The Powers That Be Short Story Collection

A wounded service dog* still grieving the loss of his human partner matches wits with a cunning alien bent on destroying his quiet new life with an old couple in a remote cabin in the Montana wilderness.

Grieving their son’s tragic death while serving overseas in a godforsaken hellhole undeserving of his heroic sacrifice, a twilight-years couple say good riddance to the cruel world and move to an off-the-grid cabin in the Montana wilderness. They only want to be left alone in their private retreat built in a bucolic meadow, lost amongst an endless sea of pines. Abandoning a lifetime’s worth of possessions, the man and woman carry only essentials and cherished mementos—plus a 4-legged tail-wagging addition named Biscuit—to the rustic, serene locale.

Recuperating from the horrible IED blast that killed Jake, his partner and best friend, Biscuit bonds with his elderly hosts, who seem to share in the German Shepherd’s sadness. On a clear night, a jarring sound pricks Biscuit’s acute auditory senses to a cloaked maleficence lurking outside in the forested shadows, surveying the cabin for imminent destruction to clear a landing zone for those coming.

Not on Biscuit’s watch.

* Dedicated to noble and heroic service dogs, past, present, and future.