Six More Devious Tales of Halloween — Headless Riders, Pumpkin Monsters & Deadly Games

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Hello to my spookies, new and
old. Tonight is another compilation of our

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best Halloween stories. These are mostly
from last year. In case you missed

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them or you need a brush up, we're here for you. This first

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story is all about a man who
rides a horse and has no head.

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Now you might think you've heard this
story before, but actually it goes further

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back than just the headless horseman of
Sleepy Hollow. This story is about adulahy,

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which is the old term for a
headless horseman. But before we get

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to the fear of that story,
I want to say thanks so much for

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listening to this, and please make
sure you're subscribed on your favorite podcasting app

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because we have something new to listen
to every single day this October. You

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being in the right spooky mood is
everything. So without further ado, get

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comfortable, stretch your muscles because we're
about to hear the duel after these quick

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words. Du La Hane by Morgan
Moore. Halloween Knight, It's a night

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where fun can be had as well
as mischief. In ancient folklore, it

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is a night where the plains of
existence open up, a night of thrills

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where anyone can be anybody or anything
At this moment, However, Isaiah Crane

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was late. The young man was
expected at a costume party his classmates were

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holding. He was considered the guest
of honor. Isaiah was the new kid

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in Yatesville, and he quickly learned
through the other kids and even the adults,

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that he bore an uncanny resemblance to
a man of local legend, Gerald

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Johnson. Johnson was infamous for having
been convicted of witchcraft and executed by decapitation

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for the crime. Whether he did
or did not practice witchcraft was a matter

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of debate. Like many other witch
hunt victims, None of this mattered to

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Isaiah, however. All that mattered
to him was getting to the party.

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Being the new kid wasn't easy,
and he hadn't yet made any real friends.

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His invite to the party came as
a genuine surprise, as he didn't

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think anybody really knew him. What
made the invitation even more surprising was that

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it came from a girl named Phoebe
Hart. Phoebe was Isaiah's crush, and

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he couldn't help but take up the
invitation just to hang out with her.

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He found it odd that they wanted
him to dress up as Johnson, but

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if they thought he looked like the
guy, and if Phoebe thought it would

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be fun, then he would do
it. Unfortunately, things weren't going as

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well as he had hoped. His
costume had to be home made, an

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understandable circumstance, but Isaiah was afraid
he would look drabby compared to the other

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kids. Adding on to that was
the fact that Isaiah had to bike his

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way to the party. He had
planned on riding through the streets of town,

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but a downtown party for the older
residence made that next to impossible to

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do. His next best option was
to take the bike path. All would

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be fine if he knew how to
traverse it to get to his destination.

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Isaiah peddled on, desperately trying to
get to the party, to his chance

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to make friends, to fit in
to be with Phoebe. He went faster

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and faster, trees blurring by while
he rode too fast, though his pant

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leg caught on the pedal. He
shouted in aggression and disbelief. The speed

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was much too high, and Isaiah
lost control of the bike. As the

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pedal came to a stop, it
turned and twisted off to the side.

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The front wheel slammed into the curb
of the trail and threw Isaiah off the

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bike and into the tree line.
Isaiah laid on the ground in pain in

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his head. He started counting backwards
from ten and recited various phone numbers he

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knew to make sure he didn't have
any head trauma. After he was sure

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his head was all right, Isaiah
slowly stood up and started checking himself for

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any more injuries. He felt blood
on his forehead and hands. Along his

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shirt, sleeves and pants legs,
he found multiple rips, his limbs underneath

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sure to have cuts and bruises.
Nothing seemed to be wrong with his chest

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or back as he pressed his hand
against them. The only real pain he

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felt was in his ankle, where
his pants leg had gotten caught. Overall,

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he wasn't too banged up. The
young man began to carefully walk the

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area he had been thrown to,
trying to find his bike and his way

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back to the path. He sighed
as he stumbled around in the dark,

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unsure really of where he was.
While the flight from the bike didn't send

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him deep into the wooded part of
town, it did put him at a

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good distance from the trail. With
only the faintest shimmers of moonlight to aid

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him, Isaiah continued on his hunt. He walked in the dark towards what

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he thought was the way he came
from. As he walked, the wind

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picked up and brought a chill with
it. Isaiah shuddered at the sudden coldness,

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his costume not give having him much
protection from the elements. Leaves danced

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around him as he continued on.
The wind continued to pick up, no

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longer making the leaves dance, but
plastered them to his face. He pulled

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them away, only for them to
return moments later. It got louder and

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more forceful as it continued to pick
up. Isaiah soon found himself being pushed

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around by the wind, as if
it was leading him somewhere. The wind

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stopped suddenly. Isaiah, having closed
his eyes to protect them from the leaves,

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opened them, finding himself in a
small clearing. He stood there,

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taking in the silence of the night. The moon, once hidden, was

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now clear as daylight, providing him
with a light source to see his surroundings.

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It was then that he heard a
thunderous sound. Isaiah looked around frantically

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to find the source. The sound
reminded him of horses racing down a track.

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It grew closer and closer. The
closer it came, the louder it

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got. Suddenly, through the trees
came the source, a tar black horse

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with eyes that glowed like hell fire. Sitting atop the horse was a man,

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or what was once a man.
His body was dressed in navy attire

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reminiscent of a pilgrim, a black
coat draping around his shoulder. The only

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difference between this man and any other
was his lack of a head. Isaiah

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stared in awe of the thing before
him. Just as suddenly as the horseman

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appeared and stopped before him, it
now started again, charging towards Isaiah in

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hue and speed. The teenager bolted
into the tree line to escape the hellish

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being. It followed him into the
woods, riding so hard and so fast

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it was as if it was burning
the land as it went. The boy

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continued to run as the horseman thundered
behind him. Suddenly, Isaiah felt a

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sting on his cheek. He touched
his skin and felt the warm stickiness of

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blood oozing from his face. Isaiah
looked behind him and found the horseman with

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an arm held high and a whip
tightly clenched in his hand. He wasn't

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sure, but it looked to Isaiah
that the whip was made from something that

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looked like a spine. His pursuer
cracked it again and struck Isaiah's shoulder.

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Isaiah tumbled forward to a stop.
He quickly picked himself back up and continued

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his escape the horseman. Now closer
than ever, Isaiah kept running through the

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woods with the horsemen on his heels. His legs grew more and more tired,

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his lungs burning, and his body
covered in sweat and blood from his

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wounds. The ankle he had hurt
from his bike crash throbbed with pain.

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If this kept up, he was
sure to be a goner. In the

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distance, Isaiah saw an opening in
the woods. He smiled in hope that

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it would lead to his safety.
The boy threw all of his energy into

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one final mad dash towards the opening. Isaiah burst through it to find a

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cabin. He approached the building and
noticed a sign by the front steps denoting

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it to be a museum devoted to
the witch hunts and trials. Before he

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could process everything, he heard the
shriek of the horse. He spun around

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and saw the horseman galloping towards him. Isaiah instinctively ran up the stairs to

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the door, using his good leg
to kick it open. Isaiah flicked the

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lights on and was greeted with an
array of relics, pictures, and various

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odds and ends related to the witch
hunts. The teenager walked around, trying

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to find something to aid him.
His pursuer did not give him much time.

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As Isaiah was looking at a display
case of antiques, the horseman burst

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in horse and all tearing apart the
entrance. Isaiah whipped around to see the

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horseman himself. Its horse cried out
in anger, and the rider cracked its

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whip. The horseman strode slowly towards
its prey. Isaiah walked backwards, trapped

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with no exit in sight. He
found himself up against an odd shaped item.

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The boy turned around and discovered a
row of wax heads. A quick

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glance at the placards under them revealed
that they were sculptures of those who were

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executed. One in particular caught Isaiah's
attention. It was of Gerald Johnson.

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Johnson had been beheaded for his execution. Could it be? A crack?

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And a cry from the horse brought
Isaiah back to the situation at hand.

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The horseman was getting closer and closer. Isaiah had an idea, a hope.

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He grabbed hold of Gerald Johnson's head
and pulled it off its stand.

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Isaiah turned around and found the horseman
right in front of him. The horse

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breathed onto Isaiah, filling the boy's
nose with the scent of decades decay.

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Isaiah said a small prayer before holding
up the wax head of Johnson. The

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horseman slowly lowered his whip, placing
it on his hip with both hands.

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He took the sculpture from the boy
and placed it on his shoulders. The

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head began to meld to the horseman's
body, and a smile formed on the

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wax lips. The smile quickly faded, and the horseman started to claw at

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his throat. Isaiah watched, confused. It suddenly hit him that the head

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being wax meant it wouldn't have any
openings for a person to breathe. The

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horseman pointed at Isaiah's head angrily.
It must have really been Gerald Johnson,

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and he wanted his head or the
next best thing Isaiah's. Isaiah ran from

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the wax's head with the horsemen on
his heels. His plan failed, and

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now his pursuer was angrier and more
hell bent to kill him. In his

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rush, Isaiah tripped over a display
the horseman had knocked down and landed face

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first on the floor. He looked
over towards a fallen table and noticed an

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old lantern. Isaiah crawled over to
it and discovered a small book of matches

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sitting next to it with the logo
of the museum on the front. The

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boy took one look inside of the
lantern, saw a heavily used candle,

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and instantly knew what to do.
He grabbed the lantern and the matches and

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quickly scrambled to his feet. Isaiah
ran out onto the porch and fumbled to

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get the matches out and lit.
Once they were ignited, he threw them

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into the lantern. He watched the
candle catch on fire Alookiminating the dark,

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Isaiah looked to the door and saw
the charging glow of the horse's eyes.

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He waited until he saw the horseman
saw the wax visage. Once he saw

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it clear as day, he threw
the lantern at the wax head. Please

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God, the glass broke and the
candle fell on top of the horseman's head.

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Instantly, the head caught on fire
as quick as it had started.

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It just as quickly spread down the
rest of the horseman and on to the

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horse. The creature thrashed around in
agony, spreading the fire all about the

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cabin. Isaiah ran off of the
porch and beelined to an opening he spotted

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behind the house. He ran with
all of the energy he had left,

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not daring to look behind him.
His only comfort was that he didn't hear

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the horseman coming. The young man
continued to run, his eyes spotting and

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open in the trees ahead. Isaiah
burst through the trees and fell over his

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feet on to the pavement. He
stood up and turned around to face the

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trees from where he had come.
His eyes widened. The fire had grown

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from the cabin to the woods around
it. It was a horrific sight,

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but also one that gave Isaiah a
great comfort, comfort that he was safe.

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Isaiah walked for what seemed like an
eternity. He had a limp from

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all the pain in his ankle,
making his already slow trek that much longer.

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Listlessly, he walked through the streets
and into a neighborhood. Tricker treating

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had long been over, but yards
were still decorated with store bought displays and

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toilet paper from kids who had been
rowdy that night. Isaiah, a voice

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feminine called out to him. The
boy stopped and turned to where the voice

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had come from. It was Phoebe. She ran up to him and gasped

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a little at the state he was
in. You're late. I was worried.

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It looks like I was right too. What happened, Phoebe asked,

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Oh, yeah, I guess I
am late. I crashed my bike and

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got lost in the woods. I
got out, but well I'm new.

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I don't know where everything is yet. Guess I got lucky that I ended

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up here, Isaiah explained, Yeah, you are. Phoebe smiled. She

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took his hand, and the two
kids started to head back to the house

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and to the party. You should
really learn the town and how to get

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around. You could lose your head
getting lost. Isaiah smiled a little and

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laughed to himself. Nearly did I
know a lot of you out there are

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a big fan of Charles Campbell In
his podcast Horror four twenty one, as

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well as his books, including the
brand new Piano Witch out now. But

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Charles started off a lot of weekly
spooky listeners with his story Pumpkin Spice and

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Nothing Nice. Now we have a
follow up to that story, which we

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played last week. This story is
all about the origin of the Pumpkin Man.

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Who is he, where did he
come from, and where is he

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going. We're going to find out
all of that and so much more on

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this next story. But first I
want to say, if you have a

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moment, please consider leaving us a
star rating on your favorite podcasting app,

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00:17:42.319 --> 00:17:48.920
whether it's Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
It really helps brand new spookies find the

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show. So if you could do
that for me, I would consider it

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a personal favor and it doesn't cost
you anything. But now it's about time

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for the Pumpkin Man after these quick
words. The Origin of the Pumpkin Man

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by Charles Campbell All Hallow's Eve,
LBC Middle School, nineteen eighty seven.

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What began in nineteen eighty as an
experiment became an annual tradition at LBC Middle

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School, the Jack O Lantern Jubilee. It was a day full of festivities,

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games and candy giveaways that ended with
a student dance in the school's gymnasium.

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LBC stood for Langley, Bath and
Clearwater. It was the middle school

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for most of the Valley kids before
they moved up to Midland Valley High.

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Raymond Mathis taught seventh grade science and
drew the short straw to be one of

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the staff chaperones for the dance this
year. Halloween was nonsense to him,

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but he'd play along. He got
along with the kids for the most part,

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except for a couple of the boys
in his fifth period class. But

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today was Halloween, and it just
so happened that it actually fell on a

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Saturday. This year, it was
still early in the day. Raymond didn't

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have a costume and didn't want a
costume, but he was never accused of

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not being a team player, so
he would head over to Party Dollar and

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00:19:27.440 --> 00:19:33.279
pick up the cheapest costume he could
get away with. Raymond settled with a

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seven dollar vampire cape equipped with fake
fangs and a tube of blood jelly.

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The festival started around noon, so
he'd show up around ten to help the

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other staffers make sure the tables in
the cafeteria were set up for the butchers,

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00:19:49.920 --> 00:19:56.319
bakers, candlestick makers, and whoever
the fuck else needed a table at

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this bullshit festival, is what Raymond
thought, but he'd think it with a

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00:20:02.799 --> 00:20:07.279
smile on his face. Butch Marker
was one of those fifth grade boys that

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00:20:07.440 --> 00:20:12.559
Raymond didn't get along with. Butch, in truth, didn't get along with

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very many authority figures. Since he
went to see the movie Ferris Bueller's Day

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00:20:18.119 --> 00:20:23.079
Off with his sister the year before, he fancied himself to be like Ferris.

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He wanted to be loved by everyone
while pulling the wool over people in

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00:20:27.880 --> 00:20:33.920
charge. Problem was a lot of
kids didn't like him, and he really

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00:20:33.039 --> 00:20:38.279
wasn't fooling anyone. His best friend
was Steve Vig, and he was the

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00:20:38.359 --> 00:20:45.920
follower. The boys hatched a plan
for this year's Jack O'Lantern Jubilee. Hey

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00:20:45.400 --> 00:20:51.440
did you get them? Butch asked
Steve. Steve was nodding his bulbous head

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00:20:51.880 --> 00:20:56.519
and smacking chewy candy between his teeth
as he held out the bag. Sweet,

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00:20:57.000 --> 00:21:03.799
Butch said, Snatching the bag for
Steve, he peeked inside a grinch

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00:21:03.960 --> 00:21:07.839
like smile spread under his nose.
Hell, yeah, you get them from

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Ricky. Yep, just like you
said. He had a bunch of them

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00:21:12.519 --> 00:21:17.559
too. We gonna paint them up, like you, said, Steve asked.

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00:21:18.200 --> 00:21:22.839
His jowls shook as he nodded his
head like a lunatic. Butch often

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00:21:22.920 --> 00:21:26.880
thought Steve was the spitting image of
a mini boss hog, and he wasn't

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00:21:26.920 --> 00:21:32.400
wrong. He was a short,
fat kid with a buzz cut so low

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00:21:32.920 --> 00:21:37.519
that he may as well be bald. Yeah, we're gonna paint them up.

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00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:41.480
Come on, Butch said, and
Steve followed him to the shed in

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the backyard. Butch dumped the cherry
bombs on the workbench. There was a

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00:21:45.400 --> 00:21:51.680
can of orange spray paint along with
a small jar of black ink with an

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assortment of tiny paint brushes. Steve
shook the spray can and the boys got

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to work. As the early birds
filed into the school cafeteria, Raymond helped

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00:22:07.920 --> 00:22:12.519
fellow teacher Kathy Fletcher set up the
gift basket raffle booth. This was a

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00:22:12.519 --> 00:22:19.079
big draw an assortment of gift baskets
donated by local businesses and townsfolk. Some

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of them had very good prizes gift
certificates to fancy for the valley restaurants like

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00:22:26.799 --> 00:22:33.319
Western Sizzlin and Red Lobster, some
fantastic fishing gear from Spradley's Bait and Tackle.

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There was always a nice quilt with
other homemade accessories contributed by Louise Utley

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00:22:40.519 --> 00:22:45.160
baked goods galore in another basket.
The Gift Basket Raffle was a can't miss

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00:22:45.559 --> 00:22:49.519
and it was held at the end
of the day when the daytime festivities would

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00:22:49.559 --> 00:22:55.319
give way to the middle school dance. Lots of nice stuff this year,

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Raymond said, Not bad at all, Kathy replied as she pressed a pushpin

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00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:07.400
into the handwritten sign. It read
Gift Basket Raffle one dollar per ticket drawing

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00:23:07.480 --> 00:23:12.079
at six p m. Sharp.
Got my eye on that quilt, Cathy

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00:23:12.160 --> 00:23:18.599
said. It was Halloween themed,
adorned with bats, wide eyed pumpkins,

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00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:23.119
and sheeted ghosts. Yeah, that's
quite a prize, Raymond said, thinking

247
00:23:23.160 --> 00:23:27.319
to himself, what a crock of
shit this holiday was. It was going

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00:23:27.359 --> 00:23:33.680
to be a long day and he
was dreading the dance. But on the

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00:23:33.680 --> 00:23:37.480
bright side, he wouldn't have to
do this again next year. No back

250
00:23:37.519 --> 00:23:44.200
to backs for faculty unless they volunteer, and he certainly wasn't volunteering for this

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00:23:44.319 --> 00:23:51.119
flea circus, Although seeing Cindy dressed
as Elvira, complete with the dress,

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00:23:51.720 --> 00:24:00.319
black wig, and push up bra
wasn't exactly excruciating to look at. The

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00:24:00.400 --> 00:24:07.960
boys admired their handiwork. These are
fucking awesome, Butch announced, yeah,

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00:24:07.079 --> 00:24:14.480
awesome. Steve parroted the little pumpkins
with stem fuses looked back at them.

255
00:24:14.920 --> 00:24:21.640
Different black grins adorned their little round
faces. They're going to shit their pants,

256
00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:25.480
Butch said, yeah, They're gonna
have to run to the crapper,

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00:24:26.000 --> 00:24:30.319
Steve exclaimed, popping another one of
those gooey peanut butter dog shit Halloween candies

258
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into his mouth. The jack O
Lantern Jubilee was something the Valley folks looked

259
00:24:38.240 --> 00:24:44.319
forward to every Halloween, and it
seemed like all of the small towns that

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00:24:44.400 --> 00:24:49.319
comprised the Valley showed up. Raymond
was assisting Kathy at the gift basket table.

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00:24:51.039 --> 00:24:53.640
The line to buy raffle tickets was
almost to the double doors at the

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00:24:53.640 --> 00:25:00.720
far end of the cafeteria. He
was tearing tickets, wishing this day over.

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00:25:00.559 --> 00:25:04.680
He still had a dance to chaperone, and hiding the disdain that wanted

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00:25:04.720 --> 00:25:11.519
to move across his face. Was
becoming more and more difficult. Then he

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00:25:11.559 --> 00:25:18.119
saw two of his trouble makers poking
around the tables. Steve was dressed in

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00:25:18.160 --> 00:25:22.559
a pretty decent Jason Vorhees get up
a La Friday the Thirteenth Part two,

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00:25:23.400 --> 00:25:29.000
complete with the one eye pillowcase,
which Steve would have to cut two big

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00:25:29.039 --> 00:25:33.359
holes in very quickly so that he
would stop slamming into people. He was

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00:25:33.400 --> 00:25:38.640
the proverbial bull in a china shop, smacking his peanut butter dog shit candy

270
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under the pillowcase mask. Butch was
disguised as a werewolf with a brown wig

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00:25:45.519 --> 00:25:49.039
that was teased out to stand up
high, black makeup on his nose with

272
00:25:49.119 --> 00:25:53.920
brown smeared across his face. He
had a decent set of fake fangs,

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00:25:55.119 --> 00:26:00.720
a tattered T shirt, ripped jeans, and white canvas sneakers soaked in blood

274
00:26:00.799 --> 00:26:04.839
jelly. The boys both had paper
grocery sacks for trick or treat bags.

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They were raiding the tables looking for
candy, and Raymond was trying to keep

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00:26:11.400 --> 00:26:15.559
a close eye on the two of
them. Raymond eyes over here, Cathy

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00:26:15.680 --> 00:26:22.160
said. Raymond turned his attention back
to see Missus Martha Jenkins holding out a

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00:26:22.200 --> 00:26:26.920
five dollar bill. She told Raymond
what baskets she was bidding for, and

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00:26:26.000 --> 00:26:30.200
he tore the tickets, took the
money, and dropped the stubs in their

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00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:36.039
respective bowls. He glanced over his
shoulder, trying to get a location on

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00:26:36.079 --> 00:26:47.000
the troublemakers, but they were out
of his field of vision. You see

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00:26:47.039 --> 00:26:52.599
turg burger, Butch asked, huh, what's a turg burger? Steve replied,

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00:26:53.200 --> 00:26:59.000
Butch removed his fangs and said,
turd burglar. Did you see turd

284
00:26:59.079 --> 00:27:03.359
burglar? No, didn't see him. Where's he at, Steve asked,

285
00:27:03.440 --> 00:27:08.319
smiling under the pillowcase. He's at
the gift basket table with Ms. Fletcher.

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00:27:08.759 --> 00:27:14.200
You see her bazongas, Butch asked, raising his eyebrows. Damn it,

287
00:27:14.359 --> 00:27:18.720
No, this pillowcase is bullshit.
Steve said, well, if he's

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00:27:18.799 --> 00:27:22.319
working the tables, he's working the
dance. Butch held up a hand for

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00:27:22.359 --> 00:27:26.519
a high five. Steve didn't see
it, so Butch smacked him on top

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00:27:26.559 --> 00:27:32.640
of his head. Steve regrouped and
hit the high five. The boys continued

291
00:27:32.680 --> 00:27:36.759
making their rounds. Seemed like there
was going to be one hell of a

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00:27:36.799 --> 00:27:41.440
crowd at the dance. These fuckers
will be shitting themselves before the night was

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00:27:41.480 --> 00:27:47.319
over, is what Butch was thinking. Forty five minutes later, the kid

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00:27:47.400 --> 00:27:52.000
was no older than six or seven. He was a fine looking lad with

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00:27:52.119 --> 00:27:56.480
sandy blonde hair and blue eyes.
He held a pumpkin candy bucket and was

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00:27:56.559 --> 00:28:03.119
moving with sugar fueled excitement to each
table, saying chick or cheat to whoever

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00:28:03.599 --> 00:28:07.680
might drop him some candy. Butch
removed his fangs, nudged Steve, and

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00:28:07.720 --> 00:28:11.960
asked, who's that little shit stain. I've never seen him in the valley.

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00:28:12.839 --> 00:28:18.160
Don't know, Maybe he's an achin
or Augusta kid, Steve replied,

300
00:28:18.640 --> 00:28:22.799
really paying no mind to the little
boy. Look at him, he's running

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00:28:22.799 --> 00:28:26.759
all around like he's got ants in
his pants, Butch said. A gleam

302
00:28:26.039 --> 00:28:33.799
flashed in his eyes, a gleam
that Steve picked up on. So are

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00:28:33.799 --> 00:28:37.839
you thinking what I'm thinking? You're
thinking? Steve asked, The smile was

304
00:28:37.920 --> 00:28:44.519
growing under his mask. Yeah,
he needs some special candy in that bucket,

305
00:28:44.599 --> 00:28:48.799
don't you think? Butch asked,
feeling the bulge of pumpkin bombs in

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00:28:48.839 --> 00:28:55.680
his pants pocket. Steve was nodding
and snickering, may as well get the

307
00:28:55.720 --> 00:29:00.880
party started early. Raymond looked at
his watch and thought to himself, do

308
00:29:02.039 --> 00:29:07.559
vampires really care what time it is? But sure they do. They couldn't

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00:29:07.559 --> 00:29:10.720
be caught out in the stark light
of day, or they would burn into

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00:29:10.759 --> 00:29:15.000
ash and blow away with the wind. The start of the dance was just

311
00:29:15.160 --> 00:29:18.559
under two hours away. He could
see a lot of the middle schoolers milling

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00:29:18.599 --> 00:29:25.480
around the cafeteria in their scariest and
goofiest get ups. He didn't see his

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00:29:25.640 --> 00:29:29.920
two trouble makers. He thought he
shouldn't be too uptight about it, but

314
00:29:30.039 --> 00:29:36.720
something wasn't quite right. He would
feel much more comfortable if he could put

315
00:29:36.759 --> 00:29:41.880
eyes on them. Hey, kid, Butch said to the little boy.

316
00:29:41.799 --> 00:29:47.920
Before the little boy turned to face
him, the boy placed a plastic pumpkin

317
00:29:48.079 --> 00:29:53.240
mask over his face. Chick or
treat, the little boy said. Exactly

318
00:29:53.880 --> 00:29:57.720
Steve said, and the boy looked
to his left, held out his candy

319
00:29:57.720 --> 00:30:03.559
bucket and repeated trick or treat.
Steve was removing candy from his own paper

320
00:30:03.680 --> 00:30:08.279
sack, while Butch was flicking a
bit as he pulled a little pumpkin bomb

321
00:30:08.319 --> 00:30:14.039
from his pocket. The kid held
the bucket out to Steve. Steve had

322
00:30:14.079 --> 00:30:18.240
a fistful of candy and was holding
it precariously over the bucket. The little

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00:30:18.279 --> 00:30:23.440
boy was smiling under his mask.
Butch lit the fuse. He felt a

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00:30:23.480 --> 00:30:29.279
sudden adrenaline rush, but fought it
for just a moment. He needed the

325
00:30:29.319 --> 00:30:33.960
fuse to burn down just a bit. Steve was teasing the boy, not

326
00:30:34.160 --> 00:30:40.240
dropping the candy into the bucket.
Trick or treat, the little boy shouted.

