Amy Grech

SILENT JUDGMENT

George Gage sits in silent judgement,
watchful hazel eyes keenly focused on a
woman sitting next to him on the crowded,
Manhattan-bound R train as it rumbles
through tunnels threatening to crumble, stopping
at pre-determined destinations, passengers come
and go, silent spectators traversing the
bustling corporate landscape. Keeping pace
in the brutal modern race.
Forced to wear a corporate noose,
his moral fiber quickly untethered.

Subway stare, Shelia Stein doesn’t care.
Her mind’s long gone. She finds it hard
to carry on, but does her best to
bear the weight. A daunting burden
that leaves her hurting more
than he will ever know.
She lost her job to some
corporate slob who robbed her
of her sanity and her dignity.
Now, there’s nothing left and
she’s bereft. A victim of
the ultimate theft.


Amy's YouTube reading of "Silent Judgment"


Amy confesses: "I’ve lived in New York City for over 25 years. I rely on the subway to traverse the city. 'Silent Judgment' was inspired by the ragtag cast of characters I’ve encountered on trains during my daily commute."


AMY GRECH has sold over 100 stories to various anthologies and magazines including 10 by 10 Flash Fiction Stories, Apex Magazine, Even in the Grave, Gamut Magazine, Microverses, Punk Noir Magazine, Roi Fainéant Press, Tales from the Canyons of the Damned, Yellow Mama, and many others. Alien Buddha Press published her poetry chapbook, A Shadow of Your Former Self.

She is an Active Member of the Horror Writers Association and the International Thriller Writers who lives in Forest Hills, Queens. You can connect with her on Bluesky: @amygrech.bsky.social, Medium: https://medium.com/@crimsonscreams, X: https://x.com/amy_grech, or visit her website: https://www.crimsonscreams.com.

Matthew Sorrento

ALL THE ACCUSED

He finally had his chance.
For just an hour, he’d get
the luxury treatment: a comfy ride
to a press conference,
from the steel
of his cell.

He'll address the charges,
why he showed up that night,
leaving two dead, and "being brazen
enough” to try it
right across from the station.

"Your social media presence is
too much,"
his attorney told him,
a fitted-suit woman, desperate
beneath her makeup,
“with everyone following your story.
It’s why all the accused
now get 15 minutes
of prime-time.
The networks want it back
from the virals
on the phones.
And here's your chance:
Describe what happened.
And don't even think
of getting your glory
here. Show how you were pushed
into it, as we planned last night."

The ride whizzed by
as they moved him
toward the Media,
the logo of
“Fresh Copy: Criminals Speak”
above his chair.
The lawyer watched from the side,
but not close at all,
with the cameras rolling in
and an interviewer
behind bulletproof glass.

He'd have his voice,
reaching out
to put everyone
in his grip.


Terri Lynne Hudson's YouTube reading of "All The Accused"


Matthew confesses: " I was thinking of how social media largely controls communication with immediate updates, and how corporations control this flow of info with algorithms. Meanwhile, influencers -- even dangerous ones -- can exploit these networks. What if a media corporation would promote an older form of media, primetime television, to combat the power for social media, only to Make Criminals Celebrities Again there, too...?"


MATTHEW SORRENTO is editor of Film International Online and Retreats from Oblivion: The Journal of NoirCon. He has published widely on genre cinema/television, documentary film, crime fiction, and genre poetry. His work has appeared in Noir City Magazine, The Los Angeles Review of Books, and as accompanying essays for Stark House Press and Arrow Video. His poetry and fiction have also appeared in The Ekphrastic Review, and Chamber Magazine. Sorrento teaches film and media studies at Rutgers University in Camden, New Jersey. HIs forthcoming collection is Becoming Nosferatu: Stories Inspired by Silent German Horror (co-edited by Gary D. Rhodes, BearManor Media).

Victor Henry

THE GREAT DIVIDE

"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power.” —Benito Mussolini


In Trump’s America
You’re left to die
At your own expense.

The Donald doesn’t pay
Funeral fees.
He governs through arrogance

And ignorance.
His true believers
Duped, conned, gaslit.

Reality TV cartoon characters,
Devotees of The Art of the Deal,
Discover they’ve been funding his weekly golf trips,

Paid for his children’s business excursions.
Remain mute, expressionless, pallid
Like lifeless faces on precoated milk cartons.


Victor's YouTube reading of "The Great Divide"


Victor confesses: "This poem was inspired by The Washington Post fact-checking Trump’s false or misleading claims, totaling 30,573 in his first four years in office. Add Project 2025 to this mixture in his second term and he makes lying palatable once again to his supporters who are under informed about the ramifications of his fascistic, authoritarian takeover of the government."

VICTOR HENRY is a retired reference librarian, a Vietnam veteran, a member of Veterans for Peace. His book of antiwar poems What They Wanted was published by Future Cycle Press. His poetry and prose poems have been published in anthologies and e-zines, such as I am not a Silent Poet; Vietnam War Poetry; Monterey Poetry Review, etc.

Video Notes

You may have noticed a change in the past few Five-Two YouTube videos. I've been trying to incorporate our neon STOP sign logo, but YouTube has been hit-or-miss showing it. My solution is to include the logo in the lower right corner of every frame of every video.