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never read the stuff, why was he defaming it? And why did he have so many accurate statistics?
    It was all a mystery, one she didn’t care to solve.  Jared Stone could rot in hell as far as she was concerned.
     
    ***
     
    Toreas walked into her bi-monthly writers meeting with trepidation.  Not only hadn’t that stupid incident with Jared blown over, it had gotten worse.
    The late night talk shows had picked up on it and Jared was all over the place looking pitiful, pretending that he was injured.
    On Letterman , he’d even produced a document that he claimed was from his doctor. She knew it had to be forged.  There was nothing wrong with the man.  She was the one who’d used Ben-Gay for a week and slept with a heating pad.
    Her entire family was up in arms over this nonsense. Her brothers, Michael and Billy, were ready to move to Chicago to protect her.
    When her father phoned her from Georgia, that was the topper.  He was ready to fly to Chicago on a moment’s notice and kick Jared’s butt properly. It had taken some doing to reassure him that the newspaper articles and news stories were exaggerated and were only the very clever work of a crafty publicity hound.
    “Listen,” he’d told her.  “I don’t like what the man has accused you of. I know you were raised better than to attack someone and especially not in public—not on television—unless the man molested you. Did he?”
    Toreas could hear her father’s voice raised in anger. Molested no, kissed yes. But she knew better than to even joke about that. Her father was serious.
    “Tesa, did that man molest you?”
    “No, Daddy, it’s just his way of thinking he’s clever. He’s going for ratings. I had no idea an independent station could garner such attention. I guess I forgot about satellite TV. You don’t have to worry about me. This will die down if I refuse to respond.”
    “It hasn’t so far,” her father growled. “I can make it stop tomorrow.”
    “Daddy, it’s my problem. I’ll deal with it. Don’t worry.”
    “I knew something like this would happen.  I should have never allowed your mother to influence my decision to allow you to move to Chicago. Your wanting to write was one thing. I never thought your leaving home was a smart idea. One thing I haven’t changed my mind about is your new friends.  I don’t want you hanging around with those women in that writers’ group. They’re putting bad ideas into your head, making you write trash. We raised you as a Christian and what you want to write has nothing to do with Christianity.”
    “I know, Dad.  If it’s not edifying the kingdom, it’s of no value.”  She said what he wanted to hear. What good would it do to tell him that her group had not influenced her?  That she’d smuggled romance novels to Sunday school tucked between her bible and her lessons. Talking disappointed—-He’d be even more disappointed if he knew she had a massager, and not for back rubs.
    “Don’t forget our agreement,” her father continued. “It’ll soon be two years. I expect you to honor your word.  I want you to come home where I can keep an eye on you.”
    “Daddy, I’m a grown woman.”
    “That doesn’t matter. You’re always going to be my baby.”
    Toreas remembered the agreement well.  She’d known when he proposed the deal that it could be the same for her as making a deal with the devil.  When her father had challenged her to quit her job and take two years to concentrate on her writing, to become a professional in that time or stop, she’d known the risk she was taking. She knew he was aware of how many people failed after a decade of trying. Still, the offer was the best one she’d had, so she’d accepted. His monthly checks had supplemented her savings, allowing her to live in Chicago and write full time. Living in Chicago hadn’t been part of her plan but she’d thought it best to see something more of the world than Georgia. Her mother had agreed.
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