327
00:30:40.839 --> 00:30:44.319
Butch spun in front of Steve.
Trick or treat, you, little

328
00:30:44.319 --> 00:30:48.400
fucker. Butch dropped the pumpkin bomb
into the bucket and moved back fast.

329
00:30:48.880 --> 00:30:55.279
The little boy didn't have time to
say anything before the pumpkin exploded. The

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00:30:55.400 --> 00:31:00.119
cherry bomb had enough force to destroy
a mailbox, candy and orne. Such

331
00:31:00.200 --> 00:31:04.720
plastic shrapnel was sent flying. The
boy screamed in terror. The tops of

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00:31:04.839 --> 00:31:12.519
four fingers on his right hand were
bloody stumps of bone. Raymond heard the

333
00:31:12.599 --> 00:31:17.960
ruckus on the other side of the
cafeteria. His hair stood on end.

334
00:31:18.079 --> 00:31:22.079
The explosion, followed by the scream
of a child, got Raymond moving post

335
00:31:22.079 --> 00:31:26.720
haste. Other faculty members were ushering
people out of the cafeteria just in case

336
00:31:26.799 --> 00:31:32.880
there was a shooter in their midst
Raymond knew it was those boys. Kathy

337
00:31:33.000 --> 00:31:37.680
ran to the cafeteria kitchen to call
the police, Butch and Steve didn't hang

338
00:31:37.799 --> 00:31:41.319
around to admire their work. The
boys darted out the double doors and b

339
00:31:41.519 --> 00:31:45.960
lined it for the gymnasium. They
were laughing all the way as they ran.

340
00:31:47.880 --> 00:31:51.839
The main gymnasium doors would be locked
because it wasn't yet time for the

341
00:31:51.920 --> 00:31:56.160
dance. But Butch and Steve knew
the janitor's entrance and they never left it

342
00:31:56.240 --> 00:32:01.759
locked because half of them had lost
their keys. They rushed inside. Oh

343
00:32:01.799 --> 00:32:06.759
shit, oh shit, oh shit, was all Steve could garble. Did

344
00:32:06.799 --> 00:32:09.440
you see that? Almost blew the
little shit's hand off? These fuckers are

345
00:32:09.480 --> 00:32:15.759
like dynamite, Butch said, pulling
a pumpkin bomb from his pocket. We're

346
00:32:15.799 --> 00:32:20.440
going to jail, Steve said,
as the stark realization of consequences overrode the

347
00:32:20.559 --> 00:32:24.119
joy of the prank. The fuck
we are Nobody knows it was us.

348
00:32:24.359 --> 00:32:29.079
They all ran to the kid as
we scoot it out. Let's just hang

349
00:32:29.160 --> 00:32:34.319
out here until the dance starts.
We'll get lost in the crowd and finish

350
00:32:34.359 --> 00:32:38.359
what we started. Butch said,
confidently, you think they're still gonna have

351
00:32:38.400 --> 00:32:45.079
the dance after that? Steve asked. The boys heard sirens and it wasn't

352
00:32:45.160 --> 00:32:50.519
just an ambulance. Butch knew the
distinct tone of the Burnett Town police sirens

353
00:32:50.720 --> 00:32:54.200
because they had been called to Oak
Street on more than a few occasions in

354
00:32:54.279 --> 00:33:00.160
his short lifetime. No way they're
canceling the dance. No way that's gonna

355
00:33:00.200 --> 00:33:05.519
happen. Let's just stay here until
it dies down. The janitor's closet is

356
00:33:05.559 --> 00:33:08.920
the safest place to be right now, Butch said, almost believing it.

357
00:33:14.640 --> 00:33:19.400
The little boy was screaming his head
off. Raymond took off his vampire cape

358
00:33:19.599 --> 00:33:23.640
and wrapped the kid's hand, trying
to apply pressure, but not really knowing

359
00:33:23.680 --> 00:33:29.400
what to do with stark white bone
and chunks of meat that was one's fingers

360
00:33:29.440 --> 00:33:34.680
hanging from his hand. Where's his
mother, Raymond screamed at the bystanders.

361
00:33:35.160 --> 00:33:39.359
They all just gawked at the scene
until paramedics and police rushed through the cafeteria.

362
00:33:40.079 --> 00:33:44.519
Raymond looked at the kid and said, it's going to be okay.

363
00:33:45.240 --> 00:33:47.440
I'm going to get the kids that
did this to you, I promise,

364
00:33:47.759 --> 00:33:52.960
and I'll bring you all of their
candy. The little boy looked back at

365
00:33:52.039 --> 00:34:00.440
Raymond stopped screaming and spoke so calmly
it startled Raymond into paying close close attention.

366
00:34:01.920 --> 00:34:06.920
In my pocket, the boy pointed
to his right pocket with his left

367
00:34:06.920 --> 00:34:12.719
hand. Get it out and eat
it. Be the pumpkin man and kill

368
00:34:12.760 --> 00:34:17.960
them. Raymond was shocked at the
calmness in the kid's voice. He heard

369
00:34:19.000 --> 00:34:22.320
the medics getting closer, and he
could see the panic return to the kid's

370
00:34:22.360 --> 00:34:29.360
eyes. He reached into the boy's
pocket and pulled out a small plastic bag.

371
00:34:30.360 --> 00:34:34.920
It was a black bag sealed with
an orange topper. It had green

372
00:34:35.000 --> 00:34:42.119
letters printed on the topper pumpkin potion. Raymond backed away as the medics took

373
00:34:42.159 --> 00:34:52.320
the child away. He would be
an achin regional Within fifteen minutes, it

374
00:34:52.400 --> 00:34:58.119
was determined the dance would continue,
albeit not on time. The police questioned

375
00:34:58.119 --> 00:35:01.480
the folks in the area. They
gave descriptions of a fat kid with a

376
00:35:01.519 --> 00:35:07.280
pillowcase mask and another kid dressed up
like a monkey or a werewolf running from

377
00:35:07.320 --> 00:35:13.760
the scene. When they heard an
explosion followed by a blood curdling scream,

378
00:35:14.119 --> 00:35:17.760
They did a cursory search of the
school. Raymond gave them the names of

379
00:35:17.800 --> 00:35:22.440
the boys so their houses would be
next on the search list, they didn't

380
00:35:22.519 --> 00:35:29.119
find the boys. They were tucked
quietly away in the janitor's locker in the

381
00:35:29.159 --> 00:35:32.960
gym and would stay there all night
if they had to. They would only

382
00:35:34.000 --> 00:35:37.800
come out if they heard the DJ
start playing tunes. Steve would take off

383
00:35:37.840 --> 00:35:43.519
his mask and Butch would remove the
wig. Luckily for the two of them,

384
00:35:43.920 --> 00:35:46.920
there was an unopened bag of large
sized white T shirts in the locker

385
00:35:47.320 --> 00:35:52.840
that belonged to one of the janitors. They ripped them open and changed their

386
00:35:52.840 --> 00:35:57.440
shirts. Butch removed the makeup using
soap and water from the janitor's sink.

387
00:35:58.199 --> 00:36:01.280
There was a gallon of bleach under
that that he used to clean the blood

388
00:36:01.360 --> 00:36:07.039
jelly from his sneakers as best he
could. The boys could now pass as

389
00:36:07.079 --> 00:36:14.440
hoboes if the dance ever started.
The gymnasium opened its doors an hour late.

390
00:36:15.079 --> 00:36:19.840
Kids were lined up waiting impatiently and
cheered. When the doors finally opened,

391
00:36:20.679 --> 00:36:25.599
Raymond was already inside, waiting just
inside the double doors. He was

392
00:36:25.639 --> 00:36:30.559
going to put his eyes on every
ghost and ghoul that walked inside. The

393
00:36:30.679 --> 00:36:37.679
DJ was starting the show with everyone's
Halloween favorite, The Monster Mash. You

394
00:36:37.760 --> 00:36:43.079
ready, Butch asked when he heard
the music kick in. Yeah, Steve

395
00:36:43.159 --> 00:36:47.920
hesitantly replied, shuffling his feet.
Maybe he finally realized that being friends with

396
00:36:49.039 --> 00:36:52.880
Butch wasn't such a great idea.
If we need to get out, quick,

397
00:36:53.000 --> 00:36:57.559
light a pumpkin and toss it in
the crowd. Understand, Butch asked,

398
00:36:58.320 --> 00:37:02.320
Yeah, Steve replied. Butch opened
the door and the two hoboes stepped

399
00:37:02.360 --> 00:37:07.679
into the back of the gymnasium.
Kids were already dancing. Let me know

400
00:37:07.719 --> 00:37:12.159
if you see turd Burglar, I
want to give him a trick before we

401
00:37:12.280 --> 00:37:16.559
leave, Butch said. Steve nodded
his head but didn't say a word.

402
00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:22.639
Monster Mash gave way to the Munster's
theme song. The boys walked around the

403
00:37:22.760 --> 00:37:29.639
edge of the gym. There were
so many people, so many cool costumes.

404
00:37:30.400 --> 00:37:36.480
Vampires werewolves, ghosts, zombies,
demons, princesses. Every Halloween character

405
00:37:36.639 --> 00:37:42.519
was represented. There were even a
couple of decent looking Freddy Krueger's turd Burglar.

406
00:37:42.559 --> 00:37:45.679
At twelve o'clock, Butch said and
nodded toward the double doors, where

407
00:37:45.719 --> 00:37:50.960
the kids were still filing in.
Let's just go, man, we can

408
00:37:51.000 --> 00:37:53.559
get in some real shit if we
hang around. Let's just say hey to

409
00:37:53.639 --> 00:37:58.440
a couple of kids. So we
have a what did the cops call it

410
00:37:58.480 --> 00:38:04.599
on TV? Why Billy Abelie?
Steve asked, Fuck that, and it's

411
00:38:04.679 --> 00:38:08.400
Alibi, you moron, Butch replied. Steve felt a tap on his shoulder.

412
00:38:09.039 --> 00:38:14.760
He gulped and turned. It was
Miss Fletcher and Steve was getting an

413
00:38:14.800 --> 00:38:19.280
eye full of the bazongas he missed
earlier. You two need to come with

414
00:38:19.360 --> 00:38:22.679
me right now, she said,
as she reached for both of their hands.

415
00:38:22.360 --> 00:38:27.480
Steve, being enamored with the bazongas, actually held his hand out before

416
00:38:27.519 --> 00:38:31.039
Butch slapped it away. We ain't
going nowhere with you, Butch said.

417
00:38:31.639 --> 00:38:36.840
Cathy screamed out at the top of
her lungs, Raymond, They're over here.

418
00:38:37.159 --> 00:38:40.400
She grabbed for Steve since he was
the closest, and caught the back

419
00:38:40.440 --> 00:38:45.440
of his T shirt. It ripped
Haul Cogan style. As he pulled away

420
00:38:45.440 --> 00:38:49.519
from her, Butch reached into his
pocket and pulled out a pumpkin bomb.

421
00:38:50.119 --> 00:38:54.000
He was crashing into kids left and
right. Hey, hey stop, Raymond

422
00:38:54.039 --> 00:38:59.039
was hollering. Getting closer to the
boys, Butch fumbled for the bick.

423
00:38:59.679 --> 00:39:05.079
Eddie Hardy, seventh grader and middle
linebacker for the LBC lions grabbed Butch around

424
00:39:05.119 --> 00:39:08.920
his waist and tackled him to the
gym floor. Butch was crawling and kicking.

425
00:39:09.199 --> 00:39:15.000
The other kids were backing away.
Steve stopped in his tracks. His

426
00:39:15.159 --> 00:39:17.679
days of getting in trouble with Butch
were going to come to an end here.

427
00:39:19.239 --> 00:39:23.800
Butch was no fucking Ferris Bueller,
and he certainly wasn't Cameron fuck Butch.

428
00:39:24.519 --> 00:39:30.280
Raymond was instructing Kathy to call the
police. Eddie still had his grip,

429
00:39:30.320 --> 00:39:35.480
but Butch wasn't trying to free himself. Butch was busy. He lit

430
00:39:35.519 --> 00:39:38.719
the fuse and held it for as
long as he could. Raymond grabbed him

431
00:39:38.760 --> 00:39:45.320
by the shoulder, trying to help
Eddie keep Butch immobilized. Butch grinned as

432
00:39:45.360 --> 00:39:51.639
he turned to see Raymond trick turd
burglar. He screamed and dropped the pumpkin

433
00:39:51.719 --> 00:39:57.840
bomb into Raymond's shirt pocket. It
exploded immediately. Raymond's glasses flew from his

434
00:39:57.920 --> 00:40:01.880
face. His eyes felt as if
they were orbs of hot lava melting his

435
00:40:01.960 --> 00:40:08.079
brain. Eddie looked in horror at
his seventh grade science teacher. Butch stood

436
00:40:08.119 --> 00:40:13.760
up, laughing for all he was
worth. Steve pulled a pumpkin bomb from

437
00:40:13.760 --> 00:40:19.639
his own pocket, lit it and
ran up to Butch. Butch held up

438
00:40:19.679 --> 00:40:23.519
a hand to get a high five
from his fat buddy. His fat buddy

439
00:40:23.760 --> 00:40:30.400
grabbed Butcher's sagging pants by the beltline, grinned, and shoved the pumpkin bomb

440
00:40:30.760 --> 00:40:37.000
down Butch's underwear. It exploded.
Butch fell to the floor. The crotch

441
00:40:37.079 --> 00:40:43.280
of his jeans wore a black,
smoldering hole. His twig and berries were

442
00:40:43.280 --> 00:40:50.039
nothing more than a bloody ground mess. Fuck you, Butch, Steve said

443
00:40:50.280 --> 00:40:55.000
as he walked away. Raymond couldn't
see, he could hear, but it

444
00:40:55.159 --> 00:41:00.280
sounded like everyone was in a tunnel. Kathy ran to him. He mumbled

445
00:41:00.280 --> 00:41:07.079
a single word, water, okay, okay. Kathy got a cup from

446
00:41:07.079 --> 00:41:10.599
the stack near the punch bowl,
which was spiked when the first set of

447
00:41:10.679 --> 00:41:16.400
kids came through and retrieved water from
the fountain. Raymond fumbled with the package.

448
00:41:16.400 --> 00:41:22.519
While Kathy was getting the water.
He ripped the orange topper from the

449
00:41:22.559 --> 00:41:27.960
pumpkin potion. Kathy attempted to give
him water. He held out his hand

450
00:41:28.039 --> 00:41:31.679
instead, and she gave him the
cup. He emptied the pouch of pumpkin

451
00:41:31.800 --> 00:41:37.320
potion into his mouth and chased it
down with the water. Raymond, what

452
00:41:37.400 --> 00:41:43.760
are you doing, Kathy asked.
She reached down to help him. Raymond

453
00:41:43.800 --> 00:41:49.880
contorted in pain. His bones literally
sounded as if they were cracking. Sirens

454
00:41:49.880 --> 00:41:52.800
were coming. He could hear them. He could hear her screaming for help.

455
00:41:53.559 --> 00:42:00.000
Raymond could hear everything. No tunnel. His eyes were clear, and

456
00:42:00.039 --> 00:42:07.519
the pain was gone. Raymond stood
and held out his hand. No stay

457
00:42:07.559 --> 00:42:15.639
away, he said. Cathy was
wide eyed. Raymond ran. His shoes

458
00:42:15.760 --> 00:42:20.440
burst under his feet. He escaped
the gym through the janitor's closet. He

459
00:42:20.599 --> 00:42:27.519
was gone. No one would find
him. Raymond Mathis was as good as

460
00:42:27.679 --> 00:42:38.039
dead. It had been seventy two
hours since the events at LBC Middle School.

461
00:42:38.800 --> 00:42:44.559
Butch lived, but he was now
a eunuch. Steve turned himself into

462
00:42:44.559 --> 00:42:49.360
the police and confessed to what the
boys had done. The little boy was

463
00:42:49.480 --> 00:42:53.719
lying wide awake in his hospital bed
at two o'clock in the morning. No

464
00:42:53.920 --> 00:43:00.559
mother, father, aunt, or
uncle came to get him, but some

465
00:43:00.599 --> 00:43:06.679
one did. The tall man walked
quietly into the room. The boy lit

466
00:43:06.760 --> 00:43:10.480
up, holding up his bandaged hand. Did you kill them, the little

467
00:43:10.480 --> 00:43:15.599
boy asked, no, But I
punished the one that did this to you.

468
00:43:16.760 --> 00:43:21.920
Are you ready to go? My
son, the tall man asked,

469
00:43:22.880 --> 00:43:27.480
I am father. My daddy is
the Pumpkin Man. The kid said,

470
00:43:27.480 --> 00:43:31.280
with an excitement that made the tall
man smile. I can fix your hand,

471
00:43:31.320 --> 00:43:37.960
you know, really truly fix it. But there is a trade off.

472
00:43:37.599 --> 00:43:44.280
The tall man said, what is
it? The boy asked, you'll

473
00:43:44.320 --> 00:43:49.960
stay this age forever, and I'll
be with you forever. How does that

474
00:43:50.159 --> 00:43:54.480
sound, the tall man asked.
It's all I've ever wanted, said the

475
00:43:54.519 --> 00:44:00.840
little boy, And at that moment, the little piece of Raymond that was

476
00:44:00.960 --> 00:44:15.159
dying away inside the tall Man finally
appreciated Halloween. So last year, in

477
00:44:15.199 --> 00:44:20.400
the Halloween season, I did something
I'd never done before. I stepped outside

478
00:44:20.440 --> 00:44:25.000
of my comfort zone and wrote a
weekly spooky episode all my own. Since

479
00:44:25.039 --> 00:44:29.480
then, I've only written one other
episode, and that's the two hundredth episode,

480
00:44:29.519 --> 00:44:31.800
which I'm very proud of and I
hope you give a listen. But

481
00:44:32.599 --> 00:44:40.519
this story was me leaning into my
favorite nostalgia about Halloween and about childhood legends.

482
00:44:42.239 --> 00:44:47.039
This story is called the Grinner,
and it's all about the hearsay and

483
00:44:47.119 --> 00:44:52.800
whispers during camping trips and sleepovers.
And we'll get to that right now.

484
00:44:53.400 --> 00:45:07.119
After these quick words from our sponsors. The Grinner by Henry cootin Halloween was

485
00:45:07.199 --> 00:45:13.679
my absolute, one hundred percent all
time favorite day of the year. The

486
00:45:13.760 --> 00:45:16.960
moment I could see the leaves changing
colors, my mind would start to spin.

487
00:45:17.599 --> 00:45:23.079
I'd sit in school with my leg
nervously jumping as I drew zombies and

488
00:45:23.280 --> 00:45:31.800
vampires attacking unsuspecting townspeople in my trapper
keeper and hummed the monster mash to myself.

489
00:45:32.719 --> 00:45:37.360
My grades definitely dip during the fall, but who cares, It's just

490
00:45:37.440 --> 00:45:42.800
the start of the school year.
Anyway, I'd show plenty of improvement once

491
00:45:42.880 --> 00:45:47.000
Thanksgiving rolled around. I'm no shlub, though. I would start plotting out

492
00:45:47.079 --> 00:45:52.320
my costume during summer break, gathering
all the pieces from the garage sales,

493
00:45:52.440 --> 00:45:58.679
thrift stores, and relatives we'd visit
in Rhode Island. The ride from Ohio

494
00:45:58.880 --> 00:46:01.559
was like sixteen hours, so the
least they could do was help me out.

495
00:46:02.400 --> 00:46:07.320
My Dracula outfit last year was a
plus, and every kid at school

496
00:46:07.400 --> 00:46:13.400
was impressed. Even the upper classmen
bully types had to admit my fangs and

497
00:46:13.480 --> 00:46:17.800
fake blood were startlingly realistic, so
realistic, in fact, that they sent

498
00:46:17.880 --> 00:46:21.960
me to the nurse and made me
scrub it off with some weird, smelling

499
00:46:22.079 --> 00:46:25.760
off brand pink hand soap. When
I was four years old, I was

500
00:46:25.800 --> 00:46:31.159
a power Ranger. Don't judge me, they were awesome. Five was a

501
00:46:31.239 --> 00:46:37.280
mummy, mainly because my dad was
an r nurse and he brought home boatloads

502
00:46:37.280 --> 00:46:42.760
of bandages. At six, I
tried Dracula for the first time. I

503
00:46:42.880 --> 00:46:46.960
was a total goober, though,
and had those cheesy plastic fangs that never

504
00:46:47.039 --> 00:46:52.800
stay in place and they're pretty much
guaranteed to make your gums bleed. I

505
00:46:52.880 --> 00:46:58.480
also had the most obscenely long painted
on widow's peak that my mom did up

506
00:46:58.519 --> 00:47:02.760
in black makeup. Seven was when
I really started hitting my stride though.

507
00:47:04.440 --> 00:47:09.039
That's when I discovered Saturday Nightmares on
TV. My mom and dad loved watching

508
00:47:09.079 --> 00:47:14.920
it, and it was way too
scary for kids. I would stretch out

509
00:47:14.960 --> 00:47:19.480
on the love seat next to them
and pretend to fall asleep. I would

510
00:47:19.519 --> 00:47:22.920
then go totally dead weight and grouchy. When they tried to pry me off

511
00:47:23.000 --> 00:47:28.280
and put me to bed, They'd
give up and I'd get to lay there

512
00:47:28.840 --> 00:47:35.480
sneaking peaks of Jason Vorhees, Dracula, Candy Man, and so many more

513
00:47:36.559 --> 00:47:42.400
the perfect crime. So my costume
at seven years old was Jason. I

514
00:47:42.480 --> 00:47:45.360
ripped up some old clothes and got
a hockey mask out of an old trunk

515
00:47:45.400 --> 00:47:51.960
in the garage. I made a
big machete out of a cardboard box and

516
00:47:52.159 --> 00:47:58.559
was out in the neighborhood stalking for
camp counselors to skewer. When I was

517
00:47:58.559 --> 00:48:04.159
eight, I did Frankenstein, but
I made all my body parts nasty different

518
00:48:04.239 --> 00:48:09.719
colors, greens, grays, reds. I really did look like a hodgepodge

519
00:48:09.719 --> 00:48:15.639
of stolen body parts stitched together.
That was the first year I made another

520
00:48:15.679 --> 00:48:22.840
trigger treater cry sweet Action. At
nine, I wore the aforementioned Dracula costume,

521
00:48:23.480 --> 00:48:29.239
and I was the most rad prince
of Darkness anyone had ever seen.

522
00:48:30.119 --> 00:48:35.400
I practiced my accent in the mirror
every morning with my fangs in. Of

523
00:48:35.519 --> 00:48:39.320
course, I even bought Densher glue
to keep them in my mouth securely.

524
00:48:40.239 --> 00:48:45.599
It tasted awful, by the way. This year, though, I really

525
00:48:45.679 --> 00:48:51.719
had to go all out because I
was ten and I got my first invitation

526
00:48:52.519 --> 00:48:55.760
to an older kid party. It
may not seem like a big deal to

527
00:48:55.800 --> 00:49:00.480
you, but middle schoolers usually never
want anything to do with elementary schoolers.

528
00:49:01.239 --> 00:49:07.159
I got on their radar when words
spread I had a video copy of sleep

529
00:49:07.199 --> 00:49:13.320
Away Camp two and the king of
gross out party movies, Faces of Death.

530
00:49:14.280 --> 00:49:17.559
In our small town, getting a
copy of the most notorious horror movie

531
00:49:17.559 --> 00:49:23.800
of all time, banned in forty
six countries was nearly impossible, but thanks

532
00:49:23.800 --> 00:49:28.760
to my summer trips to New England, I managed to score a copy.

533
00:49:29.559 --> 00:49:35.360
I may have convinced my grandma that
it was a cartoon based on the illustrated

534
00:49:35.400 --> 00:49:39.400
hooded skeleton on the cover. This
is great and all, except for one

535
00:49:39.440 --> 00:49:45.480
issue. These cool older kids are
just going to put my movies on and

536
00:49:45.519 --> 00:49:50.199
then ignore me the whole night.
But not if tonight when according to plan

537
00:49:51.519 --> 00:49:57.119
Earth to Robbie, come in Robbie, A playfully annoyed voice blasted me back

538
00:49:57.159 --> 00:50:00.960
to reality, where I stood next
to my locker. At Uh what,

539
00:50:01.800 --> 00:50:06.719
I replied, trying to remember if
I was in a conversation with my best

540
00:50:06.760 --> 00:50:10.880
friend Michael and forgot, or if
he'd just walked up to me daydreaming about

541
00:50:10.880 --> 00:50:15.039
the Girl's Gone Wild commercial Again?
Huh, Michael said, with a huge

542
00:50:15.280 --> 00:50:21.280
cheese eating grin on his face.
He was a degenerate, but he was

543
00:50:21.360 --> 00:50:27.840
my degenerate, shut up. I
was just plodding out tonight. Michael shifted

544
00:50:27.840 --> 00:50:30.000
his weight from one foot to the
other as he regained a grip on his

545
00:50:30.039 --> 00:50:36.320
binder, which was undoubtedly full of
comic books and not a single piece of

546
00:50:36.400 --> 00:50:40.360
schoolwork. Oh yeah, you're going
to that middle schooler party, the one

547
00:50:40.440 --> 00:50:45.559
I'm not cool enough to tag along
to. Once I blow them away with

548
00:50:45.639 --> 00:50:50.960
faces of death and my Freddy Krueger
costume, they're going to realize how cool

549
00:50:51.000 --> 00:50:53.679
I am for my age, and
then we can work on convincing them about

550
00:50:53.679 --> 00:50:59.000
you too. I meant it as
badly as I wanted to be cool.

