“You gonna write us a dreams-to-lovers romance like this, Sam? It’s sexy as hell, and I think we’d rock it just like they do,” Cora jibbed, elbowing me in the ribs.

  She was talking about Known Cosmos Book 2 and how the star couple met in person on Nayth Carmidee’s home world, Sturm.

  “I think you should write our story, Cor, since you were the dreamer. I already wrote our meet cute in Discordant,” I joked.

  I knew I was going to need to write a sequel, and it would probably have Cora in it, but our story had gone topsy-turvy when we’d left Earth, and now I had no idea what to write in a second book.

  Could I simply write a love story between me and Cora and gloss over everything that I’d learned about the cyber mafia? Readers would probably revolt.

  “Actually,” Bitsy Joon’s voice interrupted. “I wanted to talk to you about that very thing, Sam. I know you want to keep reading the Known Cosmos series, and I want you to. But, I’ve finished Discordant and ‘Mafia Moms,’ and I don’t think you're done with it. I think there’s a lot more you need to write, and what you’re doing now, here, is part of it.”

  “I want to publish ‘Mafia Moms,’ and soon,” she continued. “I know there’s a lot to consider with that, and we can table it for now, but you need to be thinking about the sequel to Discordant and how that ties into the cyber mafia, and I think my family’s accounts will help you."

  Fingertips to my temples, I sank to the floor cushion. “I—I. I just don’t know, Bitsy. I’m fine with Discordant. I understand it, but the one we’re living now is something entirely different. I wouldn’t know where to begin, especially since ‘Mafia Moms’ is brand new information, and it seems like it’s somehow tied to whatever we’re doing here in Shurwinn. But it’s all disjointed!”

  “I need a direction. A hook. Something that connects the end of Discordant to what I’m doing now, but nothing ties together in my brain! Not to mention the fact that I’m in a building called the Ayela Arcana Sanctuary, and it was named that decades before I was born. Yet I’d never heard the name ‘Ayela’ until I decided it was my pen name. None of this is clear to me—“

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Sam, you’re not alone,” Nanna’s hand lifted my chin. “We can help you.”

  My eyebrows screwed up in confusion. “Help me?”

  “HC is a best-selling author. Cora is a songwriter. I'm a teacher. Paddy and Rhoda own their own businesses. We are all capable people who can spell, Sam.”

  Nanna waved her arms towards the sanctum. “This place is loaded with historical records, and no one woman can be expected to digest all of that on her own. And you don’t have to. I, for one, am happy to write something of what I’m learning here, and I’m willing—“

  Rhoda cut her off, “I’m already taking notes. Sibsil Creed buried so many secrets in these lines, and I don’t want to miss anything. Plus, my son is Talented! So, I need this information.”

  Paddy nodded, “Wimpy's been obsessed with Sibsil for over forty years, Sam, and we’ve got a lot of questions about dreams and what they can mean. We're not leaving this building without answers.”

  Cora placed soft lips against my temple, “You know I’m at your side, Sam, and Marjorie is right. Let us help.”

  I looked around at all of them, jaw agape. “We’re—what? Gonna do a group project?” I asked skeptically.

  “Samantha, I bet there’s already a story title on the tip of your tongue,” HC scolded.

  Damn, he was right.

  I clutched my head, leaning back against the white wall.

  “Spit it out, Sam,” HC demanded.

  I rubbed my eyes.

  “Time Sleuths: The Countdown Has Begun,” I groaned. And my tone sounded like, “I ate a raw cheeseburger and shat my shorts in the worst way.”

  “Perfect!” Bitsy clapped. “I knew there was something I needed to come in here for. You will do this, all six of you. Sam, you’re in charge, but everyone else is the support crew. You Time Sleuths take every single hour you need, and Pitch and I will be here watching over Filly.”

  I rolled my eyes at her, “I’m not sure if I should thank you or be grumpy about this newest project you’ve laid at my feet.”

  “Trust me, Sam. This is going to be everything,” Bitsy said over her shoulder as she left through an arched doorway.

  That word everything echoing through my mind, I looked around the room at my friends and family. Or really, my found family.

  The people who would help me figure out the way ahead.

  I nodded. “Okay, Time Sleuths. You wanted this journey, so let’s get to it. There’s a hundred and fifty years of history in these walls, and I can't digest them myself.

  We’ve got Talented. Dreamers. Animal communicators and hacked cybernetics. Mafia Moms, prophetic songs, and so much more. There’s a lot going on in the shadows, and we need to connect the dots."

  “You’re officially recruited. Show me how this all turns into a story.”

  And wouldn’t you know? They did.

  The roundabout way.