EQMM, May 2012

by Dell Magazine Authors

  Martha stopped an inch away from where the path took its dive and turned to face the false island. She sized up the distance. It was about seven feet across the soggy mush. She appraised the branches that hovered over the island's perilous surface. About four feet high, and she was five-eight, so she'd have a few minutes. She waited for Richard to get closer. In the marsh, he moved slower than she did, probing ahead with his pole every time he took a step.

  “Some people said Lauren turned around too fast because the path vanished on her,” she told Richard. “Some people said she jumped.”

  “Maybe she did jump,” Richard barked, now only a few steps away. “Or maybe you pushed her.”

  Martha ignored his last remark. “Watch me jump now,” she said. And she did.

  She stabbed her walking stick into the rocks beneath her feet and threw herself across the marsh like a pole-vault jumper, landing on the first black hummock of the false island. She turned to look at Richard while the hummock still held her.

  “Witch,” Richard cursed, now at a loss. He knew she was playing a game, but he couldn't figure out the catch. He didn't think she'd risk her own life jumping around the marsh. The island looked safe, yet he didn't trust her enough to follow. “You may jump around like a frog, but I'm done following you around. I waited for twenty-five years to come here so I'll wait some more. Maybe I'll just stand here and watch you drown.”

  However, he was uncomfortable standing there in the middle of the path he couldn't see. He didn't know where the path continued or how to walk back, so he was trying to figure out what to do. And he did what every person would in a physically uncomfortable situation. He moved. He made a tiny little step further up, just where the path took its dive.

  Richard yelped and Martha caught the look of horror on his face. She laughed even though her own feet had fallen through as she used up the hummock's welcome. She knew but too well that icy terrifying feeling when the ground disappeared from under you. Your heart dropped down faster than your feet. It was easy to make a mistake when you panicked. She hopped onto the next hummock, which was smaller than the first and wouldn't hold as long. She watched Richard struggling to climb back onto the path, thrashing around in the mud. He was scared and easy to manipulate. But she didn't have much time. The little hummock sank under her and she jumped again.

  “You were a coward then and you're still a coward now,” Martha said, probing the next hummock over. “You wouldn't accept any responsibility for what you did. Lauren was almost five months then, and her belly was showing. It was only a matter of days before it would be noticeable. She carried your child in her belly, Richard, barely more than a child herself, and you killed them both. Lauren and her baby.”

  “I didn't kill her!” Richard screamed, still trying to climb back onto the path, too scared to realize he was actually on it, only deeper than before. From where he was now, Martha's hummocks looked safe to him. He didn't know there was nothing underneath them.

  “You killed her by what you did to her in October,” Martha shouted, her heart dropping into her stomach as another hummock gave way and she fell in almost up to her knees. She knew she wouldn't last much longer so she grasped at the low tree branch, pulling herself up as she continued to talk.

  “She was fourteen, Richard, and you were nearly twice her age, but you ruined her without a glimmer of remorse, never even thought twice about it. You just as well killed her five months before she drowned in the marsh. There was no way out for her. She was too afraid to tell our father. She was afraid to tell anyone! She told me when it was too late to do anything. Thank God she left that note, otherwise you would've walked away unpunished. But you got what you deserved. If I were a judge, I would not have given you twenty-five years. I would've given you death.”

  Richard jumped. He jumped partially from fury and partially from fear, because he hadn't realized he still had the solid rocks underneath him. He covered two thirds of the distance, but didn't make even the first hummock; he fell into the hungry mush in between. He thrashed so wildly he managed almost to walk a few steps before he got stuck for good. He screamed, jerking and splashing, but the marsh held him tight. It was pulling Martha down fast too, and so strongly she didn't know how long she'd be able to hang on to the tree. The branch bent under her weight and Richard realized she was just as badly in trouble as he was.

  “Witch,” he half wailed, half cackled at her. “You're gonna go down with me. You made sure we couldn't be together in life, but you'll be stuck with me in death. What a life I had, Martha, what a wreck I became. It's all your fault. I just hope I'll get to watch you choke on this mud before I do.”

