The Nevada heat rippled off the asphalt, distorting the long, empty road ahead. I wiped sweat from my brow and adjusted the camera strap around my neck, squinting at the horizon. No sign of the fox. No sign of anything, really. I should’ve been writing a real story—something that actually […]
If You Ever Stop in Ashbrook, Don’t Ask About the Children Read More »
When I was ten years old, my brother came home to die on a frigid day in January. Purple lesions ravaged the skin that barely covered his bones. He looked an awful lot like a skeleton, unlike the friendly visitor I had come to know over my short lifetime. My
People Don’t Die. They Hide. Read More »
Sebastian woke up to the sound of a loud and repeated banging on his bedroom door. He opened his eyes slowly: the pounding of each knock enraged every muscle within his head and amplified his hangover. He groaned to himself as he was in the process of sitting upright in
A Bump In the Road Read More »
When I first moved out on my own, my mom handed me a small, weathered recipe book. Its cover was cracked and faded, the pages yellowed with age. She held it out to me with both hands, her expression soft and serious. “Take care of this,” she said, her voice
It didn’t look fun. It looked like quite the opposite. Standing in front of me was a large funhouse. Chipped and faded paint coloured it’s exterior. I had lost my friends in the endless stream of people walking around the Halloween festival. The smell of candy corn and other sweets
Reflection of The Senses Read More »
Ten people. Ten people in ten different places doing ten different things, but all sharing one single thought… “What if it really works?” You see, in our little town of Sawnhurst, California, there was an age old tradition tied to a myth so old that is origins were not remembered
When I was in college, I heard a rumor about a man in a bar that was making deals, very Special deals. Now I am no fool, I have heard of Faust and his tragedy, and I knew of Midas and his touch and many other stories warning ‘Be careful
Death Wears A White Trench Coat Read More »
Liam looked down, shaking as he glared at the blood encrusted on his hands. It was not his own. The infernos of the destruction before him were nailed into his brain. He felt lost and confused. He did not mean to do it; he was just tired of the pain
When I was alive, or, more accurately, the last time I was alive, I honestly didn’t give a lot of thought to the idea of life after death. It never seemed important; when you’re young, and your whole life’s ahead of you, death and its possible consequences seem so distant
I Was Reincarnated and I Hope it Never Happens Again Read More »
When you’re asked to rate a person, irrespective of how crass that request is, you expect to be rating an individual who, though they can be offended or hurt by your assessment, will move on from the exchange relatively unscathed. Especially when you’re still in college, you never expect any
“Ugh, Emma, can you get the trunk for me?” The dim winter sun was setting over the parking lot, nearly devoid of shoppers at this late hour, aside from a van in one distant corner that had just started backing out of its spot. I set my bag down in
People kept going missing from my town over the last couple of years. Their mangled remains were all that were ever found of them (if anything was found at all), and many thought that some sort of large predator was to blame. I guess that in the end, they weren’t
Extract from records found at scene, author unknown. Dated October 1883: Matted fur stuck to the Beast’s sides, sweat dripping down its flank as it expelled rancid breath. Thick ropes of saliva swung from pus-stained teeth, protruding from black-lipped jaws like shattered battlements. A single black eye glinted out at
The Angel of Death Read More »
Scientists theorize that if the brain experiences something extremely traumatizing, it is biologically hardwired to forget it. I can prove, through my own experiences, the invalidity of this claim. On September 22, 1998, my parents threw me my eighth birthday party. That was 16 years ago, but I can still
Close Your Eyes, Cover Your Ears. Read More »
Paige woke up at 11pm. Just a second before, her alarm clock had roused obnoxiously from its silence – neon red numericals Vegas-bright in her room. As usual when she woke, she thought excitedly about her babies. Even though she had never given birth, they were still her babies. On
I was close to my pops and it hit me hard when he passed. I want to say this before I go any further. He was always good to me and I only have the fondest memories of our time together. Days in the park, playing catch, fishing trips…You know
My grandfather contacted me from the afterlife. It’s not what you think. Read More »
I buried my dog last month, I think. There was so little left of him, and his once golden rich coat was so faded and sallow that this empty, sickly canine corpse hardly seemed to be the same cheerful, energetic good boy who had run after the neighborhood cars so
Why I Buried My Dog Read More »
I had never done anything like this before. Not even close. I had my troubles as a younger man but that was a long time ago. Some, if not most of those troubles were certainly against the law but this was not like that. This was something different. Something I’d
The Secret Life of Jonah Read More »
If you walk through a certain run-down, inner-city area located in a working-class northern town, there’s a chance you’ll stumble across a terraced street like none other. I say there’s a chance, but in reality it’s a slim one. That’s because – technically speaking – Purgatory Street does not exist,
My Uncle David was an eccentric man. That’s not code to say he was some kind of deviant. In fact, he was a pleasant and caring man for most of his life. However, he was also a sensitive soul and not much of a people person. David never got married
I found myself standing in the middle of a wind-swept, abandoned street at night, facing the building that had dominated my life so completely, even though I’d come to loathe it so intensely. The sign above the front entrance was faded and almost falling off its hinges, the paint on
Hotel Morte – Checking Out Read More »
Read Part one here Jason stumbled upon her website quite by accident. In his Google search field he entered “near death experience runners”. The word “runners” was different from his previous searches on near death experience (NDE) survivors. Over his eleven years of avoiding Mr. Grim, Jason felt a small
2.4 MPH Part Two: Death Runners Read More »
I know Death. I know Death very well. I’ve known Death for eleven years and three months now. Ever since the car accident in 2006 I’ve been on the run from Death. I’m convinced it’s a mistake, a mix up somehow. I am alive, I survived the accident but yet
I don’t know how I’ve lived as long as I have. My lifestyle has been anything but wholesome and most of my existence could be described as chaotic and violent. All of my family died young and – with one exception – I didn’t miss them. I can tell you
Into the Inferno – The Upper Levels Read More »
