Here is one of the stories selected from my book:  "Chillers."

 

 

Drusilla Murdock strained at her bonds as she surveyed the crowd that gathered to witness her execution.  Among them she spotted  Jonathon Keyes, renowned witch hunter, who had been responsible for her capture and trial.  A white-hot hatred welled up within her as she beheld the man.

The witch hunter was moving through the crowd, coming toward her.  He walked up and faced her.

"You're the most powerful and evil witch I've ever encountered, Drusilla.  You've brought misfortune, sickness, and even death to the villagers.  But they need fear you no longer; I've managed to bind your spells. 

 "I know that you're thinking of revenge, but I'm taking measures to prevent that.  I accept that your spirit may survive the fire, but I have found a way to trap it.  Your ashes will be spread on a bridge spanning running water, thus trapping your soul at the bridge. To reinforce your imprisonment, I have placed a blessing on the bridge which will prevent your spirit from passing through its timbers.  You will remain there until the bridge itself crumbles.  Your spirit will sleep there for a long time, Drusilla."

She laughed at him.  "You can trap my spirit for a time, but you cannot kill it because you have not found my secret bane--though I know you have tried."

"Yes, I'll admit that.  But I concede that a witch's bane is nearly impossible to learn--it could be anything from a magpie to a milkweed.  But I promise you, if I knew your bane I would surely use it to destroy your evil soul."

She knew that the thing that was her bane,the hair of a red dog, was not to be found in or near the Village of Willow Creek.  Her smile mocked him.  "Perhaps my bane is rat droppings.  Why don't you try that?"

He turned and walked away.  Drusilla cackled as she shouted at him.  "Maybe it's the vomit of a cockroach."  She screeched and cackled louder, "Have you tried buzzard feathers yet?"  He disappeared into the crowd and Drusilla's gaze wandered to the nearby bridge where her spirit would be trapped in its timbers...for a very long time.

Although she was showing defiance and even taunting her captor, inside she was dispirited.  The hated Jonathon Keyes had taken every measure he knew of to imprison her.  She knew that her spirit would survive, and that eventually she would live again, but she dreaded the imprisonment.  It would be but a short span in her life, but she did not look forward to being held in the timbers of the bridge for a century or more.

*****

Sue Robbins enjoyed hiking.  Today was Saturday and it was a  perfect spring day for a hike in the woods.  After breakfast she wrote a note to her mother, who was still asleep, and left it on the kitchen table.

She picked up her cell phone intending to take it along, but placed it back in her nightstand.  Darn! Stupid me. I forgot to charge it last night.  She  strapped on her pack and set out. It was good to be off on a Saturday for a change.  For the past three Saturdays she had worked overtime. The extra pay was nice, but she was close to being stressed out.  A hike in the woods would be relaxing.

She passed the Sorenson's house, and waved at Mrs. Sorenson, who was tending her prized flowers.  She saw Dot Trimble up ahead who was also working in her yard.  She broke into a trot when passing Dot's house.  She did not want to give Dot a chance to start a gossip session.  The woman could talk endlessly about happenings in the little town.  She smiled and waved at the woman and kept jogging until she was out of sight.

She passed O'Rourke's Tavern and then The Good Shepherd Baptist Church sitting right next door to it.  She had nearly reached the town limit when she saw a commotion in the ball field off to her left.  Two young boys were laughing and throwing rocks at something  She recognized them as the Wilson boys, a pair of troublemakers.  She stopped to see what was going on. She went out onto the field, and the pair turned and ran when they saw her coming.  She found what they were throwing rocks at...it was a dog tied to a stake.The boys laughed and shouted obscenities as they ran.

She wondered how some people could be so cruel.  She planned to call the boys' parents later and complain, though she knew it would do no good.  The Wilsons had recieved countless complaints about the boys, but apparently had chosen to do nothing about it.  The boys continued to get into all kinds of mischief.

Sue knelt down to check on the condition of the dog.  She noted that he had an up to date rabies tag, and also had a tag with the owner's name: Dan Hartley.  Dan was a batchelor who lived alone and had recently been killed in a hunting accident.  The dog's name on the tag was Bo.

Sue untied the dog, a large red mixed breed, and examined him.  Other than a slightly swollen eye, the dog looked okay.  She found some oatmeal cookies in her pack and gave them to the dog.  She turned to go, and the  dog followed her.  She shooed him away, guessing that by now one of Dan's hunting buddies had probably given Bo a new home, and that he would find his way there.  She made a mental note to check on the dog later.

Sue continued on her way.  But as she walked along the country road, something began to trouble her...a premonition that some terrible fate was awaiting her.  Death--perhaps something even worse than death...awaited her.  She stopped, turned around, and hurried back toward town.

"Me and my wild imagination.  I've worked too hard to overcome my stupid fears to let them rule me now."

