For those not accustomed to it, life in rural Eastern Europe can feel very lonely and isolating. I’ve spent all of my teenage life and most of my childhood in London, but recently, about a year ago, we were forced to move back to the old country due to financial
There’s something haunting the Eastern European countryside. Don’t let it see you. Read More »
Present Day: Midwest, USA- The Incident Miranda’s toes curled slightly as her bare feet slid out of bed to go check on her children. It was about 11:40 at night and they had been sleeping for a few hours, but she felt too restless to get any rest herself. She
It’s always fun to walk down Mexico City at night. The distant sounds of the street’s music boxes coupled with the visible smoke of the tamale carts and the streetlights make you want to stay forever, and there’s no hot sun to burn your face. I had gone out to
I fell asleep in the Mexico City subway Read More »
“Have you ever heard about the curse of Snake McQuinn?” I switched the beam from my flashlight off. It was Halloween night, and sure enough, there were some kids trespassing in Farmer Huxley’s old hay barn. I’m the sheriff in Walnut Brook, and it wasn’t the first time the old
The Curse of Snake McQuinn Read More »
In many communities, urban legends are a right of passage. Most of us have grown up with some form of tall tale. Whether it was something as ridiculous as growing watermelon in your stomach because you ate its seeds. Or downright terrifying, like being taken by a demonic woman because
A man washed ashore last week. He looked as though he had not eaten in weeks and was barely clinging to life. I, along with much of the town, was elated when we discovered it was Will Harper who had washed ashore, and that he would make a full recovery.
When I was a little boy, something happened to me that I would never forget. I was only six years old, I think. My behavior was typical for a child of that age. I liked to run, scream, play, and get into all kinds of trouble. I remember one particular
“The sea absolves all things, so too does the passage of time. The sea allows us to understand time and see it as the Gods do. Forever swirling, twisting and flowing above a bed of darkness”. The old man’s voice tremored slightly as he spoke those last words. ..a bed
The Ripple on the Sea Read More »
Ooo weee, come in, come in! I’m glad you’re here early; it’s shaping up to be a bad one out there. The wind has a bite even I can feel. We might have a blizzard on our hands in a few hours. Make yourself comfortable, I’ve had a fire going
The Settlements Continue Read More »
Below the peaks of the Catskill Mountains you will occasionally find an ancient and gnarled apple tree. Such a tree is a reliable landmark; signaling that an early American farmhouse sits, or once sat, nearby. Sometimes only a single shoot of the old tree remains, yet the ancient life persists
Hello there! Look what the cat dragged… oh my! Are you alright?! Hurry, get inside! … You need to get here earlier if you’re gonna pay regular visits! Just because you’re safe inside doesn’t mean you can be roaming around outside all willy-nilly. Judging by the mud on your clothes,
The Growing Settlements Read More »
I have two very unusual keepsakes on one of my many bookshelves. One is an empty glass vial, the contents of which dried up long ago. The other is an unusual metallic nugget. When I have visitors, and they inevitably begin to peruse my bookshelves, I am most often asked
The Terror in the Tunnels Read More »
The sea forgives all. That’s what they say, thought the tall, dark-eyed man standing vigil at the stern of the Aquilon. His eyes were set on the waves trailing them in the fading light of dusk. Every ripple was another step away from his mistakes; another moment away from the
It was almost Halloween. Leafless tree branches swayed in the crisp breeze. The grey overcast sky hinted at yet another day of rain. Yellow-grey cornstalks flitted past and dead leaves scattered as the big, brown Buick carried us down the empty country road. I looked forward to seeing Granny, even
What Lurks Beyond the Indiangrass Read More »
Stacey Chapman pulled hard on the cold metal of the gate. The rusted iron hinges resisted and it squealed as it moved. She winced at the sound as it cut through the quiet of the cemetery. She pulled hard again. It moved another six inches but would go no further.
In a town kept alive by retirees and tourists looking for a cheap scare, we knew a place hidden from their money was bad news. Plebes are paraded around in horse drawn carriages through the dead of night. If there’s a storm, all the better. In the dim glow of
Have you ever heard the legend of Abhartach, the Irish vampire? Probably not. But no doubt you will be familiar with Bram Stoker and his seminal work ‘Dracula’, first published in 1897 and adapted so many times since in literature, radio, TV and film. Stoker’s famous tale was of course
An ancient terror is stalking the Irish countryside Read More »
My names, “Otis Levenson” the Pizza Delivery guy. I’m a senior in high school, and I am an average student, who sometimes slack off. So, to make myself feel more productive I got this job. But unfortunately, it makes me feel even more worthless. Like imagine yourself just driving around
Dimension of Samhain Read More »
It was daylight when they came. It was strange. Nightmares normally occur in the dark, but they came in the day. It was warm. It was early October, and the ground was littered with leaves. It was just passed lunchtime when they came. Eddie’s was the gas station at the
They Came in the Day Read More »
The glow of the setting sun entrenched the peaceful Italian countryside in a blazing red haze. The small rural highway was surrounded by rich forests currently going through the enchanting transformation of autumn. The picturesque landscape was unfortunately lost on the highways sole traveler Chiara Gallo. She sat behind the
Traveler in the dark Read More »
Many people ask me why I would ever choose the field of grave digging as my chosen career. Why choose such a depressing and creepy job when I could be almost anything else? Well to be honest I never understood the aversion to it. Death is something we all face
Digger of the Dead Read More »
Water divining did not come as natural to me as it did for my grandfather. He could reveal a well in Death Valley at the peak of summer. My sisters and I were told the gift skips a generation, but I fear it may have skipped two. I didn’t even
The Dowsing of Bolsom Ranch Read More »
I’ve always held a fascination with the sea, the vast blue oceans that account for two-thirds of the Earth’s surface. I grew up on the west coast of Ireland, enjoying pristine and almost abandoned beaches facing out onto the cold and wild waters of the North Atlantic. My father served
For thirty years, I’ve been receiving letters from a land that doesn’t exist Read More »
I’m in the engineers union, but I don’t have a degree in anything. I go to job sites all over the state and mark elevations for excavation. I hike around placing a GPS marker on the ground, push a button and the little screen on top tells me a few
Encounter on the Olympic Peninsula Read More »
