It’s only for a month, a private research project, very hush-hush. A house down the road from my parents.Ĭleaning cages sounded like a lower level of hell, but I’d done worse for a paycheck. When Keith’s family had moved to town when we were kids, we’d become thick as thieves, but where Keith was a brainy veterinarian with delusions of scientific grandeur, my aspirations were more mundane. I’ve never even seen you flinch at handling snakes. You know, he said, I still need an assistant for the lab at home. Keith scrambled to rebound and then paused to squint at me. Over the past two months, my game-and my life-had gone to shit. When it bounced off the rim, I wasn’t surprised. I curved my fingers along the textured orange surface as I lined up another warm-up shot. The interview last week sounded promising, I said. So when he’d knocked on my door with a ball balanced on his hip, I’d relented. He’d been hounding me for a pick-up game for weeks, anything to get me out of my apartment and into the sun. Still no job? Keith passed the basketball across the court behind my building. Warning: This book contains strong language, sexually explicit situations, and may be considered offensive to some readers.

Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Note: This is a standalone release of a story that originally appeared in the Bump in the Night anthology. Warning: Violence, mpreg, and all manner of WTFery

He will be returned, over and over, to the monster.īut maybe his future isn’t as bleak as it originally seemed. Unable to escape and terrified of the changes in his body, Danny’s alternatives are few. Assaulted by lusty tentacles that push his body-and his sanity-to the brink, Danny is then held captive by his best friend, betrayed for the sake of science. Nothing sinister could happen, not here.ĭanny was wrong. Who cares if local superstitions and old wives tales warn the wary to avoid the lake once summer nights turn chilly? The trails are still pretty, the wildlife just as plentiful, and the fall colors beautiful for the lens of Danny’s digital camera. When Danny needs a getaway, his best friend goads him into a week-long hiking trip. He didn't believe in the monster of the lake.

I omega kari gregg