551
00:50:59.119 --> 00:51:02.159
Michael had been my best friend since
kindergarten, and I wouldn't want him to

552
00:51:02.159 --> 00:51:07.760
be left out. Yeah, yeah, great, we're still trigger treating together,

553
00:51:07.880 --> 00:51:10.719
right, he asked, as he
tried not to sound too disappointed.

554
00:51:12.800 --> 00:51:16.199
Duh, we're taking this town for
all of its candy. I raised my

555
00:51:16.280 --> 00:51:21.920
hand for a high five, then
quickly realized Michael had both his hands full.

556
00:51:22.440 --> 00:51:28.159
My eyes narrowed as I got very
serious and leaned in close. So

557
00:51:28.280 --> 00:51:31.400
here's the plan. We score all
the candy up the south side of town,

558
00:51:32.119 --> 00:51:37.840
then when we looped back around,
we stopped by the Grinner. I

559
00:51:37.880 --> 00:51:42.440
thought we agreed we'd steer clear of
the Grinner this year, Michael replied with

560
00:51:42.519 --> 00:51:47.320
a whine. The Grinner was a
scarecrow like dummy placed in front of McClellan

561
00:51:47.440 --> 00:51:52.480
Hall, which was a creepy,
old, beat up historical landmark and former

562
00:51:52.519 --> 00:51:58.079
funeral home. Every year for as
long as I could remember, the grinner

563
00:51:58.159 --> 00:52:00.679
was put on the front steps of
the Hall with a big, fat bowl

564
00:52:00.719 --> 00:52:06.440
of candy in its lap and a
sign that said please take only one,

565
00:52:07.360 --> 00:52:14.480
which we had always ignored. The
only problem with the grinner was well the

566
00:52:14.559 --> 00:52:19.800
grin, the weird sack like head
had warped in strange ways over the years.

567
00:52:20.360 --> 00:52:25.559
It seemed like every Halloween the hellish
smile was more lopsided and deformed and

568
00:52:27.480 --> 00:52:31.239
terrifying. Most of the younger kids
never dared to get a piece of candy

569
00:52:31.280 --> 00:52:36.519
from the grinner at all. I
would never hesitate to grab a couple of

570
00:52:36.559 --> 00:52:40.840
extra fun sized kitkats, even if
it gave me the creeps. It was

571
00:52:42.119 --> 00:52:46.800
kind of fun until last year.
Michael and I were getting ready to fill

572
00:52:46.840 --> 00:52:52.559
our bags with candy from the large
and mostly full bucket of sweet treats.

573
00:52:52.360 --> 00:52:57.519
Mike was trying to stop me from
taking more than one, because I guess

574
00:52:57.519 --> 00:53:00.639
his old man had told him if
you crossed the Grinner, he eats kids.

575
00:53:01.320 --> 00:53:05.639
Yeah, that's so believable and not
just the kind of crap parents make

576
00:53:05.719 --> 00:53:09.400
up on the spot to scare us. Not so I went to fill my

577
00:53:09.480 --> 00:53:15.559
bag with ill gotten gains when all
of a sudden, the Grinner moved.

578
00:53:16.400 --> 00:53:21.719
We both jumped back and let out
yelps as a jet black cat skittered past

579
00:53:21.800 --> 00:53:27.000
us. Stupid cat nearly made me
jump out of my skin. Michael fell

580
00:53:27.039 --> 00:53:30.639
flat on his butt off the stoop. On the way home that night,

581
00:53:30.880 --> 00:53:37.440
he made me promise we'd never ever
bother going to the Grinner's house. But

582
00:53:37.400 --> 00:53:44.280
desperate times call for desperate measures.
God, Robbie, you want to take

583
00:53:44.280 --> 00:53:51.119
the Grinner's candy to that stupid party? Michael groaned, What no anybody can

584
00:53:51.199 --> 00:53:58.280
buy candy. I'm going to take
the Grinner's head, I smiled, as

585
00:53:58.280 --> 00:54:02.920
if I had long, sharp teeth
to bear. Michael's words exploded out of

586
00:54:02.960 --> 00:54:08.000
him. Are you kidding that?
That's insane? All of his school supplies

587
00:54:08.039 --> 00:54:13.119
fell out of his arms and onto
the floor as he didn't even acknowledge the

588
00:54:13.159 --> 00:54:17.360
mess he had made. Relax,
it's just a dummy. My confidence wasn't

589
00:54:17.400 --> 00:54:22.880
waning. We don't know that.
No one even knows who puts him there.

590
00:54:23.480 --> 00:54:29.960
Michael dropped down to gather his belongings. It's probably like the mayor or

591
00:54:30.000 --> 00:54:34.280
the school board or something. I
squatted down to help him gather his comics.

592
00:54:35.119 --> 00:54:38.679
So were you in it would be
ultimate. Michael looks up at me.

593
00:54:39.760 --> 00:54:50.599
No, would you slow down?
Michael yelled as he sucked on a

594
00:54:50.639 --> 00:54:54.639
jolly rancher six steps behind me.
The streets were dark. Most of the

595
00:54:54.679 --> 00:55:00.480
other kids had already called it a
night, but we had one last stop

596
00:55:00.639 --> 00:55:07.199
before I became the King of Halloween
to all the middle schoolers. Michael and

597
00:55:07.239 --> 00:55:13.719
I walked up to McClellan Hall and
stopped dead in front, just barely outside

598
00:55:13.719 --> 00:55:19.519
of the glow of the nearest street
light. There he was, the Grinner,

599
00:55:19.719 --> 00:55:24.119
was sitting in his usual disheveled manner. His smile was warped up the

600
00:55:24.159 --> 00:55:30.840
side of his head. The stitched
lips looked oddly convincing in the dark,

601
00:55:30.480 --> 00:55:36.159
like they were going to spread apart
at any moment and reveal rows of teeth

602
00:55:36.320 --> 00:55:40.039
like a shark. I stared hard
at the Grinner as I formulated a game

603
00:55:40.119 --> 00:55:45.559
plan for the soon to come decapitation. From as far as I could tell,

604
00:55:45.599 --> 00:55:51.000
it was barely attached to anything.
The way it sat on its shoulders

605
00:55:51.079 --> 00:55:57.360
and tattered double breasted jacket made it
seem free of much resistance. Michael stood

606
00:55:57.400 --> 00:56:00.920
still, his white Michael Myers Halloween
mask hanging on top of his head like

607
00:56:00.960 --> 00:56:07.639
a hat. He sighed deeply as
he crunched hard candy between his teeth.

608
00:56:07.880 --> 00:56:13.639
Dude, no, don't do it. I couldn't believe he was still so

609
00:56:13.800 --> 00:56:16.599
scared. This was the kid who
watched Evil Dead at three thirty am in

610
00:56:16.639 --> 00:56:21.679
the morning, after I had fallen
asleep an hour earlier. Michael could be

611
00:56:21.719 --> 00:56:25.920
a spaz sometimes, but he was
never a woos. My eyes went from

612
00:56:27.039 --> 00:56:34.320
him back to the Grinner, whose
demented happy face remained thankfully unchanged. At

613
00:56:34.320 --> 00:56:39.480
that moment, I realized maybe I
was a little scared too. Mikey,

614
00:56:40.039 --> 00:56:44.239
if you're that afraid, it's okay. You can go home and I'll take

615
00:56:44.239 --> 00:56:47.559
care of business. The party isn't
far from here, anyhow, I bluffed,

616
00:56:49.039 --> 00:56:52.719
knowing full well that he would never
leave me alone in such a situation.

617
00:56:52.559 --> 00:56:57.480
Plus I really didn't want him to. It was a creepy night,

618
00:56:57.519 --> 00:57:01.239
and I felt better with him having
my back. Okay, see tomorrow.

619
00:57:01.920 --> 00:57:06.840
All of a sudden, my best
friend turned into a chubby, Midwestern speedy

620
00:57:06.840 --> 00:57:09.960
Gonzales as he ran out of sight
faster than I had ever seen him move

621
00:57:10.039 --> 00:57:15.840
before. Dang it, I yelled
as I stood there all alone, nervously

622
00:57:15.880 --> 00:57:22.000
picking at my Freddy Krueger melted skin
make up, which was failing to stay

623
00:57:22.000 --> 00:57:24.639
adhered to my face. I'd have
to stop by home on my way to

624
00:57:24.679 --> 00:57:30.760
the party to get more spirit gum. My plastic razor glove replica was tapping

625
00:57:30.800 --> 00:57:36.320
on my sack of candy as I
stalled for dear life. I really wasn't

626
00:57:36.360 --> 00:57:42.039
alone, though the grinner hadn't moved
a millimeter in the four or five minutes

627
00:57:42.239 --> 00:57:47.400
since I arrived. Thank God for
small favors. I suddenly realized I had

628
00:57:47.400 --> 00:57:52.960
been staring with my jaw agape at
the freaky shape and averted my eyes.

629
00:57:52.960 --> 00:57:57.599
I'm from the Midwest, and my
Mamma taught me it's not polite to stare.

630
00:57:58.400 --> 00:58:02.639
It was a reflex. The sounds
of crickets and distant dogs barking were

631
00:58:02.679 --> 00:58:06.920
deafening to my ears. As I
now stood in front of mc clellan Hall,

632
00:58:07.440 --> 00:58:13.159
purposefully not looking at the Grinner,
A feeling started to rumble inside me

633
00:58:13.239 --> 00:58:19.639
as I realized I felt angry.
I was really ticked off. Come on,

634
00:58:19.840 --> 00:58:22.760
I'm the king of Halloween. I'm
the kid that watched all seven Nightmare

635
00:58:22.760 --> 00:58:27.199
on Elm Street movies in a row. I've played with Ouiji boards on Friday

636
00:58:27.239 --> 00:58:30.760
the thirteenth. The Grinner was just
some stupid life sized sock puppet that we

637
00:58:30.840 --> 00:58:37.039
turned into a legend because our town
is that boring. My chest puffed out

638
00:58:37.280 --> 00:58:42.639
under my red and green striped sweater. I'm Robin Osborne. I am not

639
00:58:42.880 --> 00:58:47.840
afraid of anything. Tonight is Halloween, the one night a year when the

640
00:58:47.960 --> 00:58:52.880
stupid and gross things I love are
cool. It's my night, dang it.

641
00:58:53.639 --> 00:58:58.039
I stomped my feet hard as I
headed straight for the Grinner, who

642
00:58:58.079 --> 00:59:02.519
sat still in his chair, candy
bowl waiting. I stopped as I was

643
00:59:02.559 --> 00:59:08.679
almost exactly face to stitched up sack
with him. I looked down at the

644
00:59:08.719 --> 00:59:16.159
handwritten sign around his neck. Please
take only one. The only was underlined.

645
00:59:16.960 --> 00:59:22.000
I read that phrase three or four
times. Then I laughed to myself

646
00:59:22.440 --> 00:59:27.960
and reached into the bowl. Thanks, old pal, I taunted. As

647
00:59:28.000 --> 00:59:32.679
I took exactly two pieces and placed
them into my bag. I flinched out

648
00:59:32.719 --> 00:59:38.760
of nowhere, like something had startled
me, except there was nothing, nothing

649
00:59:38.800 --> 00:59:45.719
but silence. The grinner was as
motionless as ever. I took a few

650
00:59:45.800 --> 00:59:50.880
deep breaths as I regained my calm. I locked my eyes on its lumpy

651
00:59:50.960 --> 00:59:57.199
visage. That grin of his really
was eerie, But it was time for

652
00:59:57.239 --> 01:00:02.519
me to get ahead. For once
get it ahead. I set my candy

653
01:00:02.559 --> 01:00:07.719
down on the grass and brought both
of my hands up. I stopped and

654
01:00:07.840 --> 01:00:14.440
removed my plastic Freddy Krueger glove.
It may have been great for slashing teenagers,

655
01:00:14.480 --> 01:00:20.159
but its tensile strength was well below
par. My palms were both so

656
01:00:20.800 --> 01:00:25.679
unbelievably clammy. Even in the crisp
forty six degree night, my hands were

657
01:00:25.719 --> 01:00:35.880
finally functioning again and going closer and
closer to the Grinner's noggin. I winced,

658
01:00:35.920 --> 01:00:40.480
ever so slightly, when my hands
made contact with the coarse fabric that

659
01:00:40.599 --> 01:00:45.880
made up his flesh. It felt
a bit harder than I was expecting,

660
01:00:46.599 --> 01:00:52.599
definitely not filled with hay or cotton. I grasped both sides of the head

661
01:00:53.000 --> 01:00:59.039
and took a deep breath while biting
down softly on my tongue. As I

662
01:00:59.119 --> 01:01:02.480
lifted the head, I was also
surprised by the weight of it. I

663
01:01:02.519 --> 01:01:07.119
could still lift it no problem,
but I had expected it to be pretty

664
01:01:07.159 --> 01:01:13.000
airy. Must be filled with sand
or kitty litter or something. I was

665
01:01:13.119 --> 01:01:16.119
right. The head doesn't appear to
be attached by more than a couple of

666
01:01:16.159 --> 01:01:22.440
threads. I lifted harder and heard
the few threads snap as I held the

667
01:01:22.519 --> 01:01:29.760
head above the padded shoulders. Ah, the Grinner's arms suddenly shot up and

668
01:01:29.800 --> 01:01:32.519
grabbed me by the wrists. I
bit my tongue hard as my entire body

669
01:01:32.599 --> 01:01:37.719
tensed in absolute terror. He pulled
my arms downward and forced me to place

670
01:01:37.719 --> 01:01:44.559
his head on the makeshift neck.
At that moment, the grinner stood up.

671
01:01:45.360 --> 01:01:50.840
Our height difference was sizeable, to
say the least. Oh my God.

672
01:01:51.599 --> 01:01:57.320
The stitched lips began to separate,
but instead of revealing row upon row

673
01:01:57.440 --> 01:02:04.519
of carnivorous teeth, he had more
average teeth. In fact, his two

674
01:02:04.559 --> 01:02:10.519
front teeth protruded lower than the rest. The bucktoothed living dummy smiled and began

675
01:02:10.639 --> 01:02:15.880
to speak. Hello, boy,
are you having a happy Halloween? He

676
01:02:16.079 --> 01:02:22.800
hissed in an oddly friendly tone.
I tried to answer as best I could,

677
01:02:22.840 --> 01:02:30.559
but I was gagging on blood flowing
freely from my tongue. Yes,

678
01:02:30.440 --> 01:02:35.960
well, just you wait. You
and I are going to have the best

679
01:02:36.000 --> 01:02:40.039
Halloween ever, full of adventures,
laughter and candy. Candy, candy.

680
01:02:40.719 --> 01:02:47.480
He chuckled, his laughter childlike with
glee. Really, I didn't know what

681
01:02:47.599 --> 01:02:52.639
to think. Of course, I
exist for Halloween. It's my favorite night,

682
01:02:53.119 --> 01:02:58.239
and you've awakened me to be your
companion for a spooky good time.

683
01:02:59.039 --> 01:03:02.679
The Grinner then huffed out his chest
as he began to recite a poem that

684
01:03:02.760 --> 01:03:09.320
reminded me of black and white movies. One hundred years and one hundred nights

685
01:03:09.639 --> 01:03:15.639
For all the children, I bring
them frights. But I'm really truly quite

686
01:03:15.760 --> 01:03:21.079
kind. Only fun and friends are
on my mind. I participate in all

687
01:03:21.199 --> 01:03:25.639
the spooky fun. My only rule
is that you take only one. The

688
01:03:25.760 --> 01:03:30.679
truth is, boy, you're a
winner. You've made best friends with the

689
01:03:30.760 --> 01:03:36.159
Grinner, So we're gonna have fun
and get candy, and you're gonna show

690
01:03:36.199 --> 01:03:43.079
me Halloween's magic. The Grinner laughed
so deeply, so truly with happiness and

691
01:03:43.239 --> 01:03:52.239
joy. Ha ha, oh goodness, No I eat children. As his

692
01:03:52.400 --> 01:04:04.639
smile opened, his mouth grew and
grew, and I never did. I

693
01:04:04.679 --> 01:04:08.960
hope you all enjoyed that story,
of course, be gentle. It was

694
01:04:09.000 --> 01:04:14.280
my first Weekly Spooky short. I
do intend to write more as time allows,

695
01:04:14.320 --> 01:04:17.920
but honestly, I'm spending most of
my time learning how it's done by

696
01:04:17.920 --> 01:04:24.639
some of the masters who release stories
regularly right here on Weekly Spooky. And

697
01:04:24.800 --> 01:04:29.360
speaking of, we have a story
now about Ghost in the Graveyard, a

698
01:04:29.480 --> 01:04:32.599
fun game kids used to play.
Maybe they still do, but I remember

699
01:04:32.639 --> 01:04:38.199
it very clearly when I was a
kid. We've got a family friendly Strickfield

700
01:04:38.280 --> 01:04:44.159
Halloween story for you, courtesy of
our prolific writer and executive producer, Rob

701
01:04:44.239 --> 01:04:49.199
Fields. We'll get to it right
after these quick words from our sponsors.

702
01:04:53.000 --> 01:05:00.000
Ghost in the Graveyard by Rob Fields. It was the final week of October

703
01:05:00.119 --> 01:05:05.039
in Strickfield. After the previous years
Halloween. The people of Strickfield had voted

704
01:05:05.039 --> 01:05:12.519
into village law by a huge majority
that tricker treating was extended to a full

705
01:05:12.760 --> 01:05:18.639
week instead of just Halloween Eve and
Halloween Night as in previous years. The

706
01:05:18.719 --> 01:05:25.960
news had reached surrounding villages and even
the bigger megalopolises like Shore City and Erie

707
01:05:26.039 --> 01:05:31.079
City. People came from everywhere to
take part in the legendary event. Because

708
01:05:31.599 --> 01:05:38.119
there was never any age discrimination,
and with the annual tradition being a week,

709
01:05:38.679 --> 01:05:44.559
more people came than ever. It
was on the final night, Halloween

710
01:05:44.679 --> 01:05:49.039
Night, when Bill Chapman, Brian
Chunk, and Richie Horton were out making

711
01:05:49.079 --> 01:05:55.920
their rounds. Their pillowcases were stuffed
with all the candy and other goodies they'd

712
01:05:55.920 --> 01:06:00.159
collected. Man, I can't believe
we actually did the whole week. Horton,

713
01:06:00.239 --> 01:06:04.000
who was dressed as a Cobra Chai
fighter, said, I know,

714
01:06:04.079 --> 01:06:09.400
we said we'd do a few days, but I know. Chapman agreed,

715
01:06:09.679 --> 01:06:14.159
who was dressed as an army soldier
to match his crew cut. Yeah,

716
01:06:14.199 --> 01:06:18.000
but look at all the candy we
got. Chunker reminded them he was dressed

717
01:06:18.000 --> 01:06:21.760
as a zombie. We got so
much stuff, we'll probably be eating it

718
01:06:21.840 --> 01:06:28.119
until next Halloween. Chapman sneered,
I'd be surprised if even you can eat

719
01:06:28.159 --> 01:06:32.360
that much candy Chunker. Chunker had
made good on his promise to lose weight

720
01:06:32.480 --> 01:06:39.800
upon surviving their horrible ordeal with Abigail
Tomlin in what seemed like only a few

721
01:06:39.840 --> 01:06:44.599
short months ago. He was still
a little chunky, but his weight loss

722
01:06:44.719 --> 01:06:48.239
was quite noticeable. Between the summer
and now. In spite of the weight

723
01:06:48.280 --> 01:06:55.199
loss, Chunker found he still had
his same monstrous appetite and exercised more in

724
01:06:55.280 --> 01:06:59.880
order to keep from putting the weight
back on. Chunker'll probably end up getting

725
01:07:00.079 --> 01:07:04.840
diabeedes, Horton stated. When Chapman
and Horton both laughed, Chunker just looked

726
01:07:04.840 --> 01:07:10.639
at them. Yeah, yeah,
man, these pillow sacks are heavy.

727
01:07:11.039 --> 01:07:15.119
Chapman said, maybe we should head
back to the clubhouse again. Good idea,

728
01:07:15.679 --> 01:07:20.119
Horton agreed. The boys walked a
couple of blocks to get to their

729
01:07:20.119 --> 01:07:26.239
clubhouse, which was the old tool
shed in Chunker's backyard. His dad built

730
01:07:26.239 --> 01:07:30.519
a new garage with some extra space
for the tools and told Brian he and

731
01:07:30.599 --> 01:07:34.119
his friends could use the old shed
for their hangout. They walked in and

732
01:07:34.159 --> 01:07:40.599
emptied their pillowcases into the large chest, where their haul for the week continued

733
01:07:40.599 --> 01:07:45.039
to grow and grow. Looks like
if we make one last set of rounds,

734
01:07:45.079 --> 01:07:49.199
we can actually fill this bad boy
up completely, Chunker stated. Chapman

735
01:07:49.280 --> 01:07:53.960
looked at his watch. We still
got time. We started at six,

736
01:07:54.000 --> 01:07:58.000
and trick or treating doesn't get done
until midnight, and there's no school tomorrow.

737
01:07:58.840 --> 01:08:01.679
Horton looked at both of them.
Friends, we're really going back out

738
01:08:01.719 --> 01:08:08.239
for more candy. What you don't
want to, Chapman asked. Horton glanced

739
01:08:08.239 --> 01:08:12.239
over at the chest. I'm just
wondering if Chunker'll start on the candy,

740
01:08:12.320 --> 01:08:15.840
since it's all here at his place. Chapman pointed right at Brian. You

741
01:08:15.880 --> 01:08:19.640
don't want to be eating all the
candy in one night, buddy. Chunker

742
01:08:19.720 --> 01:08:25.479
gave a mischievous grin. You never
know, I just might get the munchies

743
01:08:25.479 --> 01:08:30.039
in the middle of the night.
Chapman tightened his jaw. I mean it,

744
01:08:30.119 --> 01:08:34.439
Chunker, don't you even? Chunker
picked up his pillowcase and walked slowly

745
01:08:34.479 --> 01:08:41.279
to the door. Fine. When
Chunker stopped in the doorway, Horton and

746
01:08:41.359 --> 01:08:46.920
Chapman heard what sounded like a very
loud trumpet playing. When it stopped,

747
01:08:47.199 --> 01:08:51.880
Chunker quickly went outside and slammed the
door shut. He pressed himself up against

748
01:08:51.920 --> 01:08:57.800
the door and soon felt the others
pushing to get out. Chunker started laughing

749
01:08:58.000 --> 01:09:00.720
as the others were pounding and pushing
hard on the door. He could even

750
01:09:00.760 --> 01:09:08.560
hear Horton coughing, open the open
the door, you uneducated piece of pork

751
01:09:08.600 --> 01:09:14.880
fat, Chapman yelled, Oh my
god, come on, Chunker, Horton

752
01:09:14.960 --> 01:09:19.239
protested, after gagging, We're gonna
die in here. Finally, Chunker got

753
01:09:19.239 --> 01:09:24.520
caught off guard when Chapman backed up
and ran against the door to both force

754
01:09:24.600 --> 01:09:29.640
it open and knock Chunker down.
Horton ended up falling on top of both

755
01:09:29.680 --> 01:09:33.600
of his friends and sucking for fresh
air. Chunker was really laughing it up

756
01:09:33.680 --> 01:09:39.520
now. After Chapman eased Horton off
him, he got up and pointed down

757
01:09:39.560 --> 01:09:43.600
at Chunker. You really are a
sick pig man. I can't believe you

758
01:09:43.680 --> 01:09:47.159
tried to kill us like that.
Seriously, what did you eat earlier?

759
01:09:47.560 --> 01:09:53.840
Horton demanded. Then he gagged and
moved farther away from the clubhouse. Yeah,

760
01:09:54.199 --> 01:09:58.439
keep the door open, Chapman told
Horton. Then he said to Chunker,

761
01:09:59.079 --> 01:10:01.079
that's the last time, and we
go to Denoyer's grill with you before

762
01:10:01.119 --> 01:10:05.920
we trick or treat. Then he
coughed and stepped away from the clubhouse and

763
01:10:06.039 --> 01:10:12.880
lay off that sweet potato pie.
After waiting several minutes, Chapman and Horton

764
01:10:13.000 --> 01:10:16.199
went back inside to get their pillow
cases. From there, they headed back

765
01:10:16.239 --> 01:10:21.199
out and onto the streets of Strickfield
for more trick or treating. They'd received

766
01:10:21.199 --> 01:10:27.640
several comments from houses taking part about
how they'd been around many times throughout the

767
01:10:27.640 --> 01:10:31.399
week just the same, They still
gave them the treats. After all,

768
01:10:31.479 --> 01:10:36.439
Strickfield was the one village where there
was no discrimination for trick or treating.

769
01:10:38.199 --> 01:10:42.800
It was around eleven o'clock when the
boys reached Denoyer's grill. Now, remember,

770
01:10:43.079 --> 01:10:47.039
Chunker, we're not going in for
food. Chapman reminded him, you

771
01:10:47.239 --> 01:10:50.800
just said you needed a bathroom break. I know, I know, he

772
01:10:50.920 --> 01:10:56.239
replied, and opened the door.
The boys walked inside to a still packed

773
01:10:56.239 --> 01:11:00.680
dining room. They knew October was
the biggest month where Denoyer's grill got the

774
01:11:00.760 --> 01:11:04.640
most business this year. Business really
picked up during the first full week of

775
01:11:04.720 --> 01:11:11.199
tricker treating. Now it was Halloween
night and people were still packing Denoyer's grill.

776
01:11:11.840 --> 01:11:15.920
It was also known that Denoyer paid
his people extra for working this time

777
01:11:15.960 --> 01:11:19.359
of year. Back again, boys, huh, Denoyer asked, pleasantly,

778
01:11:20.119 --> 01:11:25.359
Just using the bathroom. Chunker told
him, you know where it is.

