Havok Publishing

Thriller

The Taste of Victory

It was a simple task, delivering a basket of apples to the Spanish militia. The one duty a woman could perform in Zaragoza. But hidden in her basket, Agustina transported divine Aragon apples, sourced from the local orchard believed to be blessed by saints, that offered

Read it now

Imaginary

When you’re five, your imaginary friend means the world to you. When you’re thirty-five, you wondered why they were trying to kill your spouse.

Read it now

A Gold-Coin Promise

“Perfect weather, Benji,” drawled Mac.

The forest was cold, it was damp, and it was getting dark. “How so?” I said.

“Snow on its way. That’ll cover the grave.”

Mac, carrying the head end of the shrouded corpse, peered into the gathering gloom…

Read it now

The Falcon

“No way. You’re crazy,” Morse scoffed.
“It’s the truth!” O’Connor’s nasally voice insisted over the Bluetooth connection. “Don’t you think I checked? Are you that arrogant?”
Morse scowled at the grimy storefront. “And how did it end up in a pawn shop in a backwater town like this?”
“Same way anything else ends up in a pawn shop.

Read it now

Daughter of Monsters

I wake, head pounding and hands bound behind my back, both surprised and angry to recognize the room. Metallic walls, striped with black and red, are so shiny I can see my reflection, and the exit door boasts a dagger-and-skull insignia. The interrogation room.
Not him. Anyone but him.
The last thing I remember is leaving the Lotus Bar,

Read it now

The Holy Lance

Emirate of Transjordan
November 1941
The Underground Cathedral was cool and damp, a relief after the long drive through the desert. Julien Arnault wiped sweat from his brown curls with a dirty sleeve. He held a flickering torch in his left hand

Read it now

A New Discovery

One can learn everything about a place and realize you know nothing when you get there.
Tatiana learns this firsthand as she scrambles through the enormous Ocotea trees of the Amazon Rainforest, trying to escape the creatures she’s awoken. She can recall the scientific names of

Read it now

Alluring Creatures

Rebecca put a hand on her partner’s arm. “I’ll drive, Ray. Watching a Minotaur try to squeeze behind the wheel of a mini-Cooper is painful.”
Horns filed off so he could pass as a human, Minotaur Ray rushed to the passenger side. “Some of us can’t

Read it now

Never Run from a Lion

I braced myself as the oversized Jeep conquered a particularly stubborn pothole. With eight of us crammed into three rows and no roof or doors on the vehicle, I worried I’d be jostled over the side.
My handkerchief slipped off my face,

Read it now

A Preference for Haggis

“Dougal wait! Yer da said we’re not supposed to play on Ben Binn. The fairies won’t like it!” Hamish sprinted after his cousin, the evening air nipping at his face.

“Don’t tell me ya believe in all that

Read it now

The Lavender Lady

Rain pattered against the roof of the double-decker theatre. Inside, fairy lights twinkled like fireflies, woven between artificial leaves of the trees that made Toronto’s Winter Garden Theatre unique. It resembled a fairy tale—but only if the man in front of me was the villain.
“You’re

Read it now

Wrath and Ruin

Cristilian drew a third deep breath, willing calmness into the deepest part of his being where perpetual anger burned.
Beyond the ornately carved doors, a cacophony of conversation and music marked a feast celebrating not only harvest completion but also victory

Read it now