Literature

PART TWOSECONDHAND SOULS Do not seek death. Death will find you. But seek the road which makes death a fulfillment. – Dag Hammarskjöld 10 DEATH TAKES A WALK Mornings, Charlie…

9THE DRAGON, THE BEAR, AND THE FISH In the hallway of the third floor of Charlie’s building, a meeting was going on between the great powers of Asia: Mrs. Ling…

8A STREETCAR NAMED CONFUSION Into the breech of the Castro district Charlie Asher charged, an antique sword-cane from the store on the van seat beside him, his jaw set like…

7THANATOAST While Charlie’s Beta Male imagination may have often turned him toward timidity and even paranoia, when it came to accepting the unacceptable it served him like Kevlar toilet paper…

6VARIABLE SPEED HEROES In the alley behind Asher’s Secondhand, the Emperor of San Francisco hand-fed olive focaccia to the troops and tried to keep dog snot from fouling his breakfast….

5DARKNESS GETS UPPITY Hey, Ray,” Charlie said as he came down the steps into the storeroom. He always tried to make a lot of noise on the steps and usually…

4THE BETA MALE IN HIS NATURAL ENVIRONMENT Jane,” said Charlie, “I am convinced by the events of the last few weeks that nefarious forces or people – unidentified but no…

2A FINE EDGE There’s a fine edge to new grief, it severs nerves, disconnects reality – there’s mercy in a sharp blade. Only with time, as the edge wears, does…

This book is dedicated to Patricia Moss, who was as generous in sharing her death as she was in sharing her life.AND To hospice workers and volunteers all over the…

Chapter 22A PERFECT LONESOME CHRISTMAS The archangel Raziel hovered outside the Santa Rosa Chapel’s big cathedral window, looking through a small pane of pink glass that formed Saint Rosa’s cheek….

Chapter 21AVENGING ANGEL Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, Theo thought. He twisted his ankle when he hit the ground; pain shot up his leg like liquid fire….

Chapter 20WINGING IT The angel had opened six envelopes of powdered hot-chocolate mix and handpicked out all the minimarshmallows. “They trap them in these little prisons with the brown powder….

Chapter 19UP ON THE ROOFTOP, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK This is what it’s all been about, thought Ben Miller as he climbed into the tiny bell tower atop the chapel. It…

Chapter 18YOUR PUNY WORM GOD WEAPONS ARE USELESS AGAINST MY SUPERIOR CHRISTMAS KUNG FU Molly slipped out the back door of the cabin and around the outside wall until she…

Chapter 15A MOMENTARY FLASH OF MOLLY “By the purple horn of Nigoth, I command thee to boil!” screeched the Warrior Babe. What good was a higher power, after all, if…

Chapter 12THE STUPIDEST ANGEL’S CHRISTMAS MIRACLE Sundown, Christmas Eve. The rain was coming down so hard that there didn’t appear to be any space between the drops – just a…

Chapter 11A SLUG TRAIL OF GOOD CHEER He might have been made of polished mahogany except that when he moved, he moved like liquid. The stage lights reflected green and…

Chapter 10LOVE, KICKED TO THE CURB “You did what?” Lena said, then adding, “And take that bat off your head, it’s unnerving to have a hat looking at you like…

Chapter 9THE LOCAL GUYS, THEY HAVE THEIR MOMENTS Thursday morning it became official: Dale Pearson, evil developer, was a missing person. Theo Crowe was going over the big red truck…

Chapter 8HOLIDAY HEARTBREAK Christmas Amnesty. You can fall out of contact with a friend, fail to return calls, ignore e-mails, avoid eye contact at the Thrifty-Mart, forget birthdays, anniversaries, and…