“Elizabeth, you look radiant. Welcome to the Menton,” he said. The chef bowed to the pair and returned to the kitchen. Elizabeth greeted James in kind and sat down across from him at the table. She looked around for a menu but found none. “It’s not that kind of place, I’m afraid,” said Mr. O’Donnell, ...

Over a week had passed since the shooting. Elizabeth spent most of her recovery in her room hanging out with Jules. She had to avoid screens for the first few days, so they would sit and listen to podcasts instead of watching anything. Her parents had visited the weekend before, which was nice but also ...

He was an unimposing, but very interesting figure. “My name is James O’Donnell. I wanted to come in person to express gratitude for interposing last night and make sure you’re okay.” “I should be thanking you,” Elizabeth said. “You had everything handled and saved me after I tried to play hero.” “Yet I doubt you ...

“Lizzie?” She realized she’d zoned out of the conversation while her parents were play-fighting. Jules was looking at her, concerned. “Sorry, my head hurts, but I’m okay.” She gave a loose synopsis of the situation, about the old man and the two gunmen. She minimized how close she came to dying from the gun pointed ...

Elizabeth didn’t sleep well. She woke every few hours, either to some noise or because she was uncomfortable. She dreamt of the old man and the ring, a different dream every time she fell asleep. They were in the diner, but it was only the two of them in there. She sat on the ground ...

Across from her, stuck to the bar, was a fragment of bone, glued to the surface by a glob of viscera. It made Elizabeth queasy, but somehow her intense focus on it prevented her from throwing up. The white shard eventually fell. No one noticed but her. The old man snatched the discarded weapons and ...

“Where is Jack Kelly? I know he’s here.” If the man with the gun hadn’t yelled, Elizabeth wouldn’t have heard him; her ears were still ringing. His gravelly voice managed to break her trance on the weapon he held.  He was wearing a black hoodie with a ski mask, burgundy gloves, black track pants, and ...

Elizabeth would’ve sold a kidney for a slice of pie and some ice cream. She pulled up to Bunsen’s Burgers in her Toyota Camry and barely waited to throw the car in park before she opened the door. She’d just gotten out of the gym; her hair still wet from the shower. Something about exercising ...

Content Warning- Domestic Violence It took me 10 years to fully get over you. Every blood-curdling scream from my throat over 3 years was a testament to the manipulation that you had subdued me to. It was 3 years of walking on eggshells and uneasiness and a semi-permanent lump in my throat and knot in ...

darlings, remember, the dark shapes hiding in the night friendly enemies fornicating your good nature they peek out from under your bed, creep beneath your pillow, stalk the lonely roads of your dreams and breathe new life as figures that haunt your waking world his breath may linger hot on your skin burnt like a ...