“I thought she’d dozed off.” It was the excuse I’d been making all week. Tim was standing next to me, gazing at the body in the coffin. Above the fragrance of hothouse flowers rose a faint scent of mothballs, an… Continue Reading
“That’s odd,” Ann set her phone on the counter, and turned to her husband. “What?” “It’s Mom,” she said as she slid the three-year-old tin closer, wrapping her hands around the colorfully painted Christmas elves on its side. “I joked… Continue Reading
Every household has at least one bag of bones they try to hide under a pile of winter clothes. On the other hand, my family is so pleased with our fleshless corpse that we proudly display the skull, femur, and… Continue Reading
She had never held her head higher than when she stepped through the gilded double doors, red cape flowing behind her. Her reception at the unloading area had been warmer than she’d dreamt of in her most crazed delusions of… Continue Reading
I have some advice for all you struggling parents out there, and even those who aren’t struggling. No matter what, love your kids, even if they’re ungrateful little monsters. Yeah, yeah, I know. It goes without saying. Well, sometimes you… Continue Reading
Emma Hawthorne loved the old and picturesque, and authorities and guidebooks agreed that Dartwood was one of the best-preserved sixteenth-century manor houses in southern England. Erected on the site of a suppressed Benedictine monastery by one of Henry VIII’s favourites… Continue Reading
Bill sat in an old folding chair and stared at the glowing embers of the campfire. His wife, Nancy, had always told him he needed an upgrade, one of those fancy bag chairs with cup holders. But he never gave… Continue Reading
Henry wished he had remembered to put on his wristwatch that morning. It was hell sitting in the hospital waiting room with no semblance of how much time had passed. A broken clock hung on the wall, ticking, though the… Continue Reading
We’re some distance away from the commercial Scots pine plantations (they’re too well guarded for what we have in mind), in an area of ancient woodland. Bump, bumpity, bump goes our pick-up along a narrow, snowy track. “Keep your eyes… Continue Reading
I should’ve read the small print. Slowing down ageing sounds like a good idea, right? I was in my prime, and staying that way forever would be great. I took the deal. Aeons isn’t that different from forever, is it?… Continue Reading