Queen of the Skies (Excerpt 2)

(UPDATED 7/11/24) The following is an excerpt from Queen of the Skies (Book One in the Steam & Mettle Christian steampunk series). Keep in mind that any of this may change between now and when the book is published, but it will give you a sneak peek.

This series takes place on an alternate Earth in the present day. This scene is between the main character, Merritt Baxter, and her best friend, Blaze.

[Excerpt begins]

Several minutes passed. At first, Blaze had been checking email on his phone. But then he gazed at Merritt to check on her. She seemed to just be staring at the blank television screen — at nothing really. He knew she did that sometimes. It’s just part of her personality, he thought, something she does.
 
Blaze sat down next to her and softly patted her arm a few times to get her attention. “So, if you get this job, are you finally going to get your own place?” he asked with a wily smile.

She turned to look at him with confusion. “What? If I get this job, I’m getting a bike. I want to be able to ride again.” She paused for a few seconds. “Vinnie was so mean. She was happy that Tillie got stolen.”

“She’s always had something against you, hasn’t she?” Blaze asked.

“Well, you know I’m…different,” she replied.

“You’re autistic,” he said warmly. “They should understand that. They’ve been around you your whole life.”

“Being around me, they know how I act. That doesn’t mean they understand,” she told him. “You have to want to understand.”

He nodded sadly, then leaned forward. “Well, what about after you get the bike? What then?”

“I dunno.”

“I guess what I’m saying is, you could easily afford a one-bedroom apartment on what you’ll make at Fletch’s,” he continued in a friendlier tone. “So, I think you should.”

“Yeah.  But then I wouldn’t have Marjorie’s cooking anymore. And I love everything Marjorie makes! And I can’t cook.”

“I understand, but is it worth the stress of living with them just to get her food?”

She gave him her own wily smile. “You’ve had her blueberry pancakes, right?”

He sighed and nodded. “I get your point. But Merritt, they don’t respect you.”

She shrugged. “I’m used to it.”
 
Now, Blaze sighed loudly.
 
“What?” Merritt wondered, narrowing her gaze at him.

“I don’t get you, Mare,” he fumed, using his special nickname for her.
“It’s true, you’d have to give some things up to move out, but you’d be so much better off on your own. You can see that, right?” He didn’t wait for her answer. “So, what’s holding you back?”

She put her hand on his shoulder and her eyes held a sweet look that matched her smile. “Blaze, you’re kind. I see how much you care. You’re my best friend, but you’re right: you don’t get me.”

“Well, help me understand, please,” he insisted.

 “It’s simple at home,” she continued. “Vinnie’s a bully and a jerk, but I’m used to her. And Marjorie and Henry are barely home. But they pay for things, and Marjorie makes that delicious food. I’ve always had a place to stay, a good bed to sleep in.”

“But —” Blaze started to protest.

“They never hit me,” she interrupted softly. “And they’ve never said they’d kick me out.”

He studied her resolve with a troubled look. “They don’t love you.”

She smiled in response. “They don’t have to.”

[Excerpt ends]