He’d wondered, when he started the job, why he needed a belt with so many holes. Now he knew — it fitted around him twice and felt like it needed tightening again. It took months to visit every home in… Continue Reading
“Hi Linda! It’s Ralph again, from ‘New Life Start!’ calling to remind you: your very own ‘New Life Start!’ begins today! Just as soon as you mail us that check—” “Ralph?” said the voice on the other end, flatly. “This… Continue Reading
The mournful wailing froze Conn O’Neill’s blood, as it always did. People said the sound the stuka dive-bombers made came from sirens the Germans fitted to their planes. Well, maybe. But Conn, fighting for Allied forces in northern France, knew… Continue Reading
Amy Ford woke up dead. It was immediately obvious she was dead. Her mind went through a number of distinct memories: driving high on methamphetamine, wrapping her car around a tree, and being flung onto the road. She remembered thinking,… Continue Reading
At night, the sulphurous fog grew thicker, and the women took their usual positions under the doorways and gas lamps of Whitechapel. Molly’s shoes clicked against the cobblestones as she tried to catch the eye of any passing male. She… Continue Reading
Something brought her out of sleep. A scream, she thought. It was guttural, near inhuman, and seemed to stretch out into the expanse of night and recede into the dark. She couldn’t tell if it had been real. She didn’t… Continue Reading
Laura was on the phone with her boyfriend when the baby let out a sharp wail. She rushed down the hall, picked up her crying daughter from the crib, cooed “There, sweetie, it’s okay.” Then she saw blood dripping from… Continue Reading
Something in the darkness moved, and Herr Bruegel awoke. A large, rough hand stole over his mouth, stifling the cry before it could begin. “Do not cry out, Herr Anwalt,” a voice said. “I mean you no harm, but I… Continue Reading
Kitrid told me I’d go to Hell for what I done. I didn’t believe her. It was a mistake, I said. Kitrid said it didn’t matter; that some mistakes are forged in iron. But I didn’t know what that meant.… Continue Reading
I sat cross-legged on the tattered blanket, surrounded by a constellation of crumbs. Myra was sprawled out on her stomach next to me, her bright socks doing scissor kicks as she stared at the TV. Once in a while she’d… Continue Reading