Before the pandemic, they’d bipped cars along the Embarcadero. “Why drive all the way out there?” asked Sam. “Tourists. Think locals leave laptops on the passenger seat?” Ron cased, signaling when he spotted something good. Ron’d cross the street and switch to lookout while Sam busted the window with a spark plug. They earned 300 […]
The old fellow with the bad toupee was drinking straight spiced rum by the big picture window at the front. Dan Franklin knew it was rum was by the sick-sweet stench wafting over in the sluggish gulf stream of air the ceiling fan stirred towards him like a fading hurricane. Only according to Marsden the […]
“I still don’t get why Mickey sent us here.” “You got to fly first class, didn’t you?” “Yeah, on Loofah-Doofah Airlines. Ugliest stewardesses in the air. Shoulder pads and potato faces.” “Hostesses, they call them now, Jackie.” “What a shithole this place is.” “You’re right—it could use some light. And heat. Though I guess the […]
When Shotgun Honey publisher Ron Earl Phillips asked me to interview Steve Weddle about his new book, The County Line coming out Feb. 1 from Lake Union Publishing, I jumped at the chance. Steve is, in my opinion, one of the great artists working with the palette of Southern noir and grit-lit. As you’ll see […]
“I found your wife’s body.” My neighbor Reggie said when I opened the front door. He stood on the porch dressed in jeans and a tee shirt. “You didn’t hide her very well.” I shrugged. “Can I come in?” I shrugged again and headed back down the hall to the kitchen. I was fixing breakfast […]
Hurry Jane, they say, and I wonder how many customs agents it will take to steal you from me. When the rain falls, you scream like wild dogs in the night, something breaks inside the crate, and I become frightened of what I’ve become. Smugglers move the tarp from the crate to show me your […]
The only light in the room came from a dinosaur lamp. Laura perched on her son’s bed and read him his favourite book, and halfway through the story, he put his hand on hers and said, ‘Is Daddy coming to the park tomorrow?’ ‘I don’t know, sweetheart. We’ll see in the morning.’ ‘I hope he […]
Conway Cooper arrives at the motel on north Garnett just past 10 PM to get the story for Dispatches from Tulsa Underworld, a Facebook and social media group of freelancers all under the tutelage of forced-into-retirement newshound Sonny Rowan, and finds a group of officers circled around a handcuffed young man commanded to sit on […]
After midnight, they pulled up to the house that matched the street number written with ballpoint pen on a cocktail napkin. The kid was still talking. “I know you haven’t seen me in action, but I’m here to work. What I bring to the table is, I watch. I listen. And when the time comes…” […]
Goliath Axes: FAQ Thank you for your interest in Goliath Axes! At Goliath, we pride ourselves on axes guaranteed to give the sharpest cut with every swing. Our wood and steel are manufactured right here in the USA, and our axes have been sold throughout the world since 1918. Before contacting customer service, please read […]
“I’m not holding up a refrigerated van, Steve.” “We’re not stopping the truck. We wait for the guys to deliver the packages.” Jimmy groaned. “I don’t want a frozen turkey. I need stuff to sell. For cash. This Christmas racket is a dud.” Steve wouldn’t mind a turkey or a cheesecake. Leena and baby Rose […]
Christmas Eve was never a good day for Jamie. Right now her rearview mirror was filled with flashing blue lights from the police cruiser sitting behind her. She was wishing more than anything that she was a six-foot-tall man with a mean streak. Wishing that she had a fist of stone like her daddy’s and […]
