“Sorry, buddy,” said a gray-haired man in a suit, bumping me as he tried to reach the bar. “Fridays are always crowded here. Everybody ducks out of work early for a pint before they head home.” He noticed that he’d… Continue Reading
The kids were running up and down the street like crackheads jacked up after their latest fix. It was that worst night of the year, the one before All Saints Day. For the past three years, two little shits had… Continue Reading
The crack of the baseball bat against Jason’s knees incites power I’ve never felt, but I should have smashed his jaw. He drops to the floor, profanity spewing from his mouth. My grip tightens on the bat. I know what… Continue Reading
Sub-space radio transmission from the direction of Tau Ceti: “Mayday! Mayday! Do you read? ‘Beef’ Vaquero reporting in! Over, dammit!” Reply from Nina Bozovic, technician at Arecibo Observatory, Puerto Rico: “Is this a joke? Not funny. I’m just an underpaid… Continue Reading
“Old father, will you tell us a story?” The hall hushed; women settled their children, men settled their drinks. The old man cleared his throat. “I suppose…” he began. Despite his feigned reluctance, he enjoyed these nights, rare moments of… Continue Reading
I went into the bodyshop to order new legs. The assistant had a screen projection in front of his face, but he burst it as I came up to the counter. Gleaming limbs hung from the wall behind him. He… Continue Reading
Fishing lures attract more fishermen than they do fish. Tackle shops sell lures in every color from “Fire Tiger” to “Nuclear Watermelon.” It’s nonsense — you don’t need that stuff to catch fish. You can use the bowl of an… Continue Reading
He split her like a bloodwurst and left her like butcher’s ware — cold dead meat drawing flies. But Friedegunde my sister was more — not a surrenderer and not silenced. I held my scream, knowing she hadn’t screamed but… Continue Reading
April hated her name with a vengeance, and the reason was simple. On the first day of her namesake month — the month of her birth as it so happened — she was inevitably the target of every wannabe prankster’s… Continue Reading
“‘Pretty as a picture, no need for brains!’ Daddy always said.” Dora preens at her reflection in the bistro’s art deco mirror, “Well, now I look pretty smart too, don’t I?” Her own joke slides by unnoticed. “Yes, you do.”… Continue Reading