31 Days of Halloween Tales - Goodnight Irene

A silly tale entitled:

Goodnight Irene

The room was lit only by a tiny nightlight and what moonlight managed to peek in from the window as three young girls huddled together silently on the narrow twin bed, afraid, yet enthralled of what was to come.

"It happened a long long time ago, before I was born, I'm not sure when exactly. My Grandfather Edward was lost at sea and my Grandmother Irene held seances right here in this very room so that she could talk to him.

Susie spoke up first. "Did she? Talk to him I mean?"

Melanie looked at her friends on the bed and smiled in the dark. This was going to be easy.

"Yes she did. She had never been alone you see and couldn't bear it."

"What happened?" Linda whispered.

"Well, they actually held three seances here in what was once the library but it wasn't till the third seance that Grandma Irene saw her dead husband. In the flesh."

One of the girls gasped but Melanie couldn't tell which one. She grinned a little broader then continued.

"The four of them were sitting around a table right where that bed is now. Just sitting and waiting as they had during the first two seances but this time Grandpa Edward came.

First the room became ice cold, cold enough so that the four people sitting around the table could see their breath come out in a white clouds in front of their faces. And then the candle blew out all on its own so that the room was really dark. Sort of like it is right now."

One of the girls began whimpering. Melanie thought it was Susie but couldn't be sure.

"Then, when it was so dark that they could barely see,  my Grandma heard Grandpa singing the song he sang to her every night as they were getting ready for bed…

Irene goodnight
Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene
Goodnight Irene 
I'll see you in my dreams.

And right there... in that doorway right next to you…  stood my Grandpa Edward singing to my Grandma just like he always did."

My best friend Cheryl giggled nervously but said nothing.

"Did they ever see him again?"

Melanie was ready. "Oh yes! We see him all the time!"

No one moved for a moment or two then Linda snapped on the lamp next to the bed. It shed a little more light into the room than the tiny nightlight had but not much.

The four girls just looked at each other in silence until Susie stuck out her tongue. "You're lying, Melanie. You're nothing but a big liar. Your house is so not haunted." She stuck her lip out and pouted. Melanie felt like slapping her. "Now, I get to choose a game and I want to play Mystery Date."

Melanie shrugged "Well okay, if you don't believe me."  She leaned over and dug the game out from beneath her bed. Leave it to Susie.

The four girls gathered in a circle on the floor and set up the game. Linda was just about to roll the dice when the singing began.

"What was that?" Susie squealed.

"It's nothing. Just my Grandpa." Melanie noted matter-of-factly.

The singing grew louder as it drew closer to the room.

Goodnight Irene
Goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams.

Linda screamed and Susie ran towards the open window. Melanie thought she just might jump.

The door slowly opened and there stood Grandpa Edward. Smiling and singing.

Susie screamed and darted past Grandpa Edward, with Linda close on her heels. The two girls were still carrying on when Melanie's mom shuttled them into her old Dodge to take them both home.

Cheryl was laughing hysterically.

"What was that all about Melly?"

"Just some scaredy cats Mom made me invite over to spend the night but they changed their minds I guess. Can you take us for ice cream, Grandpa?"

"Sure kiddo. Just let me tell your Grandma we are leaving."

31 Days of Halloween Tales - The Perfect Spot

A wee bit of a tale entitled:

The Perfect Spot

"This is it! It's perfect!!

Cliff looked at me to check if I was kidding. "Are you sure? It's a little out of the way."

"Oh no, I just love it!"

Now, I know you aren't supposed to show your emotions when buying real estate but I was thrilled with what we had found. Yes, I suppose it was a little out of the way but I liked the idea of the isolation and the quiet.

I had been looking for the perfect spot for several years but none had ever fit the bill exactly. They were often either too warm or too sunny or too dark but  more often than not, they were simply too crowded for my taste. I was a loner and had been for most of my life. A secluded place thick with ancient trees and lush grass sounded like the perfect match for me. People were nothing more than a mere annoyance and the less I had to be around them the better.

"Yep. This is it. The one I have been looking for all this time."

Cliff seemed to resign himself that my search was indeed over. "Well, if you are sure we can go back to the office and write it up."

I was more than sure, I was elated.

"Thanks," I said. "That would be just great!"

We went back to his little office at the front of the property and in less than an hour it was all done. I was the proud owner of the perfect spot.

