FOUL • by Alan Vernon
One swing of the bat and a frozen rope laced foul from the barrel of a 32-ounce bat beaned my Dad straight in the left temple, and he crumpled in my lap. It was opening day. I was ten years… Continue Reading
TIME UNNOTICED • by Shera L. Hill
Elias never forgot the day. His mother sewed by the fire. His father oiled a saddle. He told the therapist, “I was twelve. I’d been ill. Measles. The fever shifted something. I remember all at once feeling my mother’s presence… Continue Reading
BETWEEN BELLS AND RINGS • by Rory Crane Arnold
“A class ring is a great reminder of all the memories you made in school,” the man in the too-small suit said to me, holding out the gold ring. On it was the school crest: a shield and two striking… Continue Reading
ANOTHER PLEASANT VALLEY SUNDAE • by Adele Evershed
As Sian enters the café, she hears ABBA’s “Take A Chance On Me” playing softly. She pats her plastic purse, a superstitious tic to reassure herself she deserves to be there. It’s only since moving to the Valleys with her… Continue Reading
THE BARGAIN BIN AT PETMONSTER MARKET • by Jeff Gard
The front door creaks open as Cole leads Mother into PetMonster Market. An oppressive humidity smacks them in the face followed quickly by the scent of cedar chips, piss, and rotting fish. Now that Cole is thirteen, Mother has finally… Continue Reading
TALES OF 1001 NIITES — A CORPORATE PARABLE • by Peter Tyler
My division vice-president leaned back into a chair more fit for a throne room than an office. Fredric King’s well-tailored, charcoal grey suit set off his two-hundred dollar purple tie and corporate hair. The MBA diploma dominated one wall of… Continue Reading
ESCAPE • by Wayne Scheer
The hum of the television, the chatter on cellphones, the unrelenting bass beat of the music made Alex uneasy. His eyesight was going, his hips ached, but his hearing remained fine. One of the little jokes God plays on old… Continue Reading
THE ZOMBIE DINNER • by Kathy Sherwood
When the zombies appeared, the residents of Halperin Bay locked themselves inside their homes and waited for bullets to solve the problem. But anyone foolish enough to try to shoot the zombies failed, for the bullets simply passed through the… Continue Reading
DIRTY DISHES • by Mary-Anne Nelligan
I really thought that Olivia and I were best friends. But, she didn’t make me a bridesmaid for her wedding. During her engagement party, the eight girls in her wedding party all wore matching bracelets. Rose gold and delicate. It… Continue Reading
LITTLE CHANGES THAT MAKE NO DIFFERENCE • by Meg Candelaria
25 May, 2014: Sir Terry knew that he did not have long. Not as a writer, not as a living human being. He was in no mood to humor the fan who approached him wearing a hooded cloak with a… Continue Reading