Treachery Stories

Shelley’s monsters are wailing at me like their lives are at stake, and this guy wants to talk about insurance. Oh, I’ll call him all right – no question. Thanks for the card.The brats pull me free. They lead me past a shoe store, a phone store, a jeweler. We go by a kiosk for t-shirts, a kiosk for hobby drones, a chattering pack of teenage girls, and now we’re near the food court. I corral the kids over to a table, and w...

We followed railroad tracks by the forest, and the tracks followed the river. A white moon hung full and bright to our right, fluorescent on the water. To our left, dense black trees grew close to the tracks. Chalk-white stones glowed with the moon, piled loosely around heavy wooden ties. I grabbed one of the stones and gauged its weight, its feel. Then, with all I had, I flung it into the river. We were silent for a mome...

They sat around the table pondering the the future. Marshal Hagen finished his food, quickly drained his glass and stood. “I'd like to say that this was great meeting you all, but under the circumstances I think I'll postpone that. I better get back to my partner.” Tom said, “Wait a bit, Art, if you're not in a rush. We have a prisoner out in one of the outbuildings but he hasn't been very talkative. If he sees a U.S. Mar...

Just after dawn the stranger trudged into Harper's Gully leading his horse. They stopped at the watering trough where the horse plunged his muzzle and the man filled his hat which he poured over his head. The water only removed some of the dust from him. He pumped a stream of water from the pump, captured a double handful and slowly swallowed it. He pulled the horse from the trough and continued along the street to the li...