Our next fiction contributor is named Troy Barnes. Troy lives in a small coastal town called Penguin, in Tasmania, Australia. He is 35 years of age, married, and writes at night while working a full time job, managing a retail hardware store, during the day. One of his short stories, titled Family Matters, has been accepted for publication in The Ashen Eye’s premiere issue. Here’s a short excerpt to whet your appetites:
When Dean woke up he wasn’t really sure why. Sometimes you just have a feeling that you shouldn’t be sleeping. A subconscious thought that tells you something is happening. Jimmy was standing silently near the end of the bed.
“Everything okay there, Jimmy?” he asked his son through half open eyes.
His tiny silhouetted frame just stood still in the shadows, his face as blank as an unused blackboard. Dean sat up in bed.
“Jim?”
“Daddy. The baby isn’t going to cry anymore.”
Dean woke up as though his body had been hit by a pulse of lightening. Jimmy wasn’t standing by the bed like he had seen seconds before. It was all just a strange dream. Something his mind had made up all by itself. He tried to steady his heartbeat by resting his head back down on the pillow. He rolled over to cuddle up to Jane but to his surprise she wasn’t laying beside him. It was unlike her to wake during the night unless something was wrong.
The baby isn’t going to cry anymore.
Dean moved up and sat on the edge of the bed. The house sounded quiet but then there was a slight muffling coming from down the hall. He moved slowly towards the sound of the noise. The small glowing lights plugged into the power points provided just enough light to know his surroundings. He reached the far room nearest to the front door. The television was turned on but the reception was only static. The noise was more obvious now. It was a slurping sound, like someone was drinking soup from a tipped bowl.
“Are you okay, honey?”
Jane was still naked. She was crouching down at the end of the sofa, facing away from him as if looking for something. He yawned a little and moved closer, tilting his head to the side a little to try and see what his wife was doing.
“What are you doing up this late?”
She shot her head around in a speeding blur and stared directly into her husband’s eyes. He took a step backwards as his mouth dropped with a terrifying rupture of reality. She had a look if intense insanity in her bloodshot eyes. Her mouth, overcome with swollen teeth, was covered in red and black clotted blood, and her skin was pale and void of life. Dark stains were scattered around where her bare body was kneeling.
Troy’s debut novel, called "Deadlight", was released in March 2007, and has since been read all around Australia, and also in the USA, Denmark, Japan and Switzerland. He has been lucky enough, through sheer determination, to personally pass on copies to actor Eric Bana, and Leigh Whannell - From the Saw movies. His short story "Blender" soon followed and was included in the horror anthology, Concrete Blood, released in the USA. After this came "Alley Kat", included in Darkened Horizons Issue 2, and "The Diary of Norman Dicker" in the invitation only, Darkened Horizons - Halloween Edition.
Troy’s second novel, “Monochromacy”, will be released mid 2008.
To find more information or to order a copy of “Deadlight”, please visit Troy Barnes’ MySpace page or his official website, www.troy-barnes.com.
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