Circles Have Unsafe Dimensions

By Daniel R. Robichaud

Joining up with the Hash House Harriers is supposed to be fun. They are a drinking club with a running problem, playing a game of hounds and hares with beer stops. It sounds like just the Saturday afternoon event Dean is looking for. The hares go first, marking a trail toward the final gathering, the Circle that will give everyone a chance to sing goofy songs and play stupid games. Mindless entertainment is just what he needs after a trying work week. There is even a pretty girl to chat with. Everything is going fine until the hares' trail leads into creepy storm runoff tunnels . . .
Gabe got promoted. He is now in charge of monitoring radioactive materials for one of Big Red, International's largest and newest storage facilities. When his documentation comes up bad, he discovers a terrible shortage that screams unlawful disposal. His investigation delivers him to the same storm runoff tunnels . . .
A company man and some fun-loving drinkers will cross paths in those dark urban tunnels. However, something else is already down there. It waits for now, praying in the dark. Soon it will prey, slaking an unholy hunger for flesh.
Circles Have Unsafe Dimensions is a brand new novella of 1980s style survival horror set in San Antonio, Texas.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Twice Told Tales II
• Release date: Jun 3, 2018
• ISBN: 9780463741894

Daniel R. Robichaud

Daniel R. Robichaud has lived in southeastern Michigan, central Massachusetts and southern Texas. He is a Rhysling Award nominated poet and the author of over one hundred stories, articles and poems, which have appeared in such markets as Shroud Magazine, Rogue Worlds, Goblin Fruit, Rage of the Behemoth, Green Prints, and WritersWeekly. Daniel holds degrees in both Physics and English, and his career path has reflected these passions. In addition to his numerous writing opportunities, he has been an Igor For Hire (aka a freelance research engineer), a substitute teacher, an automation engineer, and a neurophysiology lab manager. Daniel enjoys entertaining people with his words and stories. If you enjoy a good read, why not try one of his works? You might just love them.

Book preview

Circles Have Unsafe Dimensions

A Novella of Terror

By Daniel R. Robichaud

Circles Have Unsafe Dimensions

When JustDean spotted the chalk mark indicating the hares had gone into the storm tunnel, he decided this Hash House Harriers past time might not be for him. Forget all those terror flick fascinations from his teenage years. The real world had enough monsters that dwelled in such places, creatures with names like Streptococcus Group A and tapeworm and the trifecta of umbrella infections: bacterial, viral, and fungal. All of them could kill you pretty fast, but the worst of the lot were the slow killers: The ones that sank barbed hooks into the guts and rolled around for a while, burrowing deep and eating your life with sluggish deliberation. A body could turn weird, betraying its original intention or configuration and turning downright horrible. Something like that had broken out in New York City of all places while he was a kid, shutting down several city blocks as it worked its way through the city's homeless and unseen dwellers as well as the tax paying citizenry.

The nauseating smell coming out of the tunnel did not help settle JustDean's concerns. This was an earthy stench, coming from something moist and maybe dead. Rains had not fallen in almost three weeks, a new record for autumn droughts in San Antonio. What could be wet in there?

Then, the little redhead TwitterTwatter passed him by, saying, Hey, JustDean, I think you found it! and he admired the way her seat scooted along in her shiny blue running shorts. It was a modest sized butt, but from what he could tell it was toned enough. She was a pretty thing, arms and neck shining with sweat from the last hour's run, white tank top clinging in downright enviable ways to her lovely figure. Hers was an athletic body built by relentless cardio, suggesting one hell of a work ethic. Even more admirable than her ethic or ass, however, was the way she kept on trucking yet managed to glance back over her shoulder at him, ponytail whipping away whip crack fast, to offer a saucy grin and a wink. I think we're getting close to Circle, she called, I'm burning up hot, and I'd love to cool off. Want to toss a beer back and get to know me better? Then, she was eyes front again and disappearing into the drainage tunnel, her ponytail sashaying left-right-left as she disappeared into the dark.

Sure, he said.

With this input, he thought hey maybe this Hash House Harriers past time wasn't all bad. When he caught the sounds of the other hashers huffing up, jogging or walking fast, he slipped into the tunnel himself.

One thing Texas cities prided themselves on being able to move vast quantities of water without delay. Flash flooding was a real danger, which required keeping water from accumulating anywhere for long. Thus, the city installed drainage ditches sized for twelve feet deep flows, and builders added decorative holes or