Amy felt as though she could float forever. The water was warm and soothing; she stretched out her arms and allowed it to embrace her fully, drifting serenely on the surface like a toned, bikini-clad starfish. Her hair, shoulder length and darker than the Halloween night which peeked in through […]
It was probably nothing, he thought, suppressing a shiver of fear; just next doors cat jumping down from the bureau, or the broom falling over in the kitchen. After all, everybody knows that in the dead of night, even the smallest sound pierces the veil of silence and encroaching dreams
Rory Larkin often asked himself why he had decided to visit the house on Baileigh street. Was it an attempt to show everyone that he was fearless and rational enough to discard some silly superstitions that reigned over the hearts and minds of Rasperville’s townsfolk? No, no and no. Rory
It took me a month to figure out the pattern- the pattern It was using to kill us off. At first it was Jack, who was found dead, lying face-down and submerged in his own bathtub. His mother had been the one that found him, the poor woman. Her lifeless
On one of two big hills sandwiching the sleepy little town of Maldoona, twins Sasha and Tasha, aged nine, sat gazing at the stars. In the throes of boredom, Sasha bit and chewed at her nails, tearing them off in thin strips before spitting them out through her teeth. Tasha
Pray, for devils have no reason Satan waits to curse your ways Have you seen it in his eyes in the sunset? Have you wondered if he’s laughing when he plays? – Kansas, “The Devil Game” This is a set of instructions for how to speak with the Devil. Which,
It was late October in Brookhurst Wyoming in the year 1965. I was eighteen, and I lived with my sister in an older barn house, on the edge of town. I loved that little town- especially in the fall. The deep oranges, bold yellows, and dense reds of the season
There may be strange details in this story. Not all of them will seem to add up and appear to be significant, but it’s all true. That sort of statement is common with these types of stories, but this time it is meant in absolute earnest. My grandfather was a
The Reaper in the Tree Read More »
Several months ago a friend of mine alerted me to a puzzling incident on an inner-city bus. Being a bus driver himself, he had heard many of the usual generic stories that would be exchanged around the depot – muggings, broken windows, the occasional couple attempting drunken sex; some drivers
I don’t know why, but for whatever reason, I’ve always been naturally sneaky. Without putting any effort into the endeavor, I was always scaring people, or at the very least making them jump. Sometimes even when I approached from the front, people wouldn’t notice me until I was right upon
Ever since I was a young child, that automated recording that plays when you try to call someone, but can’t, has frightened me to the core. You know, the one that goes, “We’re sorry, but the number you have reached has been disconnected.” And it’s always preceded by that sound,
The day was August 5th, 1989, the rain pounded onto the beach like gunfire and the lightning arced across the sky in magnificent blue colors. I sat in my tent on the cliff edge, listening to the boom of thunder while holding in my hands a pair of binoculars. It
Alright, it’s working. My name is S______ and if you are reading this, then you are probably the police or some mental health professional, investigating my recent actions. Let just apologize in advance for any weird grammar errors, as I’m actually writing this on some pirated voice recognition software, and
Alien Hand Syndrome Read More »
I remember the first time I witnessed that gruesome sight, right in front of me. It had been all over the news for the past week but until that moment, I was still unable to take any of the stories seriously. I guess that’s what happens in a world where
I suppose when I say, “Noroi Gakkotsu,” most of you would guess I was talking about some exotic delicacy, or maybe some holiday resort in the far east. You’d be dead wrong. A Noroi Gakkotsu is a very nasty object that has been part of Japanese folklore for centuries, maybe
Most people sleep to rest. I don’t. I sleep to communicate. The person I visit knows things. It knows things about you. It knows things about them. It knows things about everything. When I sleep, I sleep to know. I sleep to know more about everything. I sleep to know
I Sleep to Communicate Read More »
The sun was just setting on a clear and brisk fall evening as Diane began making her way home through the winding, cobbled streets of the city. In the countryside, it might have been a lovely twilight, but much of its beauty was lost here. The tall brick buildings crowded
It was the latest in a string of sweltering summer nights, where the air was thick with humidity and even the faintest breeze was an honest-to-God miracle. Outside, the lawn had withered to a sickly yellow, with earth showing through in intermittent patches like the branch of a tree peeking
Away With the Fairies Read More »
The first four days Lachlan had been excited. The fifth day, that Friday that he came back from primary school with dirt on his knees, he was not excited. He was euphoric. I was in my office, writing the final formulaic words of another research proposal. “Daaad!” “Hey!” “Dad! Dad!
Five Day. Five Nights Read More »
Dr. Oswald Meegla walked through the Siren Industries door after showing his ID card to the two brutes outside. He looked at his sheet again: West Wing, Room 6. According to the man who gave him the job, he’d be giving a test subject a new experimental drug. One of
Modern Monster: The Banshee Read More »
“There are winds of destiny that blow when we least expect them. Sometimes they gust with the fury of a hurricane, sometimes they barely fan one’s cheek. But the winds cannot be denied, bringing as they often do a future that is impossible to ignore.” ― Nicholas Sparks, Message in
There are lots of stories made for children who don’t go to bed early, probably bogeymen or monsters under your bed. You’ve probably outgrown such stories, and might have already found a laugh or two in its retelling. But there are some stories that I’d rather not laugh about, more
She Lulls Me to Sleep Read More »
It is the summer of your 17th year, and the parents have left you and your brother alone for just shy of three weeks in July. Your brother is 2 yers your senior, has a job, a drivers license, a long-term girlfriend, goes to college on the other side of
In which a door is locked Read More »
Sometimes decisions in life aren’t easy to make, and rather than being driven by morals or logic, they’re driven by emotion and sheer necessity to survive. From time to time, everyone is forced to make a decision like this, and I am no different. That being said, it doesn’t mean
I Can’t Say That I’m Proud Read More »
