Flesh Gothic by Edward Lee

  Even now, though, she somehow maintained her smile, bloody as it was. "Belarius ... take me home ..."

  "One last thing," Westmore complained. He glared at Vivica's feet. "Those flipflops look asinine ... but I'll bet the diamonds are worth a bundle to a jeweler."

  A final shot put a hole in Vivica's forehead.

  Westmore removed the flipflops, then pried the gems off their straps. He took Vivica's necklace, rings, and purse, and Mack's wallet.

  Cathleen looked shocked. "I didn't think you had it in you.

  "I don't. I'm just really tired of all this, and I want to go home." He helped her up. "Come on, let's go to the Greyhound station."

  Leaving the bodies wouldn't be a problem. He hadn't had to show ID checking in. There was plenty of cash in Vivica's purse, plus credit cards, plus more cash in Vivica's rental car outside.

  Minutes later, he and Cathleen were driving off in the rain.

  The wipers thumped rhythmically across the windshield. Cathleen leaned her head against Westmore's shoulder as he drove.

  "She was right about one thing," Cathleen murmured.

  "What's that?"

  "We didn't really win. And she does have other people in her circle. The rich always do. They're all at the mansion right now."

  Westmore gave her a confused stare in the dashlight. "What do you mean?"

  She let out a long, frustrated breath. "Debbie Rodenbaugh was their ideal choice, the one Hildreth groomed for the rite. But they also had a sort of contingency plan ..."

  All the lights had been shut off, instead the mansion glowed darkly in candlelight.

  And Debbie Rodenbaugh wasn't the only virgin who'd entered the Rive nine months ago on April 3rd.

  The midwives and other attendants gathered closely round the great four-poster bed that had been brought down into the Scarlet Room. Before them, Faye Mullins began to convulse in the initial throes of childbirth-

  If one could even call what was about to come out of her a child.

  THE DELUGE

  MARK MORRIS

  It came from nowhere. The only warning was the endless rumbling of a growing earthquake. Then the water came--gashing, rushing water, covering everything. Destroying everything. When it stopped, all that was left was the gentle lapping of waves against the few remaining buildings rising above the surface of the sea.

  Will the isolated survivors be able to rebuild their lives, their civilization, when nearly all they knew has been wiped out? It seems hopeless. But what lurks beneath the swirling water, waiting to emerge, is far worse. When the floodwaters finally recede, the true horror will be revealed.

  ISBN 13: 978-0-8439-5893-5

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  EDWARD LEE has had over twenty-seven hooks published in the horror and suspense fields, including Flesh Gothic, The Backwoods and City Infernal. He is a Bram Stoker Award nominee, and his short stories have appeared in over a dozen mass market anthologies, including The Best American Mystery Stories of 2000, Pocket's Hot Blood series, and the award-winning 999. The translation rights for several of his novels have recently been sold to Germany and Romania. His movie, Header, was filmed in late 2003 and awaits release. Meanwhile, City Internal, Messenger, Ghouls, The Bighead, and Family Tradition have been optioned for film. Upcoming novels include Golemesque and Gast. Lee lives on Florida's St. Pete Beach. Visit his official Web Site at www.edwardleeonline.com.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Part One

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Part Two

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Part Three

  Chapter Fifteen