Lilith and the girls whisked me off to dinner. They were chattering about their fortunes, going on and on about all of the good things coming their way. I tried to keep my mind focused on the last details of the wedding. Inside I screamed out for freedom, an animal caged against her will. The bonds of friendship anchored me to the earth with a crushing gravity that left me breathless. My body was there, but my mind escaped to a distant place. My eyes flitted from one object to the next, from doorway to doorway, trying to locate my pursuer. I kept thinking about calling Davos and asking him for help. After all, Tykhe said we were fated to be together. I could just tell him what she said. But when I'd reach for my phone, I'd pull my hand back. There was something preventing me. A feeling I could not ignore.

I felt like I was on autopilot during dinner. I smiled and I laughed, but it was just my body. My mind kept going back to the man in the E. R. I kept seeing his face, his eyes. I kept feeling his hand on my chest. Then the whole world would shake and I'd be back at dinner listening to these women prattle on again. Why did some people get to live these blessed lives while I was living a nightmare? How did I get picked for this life?

After dinner, I followed the girls along, my mind jumping back and forth between Tykhe and Davos and those men. Before I knew it, we were sitting in the VIP section in some club on the strip. I felt too old to be there. In fact, I felt too old to be living my life. I couldn't have fun tonight. I could pretend, make the motions, and put on the smile. But actually enjoy myself, no, I could not. I could not enjoy one moment knowing that I was being tracked. I kept rubbing the paper in my pocket, wondering when I would be able to sneak away. It would just be another secret shoved into my heart like all the others. Just another lie I'd have to tell the people who loved me. What was one more lie to someone who'd told so many?

Though I often claimed that I was too busy to hang out with the girls, work was just a convenient excuse. My secrets made me stay out of clubs and bars. Even now, I thanked the gods for the chill in the air that justified the rich velvet jacket over my gown. The other girls wore lighter gowns to keep from sweating on the dance floor. I feigned a chill even as sweat soaked ran down my spine. The black lights made everything glow and pulse under the strobe. I already felt I was in a dream, but now, it was like a bad trip. Everything spun and twirled. The music was so loud I could barely hear the girls giggling and chatting. In a way that was a relief. I didn't have to struggle so hard to focus on what they were saying. Wearing this jacket was the only way to hide my secret. But, there were cosmic forces at play, threads woven in the fabric of time determining our path. A passerby knocked into a waitress who dumped an entire tray of drinks onto my back soaking my jacket and pouring over me.

Thoughtlessly, I pulled off the jacket for just an instant. Under the black of the lights, my hidden glyphs shined. The eyes of the other women fell upon me in a dismal disbelief. This façade of obedience and regularity hid a dark secret just below the surface. Breaking the laws of the gods was punishable by death. "By the gods, what are those?" cried Lilith. My body was covered in invisible tattoos. They protected me, hid me. But the very things that kept me from my fate, were completely illegal. Mortals weren't meant to shield themselves from the gods. They certainly weren't meant to hide from one of the most powerful and terrible of the gods, Hades.

I quickly pulled the sopping wet jacket back on while the girls stared at me in disbelief. In the hustle of the party, no one else had seen. The lie I had rehearsed hundreds of times in my mind passed my lips as if it were the truth. "It isn't what you think," I plead in hushed breath. "I dated a demi-god back in med school. He was a major creeper. He stalked me. These warding glyphs keep him away. It's like the gods' version of a restraining order." Their looks of horror quickly calmed and transformed into more concern than fear.

To my amazement, they accepted it without the slightest question. "You poor thing. 

That's just terrible." said Alexia.

"Io, you never told me." The tone of her voice told me how hurt Lilith was.

"It's embarrassing. Plus, you had business school. I didn't want to drag you into it." I tried to patch up her hurt feelings.

The girls were sympathetic to the tale. "Please keep it to yourselves. I don't want him to find me." I reiterated. Tyche’s vision came true. Hades would find me. The eerie shadow of Death clawed at my heels.

Lilith's friends offered to leave the club. I insisted the group stay. I didn't want my circumstances to bring an end to the merriment of the evening. Besides, this gave me a chance to get the new glyph Tykhe gave me. I promised to text once I'd gotten cleaned up and changed. But, that would take a while, and I was hoping that by then everyone would be too drunk to remember I was even alive.

