“It’s just a mirror”, that phrase echoed in Elisa Smith’s mind every time her gaze fell on the blackened glass hanging in the long hallway of her grandparents’ house. The mirror was nearly her height, its opaque surface barely reflecting the outlines of the room,...
“Six. Seventeen. Nineteen. Forty-five. Twelve. And…Twenty-three,” he finished, the last of the lotto numbers rolling off his tongue, which was suspiciously dry considering the speckles of spit that now clung to the sneeze guard separating him and the attendant. He cleared his throat before wetting his...
In Milan, under the relentless sun of a summer that seemed intent on sealing the city in an endless embrace of heat, a website appeared almost by chance in the dark labyrinth of the deep web, a digital recess that very few dared to enter....
The following anonymous tip was deposited into the mailbox of the Lincoln Police Station in Lincoln, Nebraska. * * * * * * The ice cream place on the corner of N 48th Street and Vine is a front for human trafficking. It used to be called Soft Serves (and...
To the writers of Retlaw and Drummond’s Almanac, I’d like to thank you for the vestige. Your county map, in its textured patchwork of onion yellow and copper goner green, was among the last to list my fair town by name. Of course, I understand why that...
Born from smokeless fire, they straddle the line between seen and unseen, good and evil. They move betwixt those spaces between life and death. They may choose to help or destroy on a whim. Beware in the shadow valley, the cursed Jinn. Chapter 1 “A Den...
In a faraway future, across limitless desert wastes, living in the ruins of the old world, lay the emaciated colonies of the new one. The feral lands of Zimitra. The land of forgotten knowledge. The land where the memories of the ancient world were lost to...
“In the desert, the voices of God and the Devil are scarcely distinguishable.” — Loren Eiseley Chapter I — The Saloon Laying in the thoroughfare outside the saloon was a pile of twenty smouldering bodies stacked on top of each other like logs. The gang of bandits that...
“Remember, the entrance door to the sanctuary is inside you.” — Rumi, 13th Century I had a wife once, aeons ago; but I can't remember her name. I can’t even see her face in my dreams anymore. I must write all this down before any more of those...
“Ye needn’t think the only folks is the folks hereabouts,” — H.P Lovecraft, The Dunwich Horror. “Even in this world, more things exist without our knowledge than that with. And the order in creation which you see is that which you have put there,” — Judge...
“The past and future dreams us, lays on our bodies like skin, so that we might pass the days with grace. To us were given all the ways and the obligation to travel. To us were opened all the roads of heaven, all the tunnels...
17-year-old Marco Romano lifted the metal baseball bat over his head. It felt heavier than it should have, but he tried his best to hold his arms steady and tightened his grip. He was about to bring it down on a whimpering and writhing girl...
My grandfather would tell me stories when I was young about the time before when the world was large and the mists had yet to come. He would tell me about animals that were larger than humans and buildings that stretched into the sky. There...
Last week I was alone in my bed. I’m not alone tonight. He’s right next to me. He’s not supposed to be here, though. Last week I was a senior in high school and completely in love with Steven Hooverson. Truth be told, I’ve been in...
“Breaker one-nine, breaker one-nine.” BOOLEEP. Nothing. “Breaker one-nine. Anyone copy?” BOOLEEP. Glen took a swipe at my hand as I attempted to key up the base station radio mic once more. “Give it up,” he belched. “You lost another one, man.” He crumpled his empty can of MGD onto...
There was roadkill all up and down the highway this morning. It is nine AM and sunlight is sifting through the treetops. The lake is still and black and crawling with bugs. Thin grass grows beside it, tamped down by the boots of men I’ve never...
This is the 2nd in a multi-part series. If you haven't already, please read the 1st part here. Part II To this day, I don’t know what came over me, but as the cops entered the room, I was overwhelmed with the idea that they meant me...
Part I Something extraordinary began happening to me this past month, and I’m not sure whether I ought to be relieved or terrified. For all I know, it’s been going on for several months, or possibly years. Hell, maybe it’s been going on my entire life,...
Is Doctor Disrespect one of your heroes? I know he was one of mine. Yes, was. I guess I still respect the guy. But he went down one motherfucker of a rabbit hole and dragged me down with him. I’m seventeen and I wash windows. That’s why...
Oh, looks like someone’s waking up a bit. That’s real good. I was getting a little worried that I might have given you a bit too much… oh, hey. No, no, no, don’t try to be sitting up. You’re far too… well, you just don’t...