  Martha's face was covered in sweat. She held on to the tree with all her strength. She knew the marsh wouldn't let her out of its clutch, but she had planned on it. Something else was going to give way: her father's boots. She yanked herself up again—one last furious desperate pull—and her feet moved inside her tall boots, slowly slipping out and up. The marsh still sucked the rubber down with vicious hunger, but it no longer had Martha in its grasp. Martha kept pulling upwards, slowly lifting herself out of the boots, until her legs were free and high enough to climb up onto the tree branch. The wood creaked under her weight and for a second Martha's heart dropped in fear that the branch was going to break, but it didn't. Drenched in sweat, she watched the black mush swallow her father's boots as she crawled along the tilted tree trunk all the way back to the solid ground—dirty, barefoot, and a winner.

  “May you burn in hell,” Richard cursed her from behind, wheezing. He was now in up to his chest, and the marsh hugged him tight, cutting his air flow and crushing his lungs. “May . . . you . . . burn . . . forever. . . .”

  “You came to kill me, Richard, what was I supposed to do?” she asked as she sat down at the foot of the tree. The streams of water on her face were back and no matter how quickly she wiped them, they wouldn't dry out. “I loved you so much that summer. I loved you so much I never looked at another man for the rest of my life. But you killed my little sister and I wanted justice for her. I couldn't let you walk away unpunished.”

  She watched him scream and wail as the marsh took him. When the black mud filled his mouth and his last scream died abruptly in the damp air, she got up and walked away, leaving soft imprints on the moist soil with her bare feet. She didn't feel the cold. Her job was done, she didn't have to worry about Richard anymore. She didn't have to listen to strange sounds at night or wonder about every boat on the horizon. Richard was now safely planted in the deep mud only inches away from where Lauren had jumped off the path, so scared she'd rather give herself to the marsh than to her father's wrath.

  Martha could now go home, make herself some tea, and take a candle to the small handwritten note that sent Richard to jail twenty-five years ago. And while it would char and crumble from the flame, she'd think of Richard's soul burning in hell for all eternity, and of her own soul joining his one day—for she was a sinner too. She had written that note herself, but swore to the judge it was her sister's hand. There was no other way to make Richard pay for what he did. There was no other way to avenge Lauren's death. And since Martha wasn't destined to be with Richard in life, perhaps they could join each other after death to burn in hell side by side, hand in hand and forever.

  Copyright © 2012 by Lina Zeldovich

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  2011 Readers Award

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  Doug Allyn

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  P.N. Elrod

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  Clark Howard

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  A newcomer to EQMM shot to the top in this year's voting. Although she'd wanted to contribute a story to this magazine ever since she picked up her first copy at the age of fourteen, P.N. Elrod's writing career took off with the very successful urban fantasy series The Vampire Files. She has made forays into mystery before—the series character in her vampire series, Jack Fleming, is a P.I.!—but her d
ebut EQMM story, “Beach Girl” (November 2011), is one of her rare pure suspense tales. Set in the early and mid twentieth century, it won your votes with vivid evocation of time and place, subtle depiction of character, and a stunning final twist.

  Second place this year was taken by another story with a strong sense of place, Doug Allyn's “A Penny for the Boatman” (March/April 2011), set in the north country of the author's native Michigan. The annual Mackinac Regatta features in the heart-pumping action woven into this story of a meeting of cultures. The multiple Readers Award- and Edgar-winning author's ability to make readers care about his convincingly drawn characters is nowhere more strongly apparent than here.

  Third place goes to another perennial favorite of EQMM readers, Edgar winner Clark Howard, for the thought-provoking “Hangman's Rhapsody.” The author of both fiction and award-winning true crime books, Clark Howard has a unique way of blending realism of setting and situation with a compelling human dilemma. His knowledge of the subjects he takes up is always apparent, especially in a story like “Hangman's Rhapsody,” which we're willing to bet will long linger in readers’ minds.

