Alembics line the walls, rounded and bulbous glasses blown in bubbly greens and creamy whites and swirling yellow-blues. Their contents shift and churn of their own accord, some in slow dancing waves, some in quick jerks, crashing against the walls of their vessels. There is a queue out the door, and August wishes they had […]
As she floated near the viewport of the Nautilus IV for the fourth day, Faye stared out at what looked like a giant sleep-deprived but pupil-less eye. In actuality, orange-red lines haphazardly scored the white surface of the moon. She had first seen pictures of Europa right after she turned ten in 2230—the same year she […]
“No, thank you.” The demon inclined her head graciously. “Pardon?” The knight blinked. He was not prepared for politeness from demons. It went against all his training. He swallowed the rising lump in his throat. “To be clear,” he said, “are you refusing to surrender? Or refusing to move yourself out of that good woman […]
They gathered around the body at midnight. All four members of Lilith Skulls—Amy, Petra, Ty, and Cat—hovered above the once pink face of their band manager, Jeff, who laid in a barren corn field outside a New Jersey dive bar. His corpse now illuminated by moonlight and the weak beam of Ty’s flashlight. There were […]
Liesel felt herself counting them, one, two, three. In and out. In and out. One two three. Counting the breaths made it feel less like waiting and more like expecting. “Is it sick?” Krista asked. Her little sister leaned close to her side. Liesel shrugged. “I think so.” She knew it wouldn’t be long. Moments, […]
The night before Grandaddy Burl died, Colly dreamed of a flathead catfish swallowing him whole. Summer storms had been rolling in since June; the mountain air sitting heavy like flannel on fevered skin. Splashes of sunbeams illuminated verdant pockets, but the inevitability of more rain coaxed the shadows out from crevices and caves to smother […]
“You know what I heard, Philippa?” Kenzi said. “What?” I said, watching the lifeguards clean the pool beyond the fence. For the last time that summer, we were waiting to get into the city pool and, as usual, had come too early. “Mitchell was watching you the whole time we were here yesterday.” I gripped […]
The Bethmoers expected their neighbors. Their apartment demanded guests. Meat cooked in the oven. All the lamps threw light. The Muellers were expected at 8. In private, the Bethmoers called Mrs. Mueller “the mouth.” Mrs. Mueller licked her lips often, consuming her lipstick through the night. Her lips, joked Mrs. Bethmoer, began the evening in […]
I lose my finger during the private flight back from Japan. It isn’t the whole finger, of course, just the bone. When I drugged myself into oblivion at the start of the flight, it was totally fine. When the designer-uniformed flight attendant woke me, it was a jelly sack. In the hospital bed next to […]
The first time you see the Grand Canyon, you’re ten years old on a trip with your parents. You walk up to the railing and look out over it and say, “It’s big.” Your mother sighs, as if you’ve disappointed her with your reaction. But it is big, so big that it renders meaningless any […]
Kate and I are blaring our favorite local metal band, No Turning Back, on the car stereo. We’re on our way to The Spot, which is this hookah bar venue on the rural side of Wander. My mom hates when we go there because I always come home smelling like smoke. It’s not my fault […]
Once upon a time, the house next to the cemetery belonged to the only undertaker in town. But we Talbots haven’t been undertakers since great-uncle Laurence got shot in a hunting accident. It’s been just Pa and me in the house ever since. But that’s fine. The house likes it better that way. At least […]