I drove past my newly acquired property one last time before I left, taking in the beauty of it and imagining myself resting there.

I noticed Cliff standing outside his office and I waved good bye to him as I passed by, he was frowning a bit, I couldn't imagine why. It was beautiful, and perfect, and I was thrilled with my purchase.

Dusk was just beginning to fall and the late afternoon shadows were starting to  lengthen across the gravel road as I made my way towards the exit.

I glanced in my rear view mirror one last time before I drove through the large iron gates of the Cedar Grove Cemetery and headed towards home.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Pick Your Potion

Love is strange in a little tale entitled:

Pick Your Potion

"Yes, I have a love potion, maybe you'd like to give it a try?"

Lisa looked at the bright pink liquid inside the tiny glass bottle. It couldn't be more than a sip, what could it hurt?

She wanted Leo to fall in love with her and if this was the only way it could happen then it was worth the hefty price the gypsy was asking.

"I'll take it." She looked at the size of the bottle again and asked, "Is one bottle enough?"

The old gypsy cackled sending shivers through the girl's body. "Yes, girl. One bottle is plenty. Ya only needs a sip."

Lisa paid the gypsy and slipped discretely out of the carnival tent.

****

Lisa pulled the scarf tighter around her head, close enough to hide the fresh bruises on her cheek. She slipped into the carnival tent only to find the same old gypsy waiting for her inside. She couldn't believe he was still alive, if he was old ten years ago, he was positively ancient now.

"I need a potion to make someone fall out of love with me. Do you have something like that?"

The gypsy didn't say anything but quietly pulled a small bottle filled with a dark blue liquid out from under the counter and slid it across to her.

"This will make someone stop loving you if that is what you wish. Would you like to give it a try?"

Lisa didn't even look at the price this time. She didn't care, she simply paid the old man what he asked and slipped back out of the tent hoping no one recognized her.

****

"As to Count, One Malice Murder the Jury finds the Defendant,  "Guilty."

Lisa stopped listening after the verdict on the first Count, that was the one that really matter. They could sentence her to death for that. And they might.

As it turned out it hadn't mattered to the Jury that she wasn't aware that there had been a lethal poison in the tiny bottle that she had given to her husband, Leo.  And by then, the gypsy carnival was long gone. Nor had it mattered that he was known on occasion to beat her as that only seemed to give her motive in the first place.

What everyone heard over and over again, the Jury included, was how much Leo had loved her. He never stopped telling his family and his co-workers how much he loved Lisa.

And he always said that he would love her till the day he died.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - The Bates

A little tale entitled:

The Bates

"I’d like to get out of here, Simon. Something doesn't feel right."

"We just got here babe. Give it a chance."

I didn't want to give it a chance I wanted to go. This wasn't my idea of  Halloween fun. I wanted candy and apple cider. Maybe a fire even. It was chilly enough.

"I can't see anything. Where the heck are we?"

"It looks like we are in the Bates Motel if you want me to be honest."

To be frank, I didn't want him to be honest. I saw a pale yellow glow stick off in the distance and decided being honest, at times, had its shortcomings. I wanted him to lie and say we were Tahiti or somewhere else where the lights might still be on.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah! Isn't it cool?"

Cool? No, it definitely wasn't cool.

I clung to Simon's shirt (the wrinkle is in there permanently I am afraid) as we walked through pitch black narrow hallways lit only by what I imagined were small clusters of Christmas lights stuck inside various closets along the way. What had he gotten me into?

I found I couldn't breathe and I squeezed my eyes shut so as not to let anything in, praying we would make it out alive.

The air around us was  damp as if we were walking through a thick mist and when something cold touched my cheek, I screamed in spite of my desire to stay invisible.

My eyes shot open, also in spite of my desire to keep them shut, and I was face to face with an knife-wielding Norman Bates wearing a lopsided woman's wig that I guessed once belonged to his mother.

I screamed again, louder this time and shoved Simon to the ground as I plowed over him in search of the exit. I left him alone with Norman Bates a fact I am neither proud of nor ashamed of. Self-preservation is a tough cookie.

When I finally found my way outside I discovered the Halloween sky was full of stars and the air was cold and dry.  There was however, the faint smell of snow in the air and I thought how wonderful it would be to be home in front of the fire when the storm hit later on that night.

My racing heart slowed as I gazed at the star lit sky and I soon realized I could breathe once again.

