Old Nick was sitting at his desk looking over a section of the list his secretary handed him.
The rumor was he checked it twice. In reality he checked it far more often, and he had the final call. The price of being the boss.
He sat there examining one of the names. The kid was on a bit of a bad streak lately but he was pretty good overall. He put a mark next to his name to give one last check before the final list was printed.
He’d have to be good for a few more days. It…
It was a rainy day, the day that I met her.
I remember the raindrops making their way down the shop windows as I walked along the sidewalk. I clutched my collar, holding it close to keep the precipitation out, and to keep the last vestiges of warmth inside my jacket. The jacket was old and worn, and it was already doing an unsatisfactory job keeping the rain at bay; I refused to carry an umbrella. My shoes splashed in the ever-growing menagerie of puddles, and I had to find some respite from the rain. …
Jasper Ford suspects something sinister when several farmers’ daughters go missing.
“So you think the thing that’s been attacking my cows has been a….”
“A vampire, yes,” I said looking at the astonished farmer. He was a good man. From an old Swedish family, his relatives carved out the homestead from the Michigan backcountry generations ago.
“You’re sure.”
“Quite sure.”
“How do you know?”
“I’m a bit of an expert.”
“A vampire expert?”
“Yep.”
“How did you know my animals were being attacked?”
“I sat in the diner in town all day. People talk.”
The old man was older but shrewd, he leaned forward, “Something tells you’re not hear because a…
After getting his father’s book collection, a boy makes a fortunate find.
I wasn’t supposed to hear them in the kitchen. They were speaking in hushed tones.
My grandfather was telling my mother the latest news from the doctor. He needed surgery, but it was expensive.
Neither of them said it out right but I knew what they were thinking. They couldn’t afford it. Mom was doing everything she could to keep the store going after Dad went.
Grandpa even started working again, down at a hardware store, but he had to quit a couple weeks ago. That’s when he first went to the doctor.
Now he’s holding my mom’s hand and…
A woman comes in for questioning after witnessing a brutal crime.
I finished my coffee and tossed the paper cup into the trash. I tugged on the chain around my neck. It had been itching all morning.
“She in there?” I asked the officer.
“Yeah. They just brought her in.”
“Good.”
I opened the door to find the young woman sitting patiently in the chair. I took the seat across from her, tossing my little leather notebook on the table.
“I’m Detective Ford. Miss….er, Simpson right?”
“Yes. Why am I here?” she asked.
“We just have some questions for you. Just routine really.”
“Okay. Did I do something wrong?”
“No. We…
After turning down a woman at a bar, a man has a big surprise waiting for him.
The bar was loud and packed with people.
It was truly the last place I wanted to be. I spent most of my time on the road going from small town to small town. At this point, I’d been to every little farming hamlet in the Midwest.
Alas, I had business in the city so I had to blend in with the office drones as they made their nightly ritual to the bar before going home. Their hour of cocktails serving as libations to the gods of spread sheets and TPS reports.
It was the tail end of happy hour…
Matthew Donnellon
Matthew Donnellon is a writer, artist, and sit down comedian. He is the author of The Curious Case of Emma Lee and Other Stories.
