...He swallowed, took a deep breath and looked down.

He was standing in blood.

He followed the stream to its source. It was coming out of the cell he faced. The interior of the cell was dark. He took a step closer. The blood felt thick and sluggish, pulling at his feet. He suppressed a retch and moved closer.

The hall light died. At the same time the cell light came on. He screamed and fell back. The knife dropped from his hand into the blood. His back struck the wall with such force that the air was driven from his lungs.

The janitor was in the cell.

He was not intact.

Colin screamed and began to look frantically for the knife. Where the hell was it ...

Laughter.

Coming from above him.

He looked up. Something thin and white, like an acid-laced rendition of an albino spider dropped from the ceiling and crashed into him with its full body weight. He screamed. His face hit the floor with a splash of red and his nose burst in a gout of bright, fresh blood. Blinding white light erupted in his eyes, swirling in the moment of darkness that reached up to engulf him. His fists flew out, hitting nothing but cold air. Then something had hold of his hair and was yanking him off the floor. His body twisted and he was face to face with his attacker ...

more excerpts

Resembling some genetically altered demi-god, Soren Cabal is responsible for the deaths of at least 200 people. Now he and eight other of the nation's most heinous psychopaths have been brought together at a government research facility housed in a massive old insane asylum. The goal is to unlock the secrets of the serial killer's mind. To delve deeply into the dark, murky currents of ultimate madness. To find its source.

Cabal, with the help of other inmates, takes over the asylum. His demand is simple. He wants Alison Moire, an FBI agent, brought to him. Else everyone dies.

Alison is the best there is at understanding the sick and twisted workings of a serial killer's mind. It was her knowledge and skills that finally led to the capture of Cabal. His demand reminds her that he has not forgotten.

For the sake of the hostages, Alison must enter the asylum. Despite her broad background and experience, she senses she may not survive. Once inside, a dark secret is revealed to her. She learns of that shadowed part of herself, that part with which she has never come to grips.

The asylum has become a tangible manifestation of the madness of the inmates. A cornerstone of Hell, slyly stolen from beneath the Devil's watchful eyes. And all the players, including Alison, now march to the frenzied cadence demanded by Cabal.

The version of Killer Asylum being offered by ActionTales is a brand new, freshly re-edited version.

The original was riddled with typos and a few stylist choices that just didn't quite work (as much as I may have believed they did at the time).

I have to thank Kendall Alexander and Betty Sleep (ain't those great names?) for all the hard work they put into making my work better and for loving the original enough to believe that it had to be done.

My only defense is that writers are their own worse editors. I strongly believe that, and following the work done by these two wonderful young ladies, I can honestly say that when I write the sequel (oh, and it's coming, don't you worry about that ... hee, hee, hee), they will be the first to be offered the task of making it worthy of the title Killer Asylum 2.

David R. Williams