Demands My Soul

A Transgender Heroine's Journey & Romance Novel

From THE ONE Universe

Chapter 25: Flickers of Truth

By Ariel Montine Strickland

Can the promise of light be fulfilled by expanding the case by the ACLU to appeal the appellate court decision to the Georgia Supreme Court and make new case law?

Copyright 2025 by Ariel Montine Strickland.
All Rights Reserved.

As the limousine arrived at the Paradise estate, Henry and David exchanged glances, contemplating what the future might hold. Once the vehicle came to a halt, Kevin opened their door and officially welcomed the men to Paradise. Gentlemen, welcome! Please follow me as we help your wives settle in and begin their training. Kevin guided Henry and David into a large building and down a hallway leading to his office. As they walked, Henry and David observed that all the women were attired in either 1950s style dresses or micro mini skirts, with every woman sporting stiletto heels.

Once Ma’s death had been ruled as being due to natural causes, the atmosphere in town visibly relaxed. Kelly reported that almost everyone she came into contact with sent their best wishes for both of us in a time of stress.

Chapter 6

When we went back to the pool, Bertie was snuffling, a sure sign that he was starting to wake up. Jenny grinned.

“He’s a world class snorer. How do you put up with it?”

“He’s much better than he was when I first met him. He wondered why no girl would stay the night, so I told him to see a doctor to fix his deviated septum. I think that he appreciated my telling him the truth. Good earplugs help as well.”

I went to Bertie and gave him a kiss on his forehead. His eyes opened.

Demands My Soul

A Transgender Heroine's Journey & Romance Novel

From THE ONE Universe

Chapter 24: Meaning of Darkest Night

By Ariel Montine Strickland

Can the darkest night end? Can the light, however faint, begin to return?

Copyright 2025 by Ariel Montine Strickland.
All Rights Reserved.

Chapter 4

The Cortina wasn’t a true copy of Tina, my original one, which ended her life bullet-ridden and on the roof of a Lowestoft car yard. Tina Too was tweaked by my pal Grayson, with better suspension, brakes, and some work on the Lotus engine, as well as a competition gearbox and high-ratio differential. She was placid around the city, but very hard to beat on the open road.

Chapter 2

I looked at him. He was sitting there, as nonchalant as if he’d told us that it had rained yesterday. Lena chuckled.

“I guess that we’re now drawn into the web of intrigue now. I’ve met a few spooks when I was in the SAS, but none of them were as spooky as you, my friend. I say, ‘my friend’ as I would hate to be on the wrong side.”

He stood up and put his hand out to me. We shook hands and then he held it out to Lena.

Abducted?
A Short Story
By Maryanne Peters

Ava

It seemed as if I was just coming to terms just coming to terms with it. I am not saying that I accepted his absence and I was ready to move on, but just that I understood that his disappearance was a fact and that I needed to cope with my situation.

Chapter 18

At the Saturday dinner with the charity, Willow and Marian gave them a list of the artists, along with the songs that they would perform. It was timed, based on the original tracks, with the ENO and Ginas’ parts estimated. All told, it would run for three hours.

Chapter 7, Whit, October 27, 1998

Darren Whitlock is following his mother through Wal-Mart with his head down.

“No Mom, I’m not doing Halloween this year, I’m 12 years old now. Besides, I haven't dressed up in years.”

“Come on Darren, it could be fun, you could help hand out candy, and surely someone’s having a costume party,” his Mom said.

“Mom, no, I’m not doing it,” Darren said.

“I don’t understand what’s gotten into you, all you want to do is sit in your room and draw from your silly books. You used to love dressing up.”

Demands My Soul

A Transgender Heroine's Journey & Romance Novel

From THE ONE Universe

Chapter 22: New Decision Darkness

By Ariel Montine Strickland

How will Delores react when Craig's goons are successful in reversing the decision by the lower court in the appellate from the case brought by Craig?

Copyright 2025 by Ariel Montine Strickland.
All Rights Reserved.

Chapter 6. Lucy Wal-Mart September 12th

Lucy’s feet hurt, it hadn’t been a good day. First Anthony had a really bad day. His dementia was worse, he kept trying to leave and go to work. The more she tried to correct him the more argumentative he became. Then to make matters worse he shit himself.

Chapter 21 – The Iron Ridge

The mountain’s silence didn’t last long. First came a low, mechanical hum rolling across the slope, trembling the icy stones beneath their boots. Kara’s team re-formed at the edge of the ruined pillbox, boots crunching over spent shell casings and scorched metal fragments. The smell of burnt alloy hung in the thin air, sharp and bitter, mingling with the ozone tang from discharged plasma. Flickers of ruined circuitry pulsed in the visor light from each soldier’s HUD, painting the ground with ghostly blue reflections.

Author's Note: There is a plot, it starts to take off in this chapter, but there will still be chapters that focus more on Whit and Lucy's relationship and trauma. Something I haven't made clear that I will need to in future edits is that the story is taking place in a rural town In Illinois called Mud Creek. It's the kind of place that has very powerful gravity. My three main characters, Lucy, Whit, and Grace are all stuck in Mud Creek. Thank you reading and I so appreciate the comments!

Chapter 5 Dead Battery September 11, 2025