"Sweetie, look, this was just delivered. It's from ...," my wife reads the card while unboxing the birthday present, peeling off red gift wrapping, "... your Aunt Salomé."

"That's nice — wait, Aunt Salomé? But — "

The red gift wrapping blooms...

The short story "Valentine" was written in the "Pantser" method, one of the 3 ways to develop an idea into a story. That is: by the seat of my pants, using no outline, making it up as I went along. 

Of course, there are **spoilers**, so if you haven't read the story yet,...

LOS ANGELES, 2079

NOVEMBER

(TONIGHT)

Oh, I could eat you up. Eat you whole. In one bite.

Valentine smiles to herself, in her close-lipped way, 'pensive' they call it in the publicity sumsen. She always smiles this way. Lips closed. She has beautiful, blinding-white,...

“Where are we?” the old man said.

“In a dark wood.”

“Who are you?” said the old man.

“Just … a brother,” said the young man.

“Stop,” the old man said. “Let me look at you.”

“It is...