by Dan Cardoza Infestations of Fire Ants are everywhere. Onyx-eyed, Insect aliens, dressed in antennae, oversized mandibles, and swollen abdomens. They exist in the shadows of cracks, in vast armies on the march, and in the darkest corners of our minds. The neighborhood is pulsing. Neil Armstrong is stepping onto the moon, right now, inContinue reading “Death by Innocence”
Tag Archives: Noir
The Killer: Rowan’s Debt
By Thomas Falater The call came at 3 p.m. “Hello. Moss Plumbing,” Harold answered. “I have a customer for you. He’s got a leaky pipe that needs fixing.” “Yes, sir. I can do that for you. Shall I schedule you for a service call tomorrow, or does it need to be fixed right away?” “RightContinue reading “The Killer: Rowan’s Debt”
The Exit
By Dylan Todd “Take a seat, son.” The old man pointed at a chair directly across from himself. Tommy obliged. Tommy had been to several sit downs just like this, but never the focus of said sit down. Nervous, he fought every instinct to run, but he knew that to run would mean that heContinue reading “The Exit”
Best Served Cold
by Krystal Mossbarger “What do you have?” Detective Loughty asks when he enters the room. What I have is a stomach threatening to ruin my career. The grotesque scene surrounding us is my first case since being promoted to detective. I attempt to adopt Loughty’s casual attitude; he looks as if he’s attending a partyContinue reading “Best Served Cold”
Just To Get High
By Matthew Serback i.I bought weed from the white girl who lived next door to me. She was a child-monster whose face was full of freckles that were mopped up by her brown hair, which obfuscated her eyes and never let her make eye contact with someone she must’ve consider to be a loser. ii.TheContinue reading “Just To Get High”
Tunnel Rat
By Robb White He took out the same folded sheet and smoothed it out on my coffee table as delicately as if it were the Shroud of Turin. “My dad drew this up before he left Saigon,” Tran replied. “And this?” I asked. I jabbed a finger at the fat X. Tran relayed the storyContinue reading “Tunnel Rat”
Frank Olson’s Big Break
By Shawn Schenck Sweat gathered and rolled down Frank Olson’s pallid face. His ice-blue iris’ had shrunk to the size of pins, exaggerating his yellowing white eyes. The meth had come in full swing, driving his hunger away and his heart into double time. He hadn’t felt more awake in the last thirty-six hours, hadn’tContinue reading “Frank Olson’s Big Break”
The Last Mrs. Roberts
By Marco Etheridge I am the second Mrs. Roberts. There will not be a third. Waste no time with mourning. Mr. Roberts was not a nice man. The first Mrs. Roberts is no more. She ceased to be in the fourth year of her marriage to Mr. Roberts. He killed her. Her murder was notContinue reading “The Last Mrs. Roberts”
Confession
By Dick Johnson “Yeah, I shot her in the face. She fucking deserved it.” The detectives looked at me like I was crazy. “You shot her?” “Yeah” “Because you caught her cheating?” “No” “But you knew she was cheating?” “Yeah, I walked in on her. The guy was on her just pumping away. But noContinue reading “Confession”
Seen It Many Times
By H.A.L. Wagner The school bus blocks my view of Murray Russel’s new place. The city obviously didn’t do their predator checking lately. Murray shouldn’t be within 1,000 feet of this stop. Just another pleasurable reason to take this bastard out. The bus passes leaving no child behind. In the large picture window stands Murray.Continue reading “Seen It Many Times”