It’s just a street, a city street. There’s no reason for him to be buttonholing strangers, grabbing their arms, saying, Don’t you see?   And of course he doesn’t. But he must be imploring them with his eyes, because they keep veering away, a young woman in a gauzy white dress even crossing against traffic […]

18 Thomas’s muscles ached as he dug out another shelter for the night. He thought he could see, just on the horizon, the lights of a small, distant city glowing beneath the atmosphere. Tomorrow, he thought. He vomited several times and voided his bowels in the most ruthless and graphic way. After rinsing his mouth […]

16 “Who? Who?” Thomas opened his eyes. He wasn’t afraid. “Who? Who?” “Hooter.” He whispered, his voice too weak to vibrate. “Good to see you.” “Who? Who?” “I’m bear bait. But not its dinner.” The rain had stopped. There was no sound besides the owl. “Who? Who?” “I’m a stupid boy. I’m ignorant. I am […]

14 Charlie. Thomas bolted upright as the name of the feral beast licked his eardrums. He put on his boots and gloves and opened the tarps with his hands and walked outside. Snow still fell lightly then and the fresh layer of it was soft on the frozen sheet beneath. The whiteness of the snow […]

It corners me on the edge of the cliff. The green grass, wet with dew that shimmers eerily in the gray light of dawn, suddenly gives way to a sheer drop. The base of the cliff vanishes beneath the surface of glistening ocean waves, water reflecting back the beauty of the rising sun. I can […]