• Blurred led lights that read "Merry Christmas"
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    “Ugh…” My ears buzzed, louder and louder. A headache joined it and amplified the pain tingling through my body. My neck, arms, back, and legs all ached. Pain pulsed through me. That was good, though. Pain brought me closer to reality. I tried to move, but that made everything hurt more. I growled with discomfort, ...
  • The text "In Deep Water by Jessi Hoff" is set against a deep-water background.
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    “What do you mean, we’re in the past?” Xander’s brows form a deep V between his ice-blue eyes as he stares at the CELNAV crewmember. “I mean, we’ve traveled back in time.” The crewmember squints at the constellation maps on the computer in front of him. “Early fifteen hundreds, I’d say.” “You’re kidding.” Xander barks ...
  • Flamingo in the water
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    Per my instructions, Carlos dug up as much dirt as possible on Mackenzie Billings, which became plentiful. It took two weeks to uncover sufficient evidence to destroy her reputation. We leaked it to rival news outlets. Everyone blamed her for the unethical activities and toxic workplace she created and thrived in. But even that wasn’t ...
  • The text "In Deep Water by Jessi Hoff" is set against a deep-water background.
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    “I don’t think I’ll ever get that image out of my head.” I sit in the Hangar control room with a blanket wrapped tightly around my shoulders. The only warmth I feel comes from a steaming cup of tea cradled between my palms on the desk in front of me. Sophie cries softly beside me. ...
  • Flamingo in the water
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    My thoughts swirled inside me as I walked back to the hotel. Miss Billings had lied to me all along about Louis! She manipulated me! But I was the one who chose to betray Louis and Miss Martha, this is my fault too. How could you’ve have been so stupid, Jessica? These thoughts continued until ...
  • Plantation home with long driveway with mature oak trees along each side of the driveway
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    Days went by, and still waiting for word from Thelma. I drove to the farm, hoping to see my Uncle Jeb, but he wasn’t on the grounds. It was unusual for him not to be around. The gnawing tug in my gut grew stronger. But when Ralph, the most unobservant of men, failed to offer ...
  • The text "In Deep Water by Jessi Hoff" is set against a deep-water background.
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    “I’m telling you, we’ve been up and down this section three times. There’s nothing down here but coral and fish,” a frustrated voice explains over the speaker in the Hangar’s command center. Xander huffs out a breath, throwing his hands in the air. “Well, it must be somewhere. Shipwrecks don’t just disappear.” I put a ...
  • The text "In Deep Water by Jessi Hoff" is set against a deep-water background.
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    “Emily!” Sophie screams in the dark. I scramble off the floor as vertigo races through me, feeling my way back onto the couch. “I’m here.” Holding her shaking form, the world stops spinning. She sniffles. “What is going on?” “I have no idea.” I gulp around a wave of nausea. The whir of an engine ...
  • Plantation home with long driveway with mature oak trees along each side of the driveway
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    Uncle Jeb had a far-off look in his eyes, as if gathering his thoughts on where to start with his missing hand story. Throughout my childhood, my mom and aunt recounted the tale of him driving down one of the dirt roads one day with his arm dangled out the window. His truck got too ...
  • The text "In Deep Water by Jessi Hoff" is set against a deep-water background.
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    “It can’t be,” Sophie whispers for the seventh time, eyes glued to the computer screen on the desk in front of us. “Y’all are seeing this, right?” Nathan runs a hand down his face. “It’s not just me?” Xander blows out a breath, his broad shoulders connecting with the back of his chair with an ...