A True Story

[Grand Moff Hissa]

"Most of the neck's innards, including the jugular, hang out of her mouth and her whole body starts twitching, like a roach on its—"

"It's so good to see someone reading an actual book."

Gemini gave a start and looked up from the page, but her surprise had been too subtle to register or the pair of grey-haired old ladies just didn't care. They were standing there, looking at her through their huge bug-eye sunglasses even though it was almost dark out, and she didn't like how she wasn't sure how long they'd been watching her.

"Thanks," Gemini said.

She was sitting on a plastic bench under the one light on this side of the building, on minute fifteen of her ten minute break, but because she dragged the trash bins to the curb without complaint instead of trying to shove it off on anyone else, nobody was going to say anything about that.

"So many young people are just on their phones all the time," the shorter old lady said. Gemini was pretty sure they were lesbians. They were regulars, and they were always—always—together.

"What are you reading, anyways?" the taller one cut back in.

Gemini held up the book so the cover faced them. It was a close-up soft focus image of a man's face, with block text over it:

AMERI-
CAN
PSYCHO
B R E T
EASTON
E L L I S

"There's a movie," she said. "It has Christian Bale in it."

This secured the desired effect: smiles, nods, broad indifference.

"It's making fun of yuppies," she added.

"You have such a nice voice," the taller one said. "You should read your books out loud."

Gemini's gaze flicked down to the page.

"—like a roach on its back, shaking spasmodically, her melted eyes running down her face mixing with the tears and Mace—"

"Thanks," she said, and smiled.

The probably-lesbians both smiled back.

"We'll let you get back to your book," the shorter one said.

"Have a nice night," Gemini said.

"You too."

"—mixing with the tears and Mace, and then quickly, not wanting to waste time, I turn off the lights and in the dark before she dies I rip open her stomach with my bare hands."