In a quiet Texas suburb, life is calm and peaceful, and that's just like Dina Demille likes it. But now something with long claws and savage teeth is hunting on the night streets, leaving blood on the manicured lawns. As an innkeeper, Dina knows she shouldn't get involved. With her neighbors' lives at stake, she must make a choice: to remain neutral and safe or to risk everything, her magic inn, the safety of her guests, and her life to face an enemy unlike any she had ever expected to meet.

A young adult short story about a girl, a pig, some magic, and the worst date ever. Chad Thurman is a thug, who carries brass knuckles in both pockets and lays magic traps for intruders into “his” neighborhood. The last thing Alena Kornov wants to do is to go on the date with him. But when her family pressures her, she can’t say no. Now the ice-cream is absent, the pig is running for its life, and we won’t even mention the dead guy… This short story previously appeared as a free read on our website.