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Another fun little short-short here, this one inspired by the monotony of my former Day Job, when the high point of my day was finding a business card lying face-down on the floor and rushing back to my desk to write about who had dropped it there.
"Never, Incorporated" was published in October 2003 in Flytrap #1, a slick new 'zine produced by the estimable Heather Shaw and Tim Pratt!
| Never, Incorporated Little Adolf spent the morning dropping business cards face-down throughout the miles of halls connecting the eight office buildings. Breath hissing from his hairy mouth, he darted up and down the bright beige corridors, never leaving two cards within sight of another. Downward-staring employees walked around him, avoiding his short, hunch-backed figure. Ade soon got rid of all two hundred and fifty-seven white cards, the embossed black letters still redolent of fresh ink. He went home to his cave to wait for the calls to start. Just as he had relaxed back onto his chair of rusty nails, the phone rang. Strapping on his battered headset, Ade grinned and hit Receive. It wasn't even noon. "Better Late Than Never, Incorporated," he trilled into the mike. "Is it true?" An old man's voice, quavering. "It's still possible? For her, with me?" "Anything's possible, my good sir." Ade leaned back and let the nails sink into his leathery hide, his smile all needle-like teeth. "Talk to me."
Continued... |
First published in: What the critics said about "Never, Incorporated":
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