Simon appeared a few seconds later looking slightly disheveled but really none the worse for the wear.

"Was that really necessary?"

He was frowning but I knew he thought it was all great fun.

I grabbed him and  pulled him close to me, giving him a deep kiss on his lips.

"Are you ready to go home now?"

This time he didn't even think about it.

"Yep. Let's blow this popsicle stand."

He grabbed my hand and practically dragged me out of Knott's Scary Farm and Halloween Horror Nights, leaving their version of Psycho far behind us.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - The Banshee Wails

A little tale entitled:

The Banshee Wails

It was easier in the end, with what I know.

To know the truth.

We each owe a debt and we can pay it in this life or the next, the choice is always up to you. Most people choose the later, rolling the dice and hedging the bet, hoping the debt never actually comes due. I was one of the lucky ones, I learned early enough to pay up front because credit always comes at a cost.

I was sixteen when my sister died. It was just another Halloween night in southern California but this night the Santa Ana winds had arrived and on their coattails, the Banshee rode. I heard her wail just after dusk and just in case you have been fortunate enough never to have heard her keen, you cannot mistake it for anything else. It is a mournful sound, lonely and cold like a lone fog horn on a silent snowy night.

My sister Ellen had been ill for some time but even when I heard the song of the Banshee I didn't imagine it was for her. She was only seven years old but with a soul so old you knew from the moment she was born, she already understood more about life than the rest of us who had been here for awhile. She was blessed with the face of an angel and thick dark auburn hair and eyes of such a deep blue you needed look at them twice before deciding on their actual color.

She was beautiful still, even in the end, the disease not having eaten away at her. We were lucky I guess for that much. Or maybe it made it harder, I can't be sure.

I was sitting in the living room when I heard Ellen call out to me. I didn't hurry, I was sixteen after all but I soon stopped the game I was playing and went in to check on her. She was sitting up in bed, her hair down over her shoulders and across her pillow like an fiery cloak. She looked pale, more so than she ever had  been and I immediately became worried.

"Did you hear that, Will?"

I realized then that she had heard the same thing I did but I refused to let on.

"Do you mean the wind, El? It's just the Santa Ana blowing."

She stared at me then, the cutting kind of stare that told me to stop the nonsense because she saw right through me.

"Not the wind. That was the Banshee." She sat there on her bed, her head cocked slightly to one side as she listened to the sound of her own death calling her soul out into the night.

I was sick, my stomach churned and twisted and I wanted to go and get my parents. I didn't want to do this alone.

"No, El. It's just the wind. Just the Santa Ana winds come calling."

I was trying to convince myself as much as I was trying to convince her but in the end, I did neither.

Ellen's gaze was still looking at something I could not see when she whispered, "Come closer to me, Will."

I was terrified to get closer to her, the way she looked so far off and dazed but I was just as afraid not to.  My love for my sister was stronger than my fear however and I walked over and sat down on the twin bed next to her.

I took her hands into mine, I remember how cold they were and thinking that it wasn't right. For these two tiny and oh so gentle hands to be so cold.

"I will die tonight, Will."

"NO!!"

I yelled loud enough to make myself cringe at the sound of my voice but Ellen didn't even seem to notice.

"We can't stop it. Will. You can't stop it no matter how much you wish it not to be so. But you need to know something."

I was beyond listening and beyond grief. I wanted to run away, to hide from her. I couldn't bear the pain.

But she continued.

'There is another life beyond this one Will so don't be afraid."

Was this delirium? Wishful thinking on the part of a dying child?

"We are put here for a purpose, sometimes we can see our purpose clearly and other times it is cloudy. But remember that Will. We are all here for a purpose. Mine was just to teach you how to love and to give your heart freely." She touched my cheek with her icy fingers.

"Your heart is opened now and you must keep it that way. Your purpose has yet to come to light but when it does, you will understand."

I wanted no part of her nonsense, this was gibberish and I only wanted my sister. My head ranted and railed as my heart shattered inside my chest.

All this happened even as I understood she was telling me the truth.

I cried then and she held me, a child consoling a man who could not yet comprehend the loss he hadn't yet begun to grasp the depth of.  In time I would understand that there is no bottom to grief but I didn't know that then.

She was holding me in her arms when she died but I knew it the moment it happened. It wasn't that she let go of me, on the contrary, she held me tightly to her as she passed through me in an instant.