779
01:11:26.319 --> 01:11:29.760
They walked to the men's room and
went in. When they were finished,

780
01:11:29.840 --> 01:11:34.560
Chapman looked at Horton, Hey,
where's Chunker. Horton gave a grim look

781
01:11:34.600 --> 01:11:39.960
that said he knew. The two
of them finished washing their hands and came

782
01:11:40.000 --> 01:11:44.960
outside to find Chunker sitting at the
counter and eating a piece of Denoyer's famous

783
01:11:45.319 --> 01:11:49.520
sweet potato pie. Horton pointed to
the pie. This is why you blew

784
01:11:49.600 --> 01:11:57.319
up the clubhouse earlier. This is
what your fifth piece today sixth Chunker corrected

785
01:11:57.399 --> 01:12:00.159
him. Come on, guys,
you know I don't feel using the restroom

786
01:12:00.199 --> 01:12:04.680
here and not putting into the till. Chapman wanted to yell again, but

787
01:12:05.439 --> 01:12:11.560
he sighed and ordered some French fries. Horton ordered a soft drink. After

788
01:12:11.600 --> 01:12:15.520
they finished, they left Denoyer's grill
and headed back out. We only got

789
01:12:15.560 --> 01:12:19.720
forty minutes until midnight, Horton said, Do we just head back to the

790
01:12:19.720 --> 01:12:25.239
clubhouse or do we ride it out
and get more candy. I think we

791
01:12:25.359 --> 01:12:28.479
got more than enough to fill the
rest of the chest back at the clubhouse,

792
01:12:29.000 --> 01:12:32.960
Chunker stated, still, forty minutes
is forty minutes? Might as well

793
01:12:33.079 --> 01:12:38.000
end on a high note. Even
Chapman wasn't going to give Chunker a hard

794
01:12:38.039 --> 01:12:42.800
time. They'd started trick or treating
right at six every night when Trick or

795
01:12:42.800 --> 01:12:46.359
Treat Week started, and went all
the way until the end. They knew

796
01:12:46.760 --> 01:12:50.920
they couldn't stop. Now. Just
a little while longer, and they'd have

797
01:12:51.000 --> 01:12:57.479
officially trick or treated for seven nights
straight from start to finish. The boys

798
01:12:57.560 --> 01:13:01.239
managed to make the rounds on four
more blocks before it was almost midnight and

799
01:13:01.359 --> 01:13:06.159
the week long Trick or Treat festivities
would be over for the season. We

800
01:13:06.279 --> 01:13:11.199
really did it, guys, Horton
said, with pride. We got more

801
01:13:11.239 --> 01:13:15.239
candy than we ever did before,
and probably from all of our other years

802
01:13:15.279 --> 01:13:19.279
combined. Yeah, we did,
didn't we. Chapman agreed, I'm surprised

803
01:13:19.359 --> 01:13:24.439
Chunker here went the distance. Yeah, yeah, when have I ever not?

804
01:13:25.119 --> 01:13:29.439
Chunker demanded, well, he did
keep up with us on that night

805
01:13:29.520 --> 01:13:34.039
last summer, Horton recalled, Chapman
pointed at him, don't you even talk

806
01:13:34.079 --> 01:13:39.880
about that toothpick? We said,
we'd never talk about Abigail Tomlin ever again.

807
01:13:40.760 --> 01:13:45.239
When he saw both Horton and Chunker
giving him strange looks, he started

808
01:13:45.279 --> 01:13:50.720
to wonder himself. He got confirmation
when Chunker pointed at him. Here's still

809
01:13:50.760 --> 01:13:55.800
dreaming about her, too, ain't
you. Chapman didn't want to admit it,

810
01:13:56.239 --> 01:14:00.199
but the look on his face said
enough. Horton adjusted his circular glasses.

811
01:14:00.760 --> 01:14:04.199
Face it, you, guys.
We've never been able to forget about

812
01:14:04.199 --> 01:14:11.319
that ghostly woman. It had been
just shortly after the boys had finished sixth

813
01:14:11.359 --> 01:14:16.239
grade and their time at Strickfield Elementary. Now they were at Strickfield Junior High.

814
01:14:17.119 --> 01:14:21.319
As much as they had tried,
they just couldn't forget the horror they

815
01:14:21.319 --> 01:14:27.880
had experienced on the cry Baby Bridge
on Indian Hollow Road. It was just

816
01:14:27.920 --> 01:14:31.960
supposed to be an urban legend.
Brian and his older brother Kenny made plans

817
01:14:32.000 --> 01:14:35.960
to scare Horton and Chapman by making
it seem like the legend of the cry

818
01:14:36.000 --> 01:14:41.720
Baby Bridge was real. Kenny had
even gone so far as to mount a

819
01:14:41.800 --> 01:14:46.399
speaker at the bridge to amplify the
sounds of a little baby crying. The

820
01:14:46.520 --> 01:14:51.560
joke had worked, and Horton and
Chapman were both scared. Kenny revealed the

821
01:14:51.560 --> 01:14:58.039
speaker before he took it down and
went home. But what the three boys

822
01:14:58.079 --> 01:15:01.039
were about to find out was that
the legend of the cry Baby Bridge was

823
01:15:01.199 --> 01:15:08.359
indeed true. They not only heard
a baby crying Arthur Tomlin, but his

824
01:15:08.520 --> 01:15:14.399
mother had appeared in her horrible,
ghostly form. The boys were soon running

825
01:15:14.439 --> 01:15:18.760
for their very lives when Abigail Tomlin
chased them through very heavy winds conjured up

826
01:15:19.119 --> 01:15:25.279
by the haunting itself. The boys
barely made it as the morning sun came

827
01:15:25.359 --> 01:15:30.199
up and sent Abigail Tomlin back to
whatever nether world she may have come from.

828
01:15:30.159 --> 01:15:34.399
From that moment on, the boys
made it a point to never go

829
01:15:34.560 --> 01:15:42.239
anywhere near that bridge on Indian Hollow
Road ever again. Brian really wanted to

830
01:15:42.279 --> 01:15:45.600
tell Kenny that the legend of the
cry Baby Bridge was real, but he

831
01:15:45.720 --> 01:15:50.239
reconsidered when he realized Kenny might actually
go out there and check the legend out

832
01:15:50.239 --> 01:15:55.760
for himself. After all, their
father was the one who told the brothers

833
01:15:55.800 --> 01:16:00.079
the story of the cry Baby Bridge
naturally, and wanted to see if the

834
01:16:00.159 --> 01:16:08.039
legend was true. Many times over, he'd wished he hadn't. The boys

835
01:16:08.079 --> 01:16:13.199
had never been the same after that. They kept having awful nightmares about Abigail

836
01:16:13.279 --> 01:16:17.159
Tomlin and the horrible ordeal that had
cost her both her life and that of

837
01:16:17.199 --> 01:16:23.119
her baby son. Both of them
died on that very bridge as a result

838
01:16:23.159 --> 01:16:29.279
of her tyrannical husband and the gunfight
she had lost to him many many years

839
01:16:29.319 --> 01:16:33.159
ago. The boys felt deep down
that Abigail Tomlin wasn't finished with them,

840
01:16:33.800 --> 01:16:39.359
not by a long shot. I
really didn't want to say it. Horton

841
01:16:39.439 --> 01:16:45.479
finally confessed, she's coming back for
us. I think she's just waiting for

842
01:16:45.560 --> 01:16:49.680
the right time. How's she going
to come back for us? Chapman demanded,

843
01:16:50.319 --> 01:16:55.479
None of us have ever gone back
to Indian Hollow Road right. Chunker

844
01:16:55.520 --> 01:17:01.039
shook his head. I haven't,
no way me neither. Horton confessed I

845
01:17:01.119 --> 01:17:06.000
haven't either. Chapman also confessed.
Then he reached out and swung his fist

846
01:17:06.079 --> 01:17:10.960
at nothing. Why are we still
dreaming about her? Then? It's like

847
01:17:11.000 --> 01:17:14.760
she's still haunting us. I don't
want to say anything to mom and dad.

848
01:17:15.880 --> 01:17:19.119
I don't know what they'd say.
Well, my mom would likely take

849
01:17:19.159 --> 01:17:24.840
me to a shrink, Horton piped
up. She already thinks I'm crazy enough,

850
01:17:25.239 --> 01:17:30.039
especially since I'm hanging around with you
two. Both of them sighed they

851
01:17:30.079 --> 01:17:34.199
knew Horton's mother never really liked either
of them. Still, she never forbade

852
01:17:34.199 --> 01:17:39.640
her son from being friends with them. Chapman and Chunker didn't want to give

853
01:17:39.640 --> 01:17:45.000
Horton's mom a reason to finally reconsider
that the three of them had been friends

854
01:17:45.079 --> 01:17:49.560
since first grade at Strickfield Elementary and
had been through a lot together. While

855
01:17:49.560 --> 01:17:54.920
they were different in so many ways, they made their friendship last. Going

856
01:17:54.960 --> 01:18:00.720
into junior high. They knew they
didn't want their group to end. Abigail

857
01:18:00.760 --> 01:18:04.720
Tomlin's going to keep driving us crazy, Chunker stated, I'm surprised we aren't

858
01:18:04.720 --> 01:18:10.119
already nuts. Or maybe we are
and we just don't know it yet.

859
01:18:10.640 --> 01:18:15.840
Horton interjected, shut up. Chapman
snapped, pushing Horton a little. Then

860
01:18:15.880 --> 01:18:18.880
he groaned, let's go back to
the clubhouse and talk about this some more.

861
01:18:19.439 --> 01:18:25.680
I don't want to talk about this
out here. Good idea, Chunker

862
01:18:25.720 --> 01:18:30.279
agreed. The boys turned down a
nearby street which took them past the gated

863
01:18:30.279 --> 01:18:35.239
community where it was all Mirans.
It always seemed to be the one area

864
01:18:35.239 --> 01:18:42.560
of Strickfield that stood out around October
in December. The Mirans never opened their

865
01:18:42.600 --> 01:18:46.720
gated community for Halloween for trick or
treating, and they certainly never decorated for

866
01:18:46.800 --> 01:18:51.560
Christmas. The boys were quick to
notice how deathly still it seemed on the

867
01:18:51.600 --> 01:18:58.439
outside. They kept walking until they
were clear of the gated community. The

868
01:18:58.520 --> 01:19:02.720
boys continued to walk in silence.
They would only have about three blocks before

869
01:19:02.720 --> 01:19:09.359
they'd reach Chunker's house and their clubhouse. They'd just finished walking the first block

870
01:19:09.720 --> 01:19:14.079
and crossed into the second. They
were about a quarter mile into the block

871
01:19:14.600 --> 01:19:19.399
when they started to pass village cemetery. It was then when they heard some

872
01:19:19.680 --> 01:19:28.880
sounds in the distance. You guys
hear that, Chunker asked quietly. Sounds

873
01:19:28.960 --> 01:19:34.800
like little kids playing. Chapman replied, scratching his bird head. It's after

874
01:19:34.920 --> 01:19:41.159
midnight, Horton noted. Then he
checked his smart watch, it's almost twelve

875
01:19:41.199 --> 01:19:45.960
thirty. Yeah, but we're in
Junior High. Chapman stressed, the cops

876
01:19:46.000 --> 01:19:49.439
aren't going to say anything to us. Besides, we're not too far from

877
01:19:49.560 --> 01:19:56.600
Chunker's house. We might as well
keep moving, Chunker suggested. Then they

878
01:19:56.640 --> 01:20:05.840
heard the sounds of the little kids
laughing and the cemetery again. The boys

879
01:20:05.920 --> 01:20:12.680
wanted to turn away and keep going, but deep down, we should head

880
01:20:12.680 --> 01:20:16.920
inside and check on those kids.
Chapman said, yeah, but Horton stammered.

881
01:20:17.840 --> 01:20:23.119
When he saw the slight glare on
Chapman's face, he sighed, yeah,

882
01:20:23.159 --> 01:20:26.399
you're right. It is too late
for those kids to be out here

883
01:20:27.159 --> 01:20:31.079
and in a graveyard, Chunker added. The boys went to the cemetery entrance

884
01:20:31.359 --> 01:20:38.600
and found the iron gates were locked. When they heard the children laughing again,

885
01:20:39.359 --> 01:20:45.239
they realized they had only one way
inside. They tossed their pillowcases of

886
01:20:45.279 --> 01:20:49.720
candy over the wall and scaled it
to get inside. After dropping to the

887
01:20:49.760 --> 01:20:55.680
grass below, they picked up their
candy and stashed it until they could come

888
01:20:55.760 --> 01:21:00.680
back for it and leave over there, Chunker said, point in the direction

889
01:21:00.800 --> 01:21:06.600
of the laughter. The boys walked
cautiously through the seemingly endless rows of tombstones.

890
01:21:08.680 --> 01:21:14.279
Village Cemetery wasn't nearly as big as
Strickfield Cemetery, but it may as

891
01:21:14.319 --> 01:21:19.079
well have been with the atmosphere.
There was a light fog among the tombstones.

892
01:21:19.720 --> 01:21:26.359
Even though it was officially November first, now, Halloween night itself continued

893
01:21:26.399 --> 01:21:32.159
into the late hours in many places. Strickfield was no exception. I can't

894
01:21:32.159 --> 01:21:38.800
believe I'm walking around in a graveyard
on Halloween night, Horton groaned, Yeah,

895
01:21:38.960 --> 01:21:44.600
yeah, Chucker, muttered, stick
close. The boys kept walking cautiously

896
01:21:44.760 --> 01:21:49.479
through the cemetery until they came upon
the scene of the laughter. It looked

897
01:21:49.520 --> 01:21:55.399
as though a group of children were
in their halloween costumes. They were laughing

898
01:21:55.439 --> 01:22:00.159
as it seemed they were playing a
game. Well, it don't look like

899
01:22:00.199 --> 01:22:05.880
they're in any danger, Chunker observed. Okay, guess we can go home.

900
01:22:05.920 --> 01:22:12.000
Then Horton uttered quickly. As Horton
turned away, Chapman snatched his wrist.

901
01:22:12.680 --> 01:22:16.760
Come on, dude, really don't
forget safety in numbers here. When

902
01:22:16.800 --> 01:22:21.800
Horton calmed down, Chapman let go
of him. The boys watched the children

903
01:22:21.880 --> 01:22:27.239
still playing their game. They weren't
sure what the game was, but it

904
01:22:27.319 --> 01:22:32.039
looked like some form of hide and
seek. Before the boys were going to

905
01:22:32.079 --> 01:22:35.800
talk about what to do next,
Ghost in the Graveyard, Ghost in the

906
01:22:35.840 --> 01:22:41.720
Graveyard, the boys shrieked with fright
before they turned around to see a little

907
01:22:41.720 --> 01:22:45.920
girl dressed as Little Red riding Hood
pointing at Chunker in his zombie make up.

908
01:22:46.199 --> 01:22:49.960
Ghost in the Graveyard, Ghost in
the Graveyard, She called out again.

909
01:22:50.840 --> 01:22:55.039
It wasn't long before a little boy
came up next to the girl.

910
01:22:55.680 --> 01:23:01.119
His costume looked quite awkward. He
appeared to be all wet. His makeup

911
01:23:01.239 --> 01:23:05.279
was really good, because he seemed
to look like he had some stages of

912
01:23:05.279 --> 01:23:13.079
decomposition on his face and arms.
That's not the ghost, Annabeth, The

913
01:23:13.159 --> 01:23:16.319
boy told her. The ghost is
still around in here, somewhere. You

914
01:23:16.439 --> 01:23:21.000
know who the ghost is. Annabeth
turned to the boy, still pointing at

915
01:23:21.079 --> 01:23:26.399
Chunker. But he looks like a
ghost, too, Arthur. Arthur was

916
01:23:26.439 --> 01:23:32.039
looking the boys over. It's not
him, he told Annabeth again. What

917
01:23:32.079 --> 01:23:36.239
are you guys doing out here in
the cemetery. Chapman asked, it's after

918
01:23:36.319 --> 01:23:43.359
midnight. Aren't you afraid the copsule
come here? Arthur laughed. The police

919
01:23:43.439 --> 01:23:46.279
never come in here on Halloween.
They got way too much to do tonight

920
01:23:46.359 --> 01:23:51.439
to be looking in here. But
what are you doing in here? Horton

921
01:23:51.520 --> 01:23:57.920
asked, Ah, we're playing our
favorite game for Halloween night, Ghost in

922
01:23:57.960 --> 01:24:02.479
the Graveyard. Arthur answered, want
to play? The boys looked among themselves

923
01:24:02.479 --> 01:24:09.239
with uncertainty. Oh, come on, Arthur beckoned, it's Halloween knight.

924
01:24:09.319 --> 01:24:13.399
We got the whole graveyard to ourselves. There ain't gonna be any cops looking

925
01:24:13.479 --> 01:24:18.920
in here. Trust me on this
one, okay, Horton stammered, we

926
01:24:18.960 --> 01:24:25.119
can play a few rounds, right, no school tomorrow? In all yeah,

927
01:24:25.199 --> 01:24:30.159
okay, Chapman agreed. Chunkers seemed
just as unsure as his friends,

928
01:24:30.640 --> 01:24:34.199
but he still gave an affirming nod. Arthur motioned for the boys to follow

929
01:24:34.239 --> 01:24:39.479
him in Annabeth. He called for
the other children, who were quick to

930
01:24:39.560 --> 01:24:44.279
gather around. Okay, people,
these guys are playing Ghost in the Graveyard

931
01:24:44.279 --> 01:24:47.520
with us. He told them.
The ghost is still out there. Then

932
01:24:47.560 --> 01:24:51.600
he explained the rules to the boys
as he pointed to the nearby mausoleum.

933
01:24:53.479 --> 01:24:57.359
That's our home base. We already
picked somebody to be the ghost. The

934
01:24:57.439 --> 01:25:01.720
ghost is out there in this cemetery
somewhere. Now we'll chant the hours again

935
01:25:01.800 --> 01:25:05.560
so the ghost knows we got new
players in the game. I'll call out

936
01:25:05.600 --> 01:25:10.680
once we finished the chant. Once
I do, we all go out looking

937
01:25:10.720 --> 01:25:14.720
for the ghost. If anybody spots
the ghost, you yell ghost in the

938
01:25:14.760 --> 01:25:18.479
Graveyard and run back to home base
the mausoleum. Now, if the ghost

939
01:25:18.560 --> 01:25:23.880
catches you at any point and you're
not at home base, then you become

940
01:25:23.920 --> 01:25:29.520
the next ghost. Got it?
The boys nodded, Then Arthur led the

941
01:25:29.600 --> 01:25:33.560
chant by chanting the hours. When
they reached midnight. Arthur called out,

942
01:25:34.520 --> 01:25:41.439
Midnight midnight. We hope we don't
see a ghost tonight. Everybody cautiously walked

943
01:25:41.439 --> 01:25:46.000
away from the mausoleum and started looking
around. The boys pulled out their smartphones

944
01:25:46.039 --> 01:25:50.399
and turned on their camera flashes.
They found they weren't much help. After

945
01:25:50.439 --> 01:25:57.560
a little bit, they also noticed
they weren't getting any reception. I don't

946
01:25:57.680 --> 01:26:01.560
like this, Horton whispered. Something's
really wrong here. I can feel it.

947
01:26:02.840 --> 01:26:08.800
Yeah, I feel the same way. Chunker agreed. It'll be okay,

948
01:26:08.880 --> 01:26:13.159
guys. Chapman said, we'll just
play a few rounds and then get

949
01:26:13.159 --> 01:26:17.079
these kids to go home. You
don't sound so sure of yourself, Horton

950
01:26:17.199 --> 01:26:21.680
said. Chapman didn't have to say
it, but Horton and Chunker could both

951
01:26:21.760 --> 01:26:28.039
see on his face that he was
just as concerned as them. Just then,

952
01:26:29.439 --> 01:26:32.439
Oh, come on, Chunker,
really, Horton groaned as he coughed

953
01:26:32.520 --> 01:26:36.680
and waved his hand in front of
his face. Chapman was also waving his

954
01:26:36.760 --> 01:26:41.319
hand in front of his own face. Man, Chunker, you gotta stop

955
01:26:41.399 --> 01:26:46.560
eating so much of Denoyer's sweet Potato
pie. I'm sorry, guys, Chunker

956
01:26:46.640 --> 01:26:51.720
said, quietly, it's kind of
scary in here. It's no different than

957
01:26:51.800 --> 01:26:58.439
during the day, Chapman countered,
trying to sound more confident than he felt.

958
01:26:59.239 --> 01:27:03.079
Don't you watch scary movies, Horton
demanded. You know what you said,

959
01:27:03.119 --> 01:27:09.279
ain't right. It's always different in
a cemetery at night, Chapman growann

960
01:27:10.000 --> 01:27:15.079
But we're not in a scary movie, nerd. You're right, We're in

961
01:27:15.119 --> 01:27:20.920
a very scary graveyard on Halloween night, Horton said quickly. It was nighttime

962
01:27:21.000 --> 01:27:26.439
when we saw a ghost over the
summer. Yeah, we know, ghosts

963
01:27:26.479 --> 01:27:31.039
surreal, Chapman, Chunker reminded him. Chapman looked like he wanted to yell

964
01:27:31.079 --> 01:27:38.119
at both of them, but he
kept his thought to himself instead an if

965
01:27:38.159 --> 01:27:43.880
you guys see the ghost yet,
Horton shook his head. No, nope,

966
01:27:44.119 --> 01:27:48.840
Chunker replied, could be anywhere,
and then Arthur joined up with them.

967
01:27:49.439 --> 01:27:53.840
It's okay, guys, there's nothing
to worry about. Once we find

968
01:27:53.920 --> 01:27:58.119
the ghost, we run back to
home base. You sure there's somebody being

969
01:27:58.199 --> 01:28:01.279
the ghost out there, right,
Chunk asked. We've been looking around and

970
01:28:02.079 --> 01:28:08.760
we haven't seen anybody else except you. Horton added, trust me, there

971
01:28:08.880 --> 01:28:13.840
is a ghost. Arthur promised,
probably stalking us right now, unless the

972
01:28:13.880 --> 01:28:20.000
ghost is where the others are.
No. Horton disagreed. You said if

973
01:28:20.279 --> 01:28:26.560
anybody saw the ghost, they're supposed
to chant ghost in the graveyard. Yeah,

974
01:28:26.640 --> 01:28:31.039
we haven't heard anybody chant yet,
Chunker stressed. Village cemetery was lit

975
01:28:31.039 --> 01:28:36.039
decently thanks to the street lights around
the paths. The boys didn't want to

976
01:28:36.079 --> 01:28:41.600
say it, but they seemed to
think that Arthur's makeup looked more and more

977
01:28:41.640 --> 01:28:47.600
realistic in terms of the decomposition,
and he still looked soaking wet. If

978
01:28:47.600 --> 01:28:51.840
he was supposed to be a zombie
himself, then whoever did his makeup was

979
01:28:53.439 --> 01:28:58.840
really good. Let's check over there
at that mausoleum, Arthur suggested. At

980
01:28:58.880 --> 01:29:05.279
first, Horton hesitated, then Chapman
reminded him safety in numbers. Okay,

981
01:29:06.000 --> 01:29:12.239
Horton groaned. The four boys cautiously
walked to the mausoleum. Arthur was guiding

982
01:29:12.279 --> 01:29:15.199
them too. I'm pretty sure the
ghost is hiding in there. That's where

983
01:29:15.239 --> 01:29:20.319
she was last time. Yeah,
but wouldn't it be better to hide somewhere

984
01:29:20.319 --> 01:29:26.600
else, Chapman asked. Arthur didn't
say anything, but they continued until they

985
01:29:26.640 --> 01:29:32.079
reached the entrance of the mausoleum.
Mom, you in there, Arthur called

986
01:29:32.079 --> 01:29:39.359
out. Horton looked from Chunker to
Chapman. Mom. Now both Chunker and

987
01:29:39.439 --> 01:29:45.039
Chapman had the same worried looks as
Horton. Suddenly the door to the mausoleum

988
01:29:45.079 --> 01:29:48.880
flew open, to the horror of
the three friends. A ghastly glowing woman

989
01:29:48.960 --> 01:29:54.279
who wore a blood stained, damp
wedding gown now stood in the doorway.

990
01:29:54.479 --> 01:29:58.920
Her flesh was quite decayed, and
her red eyes glowed as bright as those

991
01:29:58.960 --> 01:30:04.720
at a railroad crossed. The apparition
screamed with delight as she looked upon the

992
01:30:04.760 --> 01:30:11.920
three faces. My babies, you
finally come home to your mother, Abigail

993
01:30:12.000 --> 01:30:16.760
Tomlin said in her dead and disembodied
voice. Then she held her arms out

994
01:30:16.960 --> 01:30:23.319
to grab them. Abigail Tomlin.
The three friends screamed together. Then they

995
01:30:23.359 --> 01:30:28.119
turned and ran for all they were
worth. The ghost of Abigail Tomlin screamed

996
01:30:28.159 --> 01:30:34.199
herself to pierce the stillness of the
night as she began chasing them. We're

997
01:30:34.199 --> 01:30:39.640
not at the bridge, Chunker moaned, How is this even happening? Oh

998
01:30:39.680 --> 01:30:42.560
Man, oh Man, oh Man, oh Man, oh Man. Horton

999
01:30:42.680 --> 01:30:46.239
squealed, We gotta get out of
here. Chapman yelled. There will never

1000
01:30:46.359 --> 01:30:53.560
be any escape for you, my
babies, Abigail Tomlin called out to them,

1001
01:30:53.640 --> 01:30:59.119
not this time and never again.
To the surprise of Chapman and Horton,

1002
01:30:59.600 --> 01:31:03.319
Chunker was actually running fast enough to
leave them behind. Horton shrieked,

1003
01:31:03.439 --> 01:31:08.279
and both he and Chapman ran faster
to keep up with him. As the

1004
01:31:08.319 --> 01:31:12.039
boys came upon the other children,
they were yelling for them to run,

1005
01:31:12.399 --> 01:31:15.800
waving their arms at them. Frantically. Ghost in the graveyard for real,

1006
01:31:16.319 --> 01:31:20.800
Horton screamed, get out of here, go home. Chapman added, We're

1007
01:31:20.840 --> 01:31:26.760
all gonna die if she catches us. For real, Chunker yelled. When

1008
01:31:26.760 --> 01:31:30.680
the other children saw Abigail Tomlin,
they all screamed and scattered. You can

1009
01:31:30.760 --> 01:31:35.640
run all you want, Arthur called
to the three friends. There's no escape.

