Title: The Boddicker Letters
Author: A.C. Cross
Cover Artist: Luke Tarzian
Release Date: December 15th (eBook), paperback coming soon
Preorder: Live now at Amazon.com: The Boddicker Letters eBook : Cross, A.C.
Genre: Horror/Lovecraftian/Epistolary
Blurb
Titus Boddicker is in love. So in love, in fact, that he sends his beloved Luisa a letter nearly every day. Unfortunately for Titus, these letters paint a picture of a descent into the darkest regions of reality. Will he be saved? Can he? Can anyone?
About the Author
A.C. Cross is a doctor, but not the kind that you want treating you for kidney stones or pneumonia or anything. That’d likely make your situation much worse.
He (currently) lives in the Great White North of the United States as a bearded, single man.
He’s a lover of words, many of which are in all his books.
He’s an admitted scotch whisky and beer snob and his liver would not argue with him.
He has written six books now, which is mind-boggling.
You can find more about him as well as some neat little free stories at www.aaronccross.com.
@daneatscatfood (Twitter/X)
r@aaronccross.bsky.social (BlueSky)
draccross (Instagram)
Excerpt
As they explained about the position, I could see pride in their eyes at the success of their progeny. However, when they turned to the subject of the conversation at large, the glitter in their eyes disappeared, replaced by a weariness that startled me. They told me that Lucien had made a phone call home every night for the first week of his tenure, speaking excitedly about the town and his home and the school. He waxed poetic about how quaint the location was and how the locals, though initially skeptical of him, soon warmed to him and included them among their events and poker nights. He promised that he would not fall prey to gambling and loose women and that he would be home as soon as he could manage.
After that final conversation, though, they had not heard from him since. They had telephoned and asked for him, but received angry responses in return, excoriating them for interfering with the town’s business and their son’s life. They were called all sorts of names of various vulgarities and were hung up on. Naturally, they were furious and sent the police to investigate. However, only a day or two later, the police returned and informed them that there was no sign that Lucien had ever arrived in the town and that the police were unwilling to invest more time in such a wild goose chase while actual crimes were being committed. The police left and desperation sank in for the Weatherbys. They tried to enlist the services of others but were rebuffed at every turn. Mr. Weatherby himself tried to charter a boat to take him to the town, but found none willing to take him.
It was at this point that I began to worry about what they were to ask. If the police were unwilling to aid them, what could a simple solicitor do for them? I asked them and they assured me that they needed my help and experience. Before I could further enquire as to what experience they referred to, Mr. Weatherby retrieved a chunk of gold the size of a woman’s fist from the pocket of his overcoat and set it on the table. He told me that, before Lucien disappeared, he had told them that he was being paid with gold rather than paper money and wanted to verify that it was, in fact, pure. They had received a few samples and taken them in to be appraised. They had been informed that the gold was indeed pure and of finer quality than the jeweler had ever seen. The value, Mrs. Weatherby told me, was estimated at around twenty-thousand dollars and that every single ounce they had received from Lucien was mine if I accepted the task of traveling to the town and retrieving their son from whatever nasty business he had clearly become enmeshed in.
Though further questions would have been prudent, the glint of the gold so blinded me that I agreed wholeheartedly and told them that I would be off as soon as I could possibly manage. The relief on their faces was palpable and, for a moment, I felt guilty at taking their money. However, my love, I see this as a boon! This windfall will provide me the ability to find another job more suited to my abilities and temperament. I shall be happier and more fulfilled and, in turn, should likely be able to provide you the children you have asked of me for years now. My darling, we shall both benefit from a simple excursion. I promised nothing to them so, should I not find their son, I would hardly be culpable of malfeasance.
All of this is to say, darling Luisa, that I am aggrieved to not be with you during the holidays, but the long-term future of our family depends on such a minor inconvenience. Please, enjoy your time with your parents. Eat well and celebrate the birth of our Lord! I shall be traveling on Christmas morning to Innsmouth, Massachusetts, though I hope to return to you and our home no later than the New Year.
I miss you already and it feels as if my heart is gone.
I love you beyond words.
You are my light and my wind.
Take care, my dove.
Your beloved Titus
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