If you asked me if I believed in aliens when I first became a deputy sheriff, I would have called you crazy. However, a series of events changed my beliefs forever.
It all started when a meteor crashed down on the Wagner farm. The Wagners are good people. A family of hard workers. Naturally, they became the talk of the town. Even had a front-page story in the paper and a feature on the local news. That’s all good and well, but it was not long after when reports came in that raised questions. I was first called over to the farm to investigate a few days after the meteor crashed.
Bradley Wagner, the man of the house, walked me out to his fields of corn. The meteor crashed in the far-field of his 5 fields that were all corn. However, as soon as we reached the field, it was clear what the problem was. His entire field of corn was all rotten. The stalks had wilted and turned black. I jotted it down and even took some photos. I told him I’d report it and we’ll see what comes of it. However, to be honest, I wasn’t sure what there was to be done. It’s not like a crime was committed. Little did I know, it was the first of many occurrences on that farm.
It wasn’t long after the entire crop followed suit. The Wagner’s were devastated. Their entire livelihood was taken right from under them. However, that was not the end of it. Soon we got in reports of strange behaviors from the animals. Once again, I had to go out and investigate the land. And what I found was rather unusual. The animals all huddled in the barn and they were eating fertilizers. Their eyes were white. Their mouths had turned black. I did a full report, but again, there wasn’t much I could do.
Weeks went by without much word from the farm. I didn’t quite know what to make of it. Then one day, we had got a call from a neighbor that the Wagners had disappeared. No one had heard from them in weeks. Once again, I had to go out and investigate. What I found will haunt me for the rest of my life. I arrived on the farm and found it almost completely empty. After searching the house and finding no one, I went out to the barn and sure enough, the Wagners were in there along with all the animals. They were eating the fertilizer along with the animals. Their mouths, like the animals, were all covered in a black substance. Their eyes were pale misty white. I hesitantly went to grab Bradley by the shoulder. He hissed at me, pulled away, and continued to eat the fertilizer. That’s when I saw it. Giant long worms the size of railroad nails all inching towards me. I’ve never seen worms like those before. They were hairy and scaly. It’s safe to say I bolted out of there. I made a full report on what I found.
Not even a day later a small army of black SUVs that all apparently belonged to some government division pulled up and blocked off the farm. No one was allowed in, not even the Sheriff. I don’t know what’s going on in there or what to make of those worms, but I do know this all started with that meteor. I really believe those worms came from that meteor and they’re the reason the animals and the Wagners are acting so funny. Ever since that day, I’ve had a craving for fertilizer.
The End.
Remember, you’re never safe in the dark…
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I never believed all that extraterrestrial nonsense for most of my life. Of course, I don’t really watch much tv. I spend my days working in the garage. There’s always something that needs fixing. Anyhow, one night changed everything.
It was late and I was just wrapping up working on the truck before I cleaned up, grabbed some grub, and had a beer while I sat in my chair and listened to the game on the radio. Call me old fashion, but that’s how I like it.
Anyway, it all got strange when the power started flickering. Bright lights shined into all my windows. Then things got really weird. My beer started to float out of the bottle. All sorts of things levitated into the air. A giant white flash happened and everything went blank.
I remember laying down on a cold metal table. I could barely see anything because a blinding light was shining down on me. Figures were moving all around me. I couldn’t make out who or what they were, but I felt like I wasn’t all there. I felt aloof. Like it was all just one terrible nightmare. The next thing I remember, I woke up in my bed. I don’t know how I got there. I just chalked it up to a dream.
Now here’s where things get really strange. The next day my phone was ringing and I answered it. Apparently, I missed my doctor’s appointment. I was supposed to get one of them scans where they shove you into one of them machines with a giant magnet. But it wasn’t for another week. However, I went out to get the mail and there had to be a bucket’s worth of mail. It was starting to fall out of my box. After sorting through it all I found I had at least a week’s worth of mail. Apparently that little dream I had taken a week away from me.
That’s not all. I had to reschedule that scan and here’s where things get real weird. After I got my scan, the doctors pulled me in. They were stuttering and having a hard time trying to say what they were looking at. I told em to spit it out. Apparently, my innards had been rearranged. Can you imagine that? There’s no point in denying it now. Whatever happened to me on that cold metal table was not a dream. I was abducted by aliens. Just makes you wonder what kind of creatures are really out there…
The End.
Remember, you’re never safe in the dark…
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I’m first going to start off by saying I never believed in the paranormal or ghosts. I’m not really atheist or whatever, but I’m not religious either. My sister on the other hand is very into the paranormal stuff. You could say she’s a big believer in ghosts. I was a total skeptic. However, what happened on the night I’m about to tell you forever changed my beliefs.
To begin, I need to tell you I was desperate for cash. Like every teenager who’s about to turn 16, I was stashing away every dollar I could to save up for a halfway decent car. My family isn’t exactly what you call wealthy. My parents worked really hard to provide for me and my sister. They both worked for our newly elected mayor Brayden Palmer who won by a landslide. However, my father isn’t too hyped on him. He says the man isn’t all that trustworthy and may have bought himself into the office. Apparently, he inherited lots of money or something.
Anyway, at that point in time, I decided to put an ad on Craigslist to babysit for a fee. That was my first mistake. I only put my email down because I hate talking on the phone to strangers and I really didn’t even feel comfortable giving my phone out to people I didn’t know. Especially on Craigslist.
Now after a few days, I just so happened to be reading through a bit of history about our town, I’m a total history nerd, same with my sister. That’s something we had in common. The article was about the disappearance of a prominent family. I ended up sending her the article. Anyway, as I read I got the notification that I received an email. It was from a couple who lived out in the fringes of town. They were offering to pay me a lot of money to watch their baby boy. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.