I felt her as she left, a still entity with all her hopes and dreams going with it. I saw it all. Her life, her moments of pure joy and surprisingly to a young man who had yet to understand, very little sadness.

I stopped crying long enough to see her pale shadow stand before me, long fiery hair swirling around her head like a soft red halo. She smiled at me then and I think I smiled back. She gave no notice to her body on the bed as if it was discarded clothing that no longer fit her and that she no longer required.

There was a moment I wanted to go with her, to follow her where she was going. There was no fear on her face, only peace and contentment and even as a young man I wished to know that same tranquility. I reached for her hand but she pulled away from me, blowing me a kiss as she faded into the air and was gone.



That was many years ago and I am an old man of eighty-nine now. My life has been blessed with a wonderful wife,  four beautiful children and nearly a dozen grandchildren.

Like I said, I've been lucky.

Now, it is Halloween night and the Santa Ana wind is blowing in again from the east.

Once more I hear the woeful wail of the  Banshee but this time it is my name she is calling. It is as clear as a whisper in my ear and yet there is no fear.

Ellen is sitting beside me, her long auburn hair flowing across her shoulders and tickling my arms.

She is holding me tightly to her as she did that night so long ago.

And this time I know.

She will not leave me behind.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Long Distance Calling

Talk about long distance charges….

Long Distance Calling

"Whatcha doing, Benny?
"Nothing Rog. Mind your own business, okay?"
"You're doing something. I can see it!"
"Just don't tell Ma. I'll let you try if you promise not to tell Ma."
"I promise. So whatcha doing really?"
I'm talking to someone."
"On that old phone?? C'mon Benny, that thing ain't worked in forever."
"I know it don't work for regular phone calls, but listen. Here, just say hello."
"Benny, that's dumb! That phone ain't even plugged in to nothing."
"It don't need to be plugged in, Rog. Just say hello. It's Grandpa Will."
"Grandpa Will? But Grandpa Will's dead Benny."
"Yeah I know he is but we can still talk to him. Just say hello and see."
"Hello? Hello? There ain't nobody there Benny! You're just fooling me!"
"Sure Rog. That's it. I was just kidding ya. Now go get your ball and glove and I'll play catch with ya in a minute."
"Okay, Benny!! I'll get my stuff and meet ya out in back!"

****

"Sorry, Grandpa. I gotta go. Rog is waiting for me. I love you."
"I love you too, Benny. Take care of your brother and I'll call you again real soon."

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Burial

A little Drabble entitled:

Burial

He buried her tiny body in the small patch of soft dirt by the concrete wall and erected a monument above her with stones she had collected herself. 

It didn't matter that it wasn't much, he was the only one who knew she was there.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Invisible Whispers

A little tale entitled:

Invisible Whispers

"He's not imaginary, he's real!!

"Thomas, there is no one here in this room but you."

Thomas turned away from his mom and buried his face in his pillow. Why didn't she believe him?

Kristin touched her son's head, and try to smooth the out of control cowlick from his dark hair.  He needed to stop this, his step-father got so angry when Thomas made stuff up.

"Tomorrow night is Halloween, Thomas. If you want to go Trick or Treating you shouldn't say anything to Rick about Freddie, okay? We don't want him getting upset again."

 Thomas fingered the bruises on his wrist and the round circle of the cigarette burn on his arm. No, he wouldn't mention Freddie. He and his mother were both still recovering from the last time Rick got "upset." And besides, Freddie had told him the same thing.

Freddie showed up three days earlier when Thomas was sick and running a high fever and hadn't left when the fever did. He told Thomas he couldn't leave until it was over. Whatever "it" was. Thomas didn't know what he meant by that exactly, but he was more than a little afraid.

Thomas pulled the covers up around his neck, closed his eyes and tried to pretend not to hear Freddie whispering in his ear.

*****

"Mrs. Shine, did you see what happened?"

Detective Garcia wasn't sure the woman was going to be able to answer the question but he had to ask her anyway.

The woman gazed back at him with the all too familiar deer in the headlights look that the Detective saw often enough to realize she wouldn't be much help just yet.  He could come back to her later. After she had a little time.

"Officer Reese, can you please sit with Mrs. Shine until I can get a statement? Maybe get her a cup of tea or something?'

