Elaina By Melba Burke

From whence do I come? Whither do I go? These are the questions I ask of thee.

A thick spattering of long, ebony hair flutters in the breeze as Elaina hoists herself onto the massive trunk of a downed cottonwood tree. She examines the tree trunk, polished eons ago by the ebb and flow of the tides. She scrapes a sample of the tree’s DNA onto a gooey leaf of her receptacle pouch. When the receptacle is full, it protrudes like a tree burl. Come dusk, her pouch will be filled, likely. The pouch is a distasteful part of her anatomy, a genetic mutation attached to her pelvis, a design of Nolan Angler of Stellar Tech.

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Tales For A Lazy Afternoon

From distant planets to the waters of the Skagit River, from CIA agents to the shadowy world of vampires, you hold in your hands a work penned by both multiple-award-winning authors and up-and-comers. Nearly 50 writers bring you tales that will wrap around your soul and make you feel glad to be alive.  Humor, philosophy, fantasy, romance, mystery, and paranormal live side by side in this collection of prose and poetry from the oldest literary society in Washington State. So, settle down in a comfortable chair in your garden or in front of the fire, and enjoy some of the best writing in the Pacific Northwest.

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