Riley Archives — The Third War

Posts Tagged ‘Riley’

Bad Trip Into The Past

We were curious if Tessa was the first Xerian that Riley ever encountered. She wasn’t. When Jake was teaching him how to do regressions, he encountered his first Xerian without even knowing it. Enjoy!

“Bangers and mash?” Riley asked, lifting one eyebrow. “If Sully finds out, he’ll put you back on a diet. You know that.”

Looking at Riley sharply, Jake Adams said, “He did. He’s demanding I turn over a new leaf, but I’m having any of it this time. There’s only so much tofu and lettuce a man can take.” He raised one silver eyebrow at Riley. “You’re not going to tell him, are you?”

“No, I wouldn’t dare,” he said, laughing. “So, I take it you’re not getting many of Sully’s wondrous, gourmet meals lately?” Riley had partaken of enough of Jake’s partner’s lavish spreads and could sympathize with the man.

“Try none for the past three weeks.” Jake stabbed a sausage and took a bite. He closed his eyes and got a blissful expression on his face. “Aaaaah,” he sighed. Opening his eyes, he pinned Riley with a glance. “Enough about my culinary woes. What’s going on with that new client of you mentioned in your last email?”

Riley took a swig from his bottle of Drakes Hefeweizen before answering.

(more…)

Hands Off

Riley is usually a level-headed guy.
But if you hurt someone he cares about, watch out.
You could end up like Aaron. Enjoy!

“Morning, Riles.”

“Rachel, you look like hell!” Riley said, rushing to take her backpack out of her hand. “What’s wrong with your arm? And where have you been? I called and called yesterday when you didn’t show up for school. Coach said you were sick.”

“Yeah, my dad would say that,” she said, twisting her locker combination in. She shrugged with one shoulder. “I just…tripped on the stairs. Sprained my elbow.”

When Riley placed a sympathetic hand on her good arm, she winced. He looked into her face sharply.

“Bullshit. I know you too well. You could run up and down those stairs blindfolded and never have a problem. What really happened?”

(more…)

SnakeGrrrl

You met Tessa’s boa constrictors, Meg and Calvin, in Dreaming of Xeres.
This story tells how she got them, and
what happened when Riley met them for the first time. Enjoy!

“C’mon, Josh, it’ll be cool. You know the manager said we couldn’t have any pets ‘with fur’. Snakes don’t have fur so he can’t tell us no.”

“But they’re slimy. And besides, where would you keep it?”

Tessa batted her eyelashes. “In a terrarium, of course.”

Josh made a face at her. “I know that. I mean,” he said with an exasperated air, “where would you keep it in our tiny little apartment?” He shook his head. “I don’t think I could sleep in the same room as a snake. What if it gets out?”

“Are you seriously telling me you’re afraid of a teeny-tiny snake? This little girl’s hardly bigger than a pencil.”

(more…)

The Infamous Couch Story

In Dreaming of Xeres, you heard several times about what happened when Alex helped Riley and Tessa get their old, lumpy couch. Now you can find out for yourself what actually happened. Enjoy!

“We can’t afford a sofa,” Riley MacPherson protested from where he was finishing drying the supper dishes.

Tessa Connors, his girlfriend or ‘significant other’ as she preferred to be called, was sitting at the kitchen table with a dozen or so catalogs strewn across it. Looking up from one of them, she said, “Maybe I could talk my way into a discount at one of these places. My business with Diana is too small to get things at wholesale yet, but we’re getting bigger contracts every day.” She dug through the pile and pulled out a catalog. “Look at this one.”

(more…)