Fiction

Salt

The incontestably worst part of living in Vermont was that the lawn behind Timmy’s house had no snails. There were slugs in the garden, fat slugs that he had only touched once to grab and pour salt on, but he …

Incident at the Resort

Fiction by John Haggerty

If the fishing fleet had left before dawn, as most fishing fleets do, the disaster would have been avoided. But the fact was that the fleet hadn’t done any actual fishing for some years. Increasing tourist traffic, drawn to the …

She Came in Through the Bedroom Window

Fiction by Leonard Kress

A pigeon wing brushing against the window screen, I think, as I’m seated at my desk, listening to the scratching sound. Something I can easily ignore even as it persists. The sound does not drown out yelps from my daughter …

Pulse, My Electric Heart

41, Fiction by Emil Ostrovski

Sometimes, they speak of little ones. They do it with words and awkward silences, clasped hands, smiles and twitches, sidelong glances and mating calls: “Hey, babe. I’m winded, because you just took my breath away.” I stoop to pick up …

Father Fox

Fiction by Martin Pousson

“Don’t tell anyone,” he said, before he told me the story.

My father’s tales starred cheats, thieves, and priests, and he figured at thirteen I was old enough to hear one of his favorites. It began like this: once he …

Bond

41, Fiction by Michael George

As with any illegal drug, Bond came to me through a friend, my officemate at the graphic design firm where I produced diagrams for mathematics textbooks. Larry was a compact, cherub-faced man with an inappropriate mane of long, thinning blond …

Boxes

2014 Walker Percy Prize, Fiction by Laurie Frankel

No. 1—Secretary

Box type: cigar, lined in Spanish cedar with brass hinges, glass top lid—13”L x 10”W x 6.5”H. Sounds fancy for a diorama and it is, but I had it in my basement, a remnant from an old boyfriend, …