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  Fourth: “Jim Limey's Confession” by Scott Loring Sanders

  Fifth: “Who I Am” by Michael Z. Lewin

  Sixth: “Bloodlines” by Doug Allyn; “Work Experience” by Simon Brett; “Tomorrow's Dead” by David Dean

  Seventh: “A Wolfe in Chic Clothing” by Loren D. Estleman; “When I Drink Alone” by Jonathon King

  Eighth: “Crystal Death” by Clark Howard; “The Invisible Gunman” by Keith McCarthy; “The Teapot Mountie Ball” by James Powell

  Ninth: “Tap-Tap” by David Dean

  Tenth: “Hedge Hog” by Hilary Davidson; “Murder of a Muffin Man” by Amy Myers; “Last Laugh in Floogle Park” by James Powell

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  Reviews: THE JURY BOX

  by Jon L. Breen

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  The annual roundup of short-story collections, some traditionally published and others available only as e-books, starts with two Hollywood detectives familiar to EQMM readers.

  **** Loren D. Estleman: Valentino: Film Detective, Crippen & Landru, $17 trade paper, $43 limited hardcover. Any lover of old movies will be captivated by Valentino, the silent sheik lookalike who hunts lost films while solving incidental mysteries. Of the fourteen stories, my favorite is “The Profane Angel,” about a ninety-six-year-old woman who claims she's Carole Lombard.

  *** Terence Faherty: The Hollywood Op, Perfect Crime, $14.95. Pre-World War II movie actor turned post-war private eye Scott Elliott investigates seven cases dated between the late 1940s and mid-1960s, and in a previously unpublished story set in his acting days enters the world of Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep for a new answer to who killed the chauffeur. Good writing and plotting showcase the movie lore.

  **** James Lincoln Warren: Treviscoe of Lloyd's, Kindle e-book, 2 volumes, $2.99 each. Eight long short stories from AHMM feature Alan Treviscoe, Indagator of Crimes (volume 1) and maker of Discreet Enquirations (volume 2) for the underwriters of Lloyd's of London in the 1770s. This is one of the best historical detective series in short form, rivaling Lillian de la Torre's stories about Dr. Sam: Johnson. Clues are fairly provided, including some you don't have to be a seafarer or classical scholar to spot, and the period language, attitudes, and details of everyday living breathe authenticity.

  **** Margaret Coel: Watching Eagles Soar: Stories from the Wind River and Beyond, A.S.A.P., $45. Good writing and a deep knowledge of Arapaho culture and the history of the American West distinguish these twenty stories, most featuring lawyer Vicky Holden and Father John O'Malley, from Coel's novels. Two nonfiction essays, illustrations by Phil Parks, encomia by Craig Johnson and William Kent Krueger, and publisher Jim Seels's customary devotion to excellent design and materials add collectible value. Most of the stories, including the Arapaho Ten Commandments series, have previously appeared only in small limited editions, and two, including the fine Denver-based historical novella “Molly Brown and Cleopatra's Diamond,” are new to print.

  **** Steve Hockensmith: Naughty, Kindle e-book, $2.99. Nine Christmas stories from EQMM or AHMM address risible seasonal subjects like fruitcake, mall Santa Clauses, strolling carolers, and office parties, plus the murder of Ebenezer Scrooge as investigated by Inspector Bucket. Ironically, the best story, “Hidden Gifts,” is the least comic. (Also recommended by this author: Dear Mr. Holmes: Seven Holmes on the Range Mysteries, CreateSpace, $9.99 paperback; Kindle e-book, $2.99.)

  **** Brendan DuBois: Death of a Gemini and Other Military Mysteries, Kindle e-book, $2.99. Ten stories, two each from EQMM and AHMM, are highly varied apart from the common military connection, some bordering on science fiction, treating various periods, wars, and branches of service. One of the best short-story writers around, DuBois has a faultless touch.

  *** Twist Phelan: A Stab in the Heart, Kindle e-book, $1.99. Nine stories, three from EQMM, present a variety of moods and backgrounds, including the New York Mercantile Exchange, the San Francisco antiques business, and a high-pressure sports event. The ambitious title story stars a Manhattan homicide detective from Rwanda.

  *** Chris F. Holm: 8 Pounds, Kindle e-book, $.99. The best of these eight tales, one from EQMM and the others from a variety of online magazines, are “A Better Life,” an unforgettable gem of non-supernatural horror, and two stories of grim childhood experiences recalled years later, “Seven Days of Rain” and “The World Behind.”

  *** Simon Wood: Asking for Trouble, CreateSpace, $12.95 paperback, Kindle e-book, $1.99. Ten stories, with backgrounds ranging from snowy Canada to San Quentin prison, a college campus, and an ill-fated bachelor party, have a unifying theme of bad decisions with deadly consequences. Compulsive readability and suspense overcome the occasional over-the-top conclusion or prematurely tele-graphed surprise twist.

  *** Marcus Sakey: Scar Tissue: Seven Stories of Love and Wounds, Kindle e-book, $2.99. This doesn't really amount to a book-length collection, but Sakey is a strong stylist and subtle plotter in the noir vein with a distinctive narrative method of time-shifting vignettes that add up to a coherent whole. The one previously unpublished story, “Cobalt,” is the least typical, a dotcom-era satire.

  *** Dave Zeltserman: Julius Katz Mysteries, Kindle e-book, $.99. Another small but worthwhile collection pairs the two EQMM stories about Boston private detective Katz and science- fictional assistant Archie, who resemble Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin only in some ways. Purely as a detective story, the separately published novel Julius Katz and Archie (Kindle e-book, $2.99) is even better.

  ** M.J. Rose: In Session, Kindle e-book, $1.99. In a clever cross-promotional stunt, sex therapist Dr. Morgan Snow's encounters with Steve Berry's Cotton Malone, Barry Eisler's John Rain, and Lee Child's Jack Reacher effectively introduce the characters but prove slight as mysteries or thrillers.

  ** J.A. Konrath: Jack Daniels Stories: Fifteen Mystery Tales, CreateSpace, $13.95 paperback, Kindle e-book, $2.99. A very mixed bag ranges from strong and well plotted (two locked-room puzzles featuring Chicago policewoman Daniels and some of the stories about cancer patient and Mike Hammerish avenger Phineas Troutt) to tiresomely self-indulgent (most of P.I. Harry McGlade's cases, with sub-standard Marx Brothers-style humor). If the author's warning on the offensiveness of the final story puts you off reading it, you won't bemissing much.

  A sampling will suffice to recommend John Harvey's A Darker Shade of Blue (Pegasus, $25), cop and P.I. stories by one of the best contemporary British crime writers, and the first gathering in book form of a series Fred Dannay discovered in the early days of EQMM, Vincent Cornier's TheDuel of Shadows: The Extraordinary Cases of Barnabas Hildreth (Crippen & Landru, $18 trade paper, $28 hardcover), edited and introduced by Mike Ashley, rich in impossible crimes and sometimes science fictional solutions.

  Recommended reprints and rega
therings: John Mortimer's Forever Rumpole: The Best of the Rumpole Stories (Viking, $30), fourteen tales of the Old Bailey hack, surely the greatest literary character ever created for TV, plus the novel fragment “Rumpole and the Brave New World,” left unfinished on the author's death in 2009; Max Allan Collins’ Chicago Lightning: The Collected Nathan Heller Short Stories (Thomas & Mercer/Amazon, $14.95) including three previously uncollected among its thirteen and an introduction by the author; Lawrence Block's The Night and the Music: The Matthew Scudder Stories (Telemachus, $16.99 paperback, $2.99 Kindle e-book), including two previously uncollected; Love and Night: Unknown Stories of Cornell Woolrich (Perfect Crime, $12), a 2007 collection edited and introduced by Francis M. Nevins; and an unjustly forgotten 1899 collection by L.T. Meade and Robert Eustace, The Gold Star Line (Ramble House, $18), about ship's purser George Conway.

  Copyright © 2012 by Jon L. Breen

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  Novelette: THE HISTORY LESSON

  by Gordon McEachern

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  Gordon McEachern has had two graphic novels and several short stories published in his native Canada, but since he has never before been paid for his fiction, he qualifies for EQMM's Department of First Stories. The Fort McMurray, Alberta resident is a silkscreen artist who works days in a screenprinting shop and nights as a cook in a local restaurant. His EQMM debut takes us to another part of Canada—the forests of the Pacific Coast—and another period in that region's history.