My sister drove me out to their house and dropped me off the night they needed me. The driveway was long and wove through the woods. With the overgrowth of trees, it made it almost feel like we drove through a tunnel. As we reached the house, it was beautiful. It had one of those wrap-around front porches with white siding. It was two stories. I walked up to the front door while my sister waited in the driveway. I knocked on the door and after a few minutes, I was greeted by a beautiful middle-aged woman. She had steel blue eyes and long wavy hair. She welcomed me in with a great big smile and introduced herself along with her husband as Health and Viviana Palmer. The names sounded vaguely familiar. Her husband was a man about the same age with dark black hair and a salesmen-like perfect smile.
I heard my sister drive off as they showed me to the baby’s room. The baby was fast asleep in his bed with a teddy bear in his arms. Mrs. Palmer gave me the rundown on the baby. It was the typical stuff, to check up on him every so often but for the most part, he should sleep through the night.
Anyway, after a few last-minute notes, they got ready and took off. One thing that I found odd was I never heard them drive away. I brushed it off and went downstairs to watch a little TV. I have to admit this house is very clean and immaculate. They had a fireplace with the mantle decorated in little figurines. One, in particular, caught my eye, it was an owl. There wasn’t a speck of dust or a scratch on any surface. As I grabbed the remote and hit the power button, the tv wouldn’t turn on. After pressing it several times, I got up and tried turning it on through the button on the TV itself. It still wouldn’t turn on. Figures. I even checked to see if it was plugged in, which it was.
I resigned to sit down and listen to an audiobook. Something really bugged me. I couldn’t stop thinking about where I heard their names before. I knew they sounded familiar, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
As I pondered their names, I heard a loud crash in the kitchen which nearly caused me to piss myself. I quickly got up to look at what the cause was and my heart sank into my stomach. Sitting on the floor with a bunch of knives was the baby. It was holding a really sharp knife and was about to cut himself when I bolted to him with only seconds to spare. The baby threw a hissy fit when I took the knife away from him. I tried to calm it but no matter what I did, I couldn’t get it to stop crying. I took him back up to his bedroom and placed him in his bed, hoping he would cry himself to sleep. I went back downstairs and cleaned up the knives in the kitchen. Just the thought of what could’ve happened if I was a second too slow left me in chills.
The baby cried for over an hour. When it finally stopped I felt a small sense of relief. However, I decided to check up on it to make sure everything was okay. I’ll admit, the baby was kind of ugly. It was very wrinkly and looked almost sickly. As I crept into his room, I froze in my tracks. The baby was gone. All that was in his bed was a teddy bear. I felt my heartbeat quickening.
This couldn’t be happening. If something happened to that baby, I would never forgive myself. I searched everywhere for that baby. As I searched, I started to notice something very odd. The house that was very immaculate when I arrived started to seem rather dirty. What was very odd was that dents and scratches started to appear on the walls and furniture where they previously weren’t. Things became very dusty.
My phone vibrated. My sister sent me a text, asking me what the names of the people who hired me were. I sent her a text telling her their names. I didn’t really understand why she was so interested. I continued my search as I started to panic. I tore through the entire house which was starting to look even more shabby the more I searched. I heard a sudden creek downstairs. I rushed down there and found the door to the basement was open. That was the last place I wanted to go to.
I reluctantly made my way down to my own dismay. Of course, the lights wouldn’t work. I pulled out my phone and turned the flashlight on. The basement was covered in cobwebs and dust. I received another text from my sister that made my skin crawl. She said I needed to get out of that house right now and she was on her way to come to get me. I asked her why. She sent me back the article I sent her a few days ago about the prominent family that went missing. Their names were Heath and Viviana Palmer and they had a baby named Dustin. They disappeared nearly 2 years ago for no apparent reason. They just vanished. I looked at the picture of the family and immediately recognized them as the same family that hired me. This couldn’t be real.
I could hear my heart thumping wildly in my chest as I read this. I nearly tripped over something. I looked down on the floor and saw two decayed, rotting corpses. I screamed as loud as I could. I recognized them immediately Mr. and Mrs. Palmer. And that’s when I finally found the baby…
He was dead on the floor next to them, just a rotting corpse. I could feel myself getting sick as I raced back up the stairs. Before I could get there, the door slammed shut, leaving me in the dark. I tried to open it, but it wouldn’t budge. I started crying uncontrollably.
“Don’t leave!” I heard the voice of Mr. Palmer as a light to the basement flickered on. I thought to myself, this is how I’m going to die… By ghosts, I don’t even believe in.
“Please, we need your help,” Mrs. Palmer said.
I stumbled down the stairs, my feet felt like they were moving of their own accord. Standing there in the middle of the Basement were Mr. and Mrs. Palmer. Viviana Palmer was holding her baby. I looked on the floor to see their dead bodies lying behind them.
“You’re not going to kill me are you?” I asked.
“No, we need your help,” she says.
“We were murdered,” Mr. Palmer said. I can’t believe I’m having a conversation with dead people.
“Please, just let me go, I’ll do whatever you want,” I pleaded with them.
“Help us. Please help us,” the woman said. She pleaded with me.
“I don’t know how,” I said, as tears fell from my eyes.
“You can help us. Please. Find the bear and the owl. They have the truth,” Mr. Palmer pleaded. Then the light flickered off again and the door to the basement opened. Their ghosts were gone. I ran upstairs to find the house in shambles. Everything seemed to be broken. The wood was rotting. Dust and cobwebs covered everything.
