Vanilla Heart Publishing
L.E. Harvey is a writer and model in
L.E. Harvey is also an activist for human rights, animal
rights, women’s rights, and gay rights.
When L.E. is not writing or working on the political scene, she models as a pin-up girl and “alt” (alternative) model. L.E. admires women like Betty Page, and “Rosie the Riveter” has been her idol since childhood.
L. E. Says that she wrote these stories out of personal experience, observation, and personal opinion. “It was easy to give these characters life,” she says. “They are based on people I know, and they all have elements of myself. From my experience working on cars, my love for animals, my desire to be a police officer, my work as a model and more, each of these women has a little piece of me – they all share my soul.”
Unbreakable Hostage by L.E. Harvey
Imperfect by L.E. Harvey (coming soon)
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Carol – abandoned - waiting... for what, she couldn’t know..
She couldn’t see that there was more life waiting for her.
Carol is forced to face the demons of her past as well as begin to face life without Alex. Struggling to make sense of it all, Carol experiences her new life and all of the highs and lows that come with that life.
Will Carol finally make peace with both her past and present?
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Chapter 1
The vibration of her Blackberry woke Carol. She slowly opened her very heavy eyes. Everything around her was blurry. She blinked several times and tried to focus her eyes on the number displayed on her Blackberry screen. Squinting, she was able to make out the incoming caller’s number. It was a client, a good client, calling with an emergency. It looked like they had already called a few times, but she had somehow missed those previous calls.
Carol sighed, and stood up. Even though she was exhausted and had no interest in working at all, she knew she couldn't ignore this emergency call. They called her directly, so she couldn’t send Will out. This was her life, to be at her client’s beck and call. Once again she sighed, knowing that she had to leave.
As she took a few steps, she noticed she was off-balance and stumbled. Carol assumed she was more tired than she had initially realized. She paid no attention to the coffee table with the pill vials and empty glass still sitting there, blatantly displaying their culpability. Unable to remember what had transpired just a little while earlier, Carol concentrated on each step as she walked towards the garage.
Slowly, she opened the door to the garage. She stared at the two cars. Her mind was far too foggy to drive the GTO. She didn't have the coordination or wherewithal to handle the stick shift. She hated the idea of using the Camry, but Carol knew it was her only option because of the rain and her weariness.
As soon as she got into the car, Carol was fighting back a flood of memories she and Alex had shared in this car. The Camry was old, but ever so precious to Carol. Carol was so tired and emotional that she forgot to buckle her seatbelt. Hesitating, Carol started to slowly pull out of the garage. She nearly crashed into the garage door when she realized she hadn’t hit the button for it to open. Luckily, Carol was able to stop the car within inches of disaster. Carol tried to take a few deep breaths when she hit the button, hoping to calm herself. While her heart raced from the near accident, she waited for the garage door to open. Once the outside world was completely visible, she drove cautiously towards her client’s office.
Even though she was tired, the drive seemed tolerable – at first. It didn’t take long, until exhaustion overtook her. The longer she drove, the more unbearable the drive became. Mile after mile, Carol was fighting her tiredness. Her eyelids were heavy and begging to close. She fought to concentrate on the wet, slick road. Carol couldn’t keep focused. Her head slumped down and she had to jerk herself awake only to repeat the pattern countless times. She knew she was tired and depressed, but Carol couldn't understand why she was so exhausted.
She fought valiantly to keep her eyes open as she drove, but the weights on her eyelids were far too heavy for Carol. Eventually, her eyes shut and did not open again. Blackness swept over her.
Carol could vaguely hear all kinds of voices and noises. People were shouting all around her, but she was unable to comprehend their words.
Waves of blue and white occasionally flashed in her eyes. Her surroundings were nothing more than swirls of paint and colors. Her eyes were unable to fix themselves on anyone or anything.
Her head felt heavy and flopping all around. Carol never felt so out of control of her own movements. It was a strange feeling, yet she didn’t – she couldn’t care. Her thoughts were foggy. Carol felt as though she was in a strange dream, and could not wake up.
She couldn't feel her body. She felt nothing, no pain, nothing, no heat, and no cold. She couldn’t feel anything. Where was she that she lacked all sensation? Carol diligently tried to focus on her surroundings and tried to make sense of all the activity going on around her, but she was unable to sustain that for long. Once again her eyes rolled back and Carol was consumed by black.
“I have two megs per keg of morphine per hour, doctor.” It was a woman’s voice.
“Morphine? Doctor, she’s unconscious from a head injury. Shouldn’t she be given an NSAID or any other form of pain management other than an opiate?”
“Okay, Ronnie. What did they teach you about morphine in school?”
“It raises intracranial pressure and there’s the risk of respiratory depression. That’s too risky for a patient like this.”
“Very good, Ronnie. Normally that’s true. She’s stable for now though, so it should be fine. If her resps decrease too much, we can always throw her on the ventilator. Now, you are right about the intracranial pressure. So we have to watch for any signs of brain trauma. Now, we need to get her moved into iso as quickly as possible.”
“ICU said that they are getting an isolation room ready for her right now. She should be able to transport in about fifteen minutes,” the woman said.
Carol took in a deep breath. There was an odd sound to her breathing and she could feel something covering her nose and mouth. She couldn’t open her eyes at all. Carol was lost. She had no idea where she was or what was happening. This was the worst nightmare she had ever experienced. Suddenly, she felt a cold shiver run through her body. She tried to curl up for warmth, but she was unable to move. She heard strange noises coming from somewhere behind her.
