand new. It definitely won’t be the last story, however.
With these eight short stories, we have the scripts for the first episodes of a Withrow Key television series. Now I just have to find a producer…
I can’t think of anyone who has the “exploration” gene more than the family of the late Jacques Cousteau. His grandchildren are doing their best to live up to that legacy.
Alexandra Cousteau was in town last night, hosted by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission to kick off the Chancellor’s Speaker Series on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) topics. Frankly, I wish I had the foresight to take my daughters along to hear her speak.
An explorer in her own right, Alexandra spoke of the inspiration provided by her grandfather. She told a story of constantly asking questions and finally, in frustration, he answered “Go and see for yourself.” She said she has been doing that ever since.
“We often feel we have exhausted exploration. We haven’t,” she said. “We have to keep that spirit of exploration alive. The role of the explorer has changed. We are not the first something any more but exploring is about bringing back a new perspective.”
Most divers in their 40s and 50s will tell you there were inspired to learn to dive watching the Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau on Sunday nights. (Many older divers cite Mike Nelson from Sea Hunt.) I’m in the Cousteau category. Alexandra Cousteau glossed over the development of the original aqualung device, but the work done by Jacques and engineer Emile Gagnan changed the world forever and led to many careers, exploration and discovery. And it is still going on.
While today we can dive and explore the oceans, there is still much left unseen and even more than we don’t understand. Cousteau pointed out recent discoveries of animal species and the discovery of a bacteria that produces much of the oxygen we breathe. Things we didn’t even know about until just a few years ago.
To the delight of the crowd, made up by mostly students and educators from West Virginia colleges and universities, she said “The most meaningful moments of my life were when I was with a scientist.”
“We are not finished exploring this planet. Exploration has nothing to do with the exploration of our grandfathers,” she explained and then issued a challenge to the audience. “Find a new way of seeing things.”
She also said you can make a documentary today with a GoPro, a smart phone and a Facebook page. Technology has given us all the ability to be explorers.
The following are excerpts from her presentation.
The beginning.
Audio PlayerThree things about exploration.
Audio PlayerWell, the cat is out of the bag. The next Mike Scott novel has Mike returning to Grand Cayman for the 10th anniversary of my first adventure novel Cayman Cowboys!
I talked to Greg Holt host of Scuba Radio about it on Saturday. Listen to my appearance on the show below.
Audio Player
.Copyright ® October 2014
By Eric Douglas
The leaves were beginning to change as Tom, Roy and John headed out for their last camping trip of the year. They had been friends for years; surviving marriages, divorces and everything in between. They knew each other’s issues, like women or booze. But those things didn’t matter; they had each other’s back.
They spent the day drinking beer while they fished in the small lake and talked about whatever was on their minds. Afterwards, heading back to their campsite, they noticed a pretty young woman at the next campsite over. She looked up as they approached their campsite and they waved. Tom’s attention stayed on the woman a little longer than the other two, though. His weakness was women. His fourth wife was half his age and waiting at home. Roy and John knew that wouldn’t mean much to their friend if he stood a chance to spend the night with a new woman.
For the next hour or so, Tom watched the woman and made eye contact a couple times. He got friendly smiles in return. He kept watching to see if the woman had any friends, but no one showed. After dinner, and a few more drinks, Tom decided it was his time to move.
“Hi there,” he said, with the faintest slur in his speech. “My friends and I wanted to know if you would like to join us at our campfire. We don’t want you to be lonely. Are you here by yourself?”
“Hi. Some friends were supposed to join me, but they backed out at the last minute. I love to be out in nature, so I came anyway,” the woman said with an easy smile.
Tom looked her up and down as she spoke and loved what he saw. She is exactly my type, he thought. Nice curves, short curly brown hair and a saucy look to her. I bet she is a lot of fun…
Tom suddenly realized the woman was still speaking to him. And he hadn’t heard a word she said. He stumbled for a second. “I’m sorry. What was that?”
“I said, my name is Abby,” the woman said, smiling. She knew exactly what Tom was doing.
“Hi there, Abby. My name is Tom. Come on over. Let me fix you a drink and introduce you to my friends.”
Tom put his arm around Abby’s waist as he led her to their campsite.
Tom introduced Abby to his friends and got knowing looks from Roy and John. Tom had a way of charming women, especially younger ones, and getting them where he wanted them. They laughed to themselves, although both men were a little jealous. How Tom could find a willing woman in the middle of a campground by the lake when there were no other single women around was beyond them.
After a few drinks, the conversation kept getting sillier and more risqué. Abby giggled at the men’s off-color jokes and threw in a couple of her own.
Suddenly, Abby got serious. “Do you want to hear a ghost story?” she asked.
Roy and John both agreed, but Tom was reluctant. He had hoped to be slipping away soon.
“Only if I can rub your back while you talk,” Tom said with a drunken leer. His magic fingers had gotten him lucky more than once.