As I pushed my way through the crowd, my heart pounded and my head throbbed. The lights in the club pulsed in a dozen colors mixed with the glow of light sticks bouncing on the necks of the partying masses. The neon lights illuminated their eyes, leaving their faces black. It reminded me of the other place I had gone so long ago. Filled with the souls of the damned as they clawed their way to freedom at the gates of the Underworld.

My head spun. I gasped for each breath, drawing in hot, wet air filled with sweat and wine. I burst through the doors struggling to gain my breath.

I walked back to the hotel in a trance. Once inside, I cleaned up and changed as quickly as I could. My head still pounded and throbbed. I dumped out my purse onto the counter searching for an elixir for my head. On top of the pile of make-up and money lay the crumpled paper passed from Tykhe. When I saw the paper, I knew what I to do. I reached for my phone and made a called an old friend.

"Gaius, I need a new glyph." I said. He never lingered long on the phone and spoke in a strange code. But, as always, he gave me an address. I threw on a new dress and headed out of the hotel, hailing a cab out in front. "Lady, you sure you have the right address?" questioned the cabby. Typical. Women like me didn't make trips to back ally tattoo parlors. The driver dropped me off in front of a tattoo parlor a few blocks off of the main drag. Younger people drank on the sidewalks in groups, staggering out of a few of the dumpier looking bars and low rate casinos that filled this part of town. The buildings were old, with broken facades, cracked pillars crumbling onto the gutters.

"You want me to wait?" asked the cabby. 

"No." I handed him seven coins and opened the door of the cab. Instead of invoking fear, the place settled my mind. This was a place for outsiders like me. It was a place where people weren't hiding their true selves. In front of the tattoo shop, there were a few men, clad in dark clothes and covered in piercings and dark, primitive tattoos.

One of the misfit men blocked the door. "You're lost, lady" he said in a raspy voice followed by an odd and uncomfortable laugh that amused his buddies. Over the years, I learned to ignore the baiting gibes women got on the street. When he tugged my purse, I wanted to give him a swift dick kick, but I held back and held on to my purse even tighter. "Not here, not now. You don't need extra attention." I told myself.

"I'm fine. Thanks for the concern." I said, pushing through the group. As I pushed toward the shop the door swung open. A man in a dark hoodie walked out with his head hung down, banging into my arm. The lights from the street lamps and the flickering of the neon signs cloaked his face in shadow. "Sorry," he mumbled. His touch stayed on my arm long after he passed. The man holding my purse let go. They weren't going to hassle me when someone else was around to see. As the shop door closed behind me, I saw the hooded man standing in the road looking back into the shop.

"You're in the wrong place lady. This shop don't do butterflies or fairies and we only take people by appointment." Said a lofty, beardy man standing before me. He was a modern day Minotaur. The man behind the counter had large dermal implants like horns jutting from the forehead. The big bull had a large, silver ring dangling from the middle of his nose. His hair was more of a main, long, snarled and dark, dark brown in color. A long, thick beard clung to his chin. Bushy sideburns covered most of his head with hair. He stood shirtless. Hi body covered in heavy tattoos of black intertwined lines, a modern day labyrinth. He was tall, much taller than the dark man I had brushed past outside or at least I thought he was.

"It's funny you should say that because I have an appointment with Alcaeus. I want a rose on my wrist." I said with a smirk upon my face.

"Alcaeus doesn't have any more appointments." he bleated. "Besides, he's gone for the day."

"Check again." I demanded.

"Alcaeus, you still here. I got a lady out here says she has an appointment with you." The big bull called out.

The small front room opened onto the main shop. Artists worked on customers. People were getting work done on their backs or piercings in their lips, necks, and other areas.

A woman, dressed in a flowing lavender gown without a single visible tattoo or piercing other than her ears, hardly mixed into the crowd. For a moment, my heart fluttered. I worried he'd left for the day.

A man walked toward the front, putting his jacket on as he came. "I don't have another appointment today. Lady, you're in the wrong place lady. I don't do roses. There's another tattoo parlor on the main strip. They do fairies and shit there." Alcaeus said as he stared at me.

