The Red Butterfly, Part Eight – I Danced With Duende
Short Story “I danced for El Cuadillo,” Anna said, bringing me out of my dark thoughts. “I danced for him. And I made a bargain with him.” “When was this?” “A long time ago,” she...
Tagged: red butterfly
The Red Butterfly, Part Seven – I Hope It Hurts
Short Story “Why did you tell them to go that way?” said Anna. “Why not?” said Carlos. “Because it is the wrong way. Because you have sent them to Plaza de Lavapiés.” “And so?”...
The Red Butterfly, Part Five – Vamos A Candela
Short Story I waited outside the Tablao for her to come out, I lit a cigarette and pulled my collar up against the wind. I smoked the cigarette and when I finished it, I smoked...
The Red Butterfly, Part Four – Just An American Fantasy
Short Story The music faded and the lights dimmed. “Ahora vamos,” said Pablo as two men stepped on stage from behind heavy curtains. They were both trim and dressed in black. One man was just...
The Red Butterfly, Part Three – That Is Why You Are Here
Short Story I sat at a table to the right of the stage. From this angle, nothing is hidden from view. That is, nothing that mattered to me. The audience members who face the...
The Red Butterfly, Part Two – El Banderillero
Short Story I sat on a stool at the zinc bar in a tablao on Calle Cañizares with a roja, small plates of tapas–consisting of lomo de cerdo embuchado, jamon serrano–and some olives; I waited...
The Red Butterfly, Part Twenty One – The Gray Gelding
My head hurt, my back hurt, my vision clouded by a thousand flashing lights like a constellation invading in broad daylight. I slumped to the ground and sat there among the dirt and the...
The Red Butterfly, Part Twenty – A Boschian Creature
A thing was tugging at my foot. I opened my eyes to the blue sky above, the color of robin’s eggs. I lay supine and the thing continued to gnaw. I lifted my head...
The Red Butterfly, Part Nineteen – Time To Go Home
A few years later, after I joined the army and had gone to Vietnam a boy and then returned home a broken man, I made a trip to Lake Michigan. Jim T. had been...
