“C’mon, Jade, don’t be a loser.” I look over at my cousin Lily. She brushes her hair from her face, the sneer highlighted by the bold blue streaks her mother let her get. I could never pull it off. Her friends seem bored. “Okay, fine!” I slid my hand forward and set it on the ...

September 1964: The mid-morning sun shone on the uniform lawns on Juniper Street. The area, in an affluent Sacramento suburb, was lined with brick houses and bordered by two large bushes, marking its separation from the outside world.  To Martha Baxter, this was the place those with materialistic desires loved to call home. At eleven ...

“We both know you didn’t kill him.” The soothsayer smiles at the knight across from her, tracing her finger along a gold chain that wraps her face, piercing her nose and running to her ears. The metal catches the curling light of an oil lamp, reflecting droplets of wealth over the carpet and walls of ...

The air crackled with energy as the wind gusted around us. Ralph, Liz, Roxanne, and I held hands, reciting ancient spells. The candles we had lit had long since blown out, proving useless, but the sage bundle nestled in the amethyst bowl glowed in red and yellow hues. Smoke twisted and danced to the whims ...

Days went by, and still waiting for word from Thelma. I drove to the farm, hoping to see my Uncle Jeb, but he wasn’t on the grounds. It was unusual for him not to be around. The gnawing tug in my gut grew stronger. But when Ralph, the most unobservant of men, failed to offer ...

Uncle Jeb had a far-off look in his eyes, as if gathering his thoughts on where to start with his missing hand story. Throughout my childhood, my mom and aunt recounted the tale of him driving down one of the dirt roads one day with his arm dangled out the window. His truck got too ...

The morning passed peacefully after Ken left for work. I showered and dressed before I drove out to the house to do more research. I texted Ralph. Considering his character, it was likely he had already headed to the golf course to play a round before enjoying the rest of his day at the country ...

My aunt’s actions put me in an uncomfortable situation, and I couldn’t help but harbor a sense of bitterness towards her. It was difficult to ask for answers when she was no longer alive. The responsibility of uncovering the truth weighed on my shoulders. I lay in bed and struggled to shake off the overwhelming ...

Exhausted after my harrowing experience, Ralph, though reluctant at first, cooperated with me. As I drove home to get some much-needed rest, my thoughts turned to Liz. My next step had to involve her. I wondered if she had ever been in the abyss. If she had, she said nothing. Her ordeal with the plate-eye ...

Gravity tugged at every fiber of my being. The black hole stretched me thin as I hurtled through the abyss. Colors swirled around me in a mesmerizing dance that blended and morphed into shapes beyond comprehension. I shielded my sight and tried to steady myself against the onslaught of sensations that threatened to overwhelm my ...