Pa had always had a lot of respect for Sam's grandmother. That must have been at least partly to do with what people in the village used to say about her. Pa used to say that civilization took the ... [+]
E J Delaney lives in Brisbane, Australia, and has written stories for Escape Pod, Flame Tree Fiction and The School Magazine. "Infiltrators" is in Short Circuit #06, Short Édition's quarterly review.
Abby heard the car pull up. A flush of triumph rose in her chest. Bella was home from school! Now the gloating could begin! Being twins, the sisters spent most of their time trying to out-do each other. Last week, Bella had printed a fake spelling list with misspelt words and snuck it into Abby's book for her to learn. The week before that, Abby had ruined Bella's show-and-tell. The battle lines had been drawn. There would be no surrender now! Abby heard the key in the front door. "Thing One?" her dad called out. "We're home, honey. How are you?" "Hi, Dad. I'm—" She faked a cough. "I'm good.