New Publication: Phantom Queen

The crow girl sits on top of the phone box, tossing pennies at the loch…Emma Louise Gill, Phantom Queen It’s the last week of February already. How time flies. I’d like to share another new story with you this week: Phantom Queen, published online at Crow & Cross Keys—a beautiful speculative fiction magazine that I … Continue reading New Publication: Phantom Queen

Mrs McNally’s Garden

It started with a pair of gumboots. My neighbour of ten years, Mrs McNally, planted bright red geraniums in each one, then got Mr McNally to nail them to their front fence. I watched him do it while I was mowing the lawn. They were bright and charming, those gumboots, with their scarlet polka dots. … Continue reading Mrs McNally’s Garden

Sister

Content warning: implied child abuse. “Knock, knock!” Madeleine listens at the basement door, her Shell-coloured pigtails dusting its fading, Ceylon wood. She smiles at a reply no-one else would hear, and twists the brass knob, carefully, quietly. Beyond the door, the space below yawns in Oolong Black. She checks her surroundings, but the Guild Grey … Continue reading Sister

And Beyond

We toast in silence. It’s symbolic, the water—no whisky here. Once released, it will float in perfect spheres before our mouths can swallow. Such things made us laugh, in the beginning. But tonight the mood is somber.We gathered without premeditation, coming upon each other in the aft viewing alcove, squeezing in, no words required. A … Continue reading And Beyond