1010
01:31:36.319 --> 01:31:42.279
Mom will have you all. You
escaped her once, but there's no

1011
01:31:42.560 --> 01:31:48.279
escape this time. Then Horton made
a startling realization. He said his name

1012
01:31:48.319 --> 01:31:53.600
was Arthur. That's the name of
Abigail Tomlin's little baby boy, like in

1013
01:31:53.640 --> 01:31:58.760
the legend of cry Baby Bridge.
You mean Arthur's a ghost too, Chunker

1014
01:31:58.840 --> 01:32:03.319
cried in disbelief. Makes sense,
Chapman gasped. He calls her mom.

1015
01:32:03.720 --> 01:32:09.000
They both died together at the bridge
years ago. You may run as much

1016
01:32:09.000 --> 01:32:13.920
as you like, my children,
Abigail Tomlin called to them. You are

1017
01:32:13.960 --> 01:32:17.960
within the boundaries of this burial ground. You will never escape me again,

1018
01:32:19.000 --> 01:32:25.800
especially not before the sun rises.
The boys knew the sun wouldn't be up

1019
01:32:25.840 --> 01:32:30.800
for several hours, yet it was
just after one o'clock. We can't keep

1020
01:32:30.840 --> 01:32:34.319
running much longer, Chunker groaned.
Let's get back to the wall and climb

1021
01:32:34.359 --> 01:32:40.279
over, Chapman yelled. The boys
quickly reached the wall with all the strength

1022
01:32:40.319 --> 01:32:44.760
and determination that came from being scared
for their lives. The boys quickly scaled

1023
01:32:44.760 --> 01:32:49.960
the wall and dropped to the outside. Abigail Tomlin floated high enough to where

1024
01:32:50.000 --> 01:32:56.880
they could see her. However,
she could not float over the wall itself.

1025
01:32:57.840 --> 01:33:02.039
The boys knew they were safe,
but Abigail Tomlin gave them a weird

1026
01:33:02.159 --> 01:33:09.399
look before she slowly lowered herself back
into the cemetery. Let's get out of

1027
01:33:09.439 --> 01:33:15.319
here, Chunker said, after catching
his breath. Horton was inclined to agree.

1028
01:33:15.600 --> 01:33:19.399
However, we can't, guys,
we can't just leave those kids in

1029
01:33:19.439 --> 01:33:26.279
there. Abigail Tomlin will claim them, you know she will. You guys

1030
01:33:26.319 --> 01:33:29.159
want to go home, then go. But I won't be able to sleep

1031
01:33:29.159 --> 01:33:33.239
tonight knowing I didn't at least try
to save them. True, the boys

1032
01:33:33.279 --> 01:33:39.279
had escaped Abigail Tomlin once more.
However, they knew Horton was right,

1033
01:33:39.880 --> 01:33:44.800
and he certainly did not want to
go back in there himself. I'm with

1034
01:33:44.880 --> 01:33:47.880
you, Horton, Chapman said,
Way to put a guilt trip on us.

1035
01:33:47.920 --> 01:33:53.920
But you're right. You know we're
not gonna make it out again.

1036
01:33:54.000 --> 01:33:59.119
Right. Tomlin's gonna get us this
time. Yeah, I know, Horton

1037
01:33:59.159 --> 01:34:02.920
replied. You know, I'm really
scared, but I'm going back in.

1038
01:34:03.880 --> 01:34:09.680
Chunker put a hand on Horton's shoulder
and laughed a little. We still got

1039
01:34:09.720 --> 01:34:13.359
to get all our candy we left
in there. I'm not letting Abigail Tomlin

1040
01:34:13.439 --> 01:34:16.880
have all that candy, no way. The others laughed a little at Chunker's

1041
01:34:16.960 --> 01:34:23.720
humor, even though the candy was
the farthest thing from their minds. Thanks

1042
01:34:23.720 --> 01:34:28.600
for being my best friends, guys, Horton said. Chunker pointed sharply at

1043
01:34:28.680 --> 01:34:31.079
him, No, you don't.
We're getting back out of here, and

1044
01:34:31.119 --> 01:34:35.239
you better believe that. Though he
didn't sound as confident as he would have

1045
01:34:35.439 --> 01:34:41.520
liked, I got a plan to
get the children out, Horton told them.

1046
01:34:41.920 --> 01:34:46.079
The other two listened as Horton explained
the plan. It's suicide, but

1047
01:34:47.119 --> 01:34:53.560
let's do it. Chapman said,
yeah, Chunker cheered. The boys took

1048
01:34:53.600 --> 01:34:58.159
a deep breath before they scaled the
wall again and dropped back into the cemetery.

1049
01:34:58.720 --> 01:35:01.560
They ran in the direction of the
children, screaming. It wasn't long

1050
01:35:01.640 --> 01:35:06.800
before they saw the ghost of Abigail
Tomlin floating near the kids. She had

1051
01:35:06.840 --> 01:35:12.560
them backed up against the mausoleum that
was declared home base. Of course,

1052
01:35:13.000 --> 01:35:17.560
she had no intention of honoring that
part of ghost in the graveyard. Hey,

1053
01:35:17.600 --> 01:35:24.880
Abigail over here, Chunker called out, leave them alone. Chapman added,

1054
01:35:25.119 --> 01:35:29.479
it's us you want remember. Horton
put his thumbs in his ears.

1055
01:35:29.960 --> 01:35:33.960
Nana na, Na, na,
Nana. Abigail Tomlin immediately turned to them,

1056
01:35:34.520 --> 01:35:39.800
It's time to come home, my
children. You've been in the mortal

1057
01:35:39.880 --> 01:35:45.319
realm long enough. As soon as
she began floating towards them, Chunker called

1058
01:35:45.319 --> 01:35:49.159
to the children get out of here
now. The boys saw the children move

1059
01:35:49.239 --> 01:35:55.520
from the home base mausoleum and run
to the wall. Arthur Tomlin couldn't stop

1060
01:35:55.560 --> 01:35:59.880
them as they helped each other get
up and over. The boys stood there

1061
01:36:00.279 --> 01:36:05.199
as Abigail Tomlin continued closing the gap
between herself and the boys, as they

1062
01:36:05.239 --> 01:36:11.399
agreed they would stand their ground until
every last child had escaped. It was

1063
01:36:11.439 --> 01:36:15.640
when the last one had scaled the
wall that Abigail Tomlin finally reached them.

1064
01:36:16.279 --> 01:36:20.600
The boys never screamed as she touched
all three of them to bring them into

1065
01:36:20.600 --> 01:36:28.079
the realm of the dead. Now
Abigail Tomlin had finally claimed the three of

1066
01:36:28.119 --> 01:36:32.960
them as her own. Here,
finally home, at last, my long

1067
01:36:33.039 --> 01:36:45.479
lost children. Now my son Arthur
will not be so lonely. The family

1068
01:36:45.520 --> 01:36:49.720
and friends of the boys and the
children of those they saved, searched village

1069
01:36:49.720 --> 01:36:57.600
cemetery again and again. The only
thing they turned up were the three pillowcases

1070
01:36:57.720 --> 01:37:01.279
full of candy. As far as
as Brian Chunk, Richie Horton, and

1071
01:37:01.319 --> 01:37:09.319
Bill Chapman went, their bodies were
never found. In fact, they were

1072
01:37:09.359 --> 01:37:14.960
never found within the entire village of
Strickfield. After several weeks of searching and

1073
01:37:15.039 --> 01:37:21.000
an investigation, the boys were finally
given up for lost. In fact,

1074
01:37:21.359 --> 01:37:29.880
the three boys were never ever seen
again. However, if you're ever fullheartedly

1075
01:37:30.039 --> 01:37:34.880
brave enough and you happen to drive
into Strickfield, go to the bridge on

1076
01:37:35.000 --> 01:37:43.039
Indian Hollow Road, the cry Baby
Bridge at night. Just remain there for

1077
01:37:43.079 --> 01:37:48.640
a while. When you feel the
winds starting to blow, you might just

1078
01:37:48.800 --> 01:37:56.840
might hear the cries of Brian Chunk, Richie Horton, and Bill Chapman calling

1079
01:37:56.840 --> 01:38:03.520
out for help from beyond the mortal
realm as we know it, And you

1080
01:38:03.640 --> 01:38:11.239
might even see the ghost of Abigail
Tomlin, who continues to haunt this region

1081
01:38:11.880 --> 01:38:26.079
of Strickfield, especially on Halloween night. If you're still hungry for more treats

1082
01:38:26.119 --> 01:38:30.119
and tidbits, we have an extra
special story here coming right up. This

1083
01:38:30.159 --> 01:38:36.119
one is called Tricks and Treats.
And while I consider myself to be host

1084
01:38:36.199 --> 01:38:44.840
DuJour of Weekly Spooky, this story
brings along its very own host and it

1085
01:38:44.920 --> 01:38:49.439
happens to bring several different scares all
together. But before we get to this,

1086
01:38:49.479 --> 01:38:54.800
I want to mention, if you're
on Facebook, we have a group

1087
01:38:55.319 --> 01:39:00.520
just for Weekly Spooky fans for the
spookies to share their favorite Halloween s stories,

1088
01:39:00.840 --> 01:39:03.479
mostly funny memes, and so much
more. All you have to do

1089
01:39:03.600 --> 01:39:09.399
is go to Facebook and type in
weekly Spooky's Tomb of Terror. All are

1090
01:39:09.479 --> 01:39:13.039
welcome and it's a good time.
I myself hang out there quite a bit,

1091
01:39:13.399 --> 01:39:16.399
sharing memes along with the authors.
But now let's get to the story.

1092
01:39:16.439 --> 01:39:26.560
After these quick words Tricks and Treats
by Keith Tomlin. Ladies and gentlemen,

1093
01:39:26.720 --> 01:39:31.760
boys and girls, devils and demons. Allow me to introduce myself,

1094
01:39:32.479 --> 01:39:36.640
said a tall, thin man in
a dark red suit. People call me

1095
01:39:36.840 --> 01:39:43.279
Jack, Jack Scratch. Flamboyantly removing
his top hat, he gave a deep,

1096
01:39:43.720 --> 01:39:47.680
almost mocking bow. I am what
you call a talent scout, a

1097
01:39:47.760 --> 01:39:56.319
headhunter, if you will, I
scour the afterlife for people of extraordinary passions,

1098
01:39:56.760 --> 01:40:02.000
people devoted to the pillars of our
organization, namely, blood, death

1099
01:40:02.439 --> 01:40:09.439
and pain. Jack twirled his hat
between his fingers and with a flourish snapped

1100
01:40:09.479 --> 01:40:14.079
it into the air and it landed
perfectly on his head. He grinned and

1101
01:40:14.159 --> 01:40:18.159
rubbed the ends of his handlebar mustache
that sat atop his van Dyke goatee,

1102
01:40:18.920 --> 01:40:26.079
before continuing Once a year on Halloween, the big guy downstairs allows me to

1103
01:40:26.079 --> 01:40:30.000
come to visit you mortals, to
get a preview of the up and comers,

1104
01:40:30.479 --> 01:40:33.720
the minor leaguers who may be called
up to the big leagues. Jack

1105
01:40:33.800 --> 01:40:40.560
began strolling down the sidewalk, past
parents with children in costumes who paid him

1106
01:40:40.600 --> 01:40:45.319
no attention. Take this place,
this small midwestern town, an idyllic little

1107
01:40:45.359 --> 01:40:50.720
slice of heaven, maybury, apple
pie and all that. What could possibly

1108
01:40:50.800 --> 01:40:57.159
happen in a place like this,
Well, friends, you may be surprised.

1109
01:40:57.960 --> 01:41:05.319
Take a look over there at the
lovely family the white Lion. Jacques

1110
01:41:05.359 --> 01:41:11.079
Blanc, a middle aged, rotund
man dressed in an expensive white suit,

1111
01:41:11.479 --> 01:41:15.880
watched his son Leon, his beloved
white lion, walk up the path to

1112
01:41:15.960 --> 01:41:21.600
the two story house. His wife
Patricia stood behind him, her face also

1113
01:41:21.800 --> 01:41:28.439
glowing with love. Leon, dressed
as a clown with white and red face

1114
01:41:28.520 --> 01:41:33.319
paint, knocked lightly on the front
door and waited, holding his plastic pumpkin

1115
01:41:33.399 --> 01:41:39.039
shaped bucket in front of him.
As the door opened to show an elderly

1116
01:41:39.079 --> 01:41:44.199
woman, Leon raised his bucket and
in a slight French accent, said,

1117
01:41:44.800 --> 01:41:49.319
take or treat. Oh what a
lovely clown. Here you go, sweetie,

1118
01:41:49.600 --> 01:41:54.680
The woman exclaimed as she dropped a
handful of candy into his bucket.

1119
01:41:55.439 --> 01:42:00.439
Leon thanked her and walked back to
his parents. When Leon stopped in front

1120
01:42:00.439 --> 01:42:04.239
of him, Jacques reached out and
lightly gripped him on the shoulder. He

1121
01:42:04.359 --> 01:42:10.279
asked his son, almost in a
whisper, is this the house? No,

1122
01:42:10.439 --> 01:42:15.079
Papa, Leon replied, well,
then the hunt continues. Lead the

1123
01:42:15.079 --> 01:42:21.479
way, Jacques said, gesturing forward
with a silver tipped walking cane. Leon

1124
01:42:21.640 --> 01:42:27.359
nodded, then turned and walked down
the sidewalk, using the cane to support

1125
01:42:27.439 --> 01:42:31.159
himself. His father limped behind him. They stopped at over a half a

1126
01:42:31.199 --> 01:42:36.359
dozen more houses, each trip to
the front door ending with more candy and

1127
01:42:36.479 --> 01:42:42.920
Leon informing his father that this was
not the house. As Jacques watched his

1128
01:42:43.039 --> 01:42:46.760
son walk up to another house,
he pushed back his impatience and frustration.

1129
01:42:47.399 --> 01:42:53.560
It would not do to unintentionally influence
the boy. Once again, his son

1130
01:42:53.640 --> 01:42:57.439
knocked on a door, and this
time it was a large man in his

1131
01:42:57.560 --> 01:43:01.680
thirties that answered. The man barely
looked at the child before dumping a candy

1132
01:43:01.720 --> 01:43:06.760
bar into his bucket and shutting the
door without saying a word. His son

1133
01:43:06.960 --> 01:43:12.600
stared at the shut door for a
couple of heartbeats before turning to walk back

1134
01:43:12.680 --> 01:43:16.800
up the driveway. Jacques fought to
keep his excitement from showing on his face.

1135
01:43:17.319 --> 01:43:23.720
He could tell this was it.
He patiently waited until his son walked

1136
01:43:23.800 --> 01:43:28.000
up to stand before him. Well, son, is this the house?

1137
01:43:28.520 --> 01:43:31.960
He asked as neutrally as he could. Leon looked at his father and then

1138
01:43:32.000 --> 01:43:38.479
his mother. Yes, Papa,
maman, this is the house. Jacques

1139
01:43:38.520 --> 01:43:44.000
gently patted his son's cheek and nodded. He took another look at the house

1140
01:43:44.039 --> 01:43:50.720
and began strolling down the sidewalk with
his son's hand in his Richard Lane struggled

1141
01:43:50.720 --> 01:43:57.000
against his urge to slam the door, his rage simmering. Those damn kids

1142
01:43:57.079 --> 01:44:00.840
knock on his door, mock him, and he's expected to give them candy.

1143
01:44:00.359 --> 01:44:04.279
The worst part is that he has
to or risk spending the next day

1144
01:44:04.319 --> 01:44:09.000
cleaning up toilet paper from the trees
and eggs off of his front door.

1145
01:44:09.800 --> 01:44:14.880
Those kids need discipline, not hugs
and cuddles that their pansy ass fathers give

1146
01:44:14.920 --> 01:44:18.960
them. His knuckles turned white as
he clenched his hand in anger. He

1147
01:44:19.079 --> 01:44:25.720
wanted to scream and rage, smash
everything in sight. He forced himself to

1148
01:44:25.800 --> 01:44:29.880
calm down, knowing that he would
have to wait to release what he called

1149
01:44:30.560 --> 01:44:35.239
the beast. When the doorbell rang
again, Richard's rage threatened to explode.

1150
01:44:35.600 --> 01:44:41.640
He made himself take a couple of
slow, deep breaths before rising to answer

1151
01:44:41.680 --> 01:44:46.039
it. Adapting a calm facade,
Richard opened the door to see a young

1152
01:44:46.119 --> 01:44:51.159
boy dressed in a clown outfit.
He was slightly surprised as he recognized the

1153
01:44:51.199 --> 01:44:57.880
boy as one who'd stop by earlier, the one with the faggy French accent.

1154
01:44:59.159 --> 01:45:02.279
Please, Sir, Leon said,
with tears streaking his makeup, I

1155
01:45:02.319 --> 01:45:08.039
cannot find my papa. Can you
help me? Uh? Sure, kid,

1156
01:45:08.039 --> 01:45:11.920
come on in, I'll call the
police station, Richard said, Caught

1157
01:45:11.920 --> 01:45:16.359
off guard, sobbing, Leon entered
the house. Richard leaned outside and looked

1158
01:45:16.479 --> 01:45:21.279
up and down the sidewalk, Not
seeing anyone, He locked the front door

1159
01:45:21.399 --> 01:45:27.199
and turned off his porch light.
Richard turned and looked at the child standing

1160
01:45:27.199 --> 01:45:30.720
in his living room. He licked
his lips and tried not to shiver with

1161
01:45:30.800 --> 01:45:36.600
anticipation. So, kid, uh
just wait there and I'll call the cops,

1162
01:45:38.039 --> 01:45:42.159
Richard said soothingly. He reached over
and picked up the receiver from a

1163
01:45:42.199 --> 01:45:45.520
phone sitting on a cheaply made end
table. He pretended to dial a number

1164
01:45:45.520 --> 01:45:49.880
and began speaking to the dial tone. Yes, Hi, I am a

1165
01:45:49.960 --> 01:45:55.359
kid here who says he lost his
parents. Uh okay, I'll hold Richard

1166
01:45:55.399 --> 01:45:59.720
moved the phone away from his mouth. They're transferring me to the correct apartment.

1167
01:46:00.159 --> 01:46:04.079
Yes, I have a kid here
who lost his parents, Richard paused,

1168
01:46:04.560 --> 01:46:09.199
Um, I don't know his name. I'll let you talk to him.

1169
01:46:09.479 --> 01:46:12.760
With his left hand, Richard reached
the phone out towards Leon, while

1170
01:46:12.800 --> 01:46:16.800
his right hand slipped behind his back
toward the knife hidden under his shirt.

1171
01:46:17.399 --> 01:46:23.880
Ah, there's my boy, said
a booming voice behind Richard startled. Richard

1172
01:46:23.920 --> 01:46:28.319
turned toward the voice while his right
hand drew out a large hunting knife.

1173
01:46:28.680 --> 01:46:31.640
As he brought up the knife,
all he saw was a figure in white

1174
01:46:32.039 --> 01:46:38.319
and a silver streak racing toward his
head. The floor shook as Richard hit

1175
01:46:38.399 --> 01:46:42.479
the ground, a trickle of blood
running down his face where the silver handle

1176
01:46:42.520 --> 01:46:48.479
of Jacques's walking stick connected with his
temple. Richard's head throbbed as he regained

1177
01:46:48.560 --> 01:46:54.880
consciousness, The face of a man
dressed in a prissy white suit slowly came

1178
01:46:54.920 --> 01:47:00.479
into focus. Ah. Miss Darline, Jacques said, checking the wall his

1179
01:47:00.560 --> 01:47:05.039
hand. You are awake. What
the fuck is going on? Richard groaned,

1180
01:47:05.880 --> 01:47:12.560
Why are you bastards in my house? Mister Lane, Jacques chided,

1181
01:47:12.960 --> 01:47:15.840
that is no way to talk in
front of a lady and the child.

1182
01:47:15.520 --> 01:47:21.039
Patricia looked down at him disapprovingly.
Richard tried to rise, only to find

1183
01:47:21.079 --> 01:47:26.680
that he was tied to a chair. He began to struggle as Jacques continued

1184
01:47:26.720 --> 01:47:31.439
speaking. Mister Lane, my son
has developed a talent for finding bad men,

1185
01:47:31.760 --> 01:47:36.279
and you, monsieur, are a
very bad man, Jacques said,

1186
01:47:36.359 --> 01:47:42.159
shaking his head. My family has
suffered greatly from men such as yourself.

1187
01:47:42.920 --> 01:47:46.039
Three of them attacked our house.
I was savagely beaten and spent many months

1188
01:47:46.039 --> 01:47:54.319
in the hospital learning how to walk
again. My wife was violated. Jacques

1189
01:47:54.399 --> 01:47:59.680
paused, his voice nearly breaking.
Patricia had tears flowing down her cheeks.

1190
01:48:00.319 --> 01:48:03.760
My son was able to hide,
but he saw everything. Somehow these awoke

1191
01:48:03.840 --> 01:48:10.600
in their power within him, and
now we travel reading the world of munsters

1192
01:48:10.600 --> 01:48:15.039
such as yourself. Your fucking nuts, Richard screamed as the beast took over.

1193
01:48:15.279 --> 01:48:19.920
I'll fucking kill you and a little
bastard he struggled against his restraints,

1194
01:48:20.039 --> 01:48:25.439
and triumph flashed in his eyes as
he felt the wooden legs begin to give.

1195
01:48:26.239 --> 01:48:30.079
Leon was staring off into the darkness
of the kitchen. The basement,

1196
01:48:30.119 --> 01:48:33.560
Papa, he keeps them in the
basement, he said, quietly, like

1197
01:48:33.640 --> 01:48:40.520
a balloon pricked with a needle.
Richard instantly deflated, what basement. You're

1198
01:48:40.560 --> 01:48:45.720
crazy, no, Leon said,
his voice laden with sadness of the ages.

1199
01:48:45.279 --> 01:48:49.319
It is true you did unspeakable acts
to children, and you placed their

1200
01:48:49.319 --> 01:48:54.199
bodies in the ground below us.
Bullshit, what liar told you that,

1201
01:48:54.840 --> 01:49:00.479
Richard bellowed indignantly. They did,
Leon said, as a dozen young boys

1202
01:49:00.560 --> 01:49:03.920
began to stream out of the darkness
of the kitchen and into the living room.

1203
01:49:04.199 --> 01:49:09.760
They surrounded Richard and stared at him
with soulful eyes. Are you crazy?

1204
01:49:09.960 --> 01:49:15.359
There's nobody there, Richard responded,
bewildered. My son, Jacques stated

1205
01:49:15.880 --> 01:49:20.359
he can see and speak with spirits, ones who die with violence. Bullshit.

1206
01:49:20.560 --> 01:49:26.560
Fuck this. Richard once again strained
against his restraints and was rewarded by

1207
01:49:26.560 --> 01:49:30.239
the arms of the chair snapping and
freeing his hands. He began to lunge

1208
01:49:30.279 --> 01:49:33.640
out of the seat when Jacques yanked
the silver handle of his walking stick,

1209
01:49:33.920 --> 01:49:41.560
exposing a long, thin blade.
Richard's eyes widened in shock as this blade

1210
01:49:41.640 --> 01:49:46.239
pierced his throat. Jacques flicked the
blade sideways and severed his carrotid artery.

1211
01:49:47.079 --> 01:49:53.960
The Blanc family watched impassively as Richard
collapsed back into the chair and slowly bled

1212
01:49:54.000 --> 01:49:58.920
out. After a few seconds,
Richard stood and looked around in shock.

1213
01:49:59.640 --> 01:50:05.960
He and stared when he spotted his
own lifeless body. Backing off in terror,

1214
01:50:06.199 --> 01:50:11.800
he turned only to see the young
boys surrounding him. The children leaped

1215
01:50:11.840 --> 01:50:15.840
on him, clawing and tearing.
Richard screamed in terror and pain. The

1216
01:50:15.880 --> 01:50:23.199
boys dragged Richard into the kitchen toward
the basement door. Jacques bent down and

1217
01:50:23.279 --> 01:50:28.319
hugged his son. Are you okay, he asked. Leon nodded yes,

1218
01:50:28.359 --> 01:50:32.600
Papa good. You saved many lives
tonight. Don't you ever forget that.

1219
01:50:33.319 --> 01:50:38.680
Jacques stood and began to clean the
blood from his blade with a white handkerchief.

1220
01:50:39.520 --> 01:50:44.600
Patricia leaned down and whispered in Leon's
ear. She straightened and looked at

1221
01:50:44.680 --> 01:50:50.039
Jacques. Papa Leon said, yes, my son. Maman wanted you to

1222
01:50:50.119 --> 01:50:55.520
know that she is proud of you, of us, Leon told his father.

1223
01:50:56.560 --> 01:51:00.000
Thank you. Where is she,
Jacques said, ignoring the tears rolling

1224
01:51:00.039 --> 01:51:05.560
down his face. She's in front
of you. Jacques reached out his hand,

1225
01:51:05.680 --> 01:51:16.439
passing through Patricia jett Ami Monchartie.
Jack shook his head, how touching.

1226
01:51:17.239 --> 01:51:21.199
Jack was relaxed on a park bench, his long legs stretched out in

1227
01:51:21.239 --> 01:51:27.840
front of him. People walking by
detoured around him without seeming to notice him.

1228
01:51:28.319 --> 01:51:31.680
Jack reached into his jacket. Another
thing I miss about this realm,

1229
01:51:32.039 --> 01:51:35.840
he said, pulling out a cigar. You can't beat a good smoke.

