“you should smile,”
said the man
as his own smile
began to melt
his scream silenced
by viscous dribbles
of flesh
she smiled
© 2018 Beth Cato
Beth Cato
Nebula Award-nominated Beth Cato is the author of A Thousand Recipes for Revenge from 47North (June 2023) plus two fantasy series from Harper Voyager. She’s a Hanford, California native now residing in a far distant realm, usually with one or two cats in close orbit. Follow her at BethCato.com and on Twitter at @BethCato.