Sunlight filtered through the blinds of the lonely hospital room. Six-year-old Tommy Morsley lay in his bed, surrounded by sterile white walls and machines with coloured lights and dials. Above Tommy’s bed hung a sign saying “Home for Christmas”. The hospital room had been his home for the past three months. Next to him sat his father, Doctor Ian Morsley, a Professor of Antiviral Engineering working for the Health Department of the South Pacific Government. Tommy looked at the large needle in his father’s hand. “Is that going to help me, Dad?” he asked. “I’m not sure, Tommy. I hope so.” Tommy stared into his father’s eyes. “Will I be home for Christmas?” “Yes, Tommy,” said his father with a smile. “Of course you will. I promise.” Tommy tried to smile, his eyes drowsy once more. “Are you staying, Dad?” “I have an experiment to complete,” he said. “Then I’ll bring you some food. How about fish and chips?” Tommy didn’t […]
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Love Thirty
The atmosphere resembled the smell of week-old leftovers coming from the kitchen. But Sophie’s Cafe sat right next to the Northern Tennis Centre. Every afternoon, men of all ages relaxed and socialised after a game of tennis. Jenny Styles considered it the ideal place to find love, or at least a man interested in an average-looking thirty-year-old like her. She sipped on her second soy latte, scanning the room for potential targets, hoping today would be the day. Across the room, a man in his early forties, standing a little over six foot with sun-bleached hair and a perfectly manicured three-day growth rose to his feet. Several tennis rackets protruded from his bag. The back of his shirt had the word “coach” stamped upon it. The men at his table stood and shook his hand firmly, and the women kissed his cheek with adoring smiles. Jenny’s eyes met with his as he turned to face the exit. He smiled at her […]
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Swimming Lessons
“Wake up, sweetie,” whispered Charlotte’s father, nudging her shoulder. “You have swimming lessons today.” “Okay, Dad,” said Charlotte between yawns. “I’m awake.” Charlotte rolled over one last time before sitting up. She leapt out of bed, put on her swimmers and looked out the window. Sparkling water lapped against the window sill. It stretched out to the horizon. Far out in the water, on the edge of a rectangular swimming pool, sat Charlotte’s swimming teacher, Denise. “I’ll see you at the pool, Dad,” yelled Charlotte, opening the window and splashing into the water. She swam better than she’d ever swam before until reaching the rectangular pool. “Hello, Charlotte,” said teacher Denise. “What are you doing here?” “I’m waiting for my dad,” replied Charlotte. “I have swimming lessons today.” “Well then,” cried teacher Denise. “There’s no time to lose.” She tossed a dive stick into the centre of the pool. “Bring me that dive stick,” she said sternly. Charlotte took a deep […]
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Old Man Langly
Roy Banner stood over the lifeless body of his friend Peter. Blood dripped from the swords in his hands. The others would have to kill him for what he’d done. The problem was, he was already dead. They watched him die. The devil took him into the bowels of hell and spat him back out to wreak more havoc. Eddie and Steve looked on in horror, crouched behind an old sixties-style sofa. “What the fuck do we do now?” whispered Eddie. “We keep going,” said Steve. “We download the file and get the hell out of here.” “What about Peter and Roy? And what the fuck is Roy anyway?” “Don’t worry. Once we get out we’ll tip-off the cops from a phone booth.” “A PHONE BOOTH?” yelled Steve a little too loudly. “When was the last time you saw a fucking phone booth?” Roy stared in their direction, his eyes white and gloomy. Steve and Eddie looked at each other and […]
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Life In The Shadow
1. Max Tanner sprinted across the tarmac. Airport security launched the pursuit, screaming into their radios as they ran. The Boeing 737-800 made a deafening sound as it accelerated along the runway approaching take-off velocity. Max looked over his shoulder making a slight directional adjustment, praying his calculations were correct. Whatever the outcome, he’d have to deal with it on the other side. He had no more cards to play. The younger, healthier security staff had almost caught up when an airport police vehicle came up beside him. A man in a grey uniform sat in the passenger seat waving his arms and yelling out the window. Max didn’t understand a word he said, but knew exactly what he suggested. He continued running as fast as he could, looking over his shoulder again as the 737 lifted off the ground with a roar. Within the next three seconds he needed to be in the space the police car occupied. With no […]
