“SHOT BY SNIPER,” by Bartholomew von Klick.
Read by Christopher Osborn. (9 min)

A shot kicked up dirt in front of Grale’s face. He pulled himself backward, back to the dubious protection of the fallen sign.

A sniper.

Across the street from the fallen billboard, Grale’s men looked at him, pasty-faced and wide-eyed. One of the men — Simmons — signed for him to stay put. No shit.

They all knew Grale would die here. God damn that machine.

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Bartholomew von Klick lives beneath a bridge in Missouri, emerging only to collect a toll from passers-by. He sometimes mutters about all the things he would like to eat, but has not yet been able to kill. He has thirty-six cats, and a beautiful wife who rises from the grave every night to hunt and bring him snacks from the orphanage.

Christopher Osborn is a web developer by day, and asleep by night. He is the author of the short story collection Easily-Distracted Tales and several stageplays, including Lumberknight: The Francophone Protocol.

In the book, “SHOT BY SNIPER” is illustrated by John Keogh. This podcast episode was edited by Matt Schwartz.