1230
01:51:36.560 --> 01:51:42.439
Jack snapped his fingers and a flame
erupted from his thumb. He lit the

1231
01:51:42.479 --> 01:51:48.039
cigar, leaned back, and exhaled
with obvious pleasure. Ah, you mortals

1232
01:51:48.119 --> 01:51:54.760
make sin taste so damn good.
I love sin that you can drink or

1233
01:51:54.880 --> 01:52:00.560
smoke. Some people, however,
prefer their sin to be more physical.

1234
01:52:00.079 --> 01:52:03.640
Jack said, take a look at
the trio of young men over there.

1235
01:52:04.399 --> 01:52:09.800
Jack pointed to a group of high
school boys hiding behind a bush. They're

1236
01:52:09.840 --> 01:52:20.199
about to learn some quick lessons in
the ways of sin. The Countess Ryan

1237
01:52:20.279 --> 01:52:25.359
did not have a good feeling about
this. He looked over at his friends

1238
01:52:25.439 --> 01:52:30.000
Tim and Alan and wondered how they
talked him into this. Guys, let's

1239
01:52:30.119 --> 01:52:33.279
just go home. He said,
for the tenth time, dude, don't

1240
01:52:33.279 --> 01:52:36.560
be a pussy. I told you
My brother said that this chick loves high

1241
01:52:36.560 --> 01:52:41.840
school dick. He and some friends
came here a few years ago on Halloween

1242
01:52:42.199 --> 01:52:46.560
and they all got laid. Tim
explained, for the tenth time, what's

1243
01:52:46.600 --> 01:52:49.880
the worst that could happen. She'll
slam the door in her face and you'll

1244
01:52:49.880 --> 01:52:55.800
go home and jerk off again.
Alan shoved a mask at Ryan. Put

1245
01:52:55.800 --> 01:53:00.600
on your mask and shut the fuck
up, he commanded. Ryan gave up

1246
01:53:00.640 --> 01:53:04.319
and slipped the elastic band of the
cheap plastic mask around his head. He

1247
01:53:04.439 --> 01:53:10.479
briefly hesitated before following the other two
boys across the street and through the front

1248
01:53:10.479 --> 01:53:15.439
gate of a run down two story
house. Tim hesitated at the door until

1249
01:53:15.479 --> 01:53:19.079
Alan poked him in the ribs.
Tim took a deep breath and knocked.

1250
01:53:20.079 --> 01:53:26.159
After a few seconds, the door
was opened by a stunningly attractive woman in

1251
01:53:26.199 --> 01:53:30.319
her mid thirties. She wore a
low cut silk robe along with an amused

1252
01:53:30.359 --> 01:53:36.159
expression. Why you boys look a
bit old to be out looking for treats,

1253
01:53:36.760 --> 01:53:43.039
she said suggestively. Her voice was
silky smooth and had a hint of

1254
01:53:43.079 --> 01:53:47.640
an Eastern European accent. Alan poked
Tim again. Tim tore his eyes from

1255
01:53:47.640 --> 01:53:54.880
her cleavage and began to stammer.
Yes, ma'am, my brother Terry was

1256
01:53:54.880 --> 01:53:59.319
here a few years ago and said
that you like to I mean that you

1257
01:53:59.520 --> 01:54:04.840
have Halloween parties. Ah, you
are looking for treats, she purred.

1258
01:54:05.479 --> 01:54:10.159
She looked each of them in the
eyes, a knowing smile on her face.

1259
01:54:10.960 --> 01:54:15.680
Come in, I might have some
candy for you. She stepped back

1260
01:54:15.840 --> 01:54:20.960
and gestured them in. The boys
shared an amazing look before moving inside.

1261
01:54:21.960 --> 01:54:28.319
The house was very warm and,
in contrast to the exterior, surprisingly well

1262
01:54:28.359 --> 01:54:32.000
furnished. The furniture looked old,
and the artwork on the walls looked expensive.

1263
01:54:32.520 --> 01:54:36.800
She shut the door and led them
to the living room. She turned

1264
01:54:36.800 --> 01:54:41.520
and looked at the boys, who
were awkwardly standing just inside the living room

1265
01:54:41.640 --> 01:54:45.520
entryway. Come on, take off
your jackets and have a seat on the

1266
01:54:45.520 --> 01:54:50.079
sofa, she smiled. Leave on
your masks. While the boys complied,

1267
01:54:50.479 --> 01:54:56.000
She walked over to a liquor cabinet
and began fixing drinks. As she presented

1268
01:54:56.039 --> 01:54:59.800
each boy a drink, she bent
low and allowed them to look down the

1269
01:54:59.800 --> 01:55:03.520
front her robe. When done,
she stepped back and looked them over.

1270
01:55:04.399 --> 01:55:10.920
So my name is Elizabeth. What
are your names? Alan, nearly spilling

1271
01:55:10.920 --> 01:55:15.279
his drink, pointed at each of
them in turn. I'm Alan, this

1272
01:55:15.439 --> 01:55:18.680
is Tim, and the skinny nerd
on the end is Ryan. Ah.

1273
01:55:18.720 --> 01:55:24.680
Such nice American names. You're lucky. I have plans tonight, but I

1274
01:55:24.840 --> 01:55:30.079
think I can squeeze you in,
Elizabeth said. She stared at each of

1275
01:55:30.119 --> 01:55:33.640
them, her piercing gaze stripping them
down to their souls. As she looked

1276
01:55:33.640 --> 01:55:39.279
at him, Ryan began to panic, feeling like a rabbit being examined by

1277
01:55:39.319 --> 01:55:44.520
a wolf. I think we should
go, Ryan spoke, breaking the spell

1278
01:55:44.560 --> 01:55:48.439
that seemed to have enveloped the room. Nonsense, she said, laughing.

1279
01:55:49.479 --> 01:55:54.479
This is a beggar's night, is
it not? Where I come from,

1280
01:55:54.560 --> 01:55:59.399
it is bad luck to turn away
a beggar, she sighed wistfully. I

1281
01:55:59.439 --> 01:56:01.000
wish I had had more time to
get to know each of you, but

1282
01:56:01.239 --> 01:56:05.520
we'll have to make do with the
time we have. She pointed at Alan,

1283
01:56:06.880 --> 01:56:11.880
You I think will be first.
She headed to the stairs leading up

1284
01:56:11.920 --> 01:56:15.960
to the second floor. As she
began to climb, she slowly tugged at

1285
01:56:15.000 --> 01:56:20.479
the knot in the robe's sash.
Don't make me wait, she cooed,

1286
01:56:20.800 --> 01:56:27.560
as the robe slipped from her shoulders. She was wearing nothing underneath. After

1287
01:56:27.600 --> 01:56:31.319
she disappeared upstairs, Alan turned to
the other boys. Fuck yeah, hope

1288
01:56:31.319 --> 01:56:36.239
you'll like sloppy seconds. Alan jumped
to his feet and practically ran up the

1289
01:56:36.279 --> 01:56:42.760
stairs. Ryan and Tim sat in
stunned silence for a few minutes, until

1290
01:56:42.800 --> 01:56:46.800
Tim leaned over and whispered to Ryan, Wow, I can't believe this is

1291
01:56:46.840 --> 01:56:53.640
happening. It's like something out of
a porno. Something is wrong here.

1292
01:56:54.880 --> 01:57:00.199
This doesn't feel right. Ryan whispered
back. Tim lifted his mask. Damn,

1293
01:57:00.319 --> 01:57:02.479
you always do this shit. I
don't know why we're still friends.

1294
01:57:02.960 --> 01:57:06.720
You'd rather be at home in your
mom's basement playing magic the Gathering than out

1295
01:57:06.720 --> 01:57:13.359
at parties and getting laid. But
I like magic the Gathering, Ryan replied,

1296
01:57:13.560 --> 01:57:17.279
sounding hurt. Grow the fuck up. Tim snorted, looking away and

1297
01:57:17.319 --> 01:57:23.319
pulling his mask back down. The
two sat in awkward silence until a voice

1298
01:57:23.399 --> 01:57:27.680
called them from upstairs. Tim,
would you like to come up here and

1299
01:57:27.760 --> 01:57:30.840
join me? Tim stood, took
a look at Ryan and shook his head

1300
01:57:30.880 --> 01:57:38.199
in disgust, He turned and without
a word, walked upstairs. Ryan sat

1301
01:57:38.239 --> 01:57:42.479
on the couch by himself. Many
times he started to get up to leave,

1302
01:57:42.560 --> 01:57:45.199
but he knew that his life would
be hell on Monday if he did.

1303
01:57:46.000 --> 01:57:50.319
Alan would be sure to let everyone
know at school that he pussied out

1304
01:57:50.640 --> 01:57:57.119
on a sure thing. Fuck,
Ryan said, after endless minutes of contemplation.

1305
01:57:58.159 --> 01:58:00.239
It's not like they don't make fun
of me. Now, Well,

1306
01:58:00.640 --> 01:58:04.319
this is bullshit. I'm just gonna
go, Ryan thought. Just as he

1307
01:58:04.359 --> 01:58:10.279
stood to leave, he heard a
soft voice from upstairs. Ryan, you

1308
01:58:10.319 --> 01:58:14.720
are not leaving, I hope,
said, the soft voice, sending shivers

1309
01:58:14.760 --> 01:58:20.520
down his spine. Come to me, Ryan, she commanded. Almost without

1310
01:58:20.560 --> 01:58:26.520
conscious thought, he rose and began
to climb the stairs. His mind was

1311
01:58:26.640 --> 01:58:30.720
screaming danger, but his body kept
climbing. At the top of the stairs

1312
01:58:30.800 --> 01:58:34.800
was a short haul with several doors. The door at the end was open.

1313
01:58:35.560 --> 01:58:40.600
Ryan entered to see Elizabeth stretched out
on the bed, wearing a thin

1314
01:58:40.720 --> 01:58:45.800
negligee. Come here, my darling, she whispered, patting the bed.

1315
01:58:45.520 --> 01:58:50.960
Her voice had a raspiness that it
didn't have before. Ryan, as if

1316
01:58:51.079 --> 01:58:55.880
in a dream, sat down on
the bed next to her. She reached

1317
01:58:55.920 --> 01:59:00.159
out and stroked his chin. At
her touch, he jerked his head away.

1318
01:59:01.000 --> 01:59:04.840
She laughed, oh, come on
now, we'll have none of that.

1319
01:59:05.920 --> 01:59:11.880
You are the one who piqued my
interest. The others were meaningless.

1320
01:59:12.279 --> 01:59:15.520
It is you that I wanted,
she said, snuggling up to him,

1321
01:59:15.680 --> 01:59:20.640
her tongue flicking out to touch his
ear. Ryan jerked back, shaking a

1322
01:59:20.680 --> 01:59:26.760
confusion from his mind. Where where
are my friends? He said, leaning

1323
01:59:26.760 --> 01:59:30.960
away from her. They're fine,
They sleep like the dead. What we

1324
01:59:31.079 --> 01:59:35.560
did takes a lot out of a
man. But wait, you wouldn't know

1325
01:59:35.640 --> 01:59:41.960
that, would you, she said, teasing him. He looked confused.

1326
01:59:42.920 --> 01:59:45.680
Darling, I love it that you've
never been with a woman. I have.

1327
01:59:45.840 --> 01:59:53.279
I mean, I'm not a virgin, he protested. Shh. Back

1328
01:59:53.319 --> 01:59:56.680
in Hungary, where I grew up, I had a maid who taught me

1329
01:59:56.760 --> 02:00:00.279
all kinds of things. One was
how to look in to someone's eyes and

1330
02:00:00.399 --> 02:00:06.079
tell if they've ever laid with another. She also taught me this. Elizabeth

1331
02:00:06.159 --> 02:00:12.039
grabbed the back of Ryan's head and
pulled him toward her. He resisted at

1332
02:00:12.079 --> 02:00:16.720
first, but soon gave in to
the passionate kiss that followed. Ryan was

1333
02:00:16.760 --> 02:00:20.880
lost in the kiss, but started
to panic as his lips began to burn

1334
02:00:21.399 --> 02:00:27.840
and grow numb. The numbness spread
across his face and moved down his body

1335
02:00:27.920 --> 02:00:32.319
until he was trapped inside a body
that he could not control. Sleep,

1336
02:00:32.359 --> 02:00:41.720
my darling, Elizabeth said, as
Ryan slipped away into unconsciousness. Ryan woke

1337
02:00:41.800 --> 02:00:45.760
to the sounds of chains rattling.
Groggily. He tried to sit up,

1338
02:00:46.159 --> 02:00:51.359
but found that he was lashed to
a board suspended in the air. He

1339
02:00:51.479 --> 02:00:57.279
was on his back with his feet
elevated slightly. He tried to look around,

1340
02:00:57.319 --> 02:01:03.399
but could see only cold white tiles
lit by flickering candles. Ah,

1341
02:01:03.920 --> 02:01:09.479
you are awake, Elizabeth said,
pulling on a chain and lifting Ryan higher.

1342
02:01:10.479 --> 02:01:14.319
I saw miss the days when I
had others do chores like this.

1343
02:01:15.439 --> 02:01:19.239
It doesn't seem right that a countess
should be doing manual labor. But times

1344
02:01:19.239 --> 02:01:24.319
have changed, and I am no
longer a noble woman with a castle full

1345
02:01:24.359 --> 02:01:30.319
of servants, she said wistfully.
Ryan tried to talk to yell, but

1346
02:01:30.439 --> 02:01:34.359
he found he couldn't make a sound. There there, darling, it will

1347
02:01:34.359 --> 02:01:39.800
be over soon. You saved me
much effort coming to me like this.

1348
02:01:40.560 --> 02:01:45.600
The spell for eternal youth is quite
simple, but it does require the blood

1349
02:01:45.640 --> 02:01:51.439
of a virgin, and they are
so hard to find nowadays. As Ryan

1350
02:01:51.520 --> 02:01:58.439
struggled to free himself, Elizabeth stripped
nude and began chanting. When the last

1351
02:01:58.479 --> 02:02:02.319
of the incantation stopped echoing off the
sterile white walls, she picked up a

1352
02:02:02.399 --> 02:02:09.359
hollow metal tube that had a needle
on one end. She expertly pierced Ryan's

1353
02:02:09.359 --> 02:02:13.760
neck with it, and blood began
running out of the open end and into

1354
02:02:13.760 --> 02:02:19.000
an antique bathtub. Elizabeth kissed Ryan
on the forehead. Thank you, darling

1355
02:02:19.479 --> 02:02:26.399
for giving me your life. She
stood naked and climbed into the tub,

1356
02:02:26.680 --> 02:02:30.960
allowing the stream of blood to run
over her face and flow down between her

1357
02:02:31.000 --> 02:02:44.039
breasts. Ryan silently screamed as his
life flowed from him. Such a shame,

1358
02:02:44.680 --> 02:02:47.479
Jack said, shaking his head.
I have a special position that I

1359
02:02:47.600 --> 02:02:53.159
keep open for the Countess, but
I fear it won't be filled anytime soon.

1360
02:02:53.760 --> 02:02:58.039
So sad. She could be such
a great asset to the organization.

1361
02:02:59.079 --> 02:03:02.079
Oh well, let's get on with
it, choweling. Jack took a few

1362
02:03:02.119 --> 02:03:08.520
steps and then stopped to lean against
a fence. Even small towns can have

1363
02:03:08.880 --> 02:03:13.920
big town crimes, and desperation can
bring out the worst in people. Will

1364
02:03:13.960 --> 02:03:16.760
it be enough to earn a management
position in the organization, or will they

1365
02:03:16.880 --> 02:03:21.479
end up being one of the endless
drones, beaten and tortured for eternity.

1366
02:03:23.159 --> 02:03:28.279
Well, kids, let's find out. Keep an eye on that gentleman standing

1367
02:03:28.279 --> 02:03:31.359
in the shadows down there, Jack
said, pointing to a clump of bushes

1368
02:03:31.399 --> 02:03:36.840
down the street. But first,
I wouldn't be a true representative of Satan

1369
02:03:38.279 --> 02:03:42.800
without a couple of advertisers, now
would I. They'll sell you something and

1370
02:03:42.840 --> 02:03:57.079
then we'll be back for a final
tale. The bunny Eddie Young looked again

1371
02:03:57.159 --> 02:04:00.000
at the hole in his jacket.
He was lucky that the bullet the cop

1372
02:04:00.039 --> 02:04:04.720
had fired missed him by an inch. He smiled when he recalled how he

1373
02:04:04.760 --> 02:04:10.279
put one in the middle of that
pig's face. Fucking cops, he thought.

1374
02:04:10.920 --> 02:04:14.279
Eddie cocked his head and listened to
the sirens off in the distance.

1375
02:04:14.960 --> 02:04:18.199
He cursed as he realized that they
were getting closer. And on top of

1376
02:04:18.239 --> 02:04:24.079
that, he thought he could hear
a helicopter too, okay, think,

1377
02:04:24.439 --> 02:04:29.000
he said out loud. Looking around, he saw several groups of children and

1378
02:04:29.039 --> 02:04:33.680
adults walking down the sidewalks. The
youngsters all in costume. He needed to

1379
02:04:33.680 --> 02:04:38.720
get off the street. A lone
man walking around when kids are trigger treating

1380
02:04:38.760 --> 02:04:44.840
may look suspicious. He also needed
a car hidden in the shadows between a

1381
02:04:44.880 --> 02:04:48.920
tree and some tall bushes. He
studied the nearby houses. The Blue House.

1382
02:04:49.640 --> 02:04:53.560
The woman that answered the door to
pass out candy was in her late

1383
02:04:53.600 --> 02:04:58.279
twenties or early thirties. There was
a little Jap car in the driveway.

1384
02:04:59.399 --> 02:05:02.720
No man would own a little pussy
car like that, at least not one

1385
02:05:02.760 --> 02:05:08.439
living with a woman, Eddie thought. He strolled past the house and noticed

1386
02:05:08.439 --> 02:05:12.159
that there was no car seat in
the car or anything else to indicate that

1387
02:05:12.239 --> 02:05:15.640
she had kids. As he turned
back around, he noticed a little girl

1388
02:05:16.039 --> 02:05:20.039
who couldn't be more than six or
seven, leave the sidewalk and approach the

1389
02:05:20.079 --> 02:05:25.840
Blue houses front door. She was
dressed in a white one piece bunny suit

1390
02:05:26.119 --> 02:05:30.439
wearing a rabbit mask, her bunny
ears bobbing with every step. Eddie looked

1391
02:05:30.439 --> 02:05:35.119
around and did not see any adults
nearby. He didn't know why this child

1392
02:05:35.199 --> 02:05:39.640
was alone, but he was never
one to look a gift horse in the

1393
02:05:39.720 --> 02:05:45.199
mouth. Decision made. He began
walking briskly up behind the little girl who

1394
02:05:45.279 --> 02:05:48.920
had knocked on the door. Just
as the door opened, he stopped next

1395
02:05:48.920 --> 02:05:53.279
to the girl, who tilted her
head back to look up at him.

1396
02:05:53.760 --> 02:05:57.800
Mindy opened the door and exclaimed,
oh, look at the little bunny.

1397
02:05:57.960 --> 02:06:01.279
So cute. The little girl shifted
her gaze to her and held up a

1398
02:06:01.319 --> 02:06:06.560
pillowcase for candy. Eddie gave his
best smile. I know she is a

1399
02:06:06.560 --> 02:06:12.000
little angel. I hate to bother
you, but can she use your bathroom?

1400
02:06:12.319 --> 02:06:16.039
Eddie drawled as he pushed the little
girl forward into the doorway. Mindy

1401
02:06:16.159 --> 02:06:21.720
seemed surprised, but instinctively stepped back, allowing Eddie and the little girl inside.

1402
02:06:23.439 --> 02:06:27.680
Um I guess, she said,
taking a few more steps back as

1403
02:06:27.800 --> 02:06:31.680
Eddie kept moving them forward. Once
inside, Eddie pushed the door shut,

1404
02:06:31.840 --> 02:06:35.319
then shoved the girl at Mindy,
who had to grab the girl's arm to

1405
02:06:35.399 --> 02:06:41.359
keep her from falling. What are
you doing, Mindy gasped, words died

1406
02:06:41.399 --> 02:06:45.239
in her mouth as she looked up
to see a large handgun pointed at her

1407
02:06:45.279 --> 02:06:49.039
head. Shut up and listened,
bitch, Eddie snarled. The first time

1408
02:06:49.079 --> 02:06:53.159
you do or say something I didn't
tell you to, I'm shooting this damn

1409
02:06:53.239 --> 02:06:57.920
kid in the head. The second
time I'm shooting you. He punctuated his

1410
02:06:57.960 --> 02:07:02.359
words by pressing the gun to the
child's head and then hers. Mindy's face

1411
02:07:02.399 --> 02:07:06.119
went pale with fear, and she
nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

1412
02:07:06.800 --> 02:07:12.760
Where's your husband, Eddie asked.
I I don't have a husband, She

1413
02:07:12.880 --> 02:07:18.000
said, your boyfriend, roommate.
I live alone. Mindy said, okay,

1414
02:07:18.119 --> 02:07:21.399
darling, So here's what we're gonna
do, Eddie said, as he

1415
02:07:21.479 --> 02:07:26.479
noticed the child walking to the front
door. Get that fucking kid away from

1416
02:07:26.520 --> 02:07:30.560
the door, Eddie exploded. Mindy
rushed over to the child and wrapped her

1417
02:07:30.640 --> 02:07:34.640
arms around her. She looked at
Eddie and asked, is this your daughter?

1418
02:07:35.239 --> 02:07:39.399
Shit? No, just some brad
off the street, Eddie answered,

1419
02:07:39.640 --> 02:07:44.199
walking over to the window to peer
outside. Mindy lowered herself to her knees

1420
02:07:44.239 --> 02:07:47.279
and looked the girl in the eyes, sweetie, what is your name?

1421
02:07:48.000 --> 02:07:53.640
Are your parents around? Daddy or
mommy? Seeing no recognition in the eyes,

1422
02:07:53.680 --> 02:07:58.319
she hugged the girl. I think
she may be mentally handicapped, great,

1423
02:07:58.760 --> 02:08:01.640
Eddie said, as he let the
curtain fall back into place. I

1424
02:08:01.720 --> 02:08:07.319
picked a fucking retard. We don't
use the R word. Look, I'm

1425
02:08:07.319 --> 02:08:09.640
a special ed teacher, and we
have to be patient with kids with special

1426
02:08:09.720 --> 02:08:15.279
needs. Mindy scolded lady, I
don't give a fuck. All you need

1427
02:08:15.319 --> 02:08:16.960
to know is that if you fuck
up, I'll blow her brains out the

1428
02:08:18.000 --> 02:08:22.520
back of her head, Eddie commented
coldly. As he walked around the living

1429
02:08:22.600 --> 02:08:26.720
room. Mindy stroked the girl's hair
and whispered words of comfort from behind her

1430
02:08:26.760 --> 02:08:31.520
mask. The child's eyes flicked back
and forth from Mindy to Eddie. Eddie

1431
02:08:31.520 --> 02:08:37.079
stopped pacing and looked at Mindy.
Okay, here's the plan. I'm going

1432
02:08:37.119 --> 02:08:39.520
to stay here for a bit and
then I'll tie you up and leave you

1433
02:08:39.600 --> 02:08:43.520
here. I'll take the kid and
leave in your car at the first store

1434
02:08:43.600 --> 02:08:46.640
I pass. I'll drop her off
in the parking lot and someone will find

1435
02:08:46.640 --> 02:08:50.680
her. You can't drop a child
off in a parking lot, Mindy said,

1436
02:08:50.720 --> 02:08:56.199
indignant. She stood to face Eddie. You were not taking her anywhere,

1437
02:08:56.680 --> 02:09:00.479
Mindy pushed the little girl behind her, shielding her from the in true

1438
02:09:00.920 --> 02:09:05.199
Eddie laughed humorously. I'm not asking
for permission. I'm telling you what's going

1439
02:09:05.239 --> 02:09:09.279
to happen if you and the brat
want to get out of this alive.

1440
02:09:09.079 --> 02:09:13.479
Eddie waved the gun in the air. Remember I'm the guy with the gun.

1441
02:09:15.560 --> 02:09:18.279
Mindy's retort was cut off as they
heard the sound of a refrigerator door

1442
02:09:18.319 --> 02:09:22.279
being opened. Eddie cursed as he
realized that the child was no longer in

1443
02:09:22.319 --> 02:09:26.840
the room. He shoved Mindy across
the living room and stormed into the kitchen.

1444
02:09:28.520 --> 02:09:31.880
Mindy was just rising to her feet
when Eddie came back into the room

1445
02:09:31.920 --> 02:09:35.319
and practically threw the child at her. If you don't keep an eye on

1446
02:09:35.399 --> 02:09:39.600
her, I'm gonna put one through
her fucking head. Mindy said nothing.

1447
02:09:39.960 --> 02:09:43.359
She just hugged the child. For
the next half an hour, silence hung

1448
02:09:43.439 --> 02:09:48.159
over the living room. Eddie paced
back and forth, occasionally looking out the

1449
02:09:48.159 --> 02:09:54.159
front window. Finally, he nodded, Okay, it looks like trick or

1450
02:09:54.199 --> 02:09:58.960
treat is over. He said.
Give me your car keys there on the

1451
02:09:58.000 --> 02:10:03.399
table next to the door. But
the car won't start. Mindy said what

1452
02:10:03.199 --> 02:10:07.359
Eddie said? Yeah, my dad
thinks it's the battery. He's supposed to

1453
02:10:07.359 --> 02:10:11.359
stop by tomorrow to look at it. Mindy stated, her fatigue showing in

1454
02:10:11.359 --> 02:10:16.479
her voice. Are you fucking serious, you damn bitch, Eddie screamed as

1455
02:10:16.479 --> 02:10:20.880
he rushed over and grabbed Mindy by
the neck, lifting her to her feet.

