Carl ran down the stairs and out of Usher’s Fair Inn. Tumbling soda cans and sheets of white paper skipped down the dirt street. As Carl stared at the buildings on the North side of Main Street, he thought he could see things moving around in the cloudy windows. Watching the swings squeak and the childless playground melted his heart. His daughter never had the chance to go to school. School buses were smashed against the side of the police station. The hardware store, post office, and pharmacy looked like human skulls; lidless dark eyes with an unconscious wickedness resting within.
Carl walked away down the long brown side of Main Street and looked up at his car on the hill. At first, he thought a dog had jumped on the hood of the car. The sunless sky made everything dim and cold.
“Get off my car,” Carl screamed.
What appeared to be a wild dog, took on a fearsome and menacing form. Its crimson, repulsive eyes stared at Carl. The creature’s fur was coarse and Carl could see bald patches on the side of its abdomen. Once it exposed its long spiky fangs and blood-colored eyes, Carl turned around and ran back into Usher’s Fair Inn. Slamming the massive oak door shut and gasping for air, he immediately checked the windows and stared at the shadows on the top of the stairs. He knew that something unnatural was up there, waiting for him to lose his mind. And he realized that something grotesque was outside. Pushing back the curtains, he gazed out into the street and watched as the famished wild dog sniffed all of the doors. It was looking for him.
The previous is a short excerpt from a short story called Insomnium. It will be published in the upcoming issue of The Ashen Eye and is written by Jeffrey Buford.
Jeffrey was born in the small bustling riverboat town of Alton, Illinois on a cold day in hell. Born into a large family, he displayed a creative and often surprising interest in the arts. Other publications include "How to Tame a Werewolf with Baked Spaghetti", "The Cemetery of Glass Coffins", and "A Neighborhood of Cats." Currently he’s at work on a comic series titled "The 13th Key" and a novel, "Timothy’s Walk". Some of his other creative interests include illustrating and music, specifically the piano. He invites you to take a look at more of his work at Jeffrey’s Space.
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