“Hamm. It seems she has a slight arrhythmia,” the first male voice said.
“She’s also bradycardic, doctor.” Once again, the woman spoke.
“Okay. I want her on Epi, but watch for any PVC’s. I want her under constant surveillance, and with her vitals checked q fifteen. You understand?” The first man who was referred to only as “doctor,” said.
“Yes,” the woman answered.
Carol was confused by their words and her inability to see. She took another deep breath in. Just as she did, her ability to think disappeared and she felt herself get swept away into another deep sleep.
Carol Mathers: born a
sickly child, in a home fraught with undercurrents that threaten to sweep away
any chance she might have for a ‘normal’ life.
Now in her mid-thirties, she's a highly sought-after IT guru in
She has built a great life
for herself with her partner,
During her tumultuous
life, Carol discovers that she has acquired AIDS as a result of a childhood
transfusion from the dark period of time before AIDS was widely known… or
understood, not even by the medical profession.
Now, the two women face even more obstacles, prejudice, and a strange,
new life as AIDS patients.
Carol learns just how much
her chaotic past has affected her, and how she can never really escape it, even
as she tries to move on with her life. An unexpected event creates even more
pain and tragedy in Carol's life, and causes her to wonder about the meaning of
and purpose of her own life… or if there is any purpose at all…
Imperfect Video
EXCERPT
A week passed by since Carol met Alex. Carol desperately wanted to call her, but her inhibitions held her back. Now it was Valentine’s Day and Carol was spending it alone, studying as usual.
Carol looked over the words in her textbook about servers, hardware, CPU’s, and other endless computer terminology when she was startled by a knock on her door. All of her floor-mates knew she’d be studying.
Carol wondered who was at her door.
She opened the door hesitantly. Before her stood Alex, radiant as ever in a beautiful red dress that contrasted nicely against her dark skin. Alex held a dozen roses and handed them to a dumbstruck Carol. Slowly, Carol’s face began to reflect the bright, beautiful smile and glow from Alex’s face.
“It’s a good thing your friends
like to talk,”
Carol just stood there silently for several minutes. Finally she said softly, “I’ve wanted to call…”
“I heard,” Alex laughed. “Now, are you ready to go?”
“But – I’m – you...”
“Oh, just put those books away, and come with me already.” Alex jokingly commanded Carol.
Carol simply laughed and walked out of her dorm room with her stunning companion.
Alex drove them to her apartment. It was the ground level of a house and she had her own driveway. It seemed to be a nice, quiet place to live. As they entered, Carol was greeted by candles lit all over the apartment. The dining room table had two tall pink taper candles glowing beautifully. Rose petals surrounded the two places settings on the table. It was the most beautiful, romantic picture Carol had ever seen.
Alex grabbed Carol’s hand. “C’mon, it’s ok.” Alex led Carol into the cozy apartment. Carol heard smooth jazz music playing in the background. Alex had tended to even the most minute of details. “Sit,” Alex quietly said.
Carol sat herself at one of the elegant place settings at the long, rectangular, wooden dining room table without saying a word.
“Ever have Riesling wine?” Alex asked.
Carol shook her head no.
“It’s my favorite. I have a major sweet tooth so I even like my wine sweet. It’s very light and fruity. I think you’ll like it.” Alex sounded like a wine expert as she poured the two glasses. “So,” she said setting the glasses down and sitting across from Carol. “Tell me about yourself. Not that your friends haven’t already told me a lot. You have them to thank for this by the way.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I had this all planned out, but all I had to go on was your first name. I drove back to your dorm in the hopes that I would somehow find you. Thankfully a group of people were just heading out of your dorm as I pulled up.”
“Marlene,” Carol whispered.
“Is that your roommate?”
Carol nodded.
“Well, thank God. She saw me and
came right up to me. She asked me if I was the ‘incredible
Carol giggled quietly.
“Anyway,” Alex continued to ramble. “She asked me if I was there to get you. I said yes, but only if you didn’t have other plans. So then she laughed and said your plans were a hot date with your books. She told me all this stuff about how quiet you are, you take classes every term, even during school breaks, you rarely date, blah blah blah. So please explain to me how a cute and obviously very intelligent girl like you isn’t living it up during your college years.”
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Loving Her: A Collection Celebrating Love and Life
By L.E. Harvey
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Unbreakable Hostage - A gripping suspense novel, it is the story of Lareina Oliveira: a Ph. D. student at UCLA, studying algebra. She has a seemingly ordinary life. Lareina works as a teacher in addition to her Ph. D. studies. She has wonderfully close relationships with her family and her roommate, Sandy. Her life is a rather quiet one, but Lareina is very happy with things as they are.
School life seems normal, though one of her classmates, Tony Covelli, is captivated by Lareina and pursues her throughout the semester. Repeatedly, Lareina turns Tony down and focuses more on her private life.
Refusing to take no for an answer, Tony eventually kidnaps her and keeps her as his prisoner in a cabin well hidden in the woods.
Lareina is held hostage for over two weeks. The only thing keeping her alive is her
determination and resourcefulness. Lareina uses her wits and
knowledge of algebra to send
Unbreakable Hostage Video
Unbreakable Hostage