The wood surfaces were harshly lit by a recessed quartz halogen fixture in the ceiling of the box. His arms and legs were immobilized by the duct tape that secured him to the chair, which was in turn bolted to the floor with steel hardware. The box had barely enough ventilation to make breathing ...
I even offered to drive. All she had to do was come along and criticize my car. “Your allegiance to that antediluvian ark is not my fault,” she said. “At what point does an ark become postdiluvian?” “Just pick me up. And bring coffee.” Our destination was the headquarters of the New York National...
I paid for them with my corporate credit card, which no one at the company, inexplicably, had thought to shut off. Given my mental clarity in those days, this was an important convenience. All I needed to sustain my existence was to reach into the first inside sleeve of my wallet. I also conserve...
Even though I was well prepared for the possibility the scam might work, the words coming though the earpiece seemed strangely detached from reality. “Mr. Goldman?” the female voice asked. “Yes. Yes it is,” I said, in a near stammer. “You’re sure?” she said, amused. “Yes. I’m absolutely positive....
It was only seven-thirty in the morning, but the day was already heavy with humidity. Unusual for September, but the weather had been nothing but unusual lately, so we were used to it. Sullivan wore olive drab safari shorts and heavy hiking boots, a black shirt with a half dozen pockets, a black ...
No part of this publication, or parts thereof, may be reproduced in any form, except for the inclusion of brief quotes in a review, without the written permission of the publisher. The events and characters in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to any person, living ...
Not an all-out blizzard, just a lousy three inches, which in other years would have caused the governor to deploy the National Guard. Instead, the local weather people delivered the news with grim restraint and the island silently groaned and steeled itself. As it turned out, I actually liked wha...
I knew from a study I once did of a drug designed to dampen the effects of adrenaline overload that a near-death experience, or equally triumphant moment, can have lingering, often euphoric effects. This can translate into grandiose, potentially self-destructive behavior by the victims of this sy...
All I could do was grunt back until the thing was laid down and tacked in place. “Shouldn’t you get some help?” she yelled. “And miss all the exercise?” “Sometimes doing everything yourself isn’t manly, it’s pigheaded.” The sun was almost directly overhead, so despite her sunglasses she had to sh...