I saw headlights outside and my sister texted me she was here. I was about to run out and leave this place forever, but I couldn’t get the look of their faces out of my head. They were so sad. What did they mean by look for the bear and the owl? I looked around and nearly screamed at the sight of dried blood on the dirty carpet. That’s when it clicked. The owl. I looked over to the mantle and found the owl figurine. Surely this is what he meant. I rushed over to grab it and sure enough, it was a hidden camera. I popped out the SD card in the back. Now the bear. I knew exactly what he meant. Where else would you put a hidden camera if not for the baby’s room? I rushed upstairs to find the teddy bear and sure enough, it too was a camera. I took it with me as I ran out of the house and got into my sister’s car.
“I was so fucking worried you were dead when I pulled up to find this beaten-down house in shambles. It was in mint condition when I dropped you off. What the hell is going on?” she asked.
“Do you have something that can read an SD card at home?” I asked her.
She nodded. “Why? And what’s with the dusty teddy bear? Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“Just drive! I’ll explain it on the way home,” I said.
I told her all about the Palmers and every little weird thing that happened to me in that house as we drove back home. Once we arrived home, we rushed into my sister’s room and I handed her the SD card that was in the owl. She put it in her computer and it was filled with videos. We pulled up the first one and it was of Mr. Palmer.
“I’ve decided to put this hidden camera in here because I do not trust our babysitter. I think she’s stealing from us but my wife thinks she’s an angel,” he said to the camera. “This will prove everything. I also need to figure out how Dustin is getting out. No matter what we do, he manages to somehow escape his crib.”
We watched through the videos and sure enough, their babysitter was stealing from them, but I don’t think that’s what we were meant to find. We continued watching. Then we saw it. Both of our jaws dropped. I felt my stomach get tied up in knots. Mr. and Mrs. Palmer was with another man. I recognized him.
“That’s… That’s dad’s boss. The Mayor. Brayden Palmer,” my sister said as he pulled out a gun and shot them. He killed them in cold blood.
“What the hell?” I asked.
“Aren’t they brothers?” she asked. I shrugged. “I know they are. Didn’t you read that article you sent me? It said that Heath and Brayden were supposed to inherit a lot of money, but when Heath disappeared it all went to his brother Brayden. He killed them to get the entire fortune.”
“It all makes sense now,” I said. We watched Brayden drag their bodies out of the living room and most likely downstairs where I found them.
Then we plugged in the other SD card and what we saw was downright sickening. He killed their baby. He suffocated him. That’s truly terrible. I couldn’t hold it. I rushed to the bathroom and threw up in the toilet.
My sister and I showed my parents everything. I couldn’t exactly explain to them how I got the SD cards. No one would believe me if I told them I was hired by ghosts to watch their dead baby, so we told them a lie about finding the old house and exploring it. They bought it because that’s totally something my sister would do. They took the SD cards to the police the next day Mayor Palmer was arrested and it was all over the news that Brayden Palmer had been charged with the murder of Heath, Viviana, and Dustin Palmer.
I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Eliza and I drove back out to that house a few weeks later and we both saw them. They were standing on the porch. Viviana was holding baby Dustin with Heath by their side. They were smiling as they watched their baby boy. They looked up at us and waved. Then they were gone. I’d like to think they found some semblance of peace together.
I still have a hard time bringing myself to believe what had actually happened, but I will never forget it. Ghosts do exist.
The End.
Remember, you’re never safe in the dark…
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What I’m about to tell you is quite hard to believe. I barely believe it myself and I experienced it first hand.
Do you believe in ghosts? I was never a believer in the paranormal. Not until one night in August. It was the last night before I was supposed to head off to college and I remember it like it was yesterday.
It had only been a week since my grandmother’s funeral. Losing her has been really hard on me. Still is. We were very close. She babysat me my entire life. She taught me how to cook. She even taught me how to play poker. How many grandmothers do you know that’ll show their grandkids how to gamble? We had so many conversations over the years. She was always the one I went to with all my problems. It’s hard to believe she’s gone.
It’s the last night before I have to go off to college. My parents have never been more proud of me and yet, going to college is the last thing I wanted to do. I wanted to travel and see the world. I wanted to visit exotic places, meet unique people, and write all about it. My grandmother used to always tell me it’s my life and I need to decide how to live it and yet I felt like I was living the life my parents wanted for me.
After I spent the whole day packing for my flight the next morning, my friends pulled up. They’ve been trying to get me to go out with them all summer long and now that it was the last day before I left I felt like I had no choice. I let Chance, Ryan, and Joel, my three best friends pull me along to a party on the beach.
Everyone from my high school was there. There was a fire set up and Joel pulled out his guitar. Cassy greeted me as soon as I got there. We dated for a while before we ultimately decided we were better off being friends. She always had her hands in my dark black hair. I have to admit, I kind of miss that.
As everyone was having a great time for the last bash of the year, I slipped out and went for a walk along the shoreline. That’s when I met the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen and yet she looked familiar. Very familiar. She was about my age. She had the most exotic olive golden skin. She was wearing a flower dress as she walked barefoot in the sand. She had the kind of face that made even the darkest nights feel warm and cozy. Her eyes met mine and a lovely smile turned up on her lips. She waved me over.
“Hi,” she said.
“Hi, have we met before?” I asked.
“Perhaps,” she said, tossing her silky black hair to one side. “So, what brings you out here all alone?”
“I just needed to get some fresh air and space to think,” I said.
“Oh? And what thoughts did you want to ponder?” she asked. She had a way of speaking that I found very appealing. It reminded me of someone.
“Oh, tomorrow I head off to college. My parents want me to get a law degree. They tell me I’d be the first in our family to graduate college,” I said.
“But that’s not what you want, is it?” she asked.
“No. Not really,” I said.
“What do you want to do?” she asked.
“I want to travel around the world and write about it,” I said.
“That sounds fantastic. Why don’t you do that?” she asked.
“I tried to convince my parents that it’s what I want to do, however, they think it’s a terrible idea. They don’t want to see me throw my life away like that. At least that’s what they said,” I explained.