Abby didn’t answer Tom; she just stared into the fire for a few minutes. About the time Roy and John were growing uncomfortable at the silence, and Tom was thinking his touch had distracted Abby from the ghost story, she began talking. Her entire demeanor changed as she began speaking. She was quiet and he voice clear and cold. The giggle was gone.
There was a young woman. We’ll call her Gail. She was deeply in love with Rex. Their love affair was magical. Rex treated her like a queen. Most of the time. Every once in a while, he would go to town with his friends and she knew there were women there. She knew Rex was unfaithful when he was away from her, but she told herself that it would all change when they were married. She told herself he was just sowing his wild oats.
In the Spring, the couple was wed and for Gail, everything was perfect. Things were good between the couple…for a few months. And then Rex’s friends came around to get him. She begged him not to go. To stay with her. But he pushed her away and said he would do what he pleased. He told her she had nothing to worry about, but not to wait up. He wouldn’t be home until the next day. Gail fell down crying as Rex left.
Later, she pulled herself together and decided she wouldn’t give up her man without a fight. She followed Rex to town. She knew where he would be…The Saloon. She hitched her carriage to her horse and rode to town.
Pulling her hat low over her face, Gail entered the bar. It took her a few moments to realize Rex wasn’t there. She saw his friends at a corner table, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Gail told herself that Rex had a change of heart. He had come home to her. Immediately, she rushed to get back home. She didn’t want him to worry. Entering the stable to get her horse and buggy, she heard a sound. At first, she didn’t know what it was. It was a voice. A moan. And then she realized it sounded like Rex. Was he hurt? Had he been attacked?
Moving slowly, Gail pulled a dim lamp from a post and turned up the flame. It threw shadows all around, but there was no sign of Rex.
Maybe I was imagining things. Rex is at home waiting on me, she thought.
Turning back to her carriage, she heard another moan and then a giggle.
Who’s there? she called out Who’s there?
She heard rustling in the loft above her. And then she saw him. It was Rex. A moment later she saw a woman. They were both naked.
In a fury, she ran from the barn, leaving her horse and carriage behind her. She ran and ran, with no direction in mind. She was lost. He hadn’t even taken the woman to a bed. He was rutting in the hay loft like an animal.
Gail had no idea how long she ran when she found herself standing at the edge of a cliff. There was a lake 30 feet below her, lit up by the full moon above. With resolve, she knew what she was going to do. If he wanted other women, he wouldn’t have her any longer.
She was calm as she stepped out into the space in front of her and fell. She hit the water and never resurfaced. Gone.
John, Roy and Abby were all quiet when Abby was finished. Tom was still rubbing Abby’s back and grinning.
John and Roy stared at the fire and then got up quietly to go to their camper. They knew Tom was about to make his move. Abby’s story had disturbed them as well.
When the other two were gone, Tom spoke.
“So, you want to go back to your campsite?” he asked.
“Let’s take a walk down by the lake,” Abby suggested with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“Sure….that sounds good,” Tom said, trying to think of a place he could take the young woman to get her out of her clothes.
The couple walked to the water’s edge, to a clearing where Tom and his buddies had spent the day fishing. Tom sat down on the ground and leaned back against a log.
“Why don’t you join me?” he said, reaching up for her.
“Did you listen to my story?” she asked, ignoring his reach.
“Sure, sure, it was a good one. All spooky and stuff,” Tom said, slurring more. “Now come on. Let’s get it on like that guy in the loft. We’ll do it like animals.”
Abby’s expression darkened further.
“Men like you are the problem. Gail never should have killed herself. She should have killed Rex. That was where she failed.”
“Come on, baby. I just want you. Let’s do this. You know you want it, too,” Tom said, trying to stand.
“I bet that’s what you said to the woman in the loft, too,” Abby said.
“What? What are you talking about? There’s no woman in a loft. Are you some crazy chick? That was just a story,” Tom said, unsteady on his feet. “I just wanna have a good time.”
“What if I told you the women in the story was named Abigail and not Gail. Would that make any difference to you?”
“No, just a dumb story,” Tom said, growing angry. He wasn’t used to getting this close, and spending this much effort, without getting lucky. “And it’s a dumb name, too.”
“Some people shorten Abigail to Abby,” the woman said. “Answer my question. Did you listen to my story?”
Tom was growing angry now. “Just a dumb story.” He lunged toward Abby.
“Not if it’s true.”
The next morning John and Roy found Tom face down in the lake, still wearing his clothes. He had drowned. There was no sign of Abby anywhere. Her tent and camping gear were gone. In fact, there was no sign anyone had been on the camp site at all.
+++++
The divers loaded their gear on the dive boat, excited for a morning out on the reef. Just before the boat left the dock, two guys ran to the boat carrying their gear. They had been out late the night before and were running slow. Climbing on board, one immediately eyed a pretty brunette sitting by herself. She had short, curly brown hair and looked great in her bikini. The first man on the boat glanced down to make sure his wedding ring was still back in the hotel room and then sat down beside the girl. She was younger than he was, but he liked it that way.
“Hi, I’m Joe.”
“Hi there. My name is Abby. Do you like ghost stories?”.