The Black Seeds

Young Kristoff Kane is pretty much raising himself after the brutal slaying of his mother and his absentee father's subsequent decent into alcoholism. But Kristoff isn't entirely alone. He has his best friend Willie and when they discover a hidden envelope of small black seeds, they also unleash a nightmare creature which may or may not be on Kristoff's side.

This story, previously published in the now out-of-print award-winning collection 13 Thorns, is a perfect representation of Ranalli's unsettling short fiction.