“Mrs. Patterson’s Home for Landlocked Men”

“You’ll be very comfortable here,” Mrs. Patterson promised as she guided her newest resident through the rambling house. “We have many activities to keep you busy and your thoughts from where they shouldn’t be. There’s woodcarving, and tailor work, and blacksmithing — quenching only in oil, mind.”

I don’t even remember what comment from a friend of mine sparked this idea. I wish I did! But even had I not forgotten it, giving the backstory would undoubtedly constitute a spoiler for the piece itself, so we will just have to live with the mystery . . .

“Mrs. Patterson’s Home for Landlocked Men” is due to be published in Flash Point SF!