She stopped and looked at me with those eyes that seemed to be able to see deep into my soul. “It’s your life and you need to decide how to live it.”
Those words struck me right in the heart. “What did you say?”
“I was just saying, you shouldn’t let your parents dictate your life,” she said with a smile. “If you want to travel the world then do it. Life’s too short. Trust me. Don’t waste your life following choices made by someone else.”
“You know, you’re right,” I said. She gives me a smile. “What did you say your name was?”
“Yo, Leo!” I heard Chance yell, pulling my attention away from the pretty woman. I looked over to see him walking up. “Who are you talking to?”
“Oh, this is…” I turn around to find no one there. What the? “I swear I was just talking to the most beautiful girl ever. She was right here. I swear!”
“Okay… sure,” Chance said with an expression that told me he didn’t really believe me. I wouldn’t either. I was confused about what just happened. “Anyway, I’ve got a blunt rolled with your name on it.”
“Okay, sure,” I said following him back to the fire. I took one last lookout and in the far distance, I swear I saw what could be a silhouette of a woman, but it was too hard to tell.
—
“Honey, are you up? The plane leaves in a few hours. We need to get to the airport soon,” my mother said as she pounded on my door. She opened it up and turned the light on. I felt like shit. I must’ve drunk way too much that night. I didn’t remember most of the night. God, my head was pounding.
I forced myself up and got ready for the plane. Thank god I already packed my bags. We all scrambled to load the car and get to the airport. As I waited in line I had this strange feeling like I shouldn’t be there. I tried to remember what all happened the night before. I remembered meeting the most beautiful girl… What was her name?
I remembered walking on the shoreline with her. “Honey, if you forgot to pack anything, just let me know and we can mail it to you.”
“Okay,” I said. We got up to the ticket booth and got my boarding pass. Flight 7123. We made our way to the TSA check and my mother smothered me in a hug. I gave my dad a hug as well. “Call us once you’ve landed.”
“I will,” I said as I got in line for the security walkthrough. After I got myself scanned and grabbed my stuff, I waved goodbye to my parents and had a seat at my terminal. I got there just in time as they started boarding for the plane.
I was next in line to have my boarding pass checked. Suddenly I remembered. It’s your life and you need to decide how to live it. That’s what that girl said to me the night before. That’s what my grandmother used to tell me. I remembered her saying those words all the time. She’s right. I couldn’t go through with it. It’s not what I wanted.
“Excuse me, may I see your boarding pass,” the TSA woman asked.
“I’m sorry, I won’t be boarding for this flight,” I said, I grabbed my luggage and walked away. I felt so elated at that moment. I knew I was doing the right thing. I just hoped my parents would see it that way. I rushed out to find them still sitting. They were not pleased to see me.
“What are you doing here?” my father asked. “Did you miss your flight? We made it with plenty of time.”
“I’ve decided I’m not going,” I said.
“What do you mean you’re not going?” My mother asked.
“Going to college and getting a law degree is what you want. It’s not what I want,” I said.
“Oh don’t tell me you still want to travel the world,” my father said with a sigh.
“It’s my life and I will decide how to live it,” I said.
“God, you sound just like my mother,” my mom said sharply. “I know you miss her, but this is your future we’re talking about.”
“I’ve made up my mind, mom. I’m not going to college. I’m going to do what I want to do,” I said.
“Is there anything we can say to make you reconsider? You’re making a huge mistake,” my father said. I just shook my head no. They finally gave up and we all headed out to the car. It was a 2-hour drive back home and no one said a word the whole way back. I could just feel my parents’ anger seething off of them.
Once we arrived home, my dad slumped in his chair and turned on the tv. All of our jaws dropped at the news. Flight 7123 had crashed during its flight to Boston. No one survived. I searched through my shorts before I pulled out my boarding pass. Sure enough, I read Flight 7123 on it in black letters. I felt like I just dodged a bullet. I should’ve been on that plane, but I followed the girl’s advice. I listened to my heart.
Both of my parents were speechless. They’d just gaped at the tv. Before I realized what was happening, my mother had me wrapped in her arms, tears falling down her eyes. “If you want to travel and see the world, I’m not going to stop you.”
God, I felt so lucky to be alive right then and there. If it wasn’t for that mysterious woman, I probably would’ve still been on that plane. I wish I could’ve gotten her name.
—
A few weeks later, I had planned out my journey. I decided to visit most of the US before going abroad, which would definitely be less costly, seeing how I could drive most of it. My plans were to stay a few months in each state, get a job to pay for my costs, and work as I take time to see the sights in each state before moving on to the next one. I’d work on my travel blog all the while. But before I left, I decided to help my parents clean out my grandmother’s house. That’s the least I can do for the woman who taught me everything.
I was putting all of her books in boxes when I stumbled upon an old photo album. I opened it up to find something that made my breath catch in my throat. It couldn’t be…
I pulled out a photo and looked at it closely. It was the woman from the beach. She’s even wearing the same flower dress and if I’m not mistaken, it was the same beach in the photo. I turned it over to see my grandmother’s name written in it. She was only 18 when this picture was taken. This can’t be right. That woman on the beach… Was it my grandmother’s ghost? That… That’s absurd. Right? I didn’t have any other explanation for it.
Tears started to well up in my eyes. Even after she died, she’s still looking out for me. I love you grandma and I always will.
The End.
Remember, you’re never safe in the dark…
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“God, you wouldn’t believe it. That same creep was at the bar last night. He makes my skin crawl,” my girlfriend Gracie says as she fixes breakfast.
“Is it the same weirdo that orders the fuzzy navels?” I ask as I pack my suitcase.
“No, that’s Donny, he’s a sweetheart,” she says.
“This guy orders a bloody mary every time and he always just stares at me with this hungry stare. He says the creepiest shit too,” she says as she puts her long blonde hair in a ponytail before flipping the pancakes. “He asked me if I enjoyed pain once. Who does that?”
