“So, what did you do on your birthday? Anything interesting?” Mary asked, smiling. “A bit of warmongering, some torture, epic cannibalism, drunkenness, cake,” he replied, somewhere else. “What?” she asked, wide-eyed with shock. “Oh … uh … sorry … just trying to be funny,” Vlad said, coming back from the daydream. “Had a great time […]
The children arrived (some confused, others fearful) and they huddled together in the courtyard on any given day, wondering at the colors of the place, asking each other where they were. A man came out and welcomed them; he was an unusual person in a bright purple coat and enormous bow tie with a great […]
Erica stood in the kitchen, staring at the open cabinet, stirring the batter. She loved making cakes from scratch; loved presenting them and watching the person’s face light up with happiness and gratitude. Every cake was an adventure … a story … an ending or a new beginning. Erica was at a critical point in […]
Ed and Tara often thought of moving; over the years, the house felt too big, too old, and too expensive to repeatedly update. Still, they had so much history with the place and had grown so close to its bumbling and awkward resident spirit that they could never actually leave. Ed died in the autumn […]
Midnight San Marco stood on the hill in the shade of the giant oak, a dark silhouette against the sunrise. It was almost time. He felt tired in his bones and had few desires left; a deep sleep was calling. As he watched the sun blaze its trail across the ranch, Midnight considered lying down, […]
“How long have you been hearing the voices?” the doctor asked. “All of my life,” he answered. “And have they gotten louder or more insistent over time?” she questioned further. “No,” he said. “I would say they’ve gotten more … social … over time.” “Interesting,” she commented. “They interact with you?” “Sure,” he said smiling, […]
Ella told Sarah that she was to stop farting around about changing her life and get on the damn dime. “Dump him already!” she said, taking the girl’s hand. “Move already!” Later that same day, Ella told Jeremy to stop lying to himself and quit being a little shit. “You’re not the first one in […]
“You just walk quietly up, make eye contact, speak softly, and let everything happen,” his father said, talking it through. “And this works on both men and women (whoever you’re attracted to).” “DAD,” Jason groaned. “Oh my gawd.” “There’s no need to be embarrassed,” his father continued. “What I’m trying to tell you is that […]
“And over here is the clinic,” Wesson said, leading the small group of civic leaders through the labyrinthine halls of the Justice League. “Triage and urgent care for general injuries, a surgical suite, and a private counseling office.” “You have a permanent medical staff?” Ketchum asked, surprised. “We have select staff on call; no need […]
(burt.stark@thronehydraulics.com) Hi, Burt. I tried to reach you last week, but got your out of office vacation message; I hope you had a great time. We’ve had a number of people voice concern over the way you’ve been yelling out, “Winter is coming!” in the hallways and at the close of meetings. I realize that […]