1456
02:10:20.319 --> 02:10:24.560
If you're lying, I'll break your
fucking teeth, snarled Eddie as he

1457
02:10:24.680 --> 02:10:28.600
drew back the hand holding the gun. Mindy brought her hands up to block

1458
02:10:28.640 --> 02:10:33.439
the blow. Movement in the corner
of Eddie's vision caused him to stop and

1459
02:10:33.600 --> 02:10:37.760
turned just in time to see the
child going out the front door. Shit,

1460
02:10:39.640 --> 02:10:43.279
Eddie yelled, tossing Mindy back to
the floor. He rushed over and

1461
02:10:43.319 --> 02:10:46.039
grabbed the little girl by the back
of her bunny costume, yanking her inside

1462
02:10:46.279 --> 02:10:52.000
and slamming the door. God damn
it, I fucking told you, Eddie

1463
02:10:52.039 --> 02:10:54.119
screamed as he threw the child on
the couch. He grabbed one of the

1464
02:10:54.119 --> 02:10:58.439
couch pillows and covered the girl's face
with it. He shoved the gun into

1465
02:10:58.439 --> 02:11:03.640
the pillow and was about to shoot
when Mindy let out a scream and leaped

1466
02:11:03.640 --> 02:11:09.000
on his back. Eddie threw back
his elbow and Mindy went flying, crashing

1467
02:11:09.039 --> 02:11:13.399
into the coffee table. Time stood
still for Mindy. Everything was blurry except

1468
02:11:13.399 --> 02:11:20.039
for two things, the gun poised
above the pillow and a heavy ceramic ashtray

1469
02:11:20.319 --> 02:11:24.680
that was knocked off of the coffee
table. She reached out for the ashtray,

1470
02:11:24.119 --> 02:11:28.439
and as soon as her handmade contact, time began to flow. Once

1471
02:11:28.479 --> 02:11:33.640
again. Eddie rammed the gun into
the pillow. Before he could pull the

1472
02:11:33.640 --> 02:11:37.279
trigger, Mindy swung the ashtray as
hard as she could, striking him in

1473
02:11:37.319 --> 02:11:41.239
the back of the head. Eddie
groaned and the gun fired, hitting the

1474
02:11:41.279 --> 02:11:45.520
couch inches from the little girl.
Eddie tried to roll over to bring the

1475
02:11:45.520 --> 02:11:50.399
gun up, but Mindy raised the
ashtray and swung it again and again.

1476
02:11:50.720 --> 02:11:54.680
She didn't know how many times she
hit him, but when she stopped,

1477
02:11:56.399 --> 02:12:01.680
the bloody, gory mess atop Eddie's
shoulders was not recognizable as a human head.

1478
02:12:03.960 --> 02:12:07.199
Mindy let go of the ashtray and
fell to her knees, sobbing.

1479
02:12:07.199 --> 02:12:13.239
Minutes later, she felt a small
hand touching her shoulder. Looking up to

1480
02:12:13.239 --> 02:12:18.159
see the little girl, she enveloped
her in a crushing bear hug. Mindy

1481
02:12:18.239 --> 02:12:22.880
then sat the girl on the coffee
table and examined her. Are you okay?

1482
02:12:22.239 --> 02:12:26.880
Did you get hurt? Mindy asked, getting no response. Seeing no

1483
02:12:28.079 --> 02:12:33.000
signs of injury or blood, she
began to remove the mask. The little

1484
02:12:33.000 --> 02:12:37.159
girl tried to push Mindy's hands away, but Mindy tried to soothe her.

1485
02:12:37.920 --> 02:12:41.239
Sh it's okay, I need to
make sure you're all right, Mindy said

1486
02:12:41.279 --> 02:12:46.680
in a soft voice. Despite the
girl's silent protests, Mindy lifted the mask

1487
02:12:46.760 --> 02:12:52.560
and then stopped, frozen in shock. The skin on the child's face was

1488
02:12:52.640 --> 02:12:56.960
leathery and rough. Strands of thick, coarse hair dotted her face, and

1489
02:12:58.000 --> 02:13:01.079
there was a pig like snout where
her nose should have been. Two small

1490
02:13:01.159 --> 02:13:05.359
tusks jutted out of her cheeks,
and her mouth was wide with thin lips.

1491
02:13:07.199 --> 02:13:11.680
The child's eyes searched Mindy's and,
finding fear and revulsion, the child

1492
02:13:11.760 --> 02:13:20.039
smiled, showing rose of little razor
sharp teeth. Mindy's last words were a

1493
02:13:20.079 --> 02:13:31.439
plea to her God for help,
a plea that went unanswered. Oh well,

1494
02:13:31.560 --> 02:13:35.039
I don't think Eddie is going to
make the cut. So few live

1495
02:13:35.119 --> 02:13:41.199
up to their true potential. What
is today's society coming to, Jack said,

1496
02:13:41.520 --> 02:13:46.119
shaking his head sadly. Jack looked
down at his wrist. Oh my,

1497
02:13:46.399 --> 02:13:48.800
look, at the time, I
had a thoroughly enlightening time with you,

1498
02:13:50.319 --> 02:13:52.479
and I thank each and every one
of you. I hope I can

1499
02:13:52.520 --> 02:14:00.319
express my gratitude in person one day, Jack bowed, I must be going

1500
02:14:00.359 --> 02:14:03.479
now, so little time left.
I haven't gotten my hands wet all night,

1501
02:14:03.560 --> 02:14:07.439
and that simply won't do, said
Jack, grinning like a madman.

1502
02:14:09.079 --> 02:14:13.479
With that said, I'll take my
leave of you and bid you ad Jack

1503
02:14:13.560 --> 02:14:18.640
said, bowing once again, looking
around, Jack called out Isabella, come

1504
02:14:18.680 --> 02:14:22.640
on, dear, we have deeds
to do. A young child wearing a

1505
02:14:22.680 --> 02:14:28.119
bunny mask and a one piece white
bunny suit wet with red stains emerged out

1506
02:14:28.159 --> 02:14:35.000
of the darkness. She grabbed Jack's
outstretched hand and they walked off into the

1507
02:14:35.119 --> 02:14:45.039
night. Let's talk about a truly
terrifying situation having to work on Halloween night.

1508
02:14:45.680 --> 02:14:48.159
Many of us have to. I've
had to work many Halloweens when I

1509
02:14:48.159 --> 02:14:52.079
would rather be at home in a
silly costume handing out candy. But this

1510
02:14:52.159 --> 02:15:01.760
story is about what happens when the
night shift goes deeply. Ay, it's

1511
02:15:01.800 --> 02:15:05.159
called the night Stalker, but not
spelled the way you might expect. But

1512
02:15:05.239 --> 02:15:11.800
all puns aside, it's a truly
terrifying night. And that's before your meal

1513
02:15:11.840 --> 02:15:16.039
break even happens. So get ready
for another terrifying tale. As I remind

1514
02:15:16.079 --> 02:15:18.880
you, if you love what we're
doing here and you can't get enough,

1515
02:15:20.279 --> 02:15:22.920
you can go to Weeklyspooky dot com
click on Patreon, and for as little

1516
02:15:22.960 --> 02:15:28.800
as one dollar a month, you
can support the program directly and get a

1517
02:15:28.800 --> 02:15:33.520
bonus show every single month. So
please give it a shot at Weeklyspooky dot

1518
02:15:33.560 --> 02:15:37.319
com click on Patreon. But now
let's get to the story after these quick

1519
02:15:37.359 --> 02:15:48.239
words. The Night Stalker by Shane
Migliavanka Milicent Richard's Millie to her friends,

1520
02:15:48.640 --> 02:15:52.880
sat on the edge of her bed, pulling on her sneakers. She took

1521
02:15:52.920 --> 02:15:58.760
a deep breath, lost in her
thoughts. Tonight she would begin her first

1522
02:15:58.960 --> 02:16:05.039
real job and on Halloween no less
a lot less fun than trick or treating

1523
02:16:05.039 --> 02:16:09.920
with Annette Wilson and Diane Samuels.
Damn Milly sure as hell didn't want to

1524
02:16:09.920 --> 02:16:15.079
go to night, but she needed
the money and her parents could use the

1525
02:16:15.159 --> 02:16:20.520
help. She stood on the radio. Bobby Brown was singing about calling the

1526
02:16:20.560 --> 02:16:24.760
Ghostbusters while a muted Knight of the
Living Dead played on the television. She

1527
02:16:24.880 --> 02:16:30.960
picked up her bargain grocer's cap and
adjusted it on her head. She took

1528
02:16:31.000 --> 02:16:35.399
a moment to look at herself in
the mirror, smartly dressed in her crisp

1529
02:16:35.520 --> 02:16:39.959
new blue and gold uniform, her
light brown hair pulled back into a ponytail.

1530
02:16:41.079 --> 02:16:46.840
Not too bad. Switching the TV
and radio off, Milly picked up

1531
02:16:46.879 --> 02:16:52.040
her walkman an orange book bag.
She turned to leave, but first turned

1532
02:16:52.040 --> 02:16:56.040
to her poster of Patrick Swayze,
which hung on her bedroom door. Wish

1533
02:16:56.120 --> 02:17:03.200
me luck. She headed downstairs.
The staircase railing was decorated with orange pumpkin

1534
02:17:03.280 --> 02:17:09.040
shaped lights. Her mother always went
all out for the holidays. Rise from

1535
02:17:09.079 --> 02:17:13.959
the Grave. An artificial voice commanded
from her brother's video game in the living

1536
02:17:13.040 --> 02:17:18.639
room, See you later, Russ. Without taking his eyes off the TV,

1537
02:17:18.200 --> 02:17:22.520
Russ waved back. Milly stepped into
the hall, taking her coat from

1538
02:17:22.520 --> 02:17:28.319
the closet. Can we manage barb
Milly heard her father in the kitchen.

1539
02:17:30.360 --> 02:17:35.319
We can try the extra money.
You'll definitely help. Is it enough?

1540
02:17:37.120 --> 02:17:43.360
I I don't know, her mother
answered. Milly went to the door quietly

1541
02:17:43.879 --> 02:17:52.559
and exited the house unnoticed. Witches, zombies, and skeletons rushed up and

1542
02:17:52.680 --> 02:18:00.719
down the street on the hunt for
candy or mischief. She clipped the walkman

1543
02:18:00.760 --> 02:18:05.879
to her belt and slid on the
headphones. Retrieving her bicycle from the garage,

1544
02:18:05.200 --> 02:18:11.639
Milly weaved her way through her mom's
crazy lawn decorations and passed a pair

1545
02:18:11.680 --> 02:18:16.520
of ghosts arguing over who had more
candy. She'd felt a bit self conscious

1546
02:18:16.559 --> 02:18:22.440
about going out in her uniform,
but it was Halloween night. Everybody was

1547
02:18:22.520 --> 02:18:28.239
dressed up as something Milly just happened
to look like a bargain grocer's clerk.

1548
02:18:28.319 --> 02:18:33.040
Once Milly was on the road,
she peddled faster and faster, scared she

1549
02:18:33.159 --> 02:18:37.559
might be late. Shit, she
came to a stop. A gaggle of

1550
02:18:37.600 --> 02:18:43.760
trick or treaters and their chaperone were
crossing the intersection. Damn it, Milly

1551
02:18:43.840 --> 02:18:48.920
swore under her breath, Come on, come on. A car roared up

1552
02:18:48.959 --> 02:18:54.200
alongside her, its engine drowning out
her music. The red Firebird sat waiting

1553
02:18:54.239 --> 02:18:58.600
for the procession of kids to cross. Heavy metal, cranked to the STEREO's

1554
02:18:58.680 --> 02:19:05.159
highest volume level blared over the thunder
of the engine. Milly knew the car.

1555
02:19:05.639 --> 02:19:09.399
She'd seen it several times at school. Milly felt the two men inside

1556
02:19:09.959 --> 02:19:15.920
watching her. Hey, Troy,
look at this. It's a working girl.

1557
02:19:16.440 --> 02:19:18.239
Get off the bike, darling.
I got something you can ride,

1558
02:19:18.520 --> 02:19:24.680
and it's a stick shift. Milly
gulped come on, kids, Come on.

1559
02:19:24.399 --> 02:19:28.799
She tensed up. After the kids
had all crossed, the car mercifully

1560
02:19:30.079 --> 02:19:37.000
roared away. Milly exhaled and pedaled
on. She skidded to a stop by

1561
02:19:37.040 --> 02:19:41.239
the bike rack outside of Bargain Groceries. The parking lot was fairly dead,

1562
02:19:41.559 --> 02:19:48.120
only some last minute shoppers left.
Milly quickly chained her bike up. The

1563
02:19:48.200 --> 02:19:52.440
sudden sound of heavy metal music made
her heart skip a beat. A familiar

1564
02:19:52.520 --> 02:19:58.959
red firebird slowly drove past the store. She watched as it passed, turning

1565
02:19:58.000 --> 02:20:03.680
off onto a side street. There
wasn't much time to worry about if they

1566
02:20:03.719 --> 02:20:07.760
were looking for her or not,
as Milly was pretty sure she was late

1567
02:20:07.239 --> 02:20:18.079
for her first night on the job. The automatic doors swished open. Hey,

1568
02:20:18.840 --> 02:20:26.239
A young woman called over. Hero
See oc was Milly's nickname from way

1569
02:20:26.319 --> 02:20:30.399
back, given to her by her
best friend at the time, Samantha Vale.

1570
02:20:31.159 --> 02:20:33.920
A cute redhead, waved her over
to the breakroom entrance. She was

1571
02:20:33.959 --> 02:20:39.680
wearing a uniform like Millie's, but
she had an eyepatch and a fake mustache

1572
02:20:39.719 --> 02:20:43.559
on for Halloween. Quick punch in, you got a minute to go.

1573
02:20:43.200 --> 02:20:48.559
The girl held open the breakroom door. Just inside the door of the breakroom

1574
02:20:48.680 --> 02:20:52.000
was a time clock. Milly pulled
out her punch card and pulled the machine's

1575
02:20:52.079 --> 02:20:58.479
lever just in time. Thanks Sam, Milly said Sam had always been a

1576
02:20:58.479 --> 02:21:03.760
good friend, and though high school
social status had caused them to drift,

1577
02:21:03.159 --> 02:21:09.040
they had finally reconnected and their friendship
was stronger than ever. Stow your bag

1578
02:21:09.040 --> 02:21:11.959
and jacket in the locker. I'll
take you to meet John. He's out

1579
02:21:13.000 --> 02:21:18.559
back. Sam pointed to Milly's walkman. Better stow that too. John's not

1580
02:21:18.680 --> 02:21:22.760
into having that shit on the job. He's not too bad. He just

1581
02:21:22.840 --> 02:21:26.959
has his own way of doing stuff. Hi, the cashier said. As

1582
02:21:26.959 --> 02:21:31.319
they walked past, Milly noted he
was wearing pointy fangs. A vast me

1583
02:21:31.479 --> 02:21:37.159
heartee, Sam laughed, this is
Brian, Hey, Milly, you working

1584
02:21:37.239 --> 02:21:41.840
here now. She felt a rush
of embarrassment. Brian knew her, but

1585
02:21:43.399 --> 02:21:48.479
she didn't recognize him at all.
Yeah, I sure do, she struggled.

1586
02:21:48.239 --> 02:21:54.440
He looked a little disappointed. I
shot behind you in English mister Kendrick's

1587
02:21:54.440 --> 02:22:00.280
class. Oh sorry, right,
she still didn't recognize him. Good to

1588
02:22:00.319 --> 02:22:05.000
see you, she lied, thankfully. Sam led her away. John's a

1589
02:22:05.000 --> 02:22:09.000
cool boss. Can be a little
intense sometimes because he was a nam.

1590
02:22:09.760 --> 02:22:13.479
Millie followed Sam to the back of
the store through large double doors. A

1591
02:22:13.600 --> 02:22:20.440
sign read employees only. The back
area was stuffed with racks and pallets filled

1592
02:22:20.479 --> 02:22:26.440
with various products. Piled high.
In a cramped little corner in the back

1593
02:22:26.680 --> 02:22:31.600
was a desk. A middle aged
man sat talking on the phone. He

1594
02:22:31.719 --> 02:22:35.879
had the usual store uniform on,
as well as a thick pair of glasses.

1595
02:22:35.479 --> 02:22:39.239
His dark brown hair was cut in
a neat crew cut that matched his

1596
02:22:39.440 --> 02:22:45.879
neatly trimmed mustache. All right,
I understand, he wrote something on a

1597
02:22:45.920 --> 02:22:50.040
pad. Special shipment. Got it, We'll be ready, he hung up.

1598
02:22:50.120 --> 02:22:54.600
Hi John, I'm not disturbing anything, am I, Sam asked.

1599
02:22:54.879 --> 02:22:58.520
No, jokers from corporate are sending
a special shipment for me to unload tonight.

1600
02:23:00.079 --> 02:23:03.799
He took out a metal lighter and
cigarette. Lighting up. He turned

1601
02:23:03.799 --> 02:23:07.920
to Millie, new girl. Millie
nodded. Behind him was a sign that

1602
02:23:09.040 --> 02:23:13.399
read no smoking. Next to that
sign was a picture of John snuggling with

1603
02:23:13.440 --> 02:23:20.280
a tiger cub wearing a camouflage cap. Both things summed up John perfectly.

1604
02:23:20.559 --> 02:23:26.360
You come very highly recommended. Well, Sam blushed, I'd better get back

1605
02:23:26.360 --> 02:23:31.280
out there. She left, leaving
Milly with John. So I'll lay out

1606
02:23:31.280 --> 02:23:35.040
some ground rules around here and what
you should expect to be doing work wise.

1607
02:23:35.760 --> 02:23:39.280
He opened the desk drawer, taking
out a clip on holster with a

1608
02:23:39.319 --> 02:23:43.479
box cutter. You'll need this.
He handed it to her, taking a

1609
02:23:43.479 --> 02:23:48.719
puff of his cigarette. Clip it
onto your belt or pocket. He looked

1610
02:23:48.719 --> 02:23:52.920
at her shirt. Did they give
you an ID badge? She reached into

1611
02:23:52.959 --> 02:23:56.680
her pocket, trying to fish it
out. He stood, crushing his cigarette

1612
02:23:56.719 --> 02:23:58.959
under his heel. Skip it.
Come on, I'll give you the cheap

1613
02:24:00.079 --> 02:24:07.319
to I have a little test for
you. She followed him to an aisle

1614
02:24:07.360 --> 02:24:11.280
of paper products, paper towels,
boxes of facial tissue, and toilet paper.

1615
02:24:11.760 --> 02:24:16.120
He arranged some rolls of toilet paper
neatly on the shelf. We call

1616
02:24:16.200 --> 02:24:22.559
this facing or blocking. It basically
creates the appearance that the shelves are perfectly

1617
02:24:22.600 --> 02:24:26.440
stocked. You do this by pulling
a couple of products on the shelf to

1618
02:24:26.520 --> 02:24:31.399
the front. We also pulled down
anything that's double stacked. He demonstrated for

1619
02:24:31.479 --> 02:24:35.600
Milly a couple more times. Among
some rolls of paper towels, he found

1620
02:24:35.639 --> 02:24:39.239
a jar of peanut butter, causing
him to grumble under his breath. See

1621
02:24:39.239 --> 02:24:46.879
this. We call these returns or
re shops. People are They're lazy bastards.

1622
02:24:46.079 --> 02:24:50.319
They like to leave stuff they don't
want all over the store. Some

1623
02:24:50.440 --> 02:24:54.799
do it just to be dicks.
He shook his head. You find something

1624
02:24:54.879 --> 02:24:58.479
like this, return it to its
proper place later, unless it's something like

1625
02:24:58.600 --> 02:25:01.399
meat, dairy, or frozen.
Those are top priority and need to go

1626
02:25:01.479 --> 02:25:07.399
back asap. Milly nodded, trying
to process all of the new information.

1627
02:25:07.000 --> 02:25:09.399
I have a few things to take
care of. I want you to get

1628
02:25:09.399 --> 02:25:13.280
a feel for doing it. Take
your time, do as much as you

1629
02:25:13.319 --> 02:25:16.360
can. I'll be back to tell
you how much you screwed it up.

1630
02:25:16.760 --> 02:25:20.079
Milly looked at him, unsure.
John laughed, do your best. I'll

1631
02:25:20.079 --> 02:25:24.360
be back in a bit. He
left, leaving Milly alone in the aisle.

1632
02:25:26.159 --> 02:25:28.680
She wandered up and down before deciding
to start on one end and work

1633
02:25:28.719 --> 02:25:33.600
her way down. After a few
minutes of work, Milly was starting to

1634
02:25:33.639 --> 02:25:39.639
relax some. This was kind of
like Tetris, neatly arranging the brightly colored

1635
02:25:39.639 --> 02:25:45.079
boxes together. This brand here,
that brand there. She stepped back to

1636
02:25:45.159 --> 02:25:50.000
admire her work. Hey, she
heard Sam call out from the front of

1637
02:25:50.000 --> 02:25:54.360
the store. Peeking around a display
of paper towels, Milly saw Sam confronting

1638
02:25:54.399 --> 02:26:01.879
two girls. Milly recognized them the
McNab sisters. They'd hung in the preppy

1639
02:26:01.079 --> 02:26:05.520
crowd. I saw you, Sam
said, you put a couple beers in

1640
02:26:05.600 --> 02:26:11.760
your person. Tried to walk out. Oh please, Terry McNabb scoffed.

1641
02:26:11.200 --> 02:26:16.639
Do you know who our father is? Yes? Skids? Terry McNabb added

1642
02:26:18.479 --> 02:26:22.319
she felt bad for Sam. Skids
that's what they call anybody from the poorer

1643
02:26:22.360 --> 02:26:28.680
section of town. Why would we
steal? Terry pointed out, our father

1644
02:26:28.840 --> 02:26:33.840
could own you, Yes, skids. Daddy could bulldoze your little trailer park

1645
02:26:33.920 --> 02:26:37.840
hovel. In a heartbeat, Milly
knew Sam was holding back. If she

1646
02:26:37.920 --> 02:26:41.559
didn't need the job so much,
she would have given both sisters a good

1647
02:26:41.600 --> 02:26:48.399
ass kicking. Pretty good kid,
John said, Milly jumped. She'd been

1648
02:26:48.399 --> 02:26:52.360
so wrapped up in her thoughts as
she worked she hadn't noticed him standing there.

1649
02:26:52.879 --> 02:26:56.239
Although you've been adjusting that one roll
of paper towels for a good minute

1650
02:26:56.319 --> 02:27:01.079
or two. You're gonna make love
to it. Set the roll down.

1651
02:27:01.120 --> 02:27:05.799
Embarrassed, John checked his watch,
letting out a whistle. Almost that time.

1652
02:27:05.159 --> 02:27:09.799
Gotta close up the store. Carry
on with what you're doing, just

1653
02:27:09.840 --> 02:27:13.879
don't fondle any more paper towels.
He left her alone again. After a

1654
02:27:13.920 --> 02:27:18.920
few minutes, John came on the
intercom. The store will be closing in

1655
02:27:18.040 --> 02:27:24.479
five minutes. Please make your final
purchases. Thank you for choosing bargain groceries,

1656
02:27:24.680 --> 02:27:28.280
and have a good night. A
few minutes later, the lights dimmed

1657
02:27:28.399 --> 02:27:33.319
just a little. Milly continued working
without the din of shoppers, she could

1658
02:27:33.319 --> 02:27:39.200
hear the store's musac trigger treat oh
C. Sam stood at the end of

1659
02:27:39.239 --> 02:27:43.000
the aisle holding a couple of candy
bars. Brian stood next to her.

1660
02:27:43.520 --> 02:27:48.760
Sam handed Milly a chocolate bar.
Brian looked at Milly, confused. Oh

1661
02:27:48.840 --> 02:27:54.639
C a nickname, Milly answered,
ask Sam. Brian turned to Sam.

1662
02:27:54.159 --> 02:27:58.120
Maybe I'll tell you the story sometime. Sam snapped her bar in two.

1663
02:28:00.040 --> 02:28:03.520
If you can guess what it stands
for. Milly crinkled the candy bar wrapper,

1664
02:28:03.840 --> 02:28:07.399
sticking it into her pocket. What
are you guys still doing here?

1665
02:28:09.399 --> 02:28:15.079
We got volunteered with that special shipment
coming in, Sam explained. There was

1666
02:28:15.120 --> 02:28:20.600
an audible click as the intercom came
to life. A robotic female voice sounded

1667
02:28:20.280 --> 02:28:24.799
front end. Front End has a
call on line five ten to one.

1668
02:28:24.840 --> 02:28:30.200
The truck just got here, Sam
said. The intercom crackled to life again.

1669
02:28:30.719 --> 02:28:33.920
This time, the automated voice was
replaced by John's Sam to the back

1670
02:28:35.040 --> 02:28:39.520
room. I repeat Sam to the
back room. Sam started down the aisle

1671
02:28:39.079 --> 02:28:46.600
duty calls. So what now,
Milly asked. Brian adjusted his plastic fangs.

1672
02:28:46.399 --> 02:28:52.399
I guess we'll just finish this aisle
and then do the next sounds like

1673
02:28:52.440 --> 02:28:58.079
a plan ocean cruise, Billy asked, off hand. Excuse me, oh

1674
02:28:58.159 --> 02:29:03.559
see, just taking a guess.
Milly laughed, Sorry, no, uh

1675
02:29:03.920 --> 02:29:09.399
obsessive compulsive. Ah no, damn, I'll get it sooner or later.

1676
02:29:09.200 --> 02:29:13.840
After a few moments, they finished
up and moved to Aisle two, which

1677
02:29:13.840 --> 02:29:18.840
had a view of the parking lot. Milly stopped. The sight of something

1678
02:29:18.879 --> 02:29:22.959
sitting in the parking lot gave her
a chill. No, no, no.

