When Daniel hosted the community cleanup that Saturday, Lara could feel invisible fumes curling from her ears as she watched reporters clamour for her husband's attention. One of them handed him a microphone

When Ash felt her silver-plated pistol knocked from her hand in the smoke-filled gallery, she knew the job had failed. Time seemed to slow as her opponent's elbow drove into her face, splitting her lips.

Smooth jazz music played in the background of the club as Laurie stepped in from the drizzle. Dusk had settled outside and only a handful of people sat at the bar drinking in solitude. The room was dimly

The sun burned hot in the late afternoon, the sky slowly starting to turn red with the sunset as the people of Nkaleë gathered inside the village hall for their monthly community meeting. The space was

Another election was close by. Miriam watched with grim expression as two white campaign vans with speakers tied to their roofs drove into the market square. Children raced after them in excitement with

BEFORE..... NO ACCESS. The square-shaped barrier flashed every three seconds with blinding light, causing the anomalies to scream, not in pain but in rage. I watched from the other side of reality inside

BEFORE..... You have a date with Evelyn Carlson by 7pm at The Ritzer. You'll thank me later. Don't be late. Theo frowned, staring at the text message from his father until the words blurred. Born into

Matt Peterson sat across from the head court clerks, frustration and exhaustion etched across his face. “There must be a mistake,” he said, trying to catch the clerk's gaze. The man seemed determined not

“They called me a witch because they didn't know what killed your grandfather.” My grandmother began as I gently edged my wide shoulders between her frail legs and laid my head on her lap. A half moon

Ethan frowned as he pulled into the driveway of the animal shelter where his wife worked five days a week. He glanced at his wristwatch, not because he didn't know it was almost seven pm but because Ava

The skies had slowly turned brownish-red as Talia Rakbarh began the arduous descent down the longest stairs she'd ever seen. From the outside, it was a mausoleum buried underneath the crescentic dunes

Dave didn't nickname his friend, Mason, ‘the smart bastard’ for nothing. The young man was the son of a tech billionaire while his father was a high school teacher. Whenever Mason had a new tech to show

As dusk set in, the traffic on Lagos mainland roads thickened. As a cab driver, I knew the nooks and crannies of the city that served as shortcuts to parts of the city. I swerved my car into a one-way

We live in an age when the sun barely rises. Sometimes, it comes out twice a week and other days are grey and dull, then a kind of melancholy engulfs the atmosphere and descends on the city like it's the

Whenever Theo Branson needed to think, away from his overbearing parents, he would strap his board to the top of his jeep and drive to the beach. The waves along the Maine coast were strong, making surfing

“What a gregarious imp!” Mabel shrieked, her deep-toned voice sounding in the kitchen like the wail of a banshee as she watched her nephew, Zack, scramble down the pastry shelf and zoom away like flash

I need time to figure myself out. Harris stared into his third glass of whiskey as the bar crowded that night. His girlfriend's text had come unexpectedly at the same time when his department manager informed

When Mrs Kath Harris gripped my hands and begged me to help her reach her only daughter, I almost sneered. She was wealthy, beautiful and lived in a mansion most people would gladly trade an arm or leg

BEFORE.... “There!” shouted Jonas from behind the wheel of the motorboat, pointing to a spot in the sea. “I see something ahead. Do you see it?” Elias O'Reilly stood beside Jonas at the bow of the motorboat

“Nobody stays after dark,” the thin ferryman muttered, keeping his gaze on the boat and water as he dropped her off. He refused to look at her or at the island hidden behind a crawling fog. Matilda Garner