He watched Officer Penny Reese whisper to the woman and then gather her up as they both headed towards the kitchen. It would give her something to do for a few minutes, get her mind working and then he could try questioning her again.

The little boy was another matter. He seemed very willing to talk but most of what he said didn't make much sense.

"Now Thomas. Tell me again about Freddie and why you think he did this."

Thomas gazed out the window to the tree in the backyard where until a few minutes ago, Rick had been hanging, the rope from Thomas' tire swing wrapped carefully around his neck.

He thought it was alright to tell the police about his friend. Freddie was gone now anyway and the whispering had stopped.

"Freddie told me he would take care of Rick, that he would never hurt me or  my mother again."

Detective Garcia stared down at Thomas searching his face for the tell-tale signs of a lie but saw nothing more than honest innocence.

"What else did Freddie say to you, Thomas?

Thomas smiled slightly, shook his head and whispered, "Nothing."

Thomas turned his gaze back towards the window and away from the detective, somethings were best kept to himself.

There had been more of course, much more. Freddie had plenty to say. But like the vision of the man hanging from the tree, much of the whisperings of Freddie had disappeared into the child's memory and it was already getting difficult for Thomas to remember any of it at all.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Mother Knows Best

A little tale on this chilly morning entitled:

Mother Knows Best

The car coughed and sputtered then finally issued its last dying breath. Silence.

Mary looked at the gauges on the dash hoping to see something she had missed but the flashing red lights had died along with the car.

She turned the key again hoping for something, anything, but received only the grinding of the ignition as it searched for fuel.

The car was out of gas.

Mary searched the roadway for a sign of another car, for headlights cutting through the blinding snow but could see nothing but blackness.

She had decided to take the back way home from her mother’s house, it was about four miles shorter and much less traffic than the interstate, a fact that seemed like a good thing four hours ago.

When she left New London for Boston this morning she thought she was quite prepared for the trip back home. One night with her know-it-all mom was all she could bear and besides she wanted to be home for Halloween.  She had forgotten to plug her cell in before she went to bed but it was still about fifty percent in the green so she figured that she could make the two and a half hour trip home without a problem.

She also hadn’t stopped to fill the car before she left as she planned on filling up at one of the cheaper stations that she could hit once she crossed the state line back into Massachusetts.

She thought she was ready for everything but the one thing Mary hadn’t prepared was the weather.

What was it exactly that her had mother said to her while they were having breakfast?

“Nor’easters are unpredictable, Mary. You should stay.”

“It doesn’t snow in October and certainly not on Halloween,” she had snapped back at her mother.

Mary hadn’t listened to her mother’s warning and as it turned out, she had been wrong on both counts. The storm arrived hours earlier than predicted and after she had to slow to a crawl because she couldn’t see in the driving snow, and eventually had to stop driving altogether, she found herself stranded still miles from home with no cell service and no gas in the midst of a killer Nor’easter.

“The Perfect Storm,” she had heard someone call it on the radio just before the car died. It didn’t seem perfect to her at all.

Soon the temperature inside the automobile would drop and she, would die right along with her car.

Why hadn’t she filled the car? Charged her phone?

She was sleepy. At least sleep was predictable. Like waking up. And dying.

She curled herself up into a ball and closed her eyes.

At least she wouldn't have to hear "I told you so."

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Star Light Star Bright

Be careful what you wish for… you just might get it…

Star Light, Star Bright

Star light, star bright

The first star I see tonight,

I wish I may, I wish I might,

Get the wish I wish tonight…

 Harper watched her brothers arguing over the ancient tire swing in the back yard and contemplated the scene before her. Josh would win the battle of course, he was younger, true, but he was meaner and bigger than his older brother James.

And it was obvious that she would have no chance of using the swing herself, not with those two.

"We don't have time to play tag this afternoon, Josh. Ma's gonna be calling us for dinner and I want a turn on the swing before she does."

Pretending he didn’t hear his brother, Joshua still refused to relinquish the rotted Firestone and swung himself higher, narrowly missing kicking his brother in the head.

James scowled but knew better than to try and force his brother from the swing. For one, Josh was bigger than him, but more than that, he was younger and his mother would always take the younger siblings side over his. He was the eldest and was supposed to behave like it.

He hated being the oldest and he hated his younger siblings. He was an only child for two years before Josh was born and then his sister came three years later. Now, he was a babysitter and was constantly being told to “keep an eye” on his brother and sister.  In addition to that, he now had to share everything he owned with them.

