MB Campbell

“Jack” by MB Campbell

Jack was a willful child and difficult to manage. His grandmother warned him, "Fate is Resourceful." But he was young and paid her no heed. When she died he tried his best to remember her with affection and gratitude. But there were other feeling that seemed to press in upon his thoughts. Feelings he was unable to explain. But that's how feelings are, a bubble in your chest, detached and unwieldy.  Jack hosted an event at local restaurant for friends of his grandmother. It was well attended by mourners and people drawn to sadness. They ...

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“The Answers To All Your Questions” by MB Campbell

The Answers To All Your Questions Steven paces between the pool and the gazebo, repeating the words he will use when he is introduced. “What you are about to witness”—special emphasis on the ‘W’ in witness—"has only been performed once. While it is perfectly safe, I promise you, there are no answers. It’s magic.” Around him, the party is in full swing. A hundred of his father’s associates, clients and friends have come to the family estate in Weston to celebrate his retirement. Among them, people that Steven recognizes. People that kne...

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“Anticipation Is” by MB Campbell

Submitted to Contest #170

Anticipation IsWill is half asleep and doesn’t brace himself against the impact. It is his good fortune. The driver is thrown against the steering wheel and it is now pressing on his chest and restricting his breathing. Ian’s head is whipped sideways and cracks the passenger window, knocking him out. The Range Rover comes to a stop with its front wheels dangling over the edge of a rock wall. A hundred feet below runs the Bartang River, a pearlescent ribbon of water and ice that has traveled from the Alai Range.“Holy shit,” Will cries out.The...

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“The Meaning of the Nightingale's Song” by MB Campbell

Submitted to Contest #167

The Meaning of the Nightingale’s Song(PREFACE—Part of this story you will find in children’s storybooks. But the rest, the part that happened after the fairytale, is not for children. It is the story of the never-ending battle between nature and artifice, between art and vacuous mimicry, and between lies and the real nightingale’s song.The fairytale began with an Emperor. A plump man with thin and auburn hair, a lock of which hung across his forehead like a banner. He wore jewels on three of the fingers of his right hand and on his left wris...

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“In The Event” by MB Campbell

Submitted to Contest #165

In the EventFirst, it was the phone in the study. They both ignored it. To answer it was to surrender or worse to agree. Then it was the siren and flashing lights coming from the alarm panel in the hallway. That continued for minutes until something had to be said. “What did you do?” Leona yelled from the kitchen.“I didn’t do anything,” Leonora replied, as she came down the stairs. “What did YOU do?”“You were here with that creep with the weird face.”“You were here, too. How else would you know?”Had they been able to cooperate they migh...

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“Shared Experiences” by MB Campbell

Submitted to Contest #162

Page heard the noises coming from the kitchen, but she didn’t consider them particularly important. The only sounds that mattered to her were those that came from her tablet or from her baby brother. At seven-years-old, she could unconsciously prioritize one sense over others. Doubt and paranoia had not yet replaced wonder and imagination. Clank. Ping. Tia, the nanny, heard it as well. But for her, the noises were too intentional to ignore. She was middle-aged and had long outgrown wonder and sadly her imagination had been replaced by pa...

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“Patient X” by MB Campbell

Submitted to Contest #159

Patient X The siren floated just above the whispers and groans of patients waiting to be treated. It was just a flutter and based upon the cycles Milton knew he had time to message his latest crush before it arrived. Maybe move from virtual sex to something that might leave a mark. Busy day,” he wrote. “But it’s how I save  lives. Meet tonight?” He pushed aside the files of unprocessed claims and admissions and wiped a bare forearm across the surface of his desk. He opened a new file on his computer screen, set the cursor to Line ...

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