“The Girl in the Basement” up at Apex Magazine September 9, 2009 – Posted in: Aberrant Normalcy

My story “The Girl in the Basement” is now up at Apex Magazine.

It’s alongside stories by the talented Ekaterina Sedia and Keffy R.M. Kehrli (both of whom appear in past issues of Sybil’s Garage).

Here’s an intro:

“The girl lived in the basement where the air was cool and damp and quiet. Company was coming over tonight, her mother had said, so the girl had better make sure her room was spotless. She gave the girl a dull knife to scrape the gobs of candle wax from the dresser and night stand, and she took it back after. She brought down the vacuum so the girl could suck the dust and dead bugs from the lampshades and corners. And she gave the girl a bucket of soapy water to scrub the dirt from the walls and floor. No matter how often the girl cleaned, there always seemed to be more dust. And the bed had to be made too, the corners creased like ironed shirts, and the four pillows propped in alternating colors against the headboard. The girl didn’t need to be reminded. Mother was always this fastidious when they were having company.”