Living Nightmares

By Christopher Kai

FIVE HEART-POUNDING TALES OF TERROR!

Includes:

The Heart Collector
A woman is stalked and abducted by a maniacal serial killer.

The Peruvian Doll
A man's obsession with dolls takes a frightening turn.

Cruel Mercy
A mother is faced with an unspeakable choice when she and her son are ambushed by the living dead.

A Taste of Death
A bloodthirsty warlord is confronted by an enemy greater than even himself.

Fresh Meat
A young college student falls prey to the murderous appetite of an insane cannibal.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Luminare Books
• Release date: Dec 15, 2015
• ISBN: 9781524212254

Christopher Kai

Fueled by a macabre imagination, Christopher Kai writes dark fiction of every flavor. His style can be described as vivid, frantic and phantasmagoric, with a touch of grim humor. Many of his stories also have a hardboiled edge to them, as well as elements of psychological horror. Join him as he explores the realms of the preternatural—and the depths of the human psyche—at ChristopherKai.net

Book preview

THE HEART COLLECTOR

Christopher Kai

Adriana Prentice

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JANINE HAD NEVER PLANNED on waiting tables for a living, much less in a bar, but the customers in this one tipped well and (mostly) kept their hands to themselves. The downside was the hours.

As she exited the back of La’sanza, the night was teasing sunrise. She checked the time on her phone: 4AM. Shit, it’s late, she thought. Aside from the usual crowd of biker types and middle-aged losers trawling for sex, she had served a few new faces, one in particular that put her on edge. He was a large, beady-eyed man with long, greasy hair and a jagged scar running down one side of his face.

In the bar she had felt pretty safe. If he had tried anything there, she'd only have to signal to her boss or one of the bouncers and he’d have been taken care of. But in the silence of the darkened street she felt a tingle of fear creep up her neck. The pepper spray in her purse provided some comfort, though not nearly as much as she would've liked.

Three of the seven streetlights outside the bar had been broken by troublemaking kids, adding