Simone Byline interviews Dane Fortune

Below, Simone Byline, reporter for the Resolute Reader, interviews hitman Dane Fortune. This much-anticipated and exclusive interview was originally posted on author Michelle Miles' blog, Ye Olde Inkwell. I am re-posting it here for Mending Resolute readers. Enjoy!


I’m here with Dane Fortune, hit man, time traveler and all around hot and sexy guy. He’s blushing even as I say this, though his rosy cheeks don’t sway his grisly, manly appearance. Dane Fortune and his time traveling partner, Skye Ransom, dropped into Resolute (literally) earlier this week and were a great help to the city in remedying a rogue-super hero problem we had. Thank you, Dane, for agreeing to this interview, and for helping save our humble little city. You smell fantastic.

[Dane chuckles as he deeply drags his cigarette.]

Thank you, Ms. Byline, for giving me a smoke. I’ve been dying for one of these.

Simone: How long has it been since you had a cigarette, Dane?

Dane: Too damn long. We popped up in some rural desert weird-ass place with some creepy monsters and I managed to wrangle one from the local sheriff. Nice guy.

Simone: You were originally sent to kill Skye Ransom. She evaded you and now the two of you are traveling through time. How do you feel about constantly being so far away from home?

Dane: [takes a long drag] Well, it doesn’t really bother me much. I adapt well to change. Skye, however, can become a raving lunatic at times, so I have to keep her in check. I didn’t have much of a life before, so I don’t miss it.

Simone: I get the feeling you’re a bit smitten with your Adventures of Ransom and Fortune counterpart, Skye Ransom, the very woman you were sent to kill. Am I right?

Dane: [chuckles and blows out a plume of smoke] Skye and I have an…interesting relationship. A bit on the love-hate side. She’s a smart-ass and she likes to boss me around.

Simone: You didn’t answer the question.

Dane: [gives a cocky grin, showing deep dimples] No. I didn’t.

Simone: How do you think she feels about you? I mean, after all, you did murder her parents. Do you think she can ever get past that?

Dane: [his expression turns serious] I know how she feels about me, but she’s too damned high and mighty to admit it. I’ve told her more than once that she can trust me. [drops his voice and leans closer] And I’ll let you in on a little secret. I never intended to kill her. [sits back in his chair and inhales] Yeah, I think she can get past it, if she’ll let herself. [glances to Skye who’s sitting several feet away] I saw that!

Simone: Well, if she doesn’t, I’m more than willing to take her place! [Dane laughs as he exhales grey smoke.] Why don’t you tell us a bit about your childhood. If you had to sum it up in a word, what would that word be?

Dane: It was good. My uncle had a ranch in Wyoming and I’d work the summers with him. Good times.

Simone: Your creator, Michelle Miles, sends you to all sorts of crazy locations throughout time. Do you suspect she’ll ever really bring you home, and if so, when?

Dane: She’d damn well better and soon. I do have a life to return to. I suspect it won’t be without great personal loss, though, and that concerns me.

Simone: Does that life include your partner in crime, Ms. Ransom?

Dane: [looking at her thoughtfully] That remains to be seen.

Simone: If you could say one thing to Ms. Miles, what would you say?

Dane: [Takes long drag of his smoke, then chuckles] If she’s half as bossy as Skye, then I feel sorry for her poor husband.

Simone: I did some digging and found out you used to live under a different name and had a different life. Do you ever wish you could return to that life?

Dane: Never. That man died years ago.

Simone: So, if you and I were out and I was buying, what would you be drinking?

Dane: Whiskey, baby. Single malt. On the rocks. [winks]

Simone: I might just take you up on that. Well, that’s all the time we have today with the rugged, mysterious Dane Fortune. You can find out more about Dane in Michelle Miles’ The Adventures of Ransom and Fortune, available at http://www.keepitcoming.net/ransom-fortune.html. I guarantee you’ll become even more intimately acquainted with Dane Fortune. Did I mention he smells terrific?

Simone Byline is a journalist for the Resolute Reader. Her dedication to the journalistic field will be honored in a special edition of The Reader, available by subscription to the paper at www.mendingresolute.com