I smiled and said, "Caught me. I don't have an appointment, but I hope you can still fit me in. A friend recommended me to you. She said you're super discrete with private tattoos. I want something small for my anniversary. It wouldn't take much time." I turned around and lifted up the back of my dress, showing him just the spot I wanted it. I said, "Or, I might want to it closer to my chest.” I continued, pulling my dress partly open at the bust. "What do you think?"

He took off his coat and led me back to a table in the main room. Customers were hoping for a free show. He was going to give them one. I turned to him and said, "Don't you have a private room for this sort of thing? I'm shy." I played coy.

Alcaeus was surprised when he mumbled, "From the way you lifted up your dress in the lobby, I didn't have you pegged as the shy sort."

I leaned over and whispered into his ear, "I want my man's name on my inner thigh." Then I followed him back into a private room.  I shut the door behind us. "I don't know what this friend of yours told you, but I've got to leave the door open for liability reasons." He said semi indignantly.  Before he reached the door I handed him the crumpled paper and said, "I need to get this on my neck today. You know how to do it."

"Who did you say sent you?" Alcaeus asked.

"I didn't." I snapped back.

"This shit is illegal. I don't traffic in illegal tattoos." He barked. He was eying me like I was some undercover Olympian Marshal. He was about to grab my arm and shove me out the door.

"Enough bullshit." I said as I shut off the light and flipped on the black light. Taking off my jacket revealed the many other enchantments that covered my arms, chest, and back. They glowed even brighter than in the club. His face and arms also bore hidden art.

"I'm almost outa’ ink. The guy before you just got major work done. Fuck, you never can tell." Alcaeus said shaking his head and laughing. "Show me that thing again."

I handed him the paper. Alcaeus transferred it onto the side of my neck. Intense pain burned me like the fires of the Darklands. As he worked, my mind drifted. I lost focus and began to dream.

I found myself walking through the streets, the gaudy neon signs reflecting in the puddles of freshly fallen rain that pooled in the street gutters. I hurried along, avoiding eye contact. For some reason, my mind kept thinking about being hunted. I could hear everything. I could hear people's breathing, whispers from far away, footsteps. I had the feeling that if I focused onto it I could even hear people's private thoughts.

I heard steps behind me and I began to focus on them. I was surprised by how easy it was to tune out the other sounds that just moments earlier were so loud and clear. I couldn't just hear their voices barely. "This way." Their hearts beat louder. Their breaths were deeper, fuller. They radiated heat and oozed with emotions more intense than the mortals that dotted the street. I could even hear the splash of the rain pounding the sidewalk as they stepped into the wet cobblestone street. I knew they were not mortal. I could sense it, the power that radiated from them.

My blood and bones knew the gods looked for me. My mind flashed to blackness, The Blackness. No darkness existed like it on earth. I would never return to the dark black pit of Tartarus. That thought just kept repeating itself in my mind. "I won't go back to Tartarus." I sped up my pace, certain I would find what I was searching for before they found me. Instead of feeling panicked, I felt a surge of adrenaline. It was almost invigorating to know that I was outwitting them, whoever they were. I just knew that my wards would make it impossible for them to find me. I was invisible to the gods. As much as they chased, they would not catch up.

It must have been a nervous habit, but I ran my thumb along the crease between my palm and my ring finger. The action made me remember that there was no ring. The empty space where I ring once rested felt like a much bigger void than a quarter inch piece of gold. "I will find you, my love." I thought, almost giving myself a sort of pep talk.

An instant later I was looking up from the stone street. I stood before a small temple, gray stone lined its face. Its façade bore no beautifully carved statues or frescos, no ornate gold paintings. I knew, somehow, that this rat infested dump belonged to a demi-god. The name didn't mean anything to me. I'd never heard of any such god.

Before I could read the symbols carved into the façade, I snapped back awake. Alcaeus turned on the lights and leaned over his tools, cleaning ink out of them. "You passed out, but you can't leave this shit half finished."

I reached up to touch my bandage covered neck. "Lady, you need to keep that covered up for a week or two while it heals. That tattoo's gonna scar if you don't cover it back up."