1679
02:29:24.280 --> 02:29:28.280
She walked towards the front of the
store. Hey, what's up,

1680
02:29:28.600 --> 02:29:35.920
Brian asked that. Milly pointed nervously
out the large front window. The firebird

1681
02:29:35.040 --> 02:29:41.440
sat there under a light pole.
Milly shuddered, What about that car?

1682
02:29:41.200 --> 02:29:46.639
The assholes in the car harassed me
on the way here. Brian sighed,

1683
02:29:46.280 --> 02:29:50.680
damn it, He shook his head. Those two are always making trouble,

1684
02:29:52.559 --> 02:29:56.920
you know them. Stay here,
I'll go talk to Milly watched, feeling

1685
02:29:56.040 --> 02:30:03.639
helpless as Brian left. She watched
Brian walk across the parking lot. She

1686
02:30:03.799 --> 02:30:07.680
needed to get John. Running over
to the intercom, Milly fumbled with the

1687
02:30:07.680 --> 02:30:13.719
buttons. Her first attempt was greeted
by ear splitting feedback. Her second and

1688
02:30:13.840 --> 02:30:18.680
third attempts were no better. On
the fourth try, her nervous voice boomed

1689
02:30:18.760 --> 02:30:24.040
throughout the store. Hello, Hello, John to the front. Repeat John

1690
02:30:24.079 --> 02:30:28.840
to the front, Hurry. The
sound of her struggling to hang up the

1691
02:30:28.840 --> 02:30:33.440
intercom receiver boomed throughout the store.
She waited, expecting John to come rushing.

1692
02:30:35.639 --> 02:30:41.319
Instead, nothing happened. Milly ran
back to the front window and peered

1693
02:30:41.360 --> 02:30:46.200
out. Brian stood by the firebird
talking to the driver, not exactly the

1694
02:30:46.239 --> 02:30:52.680
tense confrontation she'd expected. Movement in
the reflection of the glass made her turn

1695
02:30:52.760 --> 02:31:00.040
in surprise John, there was nobody. Something hit the floor in one of

1696
02:30:58.920 --> 02:31:05.920
the aisles, guys. She walked
by a display of halloween candy. A

1697
02:31:05.959 --> 02:31:13.399
plastic candy filled skull grinned at her. Maybe this was a Halloween prank hazing

1698
02:31:13.440 --> 02:31:16.799
the new girl. Milly turned back
to check on how Brian was doing,

1699
02:31:18.239 --> 02:31:24.000
only to see the firebird driving slowly
towards the store, Brian nowhere in sight.

1700
02:31:24.559 --> 02:31:28.120
She watched as the car drove by
the front of the store. The

1701
02:31:28.159 --> 02:31:33.200
interior was too dark to make out
its occupants. Milly felt her heart beat

1702
02:31:33.280 --> 02:31:37.920
faster and faster in her chest.
She'd have to go out there and look.

1703
02:31:37.840 --> 02:31:43.360
Brian could be lying hurt out of
sight. Somewhere. There was a

1704
02:31:43.399 --> 02:31:46.520
first aid kit on the wall next
to the intercom. She grabbed it before

1705
02:31:46.559 --> 02:31:52.120
heading out. Pushing the door open, Milly stepped outside into what felt like

1706
02:31:52.200 --> 02:31:58.719
a dangerous alien land. Brian,
she called out, her voice cracking in

1707
02:31:58.760 --> 02:32:03.040
love. Oh. Milly wanted to
grab her bike, get home and hide

1708
02:32:03.120 --> 02:32:07.680
under the covers. She needed to
get John. He'd know what to do.

1709
02:32:09.520 --> 02:32:13.120
Milly hurried back inside and locked the
door. Sliding on the high polished

1710
02:32:13.120 --> 02:32:16.959
floor, she hurried to the back
of the store, nearly toppling a display

1711
02:32:18.000 --> 02:32:22.239
of Halloween themed cereal. Barreling through
the double doors into the back, Milly

1712
02:32:22.360 --> 02:32:28.040
stopped for a second to catch her
breath. John. She called between gasps

1713
02:32:28.600 --> 02:32:35.719
Sam. Silence except for the low
constant rumble of the overhead heater. The

1714
02:32:35.799 --> 02:32:41.600
loading dock was empty. The overhead
door was open, letting in the cool

1715
02:32:41.680 --> 02:32:46.479
autumn air, where it poured in
around the semi trucks backed up to the

1716
02:32:46.559 --> 02:32:54.719
dock guys. Milly started to panic. She was completely alone. Her eyes

1717
02:32:54.840 --> 02:33:01.959
scanned the dark, cavernous room.
The shadows hid count possible terrors, but

1718
02:33:01.040 --> 02:33:07.200
alas so too did the floor.
As she slipped in a puddle on its

1719
02:33:07.200 --> 02:33:11.920
surface, landing hard on her knees
and hands, Milly yelped in pain.

1720
02:33:13.159 --> 02:33:18.840
There was something wet and sticky on
her sore hands. Raising them up,

1721
02:33:18.920 --> 02:33:26.959
she screamed they were coated in a
crimson blood. There was a trail leading

1722
02:33:26.000 --> 02:33:31.000
out to the semi truck, and
there seemed to be something hanging in the

1723
02:33:31.000 --> 02:33:37.440
truck's trailer. With pained steps,
she cautiously approached that trailer, her eyes

1724
02:33:37.520 --> 02:33:43.799
adjusted to the near dark of its
interior. Hanging from chains by his ankles

1725
02:33:43.959 --> 02:33:50.280
at the trailer's center was John.
His forehead had a bloody gash. Oh

1726
02:33:50.559 --> 02:33:56.719
god, Millie, stammered John.
She reached out, stopping short of touching

1727
02:33:56.799 --> 02:34:03.879
him. John who did this?
She ventured a little further into the trailer.

1728
02:34:03.639 --> 02:34:09.520
There was no sign of Sam turning
around. Milly used the wall to

1729
02:34:09.600 --> 02:34:13.719
guide her out. Her eyes scanned
the loading dock. They could be lurking

1730
02:34:13.840 --> 02:34:20.360
anywhere. She had to get help. On John's cluttered desk, she noticed

1731
02:34:20.399 --> 02:34:24.280
a phone earlier. Limping over,
Milly snatched up the receiver and quickly dialed,

1732
02:34:24.319 --> 02:34:30.159
with bloody hands, We're sorry your
call cannot be completed at this time.

1733
02:34:30.600 --> 02:34:35.600
A robotic voice informed her, shit
shit. Milly slammed down the receiver.

1734
02:34:35.000 --> 02:34:39.520
She was growing just as frustrated as
she was scared. John's metal lighter

1735
02:34:39.639 --> 02:34:46.680
lay on a stack of papers,
Fuck communism engraved its front. She snatched

1736
02:34:46.680 --> 02:34:50.920
it up and exited. Limping along, she leaned on a concrete wall.

1737
02:34:50.479 --> 02:34:56.319
The block under her hand glowed lightly. Pulling her hand away, a strange

1738
02:34:56.319 --> 02:35:03.000
symbol pulsated through the concrete. What
the shit is that? The bloody handprint

1739
02:35:03.079 --> 02:35:07.680
she'd left was absorbed into the block. Hurrying towards the double doors, Milly

1740
02:35:07.760 --> 02:35:15.440
stopped. Someone walked past an aisle, a large someone or some thing.

1741
02:35:16.520 --> 02:35:20.319
Milly ducked down. She needed to
get a better view of what was going

1742
02:35:20.360 --> 02:35:24.520
on out there. Not far from
her was a sliding, white metal door

1743
02:35:24.600 --> 02:35:30.920
She slowly unhooked the latch and pushed
the door open and slipped into the dairy

1744
02:35:30.959 --> 02:35:35.360
cooler. She spied into the store
between gallon jugs of milk. Her eyes

1745
02:35:35.440 --> 02:35:43.360
caught another flash of movement. There
definitely was somebody here. The intercom loudly

1746
02:35:43.399 --> 02:35:50.000
crackled to life, come out,
come out, little goblin. A voice

1747
02:35:50.079 --> 02:35:56.760
hissed, trick or treat. An
involuntary shudder of fear ran through her body.

1748
02:35:56.520 --> 02:36:01.360
They were looking for her. Sneaking
out of the cooler, Milly made

1749
02:36:01.440 --> 02:36:07.079
up her mind. She couldn't leave
Sam and Brian. Milly had to fight

1750
02:36:07.159 --> 02:36:13.479
them somehow. There was another set
of double doors further down. She used

1751
02:36:13.520 --> 02:36:18.600
them to slip into the store,
hiding behind a tank of lobsters. Milly

1752
02:36:18.719 --> 02:36:24.520
looked up at the signs for each
aisle she was directly across from Aisle two,

1753
02:36:24.520 --> 02:36:35.920
Housewares and Cleaning Perfect Calling all assholes, I'm right here, Milly called

1754
02:36:35.959 --> 02:36:41.360
from the intercom as she stood a
broom handle ready, rags tied to one

1755
02:36:41.479 --> 02:36:46.120
end. It wasn't very long before
a man dressed in a black leather jacket

1756
02:36:46.120 --> 02:36:52.680
emerged from Aisle six. A cheap
halloween mask hid his identity well look ye

1757
02:36:52.680 --> 02:36:58.319
here, little goblin girl. He
strode confidently towards Milly, stopping. He

1758
02:36:58.440 --> 02:37:03.360
looked down as his boot clad foot
made a squishing noise. There was a

1759
02:37:03.399 --> 02:37:09.079
puddle of floor wax in front of
him. Sneaky trying to make me slip.

1760
02:37:09.680 --> 02:37:13.239
Milly took out John's lighter and held
it to the rags on the mop

1761
02:37:13.239 --> 02:37:18.000
handle. Where are my friends?
She lit the end of the mop with

1762
02:37:18.200 --> 02:37:24.840
us, Just like you'll be wrong
answer, She lit the puddle of floor

1763
02:37:24.879 --> 02:37:28.360
wax. It exploded in a burst
of flame, surprising Milly as much as

1764
02:37:28.360 --> 02:37:33.000
it did the man fuck. He
recoiled the tip of his foot on fire.

1765
02:37:33.719 --> 02:37:39.159
Another similarly dressed man rushed down one
of the checkout lanes at her.

1766
02:37:39.440 --> 02:37:43.840
As she ran for the door,
Milly hurled the flaming mop handle at him

1767
02:37:43.879 --> 02:37:48.719
like a spear. Inches from the
door, Milly stopped dead in her tracks.

1768
02:37:50.360 --> 02:37:56.520
Outside, robed figures stood side by
side, their faces hidden by hoods.

1769
02:37:56.360 --> 02:38:01.639
One of the masked men grabbed her. He wrapped his arms tightly around

1770
02:38:01.680 --> 02:38:05.479
Milly. She thrashed and kicked to
no avail. The man with the burnt

1771
02:38:05.479 --> 02:38:11.440
boot walked up to them. Lights
out, little goblin bitch, He pulled

1772
02:38:11.440 --> 02:38:18.319
a black hood down over Milly's head, enveloping her in darkness. Milly felt

1773
02:38:18.319 --> 02:38:24.440
herself being dragged along. She struggled, but it was no use. After

1774
02:38:24.520 --> 02:38:28.559
a few minutes, they roughly forced
Milly to her knees. This Halloween wasn't

1775
02:38:28.600 --> 02:38:33.920
doing her legs any favors. Someone
yanked the hood from her head. As

1776
02:38:33.920 --> 02:38:39.440
her eyes adjusted, Milly found she
was flanked by Sam and Brian. Next

1777
02:38:39.440 --> 02:38:46.319
to Brian were the men from the
Firebird. The concrete floor was bitterly cold.

1778
02:38:46.920 --> 02:38:52.319
They appeared to be in the Stor's
large freezer. A black sheet covered

1779
02:38:52.360 --> 02:38:58.840
a mysterious shape underneath. Across the
freezer stood seven robed figures. Behind Milly

1780
02:39:00.239 --> 02:39:05.559
and the others. The two masked
men stood, This is bullshit, one

1781
02:39:05.600 --> 02:39:09.959
of the Firebird men barked, earning
him a smack quiet pup. The masked

1782
02:39:11.000 --> 02:39:16.559
man hissed. The center figure stepped
forward. We've had our little trick or

1783
02:39:16.639 --> 02:39:22.040
treat tonight, and I do enjoy
a good treat, he laughed, lowering

1784
02:39:22.079 --> 02:39:28.319
his hood. The older man was
vaguely familiar looking, Milly thought as he

1785
02:39:28.440 --> 02:39:35.000
paced back and forth. Tonight is
a blessed night, he said, and

1786
02:39:35.120 --> 02:39:39.360
you lucky few are here among us
to bear witness and serve a glorious purpose.

1787
02:39:41.280 --> 02:39:46.079
He reached down and pulled the black
sheet up in one motion. Underneath,

1788
02:39:46.360 --> 02:39:50.399
lying on the floor was a large, grayish body. It was unlike

1789
02:39:50.479 --> 02:39:56.799
anything Milly had ever seen before.
It was similar to one of those diagrams

1790
02:39:56.799 --> 02:40:01.360
of a person without skin that hung
up in science class, except this thing

1791
02:40:01.479 --> 02:40:05.719
was way more muscular, and it
had strange symbols cut into its chest,

1792
02:40:07.000 --> 02:40:11.319
head, and limbs. Each one
had a strange stone at its center.

1793
02:40:11.200 --> 02:40:16.520
Milly noticed with a shiver that its
limbs and head weren't attached to the torso,

1794
02:40:16.200 --> 02:40:20.600
but were laying next to it in
an approximation of a human body.

1795
02:40:22.399 --> 02:40:28.399
This is our lord, he smiled, proudly. Cool nuts, the beast

1796
02:40:28.559 --> 02:40:35.600
king a corpse. The driver of
the firebird protested, your fucking nuts.

1797
02:40:35.319 --> 02:40:39.559
This earned him a punch to the
jaw from one of the masked men,

1798
02:40:39.760 --> 02:40:43.479
bloodying his lip. Leave him alone, his friend pleaded, he's an idiot.

1799
02:40:45.280 --> 02:40:48.159
Shut up, little bro, Stay
out of it, brother, Milly

1800
02:40:48.280 --> 02:40:54.040
pondered. She looked at them.
There was a resemblance enough. The old

1801
02:40:54.079 --> 02:41:01.559
man ordered no more delays. Then
it suddenly came to Milly This was Nathan

1802
02:41:01.639 --> 02:41:07.200
Solomon, founder and CEO of Bargain
Groceries. His portrait hung in the back

1803
02:41:07.239 --> 02:41:13.479
of the store. No shit,
she whispered to herself as she made the

1804
02:41:13.520 --> 02:41:18.440
connection. One of the robed figures
stepped forward, handing Solomon a large ornate

1805
02:41:18.559 --> 02:41:24.399
dagger. Cool Nucks. Betrayed by
the Druids, enslain by the warrior Aaron,

1806
02:41:26.000 --> 02:41:30.399
his body was dismembered, bound by
Druid magic, and scattered, still

1807
02:41:30.440 --> 02:41:35.639
living. I've found him, built
an empire for him, constructed this place

1808
02:41:35.680 --> 02:41:41.159
of power to heal him. He'll
make this world right again. Solomon made

1809
02:41:41.159 --> 02:41:46.000
a sweeping gesture. Blood will run
in the streets, and he'll feast on

1810
02:41:46.079 --> 02:41:52.200
his enemy's bones, the king of
a new order. But first, the

1811
02:41:52.239 --> 02:41:58.799
blood of the Virgin must flow.
Millie felt her heart beat faster as Solomon

1812
02:41:58.920 --> 02:42:03.799
raised up the dagger. Virgin.
Oh shit, bring forth the Virgin.

1813
02:42:05.639 --> 02:42:09.639
He pointed at the driver of the
firebird. Me I ain't no virgin.

1814
02:42:09.719 --> 02:42:15.680
I've a girlfriend in Canada. We've
banged like a lot. Randy, No,

1815
02:42:16.600 --> 02:42:20.520
his brother, cried out. Two
of the robed figures dragged Randy to

1816
02:42:20.520 --> 02:42:26.120
where Solomon stood. Only blood will
remove the runes binding our King. Solomon

1817
02:42:26.239 --> 02:42:33.040
brought the blade across Randy's throat in
one swift motion. No Milly heard herself

1818
02:42:33.159 --> 02:42:39.079
gasp as blood sprayed out of Randy's
sliced throat. Solomon held Randy's limp body

1819
02:42:39.159 --> 02:42:43.879
up as the blood flowed over the
strange marks on the body before them.

1820
02:42:45.360 --> 02:42:50.280
One by one, the runes glowed. The severed limbs and head began to

1821
02:42:50.399 --> 02:42:56.920
mend themselves to the torso of the
strange body. Bring me another, Solomon

1822
02:42:56.040 --> 02:43:01.479
ordered, our king is thirsty.
One of the robed figures grabbed Brian.

1823
02:43:03.079 --> 02:43:07.680
Leave him the fuck alone. A
battered John stood in the freezer door,

1824
02:43:07.879 --> 02:43:13.040
a metal chain wrapped around his fist. What catch you coltest shitters at a

1825
02:43:13.079 --> 02:43:16.959
bad time? The night manager let
his fists fly. As the robed figures

1826
02:43:18.000 --> 02:43:22.920
advanced, Solomon struggled with Brian.
The king must have his blood. He

1827
02:43:22.040 --> 02:43:26.000
slashed madly at Brian, cutting open
one of the young man's hands. The

1828
02:43:26.040 --> 02:43:33.479
blood splashed across the body of Kolnuks. The once lifeless gray body shuddered to

1829
02:43:33.559 --> 02:43:39.639
life. It then sucked air into
its ancient lungs. John decked one of

1830
02:43:39.639 --> 02:43:43.840
the cult members, Sam, Get
everyone out of here. Sam and Milly

1831
02:43:43.920 --> 02:43:48.600
grabbed Randy's brother, and the three
went for Brian, who was doing his

1832
02:43:48.680 --> 02:43:54.200
best to fend off Solomon's wild swings. No, Solomon pleaded, I must

1833
02:43:54.239 --> 02:43:58.120
finish. He's too weak. Milly
set her jaw and unleashed a powerful strike

1834
02:43:58.200 --> 02:44:03.040
to the old man and sending him
flailing desperately before he hit the cold floor.

1835
02:44:03.760 --> 02:44:07.799
The others grabbed Brian and rushed to
the freezer door. Milly turned to

1836
02:44:07.840 --> 02:44:13.000
see John trying to fend off the
Coltists. At the same time, the

1837
02:44:13.079 --> 02:44:20.600
monstrous form of coal Knook's began to
rise. John Sam shouted desperately, go,

1838
02:44:20.559 --> 02:44:26.159
he ordered. Randy's brother turned to
Milly and Sam. I'll stay.

1839
02:44:26.239 --> 02:44:28.879
Get out of here for what it's
worth. I'm Troy, and I'm sorry

1840
02:44:28.879 --> 02:44:35.360
we fucked with you earlier. Milly
nodded stoically. Milly and Sam dragged Brian

1841
02:44:35.440 --> 02:44:39.639
out of the freezer. A hideous
roar sounded from inside, followed by the

1842
02:44:39.680 --> 02:44:46.520
frantic screams of the damned that things
gotta be stopped. Milly took a deep

1843
02:44:46.559 --> 02:44:52.159
breath. Get help. What the
hell are you gonna do, Sam asked.

1844
02:44:56.559 --> 02:45:01.399
Milly watched a reluctant Sam help Brian
through the double door. She scanned

1845
02:45:01.399 --> 02:45:07.799
the room. Then she saw it, the forklift. Colenooks banged on the

1846
02:45:07.840 --> 02:45:11.520
freezer door as she made her way
to the machine. Milly climbed up into

1847
02:45:11.559 --> 02:45:16.959
the cab and studied the controls.
Oh shit, she said, confused.

1848
02:45:18.520 --> 02:45:22.079
There was a key hanging on a
hook like a car. Right. She

1849
02:45:22.239 --> 02:45:28.799
turned the key and the forklift rumbled
to life. Okay, she could do

1850
02:45:28.920 --> 02:45:33.879
this. There was a loud crash
as the freezer door surrendered to Kolenook's assault.

1851
02:45:33.479 --> 02:45:37.879
Milly scrambled to figure out the forklift
controls. Most of the labels had

1852
02:45:37.920 --> 02:45:43.239
long since worn off. I can
do this, she repeated to herself.

1853
02:45:43.719 --> 02:45:48.680
Milly caught a glance of the beast
King advancing time to die bastard. She

1854
02:45:48.799 --> 02:45:54.959
pulled a lever and the forklift jerked
forward and stopped what Milly pulled another lever.

1855
02:45:56.319 --> 02:46:01.200
She managed to raise the forks up, but no forward momentum. Milly

1856
02:46:01.280 --> 02:46:05.600
yanked a second level. The forklift
roared forward. The Beast King seemed slightly

1857
02:46:05.680 --> 02:46:11.680
perplexed for a moment, but it
passed even faster. Milly tried ramming him

1858
02:46:11.680 --> 02:46:13.600
with the forks, but Nucks was
quick and strong enough to grab them.

1859
02:46:13.920 --> 02:46:18.600
The creature pushed back against the mechanical
strength of the machine, causing the wheels

1860
02:46:18.600 --> 02:46:24.559
to spin out. Milly swung the
forklift around, dragging Nucks, who still

1861
02:46:24.639 --> 02:46:28.520
pushed back. Come on, you, hunk of crap. Milly pushed the

1862
02:46:28.559 --> 02:46:33.520
machine as far as it would go, slowly backing her beastial opponent, call

1863
02:46:33.639 --> 02:46:39.520
Nucks roared. Milly found herself screaming
back at the monster. The old forklift

1864
02:46:39.600 --> 02:46:43.399
lurched forward one final time, but
not without struggle. It was enough to

1865
02:46:43.479 --> 02:46:48.079
knock the mighty beast king into the
waiting maw of the nearby garbage compactor.

1866
02:46:50.040 --> 02:46:54.040
Milly sprang from the lift and slammed
down the metal gate, trapping Nucks inside.

1867
02:46:54.760 --> 02:46:58.959
The metal wouldn't hold long as the
enraged monster hammered it with his large

1868
02:47:00.200 --> 02:47:05.520
fists. Milly slammed her palm down
on the large green button. The compactor

1869
02:47:05.639 --> 02:47:09.639
squealed to life. Coal Nucks fought
back, trying to stave off the crushing

1870
02:47:09.719 --> 02:47:15.760
grip, but in the end the
strength of the large machine was too great.

1871
02:47:16.319 --> 02:47:20.520
Nucks's arms shattered under the strain as
he was crushed, letting out one

1872
02:47:20.719 --> 02:47:30.879
last pitiful, defiant roar. They
found John and Troy dead in the freezer.

1873
02:47:31.360 --> 02:47:37.040
Along with the coltists, Milly took
John's pack of cigarettes. The sound

1874
02:47:37.079 --> 02:47:41.399
of sobbing came from behind a stack
of egg cartons. Solomon, curled up

1875
02:47:41.399 --> 02:47:48.479
in a ball, was devastated.
Our king, Our King, the King

1876
02:47:48.600 --> 02:47:54.000
is dead, Milly informed him.
She lit one of John's cigarettes and exhaled.

1877
02:47:54.799 --> 02:48:00.280
The doors to the store unlocked as
the rising sun filled the building with

1878
02:48:00.360 --> 02:48:05.559
hazy orange light. Two girls from
the day shift entered the store and caught

1879
02:48:05.600 --> 02:48:09.520
a glimpse of the mess that was
Milly. Oh my god, one stammered,

1880
02:48:09.760 --> 02:48:16.280
Are you okay first night? Milly
answered, the spent bud of the

1881
02:48:16.319 --> 02:48:28.079
cigarette dangling from her lips. Well, my spookies, I suppose another compilation

1882
02:48:28.239 --> 02:48:33.040
has come and gone, But I
hope you've enjoyed, either visiting these stories

1883
02:48:33.079 --> 02:48:37.200
for the first time or revisiting them
just for this season. I'm a firm

1884
02:48:37.239 --> 02:48:43.520
believer in the fact that Halloween is
not only a state of mind and a

1885
02:48:43.559 --> 02:48:48.000
place in your heart, but it's
a vibe and I want to help share

1886
02:48:48.040 --> 02:48:50.680
it. I want to grow it. I want to water it, I

1887
02:48:50.719 --> 02:48:54.440
want to fertilize it. So make
sure you stop by tomorrow, right here

1888
02:48:54.479 --> 02:49:01.479
at Weekly Spooky for another terrifying episode
to keep you up at night. After

1889
02:49:01.559 --> 02:49:05.440
all, that's what we're here for, to keep you scared and entertained.

1890
02:49:05.079 --> 02:49:07.920
And speaking of, I want to
say an extra special thank you to our

1891
02:49:07.959 --> 02:49:11.879
Patreon podcast boosters, folks who pay
just a little bit more to hear their

1892
02:49:11.959 --> 02:49:16.200
names at the end of every show. They are Johnny Nix, Bobotopia dot

1893
02:49:16.200 --> 02:49:20.200
Com, Megan Hua, Julia Kirsh, Brent mccallaugh, Steve King, and

1894
02:49:20.280 --> 02:49:24.959
Karen Weemet. Thank you all so
much, and you can join them by

1895
02:49:24.959 --> 02:49:30.000
going to Weeklyspooky dot com and clicking
on Patreon. But now I'm going to

1896
02:49:30.000 --> 02:49:31.159
get out of here. I have
so much more content to bring you.

1897
02:49:31.200 --> 02:49:37.000
We're not even halfway through the month
yet, so please stay spooky, stay

1898
02:49:37.040 --> 02:49:41.360
safe, and I'll be talking to
you very soon. So for myself,

1899
02:49:41.399 --> 02:49:45.840
for my executive producers Rob Fields and
Joshua Butler, my producer Dan Wilder,

1900
02:49:45.840 --> 02:49:50.000
and my composer Ray Mattis, I'll
talk at you very soon.