“Oh, I think I know the one you’re talking about. Yeah, he is a weirdo,” I say, trying to get my luggage zipped up. “Do you want me to come by once I get back and teach this asshole some manners?”
“No, Chelsea says that if he continues to harass me, she’ll sick Stewie on him,” she says, dishing up our plates. “I totally understand your mother is sick and I can empathize. I just wish you weren’t going to stay there for the next few nights. I really don’t want to be here all alone.”
“I’ll only be a little over an hour away,” I say.
“Still… I just feel so freaked out about this guy,” she says.
“I’m sure he’s just that way with every girl,” I say.
“You’re probably right,” she says.
She sets both our plates down and I pop a squat next to her. I take a bite of her special blueberry pancakes and my mouth has an orgasm. “Fuck, babe, these are so good.”
She blushes her normally warm honey skin blemishes into a rosy pink hue. “Aww, thanks, babe. They’re just how you like them.”
After we finish eating, I quickly help her clean up. I swat her on the butt, before wrapping my arms around her. She laughs. God, I love her laugh. It’s such a sweet melody. She turns to me as she leans back and I plant my lips on hers.
We finally had to break apart. She sticks out her bottom lip at me. “Please come home as soon as you can.”
“I promise I will,” I tell her as I grab my suitcase and head for the door. She gives me one last final kiss. I take one last look into those ocean blue eyes and savor the taste of her lips. “I’ll call you as soon as I get there.”
She blows me a kiss and I head out. The drive to my mother’s house is uneventful. Hopefully, I won’t have to stay there too long. My brother usually is the one to watch her, but he had to go with his wife down to her family, so I agreed to watch her for the next few days. She’s deathly ill with a rare form of cancer.
As I arrive at the house, I call my girlfriend telling her I made it before I walk in. My mother has her head wrapped in a scarf and looks very sickly. She has lost a lot of weight since I last saw her and her skin seems to cling to her bones. God, it’s so sad to see her like this. She used to be so vibrant and full of life. She pulls me into a hug as I walk in. “Oh Josh, I’m so happy to see you, dear.”
“You too mom,” I say.
“How is Gracie? It’s too bad she couldn’t get off work to come as well,” she says.
“She’s doing well. She’s very close to finishing up her degree,” I say.
“Well, the sooner she graduates and gets a good job, the sooner she can quit that terrible bartending job. I don’t like her working there. A lot of filth and scum go there to drink,” my mother says.
“I know, I don’t like her working there either,” I say. My brother walks over with his own luggage already packed.
“Hey Josh, I’m glad you’re here. I’ve got to get going,” Damon says as we hug. I follow him outside. “Her medications are already organized by day. You need to make sure she takes them. You have to stay here. She hasn’t been doing well and I’m afraid it’s not looking good. You constantly have to check up on here. I left the number of her nurse on the table. If you have any questions, just call me. Obviously, for emergencies, call 911. If you have to leave, Catherine, next door might be able to watch her. We are going to need to talk when you get back by the way. I think mom’s showing early signs of dementia.”
“Alright. I think I can handle it. We can talk about it. Maybe get her into a neurologist. Don’t take too long,” I say.
“Oh don’t worry, I’ll be back before you know it,” he says, giving me a salute before he gets in his car and takes off. I head back inside with my mother and she lays down for a nap as I clean up around the place. I took a look at her meds and she’s on quite a few. Having a background in biochem as my job is a biochemical researcher, I have a pretty good idea of how these drugs interact.
As the day turns into night, my girlfriend texts me.
You wouldn’t believe who showed up tonight! Her message read.
The same creep? I text back.
Yes! Josh, I think he’s been watching me. He asked where you went. I have never told him anything about my life. She replies.
Did you tell Chelsea? I ask.
No, she’s not here. She had to leave for a few days! I’ve got to go, it’s starting to get busy.
Our conversation left me a bit on edge.
“Where’s Damon?” my mother asks, nearly giving me a heart attack. I see her standing in the hallway naked. How did she sneak up on me like that? Why is she naked?
“Damon had to go see his in-laws. Don’t you remember? He left earlier,” I say, hurrying up to grab her robe and get it around her.
“He said he was going to play me some music. You know how good he is at that piano,” she says. Damon hasn’t played the piano in years. In fact, we sold the old piano we used to have here. Besides, nobody took care of it ever since dad died and it was constantly out of tune. Damon was right, she’s really slipping. We need to get her looked at. “Where’s Herald? He was going to tune that piano up for Damon.”
“Mom, dad died years ago,” I say.
“That can’t be, I was just talking to him,” she says. This night just keeps getting weirder and weirder. I help my mother eat her dinner and take her meds, before putting her to bed. Then I get a call from Gracie.
“Hey babe, what’s up?”
“He followed me home, Josh. His red pickup is parked out in the street. I don’t know what to do. I’m freaking out right now,” she says. She’s breathing hard. I can’t tell she’s flustered.
“Don’t panic. Did you make sure all the doors and windows are locked?” I ask.
“Yes, I double-checked them all,” she says.
“Call the police,” I tell her.
“Baby, can you please come home. I’m really scared right now,” she says.
“I can’t leave my mother alone. I think she’s got dementia. She said she had a conversation with my dad and he’s been dead for years,” I say.
“Babe. I’m freaking out right now. Oh my god. He’s standing in the yard looking into the house. He’s watching me,” she says. I can hear her start to panic. She sounds like she’s hyperventilating.
“Baby, I’m going to call the police. You need to barricade yourself. I’ll see if I can get my mom’s neighbor to watch her. Just hide somewhere,” I say.
“Okay. Just please call me right back,” she says.
“I will, I promise,” I say.