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In Better Hands
Ryan sat quietly in the rain, clenching his hands tightly in his lap, listening but not really paying attention to the spoken words. Could there be a more sombre occasion? Many would say yes. Only a few would remember the funeral of Fran Wilcox. A total of four enhanced the occasion with their presence. Two aging, scruffy looking women stood back under the shelter of a weeping willow, gently sobbing. They played bingo with Fran on a Thursday night and were the sum of her recent social partnerships. Their tears were genuinely sympathetic to her passing, but they were unaware of the real hardships and sorrow Fran endured during her troubled life. One of the other two attending was Fran’s only son, Ryan. He sat politely listening to the two-dollar priest give his two-dollar service. With a glaze over his eyes, he stared deeply into the final resting place of his dearly beloved mother. His mind sifted through the bad memories, […]
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As The Crows Fly
Alice stared through the rear window, frightened out of her wits. What she desperately needed sat in the shed, fifteen perilous metres from the safety of the house. Her husband’s words echoed repeatedly through her mind. “He started all the killin’. He started all the killin’.” There was truth in what he said. If she had wings she could simply fly away. Then again, if Alice were a bird, who knows how she would have reacted? Three months earlier, Alice and Jeff retired. They bought a quaint old wooden house in Kangaroo Valley, south of Sydney. The five acre country property backed onto the river, about two kilometres from town as the crow flies. Most of their land was cleared, except for a group of mature gums circling the house. Alice used to camp in the valley as a much younger woman, always dreaming of someday living there. Alice also dreamed of making friends with the local birds. She made Jeff […]
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The Edge Of The Forest
Death comes to many in the relentless task of defending and sustaining Boldanthium. It is not considered tragic, and if those who die have done their job well, there will be many more to replace them. Achieving old age is rare. The only certain way to die is to disobey the orders of our Queen. As soon as the age of participation is reached, it is our non-negotiable duty to join the army and seek out all that is required to maintain our colonial existence. We fearlessly venture across the vast forest, and for the lucky ones, return to Boldanthium with the spoils of our journey. We are small in size, but strong and agile. Our sheer numbers help overcome and bring down some of the larger creatures occupying the forest. Many of them are simply too large and powerful. They pick us off one by one. But our army is large and we spread ourselves wide across the landscape. This […]
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Tears From The Sky
An eerie red tinge washed over the cloudy sky. It was unusually red for that late in the morning. A shepherds warning, thought Sarah. But not all warnings are well grounded. There’s still hope, she thought. I may still get blue skies and sunshine, she tried to tell herself. Her special day was upon her. It wasn’t a day she’d looked forward to, but it was something she had to deal with. Something she couldn’t avoid. The long drive gave her far too much time to think. She desperately hoped someday she could look back on the occasion with some kind of happiness. Dreaming of blue skies and forgiving hearts soothed her nerves, but Sarah feared the outcome of the day would be far less desirable. She felt uneasy in a long black dress and high heels. Not her usual style, but under the circumstances, she considered it appropriate. She certainly wouldn’t look out of place. Her feelings would not be […]
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Johnny Sweet
A man with so much to offer but so little to show for it is a man who casts a small shadow. Johnny Sweet was such a man. His claim to fame was writing cheap romance novels. He was a good writer. He sold a few books, but the small percentage offered by publishers and the significant competition in the genre left him with little, if any real wealth. Johnny lived in a small, one bedroom flat in the western suburbs of Sydney. He delicately skated across the thin ice that kept him above the poverty line. Every aspect of his existence was a struggle. He struggled to pay his bills, struggled to put food on his table and struggled to sell his writing. His world gradually squeezed in on him. The bills piled up relentlessly, especially his rent. If a cheque didn’t arrive soon, Johnny would be in deep trouble. He’d already contemplated life on the streets among the many […]
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