here— he stopped the car, grabbed the sack from the back seat, tucked Benny's head back in his shirt, and headed up to the house.
Chapter Five
T he lights flickered and went out.
May peered out the window. The storm was really picking up. Earlier she had tried to tune in a local radio station on her iPod Nano but all she got was static. Reception hadn't been the best these past few days, and she supposed with this snow…
The firelight cast eerie shadows on the walls.
She swallowed. This was creepy. She had never done anything like this before. Why, oh why, had she come here by herself?
The wind howled outside. An eerie sonata.
Billy had told her there was a generator in the cellar, but she didn't have the foggiest idea how to use it. And even if she could use it, there was no way she was going down in that dirt cellar by herself in the dark! It was a Tales from the Crypt waiting to happen.
She would just scrunch close to the fireplace all night and hope she didn't freeze. It seemed to be doing a fairly good job of keeping the room warm. And she had plenty of firewood.
Tomorrow she was going to go back home.
May had had all she could stand of the little hideaway.
She wanted TV, phone, CD-Rom, and home delivery.
This was the last time she would… She leaned closer to the window. Was something moving out there?
A fuzzy blur of staggered movement seemed to weave its way through the snow. May gulped. Something was out there.
Oh, God.
Her rapid breath fogged up the glass. Quickly she wiped the pane with a circular motion of her palm. She did not want to lose sight of it!
Squinting, she tried to get a better view through the heavily falling snow.
It was big, what ever it was.
It— it seemed to have a… huge hump on its back!
Oh, God. A thin film of sweat dotted her brow.
As the figure got closer, she could discern the shape of a man. This was not necessarily comforting.
May stood on tiptoe to watch his progress through the storm, taking solace from the fact that he seemed to be having considerable trouble negotiating the pathway to the cabin. He kept slipping and sliding on the icy walkway.
When he got close enough so that the firelight from the window illuminated him better, May put her hand to her throat in utter terror. It was all she could do not to scream out loud. He was wearing a Santa suit!
There was no doubt in her mind now that he was a homicidal maniac. There had been a very popular slasher movie where the killer had done the exact same thing. What better way to sucker in your victims than dressing as kindly old Santa?
May thought she was going to be sick.
He was making his way to the front porch now. She could hear the heavy fall of his uncoordinated feet dragging across the wooden planks.
Thinking quickly, she grabbed a hefty piece of firewood and stood behind the door. Her best chance would be in taking him unawares. She knew this because she was an author who was very good at plotting.
Carefully she inched over and unlocked the door.
And waited like a spider.
Chapter Six
H unter hefted the sack on his shoulder and went to knock on the door. He had been surprised at how small the house— no, cabin— was when it came into better view. How many children could live here? It seemed kind of primitive…
The door creaked slowly open.
Placing the sack down on the porch, Hunter gingerly stepped forward. “Hello?” No answer. He crossed the threshold. “Anybody here? I'm deliver—”
Something whacked him hard on the back of the head.
Hunter went down like a ton of bricks.
He was thinking he was the biggest fool of all time just before the world went black.
Chapter Seven
G ot him! May slammed the door shut. No sense letting out the warm air.
She ran into the kitchenette looking for the ball of twine she had spotted when she first arrived and was putting away her groceries. Grabbing it off the nail on the inside of the sink cabinet, she raced back into the
Chapter Five
T he lights flickered and went out.
May peered out the window. The storm was really picking up. Earlier she had tried to tune in a local radio station on her iPod Nano but all she got was static. Reception hadn't been the best these past few days, and she supposed with this snow…
The firelight cast eerie shadows on the walls.
She swallowed. This was creepy. She had never done anything like this before. Why, oh why, had she come here by herself?
The wind howled outside. An eerie sonata.
Billy had told her there was a generator in the cellar, but she didn't have the foggiest idea how to use it. And even if she could use it, there was no way she was going down in that dirt cellar by herself in the dark! It was a Tales from the Crypt waiting to happen.
She would just scrunch close to the fireplace all night and hope she didn't freeze. It seemed to be doing a fairly good job of keeping the room warm. And she had plenty of firewood.
Tomorrow she was going to go back home.
May had had all she could stand of the little hideaway.
She wanted TV, phone, CD-Rom, and home delivery.
This was the last time she would… She leaned closer to the window. Was something moving out there?
A fuzzy blur of staggered movement seemed to weave its way through the snow. May gulped. Something was out there.
Oh, God.
Her rapid breath fogged up the glass. Quickly she wiped the pane with a circular motion of her palm. She did not want to lose sight of it!
Squinting, she tried to get a better view through the heavily falling snow.
It was big, what ever it was.
It— it seemed to have a… huge hump on its back!
Oh, God. A thin film of sweat dotted her brow.
As the figure got closer, she could discern the shape of a man. This was not necessarily comforting.
May stood on tiptoe to watch his progress through the storm, taking solace from the fact that he seemed to be having considerable trouble negotiating the pathway to the cabin. He kept slipping and sliding on the icy walkway.
When he got close enough so that the firelight from the window illuminated him better, May put her hand to her throat in utter terror. It was all she could do not to scream out loud. He was wearing a Santa suit!
There was no doubt in her mind now that he was a homicidal maniac. There had been a very popular slasher movie where the killer had done the exact same thing. What better way to sucker in your victims than dressing as kindly old Santa?
May thought she was going to be sick.
He was making his way to the front porch now. She could hear the heavy fall of his uncoordinated feet dragging across the wooden planks.
Thinking quickly, she grabbed a hefty piece of firewood and stood behind the door. Her best chance would be in taking him unawares. She knew this because she was an author who was very good at plotting.
Carefully she inched over and unlocked the door.
And waited like a spider.
Chapter Six
H unter hefted the sack on his shoulder and went to knock on the door. He had been surprised at how small the house— no, cabin— was when it came into better view. How many children could live here? It seemed kind of primitive…
The door creaked slowly open.
Placing the sack down on the porch, Hunter gingerly stepped forward. “Hello?” No answer. He crossed the threshold. “Anybody here? I'm deliver—”
Something whacked him hard on the back of the head.
Hunter went down like a ton of bricks.
He was thinking he was the biggest fool of all time just before the world went black.
Chapter Seven
G ot him! May slammed the door shut. No sense letting out the warm air.
She ran into the kitchenette looking for the ball of twine she had spotted when she first arrived and was putting away her groceries. Grabbing it off the nail on the inside of the sink cabinet, she raced back into the
Similar Books
The Touch Series: Initiation
Cecilia Lonski
And the Deep Blue Sea
Charles Williams
Lady Lightfingers
Janet Woods
Weir Codex 1: The Cestus Concern
Mat Nastos
House Party
Patrick Dennis
Colum McCann - Let the Great World Spin
Colum McCann
The Genius and the Muse
Elizabeth Hunter
Politically Incorrect
Jeanne McDonald
The Crimson Skew
S. E. Grove