I stood up, pulled the money from my purse, and put into onto the table. "Forget I was here." I commanded, pulling the bandage from my neck. The tape made a sticky, ripping sound as I pulled at the gauze pad. The tattoo burned as the air touched it. I threw the bandage and Tkyhe's glyph into the trashcan with a match.

Alcaeus jumped out of his seat, "What in Hades are you doing? You can't start a fire in here."

I left as he put it out, rubbing the side of my neck as I walked out of the shop. In addition to the warding, I had enchantments that helped me heal quickly, enchantments that kept my mind from being read, glyphs that kept me hidden from the gods. There were so many that I didn't remember exactly what I'd even had in the last 10 years. Seeing my reflection in the mirror, I couldn't even tell that I had just spent the last two hours having a needle ravaging my neck. I pulled my necklaces from my purse and lowered them over my head as I walked out. When I looked at my reflection in the glass door on the way out, you couldn't even tell that there was a new tattoo there. It was already healed.

The street stunk of fresh rain, grease, and gasoline. Grease wasn't the only thing the rain cleaned the streets of. Most of the young people either headed home or ducked into one of the many dive bars. The obnoxious group of guys who were hanging outside of the tattoo parlor were nowhere to be seen. The only people still out were just getting off work, still wearing their work uniforms. The flickering neon lights bounced off of the puddles, making what had once been a dark street brighter and less eerie.

Lilith texted while I was passed out. I'd missed the text telling me where they would be. I pulled out my phone and punched in a quick text. "Sorry. Fell asleep. See you in a few."

Lilith quickly texted back, "On our way home. I'm tired too."

I managed to get back before the girls. The girls stunk of liquor when they came in. Lilith was holding her phone in her hand and whispering when she entered the room. She walked into her chamber and closed the door behind her. It must have been Lucian. Lilith was one of those girls. When she drank, she wanted a booty call. I was relieved. I wouldn't have to have some long talk about my wards or how I worked too much.

The other girls dropped into the lounges bordering the reflecting pool in the middle of the chamber. Alexia ran into the bathroom. The other two fell asleep leaning against one another. I retired to my room, relieved that the night was finally over.

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Title:  I Am Pandora

Genre: Mythic Fantasy

Age Range: Adult (not the xxx kind ;)

Word Count: Completed Manuscript 108, 816

Author Name: S.M. Keswick

Why It's a Good Fit: I see that you've had success with other fantasy novels written for adults such as Houck's Reunited and Kenyon's Deadmen Walking.  

The Hook:  I knew my own truth, if I cried, if I dared to shed the tears held tight for four thousand of years, my tears would never stop.  I had the sadness, disappointment, and regret of a hundred lifetimes to fill my sorrowful heart. I could not lay down and die now. I had to make amends, to put as much right as I could before I died for the hundred and twelfth time.  I didn't get to cry.  It was a luxury I could not afford.

Synopsis:  Io felt out of place her entire life, riddled by nightmares of her own death, constantly hiding from the gods.  When Hades, the dark god of death, finally does catch her she realizes she's been afraid of the wrong people her whole life.  Now she's stuck with a bunch of forgotten gods trying to strip Zeus of his immortality.  She can only win if she's willing to sacrifice her love for Hades.  Can she break the ancient curses plaguing her friends before she dies her hundredth death?     

Target Audience: Women ages 18+ who enjoy romance and fantasy with strong female lead characters, lgbtq.  

Bio:  Granola Baking. Hike Taking. Adventure Loving. Mother. Wordsmith. Crafter. Cosplayer. 

Education: I have a B.A. in French from University of Michigan and a J.D. from Notre Dame Law School.

Experience: Here comes the cliche: I've been writing since childhood.  Who hasn't?  I won my first writing competition at age 9.  I've won a few small writing contests since then.  On a professional level I've written hundreds of briefs, motions, and appeals..some people might even argue that attorneys are professional fantasy fiction authors.  

Personality:  INFJ - in other words, I like helping people and people love sharing their stories with me.  

Writing Style:  I like to keep my writing fun with a sprinkling of humor, profanity, and maybe even a decent sex scene (or I could just be faking it).  

Likes/Hobbies: CASA - I advocate for Abused & Neglected Kids.  Girl Scout Leader.  Crazy about Sewing (yes it's still a thing)

Hometown: Ann Arbor, MI 

Age: 39