He tore her heart out with the grace of a dancer.

First he spun around her and pulled her clothes away, baring her nakedness that she tried to cover, but couldn’t.

He scalped her, ripping off her golden hair, relishing the blood that was pouring in waterfalls over her pretty face.

He stabbed at her, cut her, slashed her, and when she was crying in a ball on the ground, he yanked her back to her feet.

With a flourish, he waved in the air and then plunged into her chest.

She went down again, her heart in his hand.… Read the rest

“I would take on the most barbaric monster in the land for you.”

“I am the most barbaric monster in the land.”

“I would raise the sun and pull the tides for you.”

“Oh, come on, enough of that shit. You’re all talk and no action. You always say you’ll do things and then you never follow through.”

“You know what I followed through with to get here to you, the battles I’ve fought, the friends I killed along the way, what will ever be enough for you?”

“You. You’ll be enough for me, just you.”

“I don’t believe you.”… Read the rest

She had no control over the pen. It kept writing and writing, white pages filled with ink.

My plan was finally coming along, I had successfully built a robot that could write novels for me, and she didn’t even care that I used my name on the covers.

How was she to know I took credit for her work?

How was I to know she could become capable?

“I wrote this, Cheney,” were the last words I heard before all went dark.

I woke up in a cell, aching and cold.

“You shouldn’t take credit for other people’s work.”

“People’s?”… Read the rest

He held out a shiny silver ring to her with trembling hands.

“I know I don’t have much to give you. I can’t even give you a real ring. But I swear I will give you my undying love and devotion. I promise I will love you and care for you for the rest of our lives.”

It wasn’t actually a ring. It was just a piece of tinfoil twisted and pinched into ring form.

She looked into his eyes and knew she believed him, he would love her forever.

She held out her hand, and the ring slipped on.… Read the rest

“The first time I saw it I was brushing my hair after a shower. I turned just so and saw in the mirror the dark spot on my shoulder.

“My husband said it looked like a bruise, but it just kept getting worse.

“The bruise turned into a boil, and then that was lanced, so I had an open wound. Then they had to care for it daily, and I lived for months in this constant agony until my flesh just started rotting away.”

“My God, do you know what did it?”

“Yeah. I shouldn’t have cheated on my husband.”… Read the rest