I quickly hang up the phone and call the police. I tell them exactly what’s going on.
“I will try and get someone out there, but currently all officers are busy,” the operator says.
“What do you mean all officers are busy?” I yell at her as I scramble to get my shoes and coat on. I rush out the door while I try to get any help from the operator. I finally give up and hang up the phone. My phone vibrates with a text message.
He’s in our house! He broke a window! Please hurry!
My heart starts to race as I bang on Catherine’s door and she finally opens it in her nightgown.
“Josh? Josh Bennett, it’s been a long time. How are you doing, dear?” she asks with a smile.
“Hi, Ms. Catherine. I have an emergence back home with my girlfriend and I need someone to look after my mother for the moment. Could you please help me?”
“Oh of course. What’s wrong?” she asks.
“My girlfriend is in trouble. I need to get there as fast as possible,” I say.
“Okay, I understand. You get going, I’ll head over and watch Sharon,” she says.
“Thank you so much,” I say before rushing over to my car. I get in and floor it out of there. I drive like a madman back home, going well over the speed limit. I try to call Gracie, but she doesn’t answer.
A minute later I get a text message. I’ve locked myself in the bathroom. He knows I’m here. I’m so scared.
I text back. I’m coming. I’m on my way!
My heart’s racing as fast as the car as I max it out. I try calling the police once more, but they’re no help. They say they’re sending someone as soon as they can. Fuck! I can’t lose her. She’s everything to me.
She calls me. I pick up immediately.
She’s crying hysterically. “He’s trying to break the door down! I don’t know what to do.”
“Is there anything you can use as a weapon?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I… I’m scared.” In the background, I can hear the banging on the door.
“You better open up, slut. If I have to break this damn door down, it won’t end well for you!” the man shouts in the background.
“Hold on. I’m coming.”
“Please hurry,” she whimpers. This can’t be happening.
I’ve got the pedal all the way down to the floorboard. “Baby, I love you!”
I hear a loud crash. She screams. “Don’t you dare hurt her!”
The line goes blank. My heart explodes in my chest. Fuck! Fuck. I’ve got to get there.
I race home and get there within the next 20 minutes. The cops are there, which gives me some relief. I rush over to them and try to explain who I am. A woman officer tries to get me to calm down. “Let me speak to my girlfriend.”
“I don’t know how to tell you this…” she looks at me with a stern cold stare. My heart sinks into my stomach. “We found no signs of her or her assailant.”
“What do you mean? He took her?” I say as the blood drains from my face. I feel sick.
“Don’t worry. We’ll find her. We’ve got our best officers on the job,” she says.
“Why couldn’t you come sooner? I called over a half-hour ago. If you would’ve come sooner, this wouldn’t have happened,” I shout out. A sudden nauseous feeling takes over.
“I understand how you feel. It’s been a really hectic night. We’re doing all we can to help find her,” she says. I start pacing back and forth. This can’t be happening. I fall down to my knees and as everything starts spinning and throw up on the ground. I need to find her. He couldn’t have taken her far.
“Is there anything you can tell us that will help with our investigation?” she asks.
I pull myself to my feet and look up into her eyes. “Yeah, she said he drove a red pickup. She said he’d always show up at the bar she works at. You have to find them. I can’t lose her.”
“We will. I promise,” she says. How can she make that kind of promise? She couldn’t even get here in time to prevent this from happening. As if I can talk. While she was being kidnapped, I was with my mother.
—
Weeks had gone by, but still no word on Gracie. Every day I go out searching for her. I put up signs all over town. I go door to door asking if anyone had seen her. I haven’t been sleeping.
One morning, I got a call from the police. They asked me to come down to the station. I feel a dreadful pit in my stomach as I head down there. Walking in there felt like I was walking through a funeral home. The police officers stared at me with concern. The same woman who was there that night greeted me with a grim expression.
“We think we’ve found her. I’m sorry to tell you this, but we found a body that matches your girlfriend’s, Gracie Wilson’s description dumped off in the woods off Highway 66. We still have no suspect and the evidence on the body leaves no trace as to who was behind it,” she says. Her face remains as still as a wall. I feel dizzy. My stomach clenches as if I ate something rotten. I follow her mindlessly down to the morgue.
There laying on a medical table was unmistakably Gracie. Her lifeless body is full of bruises and cuts. Her skin has a sickly blue color to it. I feel that nauseous, knife-wrenching feeling in my stomach. I quickly rush for the closest trash can and dry heave what little substance I have in my gut. I find I can’t fight the tears falling from my eyes. I feel the officer’s hand on my shoulder. That man… he’ll pay for the things he did to her. I swear it.
—
The tv blares in the background as I sit at the table of the old house I shared with my Gracie. It was the first house we bought together. The only house we bought together. The news anchor goes on about a man named Henry Losborne they found tortured to death. They said he had been tortured by some chemical compound. He was the son of a wealthy businessman. They had a video of him confessing all the horrific things he had done to so many women chained to his neck on a junk drive.
It had been 5 years since the brutal murder of my girlfriend. 5 long miserable years. My mother passed away not long after that terrible night. I take a long pole from the bottle of whiskey in my hand and slumb over the kitchen table. I had done so many terrible things to many horrible people over these 5 long years. I look at my reflection in the window and I don’t even recognize the man I’ve become. A beard has grown wild on my face. My eyes now carry bags under them and I’ve lost weight. Too much weight.
It took me 5 long years, but I finally found the bastard that took Gracie from this world. The things I did to him… Well, let’s just say my degree in chemistry really paid off.
I miss her very much. I don’t know what to do anymore. I feel like there’s only one thing I can do. Tears stream down my face as I grab the gun lying on the table. I close my eyes as I put it to my temple and…
The End
Remember. You’re never safe in the dark.
