Dreams of the Damned, Vol. 5

By Edward Fortman

And, the journey moves onward, in an unlikely manner. Our good narrator is trapped in a cavern, full of death. Rotting corpses and dried husks that once were men and women lie, chained, to its rock walls. Having escaped his shackles and his fate, he moves onward, lighting torches held in sconces on the rock walls of the cavern, seeking a doorway or tunnel, in order to escape the bleak darkness of his prison. Should he discover the Painter of Dreams in this dry, dismal darkness? We shall see.

Meanwhile, we have a clue to that last question, for we’ll discover the incident of two souls who have odd notions about names and how they deal with those notions upon falling in love with one another. We’ll see what happens when best friends remain best friends, forever. We’ll hear the tragic tale of two tortured souls. And, we’ll experience a man’s curse, when his wife of many years proclaims, in life as in death, “I still love you ... ”

These visions and many more, painted by a lost soul, await their telling. So, join us, for all are welcome, regardless of creed, to sit and listen and to dream the dreams of the damned ...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Edward Fortman
• Release date: May 5, 2015
• ISBN: 9780991399567

Edward Fortman

Edward Fortman lives in Canton, Ohio, with his gal and their two crazy boys. Aside from working on his own writing, he and his gal own and operate a small business, meaning that he spends much of his day cussing about how there's always too much work to do.

Book preview

Frontispiece (cont’d)

Dreams of the Damned, Vol. V

(The textual frontispiece.)

Short Fiction, Poetry

& Miscellany

by Edward Fortman

Twisted Crapola® books

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2015 EtherWind Communication Services, Inc.

Letter From the Editor

Welcome to Volume 5 of Dreams of the Damned friends, countrymen and fellow members of this human species. I hope I find you in good health. In Volume 5, we delve into human relationships, as viewed through a dark (and, at times, darkly humorous) lens.

Parents have seen life through such a lens during the dark hours of night, when a child awakens and hollers, as only babies can holler, I can’t sleep! Belly hurtin’! It’s cold! Where’s my blankie! Put me back where I came from! It was warm, there! I don’t like it here, anymore! Of course, the language spoken is foreign to any parent, so the hollering sounds much different, but the general idea is the same. And, most parents don’t think such evil thoughts that run along the lines of anything written in this tome. Rather, I’m sure they think of their concern for the child as well as how warm the bed was, several minutes before, with the obligatory curse, What did my spouse do to me?! Dammit!

The stories in this tome range from the horrific to the humorous, at least in the minds of the author, the editor and the rest of the staff, all of whom are here to serve to you, Gentle Reader, a platter with a singular item, a book that contains several glances into a dark world once lived by the Damned. So, we welcome you with open arms to join us and to dream the dreams of the damned …

A Note About Certain Parts of This Volume

If you, Gentle Reader, haven’t been following along from Volume 1, parts of this volume may seem out of place, or as if they start in the middle. That’s because they do. Your reading enjoyment will be enhanced should you begin with Volume 1 and proceed in numerical order. While the short stories and poetry are self-contained and may be read out of order with no confusion, the Introduction, Ad Interims and Parting are all individual sections of a larger story, known by some as The Tale of the Painter of Dreams. All of them together create the tale of a quest, if you will, the purpose of which has yet to be defined.

This is neither a sales pitch nor some sort of silly trick, especially since the Dreams of the Damned series of books will remain free for the foreseeable future. My hope is of a singular nature: that you enjoy the strange tales the Damned have to tell. And, should you enjoy these tales, then my hopes have been realized, and I offer my gratitude.

Dedication

For centuries after the ratification of the United States Constitution and, more importantly, the Bill of Rights, there existed in the United States various forms of darkness, now given the title discrimination, but, at various times, considered normal. And, these forms of darkness existed the world over in places other than America, some labeled dark and evil, such as the Nazi regime in WWII Germany, and some labeled peaceful and enlightened, such as the powers that exist in Europe and elsewhere. This darkness of the human spirit took many forms that have affected mankind’s ability to relate to and associate with, whether for love, family, or the inclusiveness that we call community, certain groups of individuals, for such relations with such groups would cause an individual to be cast away with the Leper’s Curse, Outcast, Unclean! Such amputations in society occurred regularly for those brave enough to step outside the circle of social norms, at the time. But, by such bravery and the First Amendment from the very Bill of Rights aforementioned, which was ratified in 1791 and which proclaims, among other things, the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances, that which was a darkness in the human spirit is now growing to become acceptable and is, more importantly, edging into the circle of social norms. Here, I tip my hat and give thanks to those who bravely and publicly stepped out of the light and, by so doing, drew the light to those who were forced to live in shadow.

Table of Contents

• Frontispiece

• Dedication

• By Way of an Introduction

• Silence

• Ad Interim • I

• For the Love of a Name

• Ad Interim • II

• Forever Young

• Ad Interim • III

• Too Late to Understand

• Ad Interim • IV

• How I Love to Love and Think of You

• Ad Interim • V

• I still love you … 

• Ad Interim • VI

• Time

• By Way of a Parting

• Author Biography & A Note on the Artwork

• Contact, Legalese, Acknowledgements &c.

By Way of an Introduction

( … I don’t understand. I thought we’d moved these parenthetical comments to the section called Letter from the Editor on the Textual Frontispiece. Oh, now I get it, the publisher still wants them … )

( … And, here, I thought I held the Hammer — a war hammer, mind you, not some silly sledge — of Artistic License. Ah, only when it suits … Nevermind! This peon, this Philistine, will stride forth with pride while shackled by that tyrant we all call The Boss … )

( … Meanwhile, in other realms, our good