She turned around once more, hesitated for a moment, and resolutely resumed her hiking.  She followed route 23 for a mile and then turned off on unpaved Willow Creek Road.  Two miles later she reached Willow Creek Bridge.  As she paused on the ancient bridge, the sky grew dark and the wind picked up.  She felt a few drops of rain.  The weather looked stormy, and she decided to seek shelter.

Doc Peterson, who owned the local pharmacy, kept a hunting and fishing cabin several hundred feet beyond the bridge.  She should make it before the storm hit.

Sue reached the cabin just as the rain started.  She entered the unlocked door to wait out the storm.  The cabin was a part of local history.  It had been built about the same time as the old Willow Creek Bridge, and it and the bridge were the only structures still remaining from the Village of  Willow Creek.

The weather grew worse.  Hail pounded on the roof, and the cabin shook as the wind began to roar.  She looked out the window--just in time to see the twister.  The writhing funnel crossed the area where the bridge was located and roared off into the piney woods. Terrified, she watched until the twister was out of sight.

When the weather slackened, she left the cabin and went to check on the bridge. Her fears were confirmed.  The old bridge was completely destroyed.  She noted that Willow Creek was rising and already above its normal level.  Lightning flashed nearby, followed by a loud clap of thunder.  Sue hurried back to the cabin.

*****

The spirit of Drusilla Murdock sensed the approach of the violent storm.  She felt its fury as the old bridge exploded.  The destruction of the bridge set her free; the witch hunter's bonds were finally broken.  But she was not yet completely free, for she was still a spirit without a body.  She knew what she must do to gain complete freedom--she must seek and possess a body to host her spirit.

*****

Sue returned to the cabin and sat down to organize her thoughts.  With the bridge destroyed, she was stranded.  The creek was narrow, but deep, and she couldn't swim.   There was no phone in the cabin, and she didn't pack her own cell phone because she had forgotten to charge it.  Her mother worked the four-to-midnight shift at the plant and wouldn't miss her until tomorrow morning.  She had no choice but to spend the night in the cabin.

She searched the cabin, which consisted of one small room and a bathroom.  The room held a small refrigerator, a hot plate, two folding chairs, a card table, and a couch.

Her search produced a kerosene lamp, a box of kitchen matches, a plastic can with kerosene, a hunting knife, and a spy novel.  She found a Diet Pepsi and two granola bars in her pack--at least she wouldn't go hungry

The storm moved past, but occasional showers and gusts of wind continued.  She tried the light switch.  Nothing.  She was glad Doc Peterson had left the kerosene lamp on hand for emergencies.  She could tolerate just about anything but darkness.  She'd feared the darkness as a child, imagining fearsome demons lurking in the shadows and waiting to pounce on her.  She had never quite outgrown her fears.  

Darkness fell, and she lit the lamp.  She made herself comfortable on the couch and opened the spy novel.  She wasn't a fan of spy novels, but it would be something to read  until she fell asleep.

Midnight came.  Her eyes were weary from reading by the dim light, but she was not sleepy.  She decided to rest her eyes before finishing the novel.  She leaned back  and let her eyes roam around the room.

The flickering light of the lamp created shadows on the walls that darted around like restless ghosts.  A wind driven tree limb scraped the cabin wall.  Her thoughts drifted to spooky stories about Willow Creek Bridge.  It was said that on some nights an apparition appeared there.

"No time to be thinking of such things, darn it.  So far I've managed to keep my stupid imagination in check.  I'd better get back to my reading to keep my mind occupied."

*****

The spirit of Drusilla found that the Village of Willow Creek no longer existed.  She left the bridge and followed the creek until she reached a spot where another small settlement had once existed.  Finding that this settlement had also vanished, she returned to the bridge.  She then followed the road until she came upon a shack that she remembered as part of the village--it had once been a general merchandise store. She sensed a lone dweller within, and that dweller was a female.

The dweller would provide a body to host Drusilla's spirit.  But Drusilla cursed when she found that her spirit could not pass through the walls of the cabin.  She remembered that the cabin was constructed from timbers from the same trees as was the old bridge, and the witch hunter's blessing must have affected these timbers as well as those of the bridge.

She must entice the young woman to open the door for her.  With no voice of her own, Drusilla evoked a voice heard only in the dweller's mind:  "Help me. Please help me."

*****

Sue resumed her reading, and after a time she began to feel sleepy.  She nodded, then jerked awake as the book fell from her hands.  As she reached down to pick up the book, she heard a voice.  Startled, she sat up--but then decided the voice was only in her mind.  Her silly imagination at work again.  She leaned back and closed her eyes.  

Her eyes snapped open as she heard the voice again, this time louder.  A call for help?