"Boys are so stupid, always fighting," Harper grumbled as she jumped off the steps and headed towards the woods behind the house. It was quiet there at least and no one would even notice she was gone.

And true enough, her brothers never noticed her leaving.

******

The blue afternoon sky had given way to the blackness of night, and the tire swing had long since been forgotten. James and Josh stood at the kitchen window, peering out into the darkness, waiting for some word, never anticipating the worse.

Josh was grinning at his older brother. "You'll be in trouble if she hurt herself. You were supposed to be watching her."

James glared at his brother wondering if it was possible to be that dumb. He had let their four year old sister wander off on her own when he was supposed to be keeping an eye on her and his stupid brother’s only thought was that James was going to be punished.

"Josh…" 

James shook his head. No point in continuing, his brother would never understand. He turned back towards the windows and the night that lay heavy and wet beyond the glass and wondered if it was possible for his sister to simply vanish because of a wish he made on a star.

And if it would work again.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - Hell's Full

Ready for a little zombie action this Saturday morning? A little tale entitled:

Hell's Full

"When there’s no room left in hell, the dead will walk the earth."

The quote drifted into my mind, some old line from some old movie. I couldn't remember what movie or when I had heard it even.  Could be I was just becoming forgetful at my age but more likely it was fear that was choking me and making me forget.

"Glenn.. What are they?"

I knew the answer, so did she but maybe she wanted someone else to say it, to hear it out loud so it wouldn't sound quite so insane as it did inside her head.

"Zombies, Rebekkah." I stopped and let the words sit in the room like an unwanted visitor. "Zombies. Or at least what we know as zombies."

She started crying then, I knew she would. Becky had been a crier since high school and fifty-eight years hadn't changed that about her. I put my arm around her, the one arm that remained, and pulled her next to me. She would be covered in blood, my blood, but I hoped she wouldn't mind.

And besides, the bloodstains on her clothes would be the least of her worries before long.

"Listen to me Becky, I am not going to make it out of here. You know that."

"Whaaaat?" The sobbing stopped momentarily as she looked at me for the first time since this whole thing started.  She was in shock or at least appeared to be but I am no doctor, just a writer. A writer with one arm. Useless. There would be no more typing for me and I wasn't into giving dictation. My writing had been shit the last year anyway. Maybe this was for the best.

"I've lost a lot of blood, Becky." She glanced at the stump where my arm used to be as if she just noticed it now. Her eyes grew wide and her fair skin paled even further.  I thought she might faint then but the tough Irish genes in her took over and she simply nodded.  That was better. She was getting it.

"Can we get out of here Glenn? Get you to a hospital?

"It wouldn't matter, Beck. The poison or venom or whatever the fuck it is is already in my body."  The realization hit me then, too. The truth. Better to say it out loud and give it up to the gods. "I am going to die and probably pretty soon."

There was no wailing this time from my pretty redheaded wife. That was good. Maybe she finally understood.

"Get the gun out of the safe, Beck. Do it now."

She wanted to argue, she opened her mouth to say something but shut it with an audible snap instead. She bent over next to the bed, and I heard the heavy clank as the lid to the metal safe popped open, then the click of the clip sliding in and a bullet being chambered. Good.

When I saw her face appear over me she was crying again but her eyes were clear and focused.

"I love you, Becky. Always remember that."

"I love you, Glenn. Forever and a day, remember?"

"Forever and a day, babe. Now don't wait. Okay?"

"Okay, babe. I won't."

The shot rang through the room and suddenly I was falling. There was no pain any longer, just a sweet peaceful calm as if I was slowly drifting into a deep sleep. It was okay. This was okay.

Somewhere in the distance I heard Becky once last time.

"Forever and a day, babe."

Another shot ripped through the silence in the room and I realized I was no longer alone. 

Becky's small hand was suddenly clasped in mine and we fell the rest of the way together, as one.

31 Days of Halloween Tales - What's In a Name??

Another little short story entitled :

What's In a Name??

"Jesus!"

"It's just thunder, scaredy-cat."

"There was lightening too. Don't forget the lightening."

"Okay, so there is lightening too. But at least we're inside."

"We're on an island made of rock in the middle of the ocean inside of a ten story lighting rod of a lighthouse."

"The light keepers did it all time, Bob."

