Here Come the Demons by RJ Taylor

Here Come the Demons by RJ Taylor

Down in the valley, beneath trees whose trunks rise evenly spaced and straight but whose gnarled arms twine high above, a woman kneels digging.          She digs with her hands, nails tearing. Bright-beaked birds watch, hopping among the risen roots. One chirps a sad melody, but the song is lost beneath the waterfall’s thundering: a…

Kiss Me in the Rain by Sandy Parsons

Kiss Me in the Rain by Sandy Parsons

My splashbike squelches as it leaves the concrete. I’m airborne, wet hair flailing, stinging my cheeks. I love this part, the almost not-quite making it to the other side. But despite the constant shifting rain I hit a cantilever. My splashbike bobbles, the specially designed tread of the tires defying gravity until I’ve got enough…

FIVE CANDLES FOR THE APOCALYPSE by Michelle Muenzler

FIVE CANDLES FOR THE APOCALYPSE by Michelle Muenzler   The first candle is the biggest—it’s from when we met, don’t you remember? Everything was still Christmas and pumpkin spice despite the news, and we found ourselves reaching for the last unscented candle on the shelf…and when our hands bumped, we both apologized at the same…