She arose, clutching the hunting knife in her hand as she walked to the door.  Her scalp tingled and chills ran through her body.

"Who's there?"  Her voice was shrill, a near squeak.

"Help me.  Please.  I need your help."

It was a woman's voice.  A gut feeling came over Sue that she must not open the door.  This was not a woman, but a demon posing as a woman, waiting in the shadows to pounce on Sue the instant she opened the door.  

"There I go again.  My stupid imagination.  The woman may have been injured by the twister. It would be cruel to turn her away."  She released the bolt and opened the door.

As she stood facing the darkness, she was suddenly overcome with intense fear.  Something terribly evil was there--and this time she knew that it was not her imagination.  She tried to slam the door, but her body would not obey her.  She was horrified as a cold, numb feeling crept through her body.  

Against her will, she felt her body moving.   Zombie-like she moved toward the chair.  She sat down and stared at the open door, only a few feet away.  She strained every muscle, trying to make a dash for the door.  But her body felt as though it weighed a ton.  She could barely flex her fingers.   Her hand still held the hunting knife, but how could she fight something she could not see?

Sue grew aware that something was happening to her.  Something horrible was entering and taking possession of her body--she felt that her very soul was in danger.  Horrified, she fought against the foul, unclean thing that was invading her body, knowing that her struggle was futile.

As the foul thing invaded her body, its thoughts began to seep into her mind.  She grew aware that the thing possessing her was an evil spirit--the spirit of an evil witch named Drusilla.

A movement at the door caught her eye.  Something was entering the still open door--an animal?  Sue caught a glimpse of red fur.  It was Bo!  He had followed her after all.  The dog faced her, bared its teeth, and a low growl came from its throat.

Sue sensed Drusilla's panic at the sight of the dog;   the witch immediately withdrew.

"Listen to me," the voice of Drusilla was urgent.  "I cannot allow this dreadful animal near me.  The beast is a bane to me--a threat to my immortal life.  Restrain the beast and I will make a bargain with you."

Sue felt the numbness leave her body; she could move again.  Her first impulse was to run for the door, but she knew that the witch could regain control of her in an instant.  She went to the dog, knelt down, and held it.

It came to Sue that only a short while ago she was terrified of unseen things waiting in the shadows.  Now that she was actually facing such a horror, she was amazed at the calm that had come over her.

"What is your deal, Drusilla?" 

"The only way to counter the bane of the dog is to spill its blood.  Use the knife in your hand to slay the beast, and in return I will not only release you from my spell and spare your life, but I have the power to grant anything you desire.  You have only to tell me your wish."

"But you are invisible.  How can the dog harm you when it can't even see you?   Why don't you just go away? 

"I am not invisible to the beast, and its bane has a hold me, forbidding me to flee.  Slay it and I will reward you." 

Sue looked into the trusting eyes of the dog.  "No deal.  I will not harm this dog.  Besides, do you really expect me to believe that you would keep your word?"

"I swear it by the Dark Powers.  I can find another  body to possess.  I vow that you will be granted anything you wish.  Is this simple creature worth losing all that?"

"I will not harm this dog."

"You are a fool.  You make it difficult for me. Though it will require an exhausting effort from me, I can force you to do my will.  I will see that you kill the creature, and then I will punish you for forcing me to resort to such extreme measures.

Sue, still holding the dog, tried to release it.  But it was too late--she felt the cold numbness once again as Drusilla regained control of her body.

Against her will, Sue moved the hunting knife toward the dog's throat.  With every ounce of strength in her body, she resisted.  She managed to keep the knife away from the dog's throat, and for a few moments, she seemed to be holding her own.  But she began to tire, and every muscle, nerve and fiber of her body seemed to desert her all at once.  She collapsed, her body draped over the big dog.

Drusilla's voice was gloating.  "Where is your resistance now, you simple fool?"

Sue felt her unresisting fingers tightening around the hilt of the knife.  Her arm raised, poised to plunge the knife into the dog pinned beneath her body.

But her body was in an awkward position, preventing her arm from reaching the dog.  She felt Drusilla shifting her body to gain a better position.  But at the moment her body shifted, she heard the dog snarl and felt it squirm from under her inert form.

"No! Nooo..."  Drusilla's shrieks filled Sue's mind for a horrible moment--and then silence.  Drusilla was no more.

*****

After a time, Sue's strength began to return.  Painfully, she struggled to her feet.  It was almost daylight now.  Soon her mother would discover her absence, and help would be on the way.

The dog wagged his tail as Sue stroked his head.  "You've got a home now, Bo.  We've been thinking of getting a dog, and you'll do just fine."

Sue and Bo settled down to wait for the rescuers.

The End

 

 

This is one of eleven stories in "Chillers."  It is available in paperback or ebooks at  Riverok Books. 

 

Also available at Amazon

 

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