"And they died all the time, Claire."

"And we're not in the middle of the ocean, we're a short walk to the main land."

"Over slippery wet rocks. If we die I am going to blame you. This was your idea. To come out here on Halloween."

"Well, that is when you can see the ghost. Captain Joseph Barnsworth. They say he comes back every year on Halloween looking for his daughter, Sarah that was swept out to sea in that perfect storm."

"The movie with George Clooney?"

"Same storm, different story though."

"That was a good movie. What was the movie about the ghost? With what's-his-name?"

"Ghost?"

"Yeah, it was about a ghost but I can't remember the name of it."

"Are you thinking of the movie with Patrick Swayze?"

"YES! That's it! Do you remember the name of it?"

"The name of the movie is Ghost, Bob."

"Ghost? Just Ghost? That doesn't sound right."

"I'm pretty sure that is the name. I would check Google on my phone but I don't have a signal out here in nowhere land."

"Wasn't that a Beatles' song? Nowhere Land?"

"I think you're thinking of Nowhere Man."

"Oh yes, you're right. Nowhere man please listen. You don't know what you’re missing. It's getting cold."

"Getting? I would say we are ten degrees past getting."

"Do you want my coat?"

"Not yet."

"What's that smell?"

"I don't know, it smells like smoke sort of but not quite. A pipe maybe?"

"I think maybe you're right. Or a cigar?"

"No, that's a pipe, I'm pretty sure. It even smells sort of familiar."

"Who do you know that smokes a pipe?'

"No one that I can think of but that is definitely familiar to me."

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"That."

"I don't hear anything except my teeth chattering."

"I heard something."

"It's just the wind I think."

"It sounded like a voice calling."

"I didn't hear anything."

"Listen. Outside."

"I hear thunder rolling."

"No, a voice."

"How can you hear a voice in this storm?"

"There! Did you hear that? Claire? "

"I heard something. It sounded like someone calling my name."

"Claire?"

"No, Sarah. My real name."

"Since when is Sarah your real name?"

"Since you brought me back home."

31 Days of Halloween Tales - String 'em Up

October is finally here!

And with it comes forth my 31 days of Halloween stories. :)

My first one is a little short story entitled:

STRING 'EM UP

"We should go home now, Eddie. We're already late."

Edward looked at his younger brother and scowled. Teddy could be such a baby at times. They were only a few minutes late and Mom wouldn't probably even notice.

"One more house, Teddy. Okay? Then we'll go home?"

Teddy looked up at his brother trying to see if he meant it this time. It had been the same for the last six houses and he was tired of playing the game.

"I pick the house though, Eddie."

Before Edward could argue, Teddy walked up the street and headed towards the last house on the left.

Devlin Manor was known among the kids in the neighborhood as the Haunted House. An ancient Victorian that had long since been deserted and left to rot.  There were seven chimneys that you could count from the street with the possibility of more in the back.

Teddy was terrified of the old Victorian but wasn't going to let his brother know it.

As far as Teddy knew there was no electricity in the house but late at night, when he couldn't sleep, he would stare at the old house from his bedroom window upstairs and would see lights on in there just the same.  Not real electric lights though, these were more of the glowing type. And they moved.

Teddy reached the edge of the property and stepped gently onto the dead grass, even his small Keds made a crunching sound on the frosty ground and he didn't want to wake whatever was in there.

He slid his hand into his jacket pocket to make sure it was still there. Yes, it was there. He could do what he came to do.

Teddy turned around but didn't see Ed anywhere. Not even on the street. It didn't matter though, he would do it alone if he had to. In fact, maybe alone was even better.

He slipped his hand back into his pocket and wrapped his fingers around the cold metal.  It was time. 

Teddy held his breath as he pulled the steel from his pocket. He looked for his brother one last time before he started shooting.

                                                                  *****

When Mrs. Johnson stepped out of her front door the next morning the sight before her stopped her cold. How could this have happened in this quiet neighborhood?

Across the street, the old Devlin Manor stood perfectly still as it had every morning for over two hundred years. She thought it was a gorgeous building, majestic and proud and she loved the mystery of the house and what it meant to the neighborhood.

But this morning, Devlin Manor had been changed.

In the bright early morning sunshine of the first day in November, Mrs. Johnson could clearly see that the ancient Victorian, was now covered in yards and yards of bright pink Silly String.