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What I’m about to tell you will be very difficult for me to talk about. It was by far one of the scariest moments of my life. My name is Amber and I’m a college student. This horrifying event took place about a year ago during my sophomore year.
I had created an Instagram account and I’ve been posting to it avidly since high school. It recently blew up, gaining me loads of followers. I’m not going to lie, the pictures I was posting were rather scandalous. I’m not proud of them, but I’m a broke college student desperate for some extra cash. Anyway, my account started to gain a lot of attention. Mostly from guys who usually post disgusting comments about the things they’d like to do to me. I just brushed them off, but I also started making friends with other influencers.
I heavily started to network with other “instamodels” so I could increase my following and hopefully gain some sponsors to start making some money. I definitely didn’t aspire to work a dreaded 9-5 job. I watched my parents work their lives away in jobs they hated and I didn’t want to follow down the same path.
Anyway, I had over 400k followers at the time and received an interesting invitation. It was for an Influencer event. It looked legit. There were going to be speakers that would share secrets to grow your following, other influencers to network with, and potential sponsors there. It got me excited and it was too good to pass up. Not only that, but it was also here in LA, which is where I was currently living at the time.
Now, here’s where things started to get odd. I mentioned the event to my influencer friends. None of them received an invitation. It surprised me because most of them had 10x the followers I had. Surely they’d get invited to something like this before I would. Even so, there was no way I was going to pass up this opportunity.
So just to be safe, I invited a guy friend of mine whom I knew has wanted to date me for some time now. Gavin is his name and he’s one of those gymaholics who is built like a bus. He definitely didn’t want to miss an opportunity to go to an event where it’d be mostly instamodels even if he did have eyes for me.
So he drove us out to where this event was supposed to be held which apparently was out in the middle of nowhere. That should’ve been cause to turn around, but I really needed those sponsors. We pulled up to what looked like a pole barn. It looked very sketchy.
Both Gavin and I knew something had to be up. However, Gavin wanted to know what was inside. I just wanted to get out of there at this point, but I let him talk me into going inside. We hesitantly walked up to the building and walked in. It was dark inside and I pleaded with Gavin to leave. He wanted to see what the hell this was all about. He pulled out his phone and turned on the flashlight. I grabbed onto his arm and followed him inside. My heart was pounding inside my chest.
We found a table and what was on the table nearly made me throw up. There were pictures. Pictures of me. There were some where I was walking to class. Some of me in my apartment. There were some of me changing!
“You were supposed to come alone,” A voice echoed out from the darkness. Both Gavin and I looked at each other before we both ran out of there. We rushed into the car as several masked men chased us out. Be barely got into the car and locked the doors as they tried to pull the door handles. Gavin floored it out of there. I still can’t believe we managed to escape. I took that as a lesson that if something sounds too good to be true, it definitely is. I’ve been looking over my shoulder ever since.
I’m about to tell you something that happened to me that I will never be able to forget. It happened when I was only 15. My name is Alayna Caldwell and like all 15-year-old teenage girls, I was saving up for my first car so I didn’t have the luxury of turning down good-paying jobs and that’s where this all started. My neighbors were going out of town for the entire day and wouldn’t be home until tomorrow morning. They had just moved here not that long ago.
When they offered to pay me to watch their house and let their dog out at first I thought twice about it. You see, my neighbors, Tyler and Lacey Alston are rather strange. They’re most likely in their early 50s and give me bad vibes. Mr. Alston was a scrawny man with a scruffy face and dark eyes that were layered in bags. Mrs. Alston tried her best to stay young with her dirty blonde hair that was obviously dyed. She had a terrible smoking habit and she too developed bags under her eyes.
They constantly go on about how pretty I look and the way they stare at me makes my skin crawl. However, when they offered to pay me $100 to stay the night with their dog, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.
They said they’d be gone until the next morning, but they’re still might be an opportunity they would return earlier. They made it clear not to go down in the basement and to stay out of the room on the second floor. Mr. Alston added that it’d be best if I just kept to the living room and the kitchen. They keep their dog, Jackie, a rottweiler, in the laundry room on the first floor. It wouldn’t stop barking all the while they were talking to me. It seemed rather angry. What was really odd was as soon as they left it seemed to calm down. It was very friendly with me.
It wasn’t long before I had the house to myself, besides Jackie. I took him out for a walk before resting in the living to watch some TV. The news talked about a missing girl about my age with dark black hair named Paula Edwards. She was very pretty. Thoughts ran through my mind of all the horrible possibilities of what could’ve happened to her. The distinct possibility that I could’ve been her ran through my thoughts. She too was a cheerleader and lived in the city next to ours. I pushed the thought from my mind as I quickly changed it to one of the reality shows I enjoyed watching.
As the day turned dark and it became late in the evening, I snuck out to smoke some pot and let the dog out. As we returned, the dog went straight for the door to the basement and started clawing at it. I thought that was odd. I could’ve sworn I heard noises coming from the basement. It sounded like muffled screams. I tried to chalk it up to my stoned paranoia. However, as the night carried on, the noises didn’t cease. I tried the door but it was locked. My curiosity got the best of me and I started to search the rest of the house. Now this was really strange. All of the other rooms were empty except for the room they said to stay out of which was also locked. There was no sign that anyone had been living here, let alone two people.
I got to the point where I couldn’t help it anymore, I had to know what was down there. The locked door had the kind of lock that you could easily shove a nail or something thin in and click it unlocked. I used to pull this trick on my older sister all the time when she took too long in the bathroom. As soon as the door opened, the dog rushed down the stairs. I grabbed my phone and turned the light on as I slowly climbed down the dark stairs. The noise was now unmistakable. It was a person. Their groans were being muffled out. I could hear the dog whimpering.
I could hardly make out anything in the dark as I crept forward with my little flashlight. However, as I crept down the basement, the things I saw in the light of my phone’s flashlight, started to terrify me. There were shackles, cages, and things I can’t begin to explain. My heart was thumping faster than ever as I continued to look through the basement. I heard the muffled sounds of a person along with the whimpering of the dog.
I cast my light over to where the sound came from and nearly shrieked. Chained to a pipe and gagged was a girl with black hair. She was dirty and it looked as if she’d been crying. Her eyes had dark spots around them. I quickly called the cops as I rushed over to her and took the gag out of her mouth. The dog was licking her face, and stayed by her side.
She immediately pleaded with her to help her. They kidnapped her and had been keeping her down here in their basement. The police arrived not long after. They identified her as the missing girl from the town over.
If things couldn’t get any worse, what they found in the room on the second floor was beyond creepy. They had pictures of me, rope, bindings, Chloroform, and other horrifying items. Apparently, they planned to come back later that night and kidnap me too. The rest of the house was empty and apparently, they only used the house to keep their victim.
The worst thing was that they still haven’t been caught. They’re out there somewhere, probably still kidnapping girls. I now live in constant fear, always looking over my shoulder. Afraid I could find them in my home waiting for me. On a side note, the dog happened to be the victim, Paula Edward’s dog. It certainly explains the odd behavior. Paula and I had become very close friends since then.
This is a story I tried hard to forget. It happened when I was just 13. My name is Allison and this story took place during our town’s annual festival. It’s a big deal in our small town. Everyone gets together to celebrate our town’s founding. They throw a big parade and a carnival arrives with rides, games, and food trucks. My parents are highly involved with the event and usually spend most of the time during the week organizing the events and all the games so they’re always pretty busy.
They usually let me go hang out downtown at the carnival with my friend Kelly who was also 13 at the time. My parents had given me money for rides, games, and food and let us do whatever we want as long as we’re home by 10 pm. Being summer, we didn’t have to worry about school.
Kelly and I had spent most of the time playing games. We came up to the one with the squirt guns where you have to spray the water in the center to blow up the balloon. There was a tall guy with a large gut. His light brown hair was thinning and he had patchy facial hair with scars around his mouth. He gave me very bad vibes. Especially with the way he looked at Kelly and I. Guys his age should look at girls our age like that. It creeped me and Kelly out.
Neither of us won the game so we moved on and got in line at the Gravitron. I could still feel his eyes on us as we entered the big circular spaceship. As soon as the ride started, I forgot all about him as Kelly and I had a lot of fun being stuck to the sliding panels. After we got off, we went on a few more rides and played a few more games as it started to get dark out before sharing an elephant ear and lemonade.
We sat at a picnic table to eat when I saw him. He was staring at us with a very wrong look on his face. His scarred mouth was in a sadistic smile as he watched us. My heart stopped in my chest and I felt sick. I suddenly lost my appetite.
Kelly and I both agreed to call it a night and head back to my house. We got on our bikes and started to ride down the street. My house wasn’t far, it was only a few blocks out of downtown. I made the stupid mistake of looking back and nearly screamed.
Only a block away was that large man. He was walking quickly towards us. Kelly and I peddled hard to my house and didn’t even bother to put our bikes away before we rushed inside and locked all the doors and windows.
I called my parents but they didn’t answer. Both Kelly and I were freaking out. We looked out one of the windows to see that man in my yard. He was staring up at us in the darkness. Kelly started crying. We both started to panic as the man started to walk up the stairs of my front porch. We rushed away from the window as he tried to open the door. I quickly called 911. I know I probably sounded crazy as I hysterically tried to tell the operator what was going on. I was sobbing and crying as the man started banging on the door.
They told us to lock ourselves in a bathroom and that they were sending someone. They’re on their way. Kelly and I ran upstairs and hid in the bathroom, locking it as we heard a window break. Both of us were in tears as we heard the door open. The operator was still on the line. She told us to remain calm, but my heart was pounding so loudly, I’m sure he could hear it.
We both could hear the floorboards creaking as he made his way through the house. Then he spoke and my stomach turned. “Here girlies, come out, come out wherever you are. I will find you. I won’t hurt you. I just want to have some fun.”
Both of us had our hands clenched over our mouths as we heard him start to climb the stairs. I heard him open the door to my bedroom and walk inside. I could hear him go through the closet and open up my dresser drawers. The thought of his dirty hands rummaging through my clothes made me sick.
He walked out of my bedroom and we could hear his footsteps just outside the bathroom door. Kelly and I looked at each other with tears streaming down our faces.
“I know you’re in there. Come out and I won’t hurt you. I promise,” he said. He had that deep voice that sounded like a toad. He slammed into the door, making us both jump. “I’m getting mad. Open the damn door!”
We were both started crying hysterically as he tried slamming into the door again. We both knew if he could get that door open we were both as good as dead. Suddenly we heard the sounds of the police sirens outside. They had arrived! He frantically tried to break the door open one last time, but then the police entered our house and shouted their presence.
We heard the man try to run and as the police rushed up the stairs. They managed to catch him and haul him out after a loud struggle. We finally got the courage to open the door as a policewoman found us. She comforted us, but we still couldn’t stop crying.
When my parents finally came home, they were beside themselves. My mother nearly had a heart attack. It was safe to say that this was the last summer they would be involved in the festival.
I had found that that man had gone through my underwear draw. It made my skin crawl to know he went through my things.
We later found out his name was Dariel Bradley and he had spent over 10 years in prison for a rape charge. He didn’t even work at the Carnival. They found the person who was supposed to be working the squirt gun game dead. He killed him. I can only imagine what would’ve happened if the police hadn’t got here to save us. Even after lots of therapy, I still haven’t gotten over that night. I spent years looking over my shoulder. I still have a hard time being alone at night.
