I took a deep breath to stop the slight shaking in my hand, whispering my affirmation on the exhale, “I’m ready for this, I’m ready,” before sliding the blue-lined notebook paper out from its envelope. It was finally ready to read my dad’s suicide note. It took me almost two […]
The Suicide Note that wasn’t Read More »
We had been driving all day and night, to get to my wife’s parent’s place in Oregon, and I could tell that we were both reaching a point of exhaustion. We were on day two of driving and were well over a thousand miles into our trek out west, to
My family had a tradition that we would all exchange one gift on Thanksgiving Day to bring good fortune for the coming holiday season. We never gave anything fancy, just candy, CD’s, socks, or maybe a book. The week before Thanksgiving we would all gather around, and our names would
I need help with my nephew, Nicky. The kid is eight, and he’s been doing magic tricks since he saw the Amazing Howard perform at his fifth birthday. It was cute at first, but it started to get a little annoying as the years passed. He wears his cape everywhere,
Everybody’s got a story. I don’t believe in ghosts but if you ever asked me if I’d been somewhere haunted, this is the story I’d tell. Down the road I lived on as a kid, there was an old dilapidated house. It was small and the yard was always overgrown
The night was quiet. The cool breeze came and went, like the breath of a sleeping child. But I was not peacefully asleep, as the murmur had begun again. It had been going on for a few months now. We had moved in to our new home last year, and
I had not received any replies from my good friend Colorado in over a week, and I wasn’t happy. All my efforts to play games with him online, or even just to meet-up and hang-out, were left on read. Not only was that bad enough, I had nobody to spend
If I timed the 911 call just right, the paramedics could revive me before I kicked the bucket for good. At least, that was the hope. Any number of things could go wrong, especially when it came to asphyxiation. I didn’t want to die, per se; I just needed a
Heaven Is Not a Friendly Place Read More »
“Alright, Jack. Are you ready?” After being strapped down by the orderlies, an older gentleman with a white coat stepped over and looked down at me as my back caressed the cold, metal slab I was fastened to. I presumed this was Doctor Covenwood, the lab’s head of operations. “Uhhh…
For as long as I could remember, my Uncle Chet was always a strange fellow. I can still imagine him clearly, even after all these years. He was a gaunt, chestnut-haired saturnine man with features that spoke of late nights and childhood malnourishment. He was spacey, spoke very little unless
I hold with the pillow around my head so she won’t hear me crying, and to block out the whispering.We moved out of the city a month ago; an old detached house in the suburbs was all I can afford now after paying for her treatment. Thin wooden walls make
Every year since my son Lucas turned 10, he, my wife Jennet, and I have taken a week-long vacation in Vermont. Years ago, my wife’s father left her a small cottage by a lake I had never heard of, in a town I had also never heard of up to
A Town Where Strange Things Happen Read More »
Watching TV has always been one of our favorite things to do. In the early years, this proved difficult. Remus, being the stronger of our halves, would pull me until the remote was always within reach of his arm and out of that of mine. I didn’t usually mind, though,
The Two-Headed Boy Read More »
Every summer for a week, my grandparents would visit my family in New Orleans from Haiti. Making the nine-hour flight and thirty-minute drive from the airport to Norco. I loved seeing my grandfather. He told the scariest stories and my grandmother cooked the best food for everyone. My parents always
If You Can’t See It Read More »
My mother never let me look at the family photo albums. I never knew why. Whenever I asked, she would tell me that they were old and fragile, and would break if we got them down from the shelf. They were so high that I could never reach them as
I Found a Disturbing Photo in My Family Photo Album Read More »
I wish I had my big sister’s hair. Hers is soft and light. Touching her arms is like touching peach fuzz. When she sweats her skin looks like melted butter. It’s not fair. My hair is thick, wiry, and black as spider legs. I’m only thirteen and I have thicker hair on my arms and legs than most boys on the Tanglewood Junior High football team.
As Julie began to regain consciousness, she knew something wasn’t right. She started to panic as she realized she was strapped to a table. A big bright light beamed down onto her face, blinding her, as silhouettes moved silently around her. The silhouettes began to whisper. “She’s perfect, daddy, thank
My mother always told me to stay away from Jamie Robert Mitchum. Maybe I should have listened to her. I guess I didn’t really understand why at the time. I guess children are more trusting. Sure, he was strange. Anybody could see that. Jamie was the type of kid to
The Unfortunate Life of Jamie Robert Mitchum Read More »
“Holy shit…Gary? Is that you, Gary?” Gary quickly spun around to face the voice he’d immediately recognized, although he was far from convinced that it was actually coming from the form of his brother and best friend: Mikey. It seemed fairly obvious that since he was most likely losing his
It was the summer of 2019, the 16 year old Thomas Mitchell and his family went on a trip to their cabin in the Stillwater State Forest of Montana. He had two younger brothers, Felix, who was 10 and Michael who had just turned 14. They usually spend their time
