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Latest Stories

March 19, 2024
Fantasy Stories Wondering Monk

Just My Imagination

The alarm clock went off and started playing an awful tune. Tom opened his eyes and closed them back, squinting. He reopened one eye and stood up to stop the torture. The phone was on the desk, in the furthest spot from the bed. Although he changed his way of…
March 19, 2024
Science Fiction Stories Ocelotlzin

Earth Is Dead

Recording… It doesn't matter who I was; I probably lived a long time ago, and I am now just a voice someone added to the audio-visual records. What is essential is the recollection of events that lead to the current state. So, a little history needs to be…
March 08, 2024
Flash Fiction Benoit

Some Enchanted Evening

It was a rugby tackle with tears: Chrissy burst in, sobbing and babbling, hugging James. Her face was all wet, eyes wild. What…? My parents split up, Dad has moved in with his boyfriend and I cannot join them. I am shut out. I have lost my dad. Torrent of…
March 08, 2024
Horror Stories Marvel Chukwudi Pephel

In The Hands Of My Legs

The car pulled up in front of the large salon. The neon sign, that sexy broad thing, on the salon'sroof read "Mr. Gil's All-night Salon". The exhaust pipe of the car was pumping solid smoke, theswirls moving from the car and towards the salon.…
March 07, 2024
Mystery Stories Vanessa Leigh Giles

Casualty of Love in the Time of Coronavirus

Chapter 1 Until Death do us Part ‘Ring, ring!’. I answered the telephone and asked, “Hello, good evening. Who’s this? “Hello.” This is Dr. Smith from Red Cross hospital. “Is this Mr. Locke, John?”, he asked, hesitantly scratching his bald head. “Yes, doctor.…
March 07, 2024
Crime Stories Robert Pook

Bar Room Trigger

Another return journey on footpaths so familiar. He strides across each crack in each paving stone. Regular loose drain covers sidestepped. Mapping long ago mapped in Richard’s desolate mind. His pace hastened by the sight of the oncoming storm. Quickening…
March 04, 2024
Horror Stories Ano Chinemerem

Sanctity

Where should I begin? I could begin by telling you about this comely boy, whom every notable person around the streets agrees his smile could charm the bills off one. Between one smile, there was his goodness, his dreams and humanity—a little far ahead?— but…
March 04, 2024
Flash Fiction Emanuel Diaz

Et Mortui Partium

As Rafael stepped out into the rain, it wasn't the ordinary drops that fell from the sky. Instead, it was a storm of souls, each one taking the form of shimmering jewelry as it cascaded toward the ground. Rubies, diamonds, and sapphires twinkled amidst the…
February 29, 2024
Poetry Jing Li Ava

London

‘Am I in London?’ "I am." Where is Elizabeth? Happy living story All of your chapter Bounlance joy Please my heart Power hand Wise mind Our baby Vow vow Love all love Miss I miss Endless wonder Bring us together Love all love Miss I miss For everything My…
February 29, 2024
Flash Fiction Rob Pook

Life Sentence of The Smith

Born nine months after his country won the World Cup.A child prodigy.Cast off at age twenty-four.Husband, father, emigree, away on the other side of the world.The blue-collar life.The dreams of success.The search for fulfillment.The long years of empty…
February 29, 2024
Mystery Stories Joshua Lowther

The Operator

Jason looked over to his right, his eyes barely able to focus themselves on the subject of his attention. His neck ached terribly from the strenuous movement. He was tired. The captain’s gaze came to rest on the rookie sonar operator sitting tense at his…
February 29, 2024
Flash Fiction Salvatore Difalco

The Chute

At dusk, we left our unit with a soft pink bundle. I carried it through the wet streets and into the black woods. I said I’d take it all the way, the bundle, but that we had to drop it in together. My wife’s green eyes flashed. “Don’t make me do that.” I…

We had always agreed that if anything bad were to happen, we would go to my in-law’s place near Chama. It was a large log cabin located on a ridge overlooking the Brazos River and completely off the grid: solar panels for power, rain catch barrels for water, and cast iron stove for heat. Low population density and the remote location in a densely forested area made the cabin ideal for withstanding any number of natural or man-made disasters.

So when the news began airing information regarding a rabies epidemic and then went on to report about a strange outbreak sweeping across the east coast, we had a plan. The wife and I loaded the kids in the car and headed to Chama.

It took a bit longer than expected. Her parents and grandmother decided they were coming too. We also had to wait for my dad to drive up from Albuquerque. All told, I think it took us about four hours to drive from Bernalillo to Chama. We ended up going the back way through the Llaves Valley. It was probably a smart decision given traffic along Interstate 25, but really I just chose the route because I liked the drive.

We had stocked up on canned goods, camping gear, and warm clothes. These were all things, we typically brought with us when we went to the cabin, but considering we were not sure how long we’d be gone, we took a lot.

We also brought with us an assortment of firearms. My father-in-law taught security and conceal-carry permit courses, so we had an assortment of weapons and then there was the hunting gear. Total, I think we brought with us two dozen firearms: rifles, shot guns, pistols, and even a couple hunting bows.

The canned goods didn’t last long, but that wasn’t a big deal. There was a lot of game in the woods. It wasn’t just the deer and elk. We hunted the cattle and sheep too. You would be amazed at how much livestock was left to graze in the forests. The domesticated animals were the easiest to kill. A lot of the time they sought us out. I think they thought we were ranchers coming to feed them.

It took some getting used to. After a while, we didn’t have grain or fruit, but there was an abandoned raspberry farm a couple miles down the road. We could go there and get berries seasonally. There are always other foods in the forest, if you know where to look. Believe it or not, just about every portion of a prickly pear is edible.

Zombies? Never saw a one. Really, never saw much of anyone. Now don’t get me wrong, we had our moments of danger. There was a blizzard which hit us pretty hard and a couple wildfires that came close to burning down the cabin at one time or another, but we ended up alright. I think like a lot of westerners, we managed.

About the Author:

Matthew J. Barbour is a South(west)ern Gothic Speculative Fiction writer living with his wife and three children in Bernalillo, New Mexico. When he is not writing fiction, Mr. Barbour manages Jemez Historic Site in Jemez Springs, New Mexico and writes for a number of regional newspapers, including the Red Rocks Reporter and the Sandoval Signpost.

About the Story:

Managing the Zombie Apocalypse like most zombie stories is less horror and more magical realism/social commentary. It was inspired by a simple question. What would you do?

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