crack - 20. the edge

by nick nelson

part 20 of ?

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the prisoners in their gray uniforms reached the end of the corridor and burst through a door into sunshine. they began shouting happily. and laughing and pounding each other on the back. except for he man who had reached for the credit card and awakened in the windowless room. he was an outsider among these happy laughing comrades. he wondered if he should ask them who they were. they did not seem to be concerned that whoever had imprisoned them would reappear and try to capture them. he wondered if he should try to slip away unnoticed and resume his solitary wanderings. but as his eyes adjusted to the sunlight he saw that they were standing at the edge of a flat plain that stretched to the edge of the universe. the other escapees began addressing each other by name, one of them was quog. another was yobby. yet another was henry dogbone. the alpha leader seemed to be a chap called iskander. all right fellows, iskander shouted, that is enough! let’s get lined up and ready to move out. squads, form! the escapees fell silent and began moving around. the man who had reached for the credit card and awakened in the winndowless room did not know what to do. suddenly he remembered his own name. joe. joe something. iskander’s eye fell on joe, who was standing alone with his mouth hanging open. who the devil are you? iskander demanded. i don’t know, joe confessed. a spy! somebody shouted. a stoolie! another cried. joe started to run. to be continued

crack - 19. fate

by nick nelson

part 19 of ?

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the lights of the truck were long gone. william walked along. a raindrop fell on his head. then another. and another. then they stopped. well, that is something, anyway. it sure is dark. i hope i do not step in a hole. one foot in front of another. and another. i think i see something. a light? it is not very bright. it is a light. one of the tail lights on the truck. * the truck had crashed and was tipped over on the side of the road, with the driver side closer to the ground, there was no sign of slim. william looked in the cab. slim was in it. he was not moving. wlliiam did not want to touch him or try to see if he were dead or alive. what about the box? the box that might or might not have a million dollars in it? it was still in the back of the truck. it must be fate that i am meant to have it, wiliam thought. with some effort, he tipped it out on to the ground. it landed with a heavy thud. it did not look as if it had been opened, nor had the fall to the ground damaged it or dented it. it must be fate that i am meant to have it, one way or another. next

crack - 18. the pencil

by nick nelson

part 18 of ?

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ali and balthazar stared at william. it was not every day that a stranger appeared in the 236 club. william looked around. he seemed lost. can i help you, sir? shelly asked william. i - i feel a liitle dizzy. please, have a seat. would you like something to drink? can i just sit here? if you buy something. what have you got? iced coffee, iced tea, sandwiches. i will have an iced coffee. coming right up. william looked down at his hand. he was still holding the pencil sergeant friday had given him to give the sample of his handwriting by writing a story. why are you holding that pencil? shelly asked when he brought the iced coffee over. um- i am not sure. would you like a piece of paper to wrote on? yes, thank you. you are very helpful. i know this person from somewhere, ali told balthazar. you know everybody from everywhere. * suddenly an alarm off. it filled the room, and also seemed to be ringing in a corridor outside the room. the man who did not know who he was, or here he was, now did not know where he was supposed to go or what he was supposed to o. he looked for a door. he found one. it must be locked, he thought despairingly. but when he pushed it, it opened. no sooner had he stepped outside, than a tidal wave of running bodies swept down on him. he was borne along with them, whither he knew not where. they were all wearing the same gray uniform, with a blue letter “b” stenciled on it, that he now noticed he was wearing himself. ' next

crack - 17 quite a way

by nick nelson

part 17 of ?

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next stop might be quite a way. what did that mean? william was afraid to ask. quite a way from where? he finally managed to say. quite a way from where we are going. this was a mistake. a big mistake. how could i have been so stupid? this guy is going to kill me. and steal the truck and everything in it. i know. i know what i will do. i will tell him i want to get out. then i will get out and he will just drive away with the trucjk and leave me. if there is a million dolllars in the box, so be it. at least i will still be alive. stop, i want to get out, why for? nature. all right. slim pulled the truck over to the side of the highway and william got out. sure enough, the plan worked like clockwork, and the truck drove off, spinning gravel. well, william thought, so much for that. there probably wasn’t no million dollars in that old box anyway. though i do wonder why it was locked so tight. with a sigh, he headed down the dark road, the lights of the truck were long gone. next

crack - 16. the 236 club

by nick nelson

part 16 of ?

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ali took the elevator one floor to the 236 club. the 236 club was a small establishment located on the second floor of a largely deserted building a few blocks off the main square. it served the small portion of the population that liked to converse and argue with their fellow citiezns dace to face rather than on their phones or other devices. balthazar was the only customer, seated at one of the four small tables. shelly, who ruled the club with an irron hand, was staring iinto space behind the counter. bathazar was ali’s best friend, and ali was balthazar’s best friend., even though they did not like each other much.. ali sat down across from balthazar, who did not look up from his phone. shelly awoke from his trance,and shouted across the tsix eet from the counter to the table -to ali- the usual? yes, the usual, ali replied. the 236 club had a limited menu - cold tea and cold tea, ham and cheese sandwiches, bacon and cheese sandwiches, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and peanut butter and marshmallow sandwiches. the tea and coffee were the same except that the tea contained a little more water, and the sandwiches were all made from the same ingredients. i just had my review, ali announced to balthazar. i know. how do you know? i just came from there. i meant, you told me you were having the review. i am flattered you remembered. are you going to ask me how it went? how did it go? did you engage your enemy and totally destroy him? no, he was not in the mood. he seemed to have something else on his mind. something more interesting than you.? i guess. that must have been humiliating. it was, a little bit. bit i am used to it. shelly grought ali’s usual to the table the door opened and william wilson walked in. william looked around. he was a stranger to the place. cm i help you? shelly asked him. next

late night special

by dog e relaford

last night i had the strangest dream drifting down the old mill stream apple banana cherry ice cream kept on coming till i wanted to scream dog elephant paris france shine my shoes and press my pants flower gorilla iron maid take it easy and sit in the shade casey jones in his little red wagon went downtown and slew the dragon st george cut down the cherry tree because he was no better than you or me someday everything will come true the clouds will be white and the skies will be blue all the zombies will be young and all the songs will forever be sung

the number

by nick nelson

barlow woke up. the number flashed into his head. he got up and wrote it down before he forgot it. it was 12 - 15 - 93 - 674 - 93. then he called the number department. this is the number department of control central. this call is being recorded. i have the number. what is your name? barrington barlow. what is your number - your number , not the number. do not give us the number over the phone. 90675-43806 - 432. what is your date of entry? 3-13 - 33. a vehicle will be at your residence in fifteen minutes. thank you. barlow dressed and was out in the street in eight and a half minutes. the night was cold. his heart was pounding. this is it, he thought. at last, this is my chance. the black sedan came around the corner. there were two people in the front seat, a heavy set man at the controls, and a stylish young woman beside him. they were both dressed in gray. mr barlow? the young woman asked. yes. get in the back. they drove off. you have the number recorded? the young woman asked. yes. i have it recorded, i have t written on a piece of paper, and i have it memorized. good. they drove in silence. they drove a long way, out beyond the outskirts of the city. it began to get light, revealing vast expanses of flat land with no buildings on them. barlow began to have second thoughts. what do they need me for? he wondered, after i give them the number? a low flat roofed building came into view. the car stopped. the building had windows, but they were dark. there was no sign of activity , outside it or inside it. the man and the woman both got out of the car. stay here, the woman told barlow. he waited. obviously, he had nowhere to go, and no way to get there, out in “the middle of nowhere”. they are going o kill me, he thought. i will give them the number, they will have no more use for me, and they will kill me...

henry morton stanley 2

by nick nelson

henry morton stanley was a sight to behold his eyes were made of ivory and his teeth were made of gold he had a hundred gorillas that he fed green grapes and a castle full of concubines of all sizes and shapes he had a thousand footmen to announce his every move and to set off fireworks when he got in his groove they came in carriages to acknowledge his high station but when they drove away he felt curiously little elation they drank his whiskey and they drank his wine but at marrying their daughters they drew the line

henry morton stanley

by nick nelson

henry morton stanley had a splendid black mustache he dined at delmonico’s and always paid cash the roast duck on tuesday was his favorite entree he ordered oysters on the half shell most other days he strolled down broadway with a gold headed cane the peasants cheered him lustily because he felt their pain he traveled to africa on a slow boat to spain and found doctor livingstone again and again

crack - 15. tell me a story

by nick nelson

part 15 of ?

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william gripped the pen uncertainly in his fingers what do you want me to write? a story. a story? i don’t know how to write a story. just write something . it doesn’t have to be a literary masterpiece. but - why can’t you just tell me something to write? we have our reasons. do you want to take the test or not? you don’t have to do it. how long does t have to be? not very long. how much time do i have? friday looked at her phone. i will give you ten minutes. give me about a hundred words or until the ten minutes are up. william looked down at the blank pad. do i need a title? you can just call it “a story”. * it was night. it was dark. this guy was walking down the street. his name was joe something. he was just a guy. a guy just like millions of other guys, wandering the earth, wishing he was somebody, even though he was really nobody. it got darker. suddenly he saw something lying in the street. it was a little bit shiny. it looked like a credit card he bent down to pick it up. just as he reached for it, he thought, this is some kind of setup. i am being played for a chump. suddenly everything went dark. when he woke up he was in a strange room. he did not know where he was. the room had no windows. * william’s hand started to cramp up. he had never written so much with a pen or pencil in his life. is this enough? he asked friday. yes, that is enough. she took the pad and the pen from him. can i go now? yes. will i hear from you? probably not. your case is closed. if you want to appeal, fill out the form i gave you and return it within 30 days. the address is on it. next

harry and darrell

by nick nelson

harry was a horse darrell was a dog they took a slow boat to china and got lost in the fog harry had a dream he turned into sherlock holmes darrell was moriarty and collected chicken bones the collection was renowned throughout the universe and beyond darrell took to fame like a frog to a pond they walked along the beach picking up smooth stones when harry woke up he was all alone

application

by nick nelson

adam had an apple he banana’d it to chuck chuck bought a dinosaur and an elephant for luck frank had a gerbil he promoted it to head cook the gerbil ran way with the spoon frank wrote the book george had a washington abe lincoln had a yellow dog they hitched a ride to the county fair and slept in a hollow log i am sorry to inform you your application has been denied in my personal opinion you should switch to the other side joshua hocked his trumpet for a dollar and fifty cents and lost the money in a monte game so he could not pay his rent elvis was not only the king of rock and roll a star rose over easter island to lead him to his goal roger had a sunburn tom had a cigar they got together in amarillo to hold up uncle bud’s bar virtue is rewarded a wind blows from the west the highway is deserted and you know the rest