Working with a Demon

By M. K. Theodoratus

Not only is Grant Highgrim about to be evicted from his apartment for nonpayment, his career as a reporter is on the line.

When he learns the world’s oldest living man—the reclusive 150-year-old Nobel Prize winner Dr Henry Allsdipp—Highgrim is determined to interview him. He thinks he has found a way to get his floundering career on track. All he has to do is to persuade Allsdipp to reveal the secret of his long life.

On the day that Highgrim arrives to interview the ill-tempered recluse, everything goes wrong. A horde of demon beetles invades the home, seeking just one thing--Henry Allsdipp’s soul. Highgrim must conquer his irrational fear of insects to save the old man and his own future at the same time.

How can he save the cranky Allsdipp from the demons coming to take him away?

• Language: English
• Publisher: M. K. Theodoratus
• Release date: Jan 16, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311887153

M. K. Theodoratus

"Fantasy is a wonderful way to run away from the mundane,” sez me. Others say, "M.K. Theodoratus is a captivating storyteller who prefers the power of short stories. Theodoratus has been in love with fantasy since first discovering the Oz books as a child. She has never stopped delving into the fantasy worlds of other writers. She became inflicted with an addiction to story and writing after creating a Nancy Drew fan fiction novel for a school assignment. Her incomplete assignment turned into her first novel the summer after the sixth grade. Now, Theodoratus has created the worlds of Andor and Far Isles Half-Elven for readers to get lost in. Andor is populated with stalking demons, always hunting for unsuspecting humans to prey on and terrorize, and magic. The Far Isle Half-Elven is a society in upheaval as genetic drift of the hybrid human-elf population changes everything from relationships to politics. Check out her short stories about Andor and the Far Isles, some of them free. M.K. Theodoratus loves connecting with fans. Check out her author hub for news and snippets of upcoming work at http://www.mktheodoratus.com. You can read and comment on her blog, find her on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and Google+.

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Working With a Demon

By

M. K. Theodoratus

© 2015, M. K. Theodoratus. All Rights Reserved.

Smashwords Edition

This work of fiction is a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or places is purely coincidental. A previous version of this book was published as The Ignoble Nobel Prize Winner.

No part of this work may be reproduced or stored or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the author except for the purpose of reviews or commentary.

A chitinous crunch and piercing squeal greeted Grant Highgrim when he stepped out of his dented rusted car, making his stomach turn as he scraped the remains of a huge bug from his shoe. Highgrim had hated creepy-crawlies ever since his older brother tackled him and made him eat the disgusting things. Resolved to get the interview with the world’s oldest man hiding in the small town nursing home, Highgrim ignored the sulfurous stench that rose from the bug’s carcass and his churning stomach.

Your landlord’s not going to wait much longer for my rent. Get on with it.

Three months into his new job at the stupid ad sheet, his rent was overdue. His salary barely covered his rent and gas, let alone food and beer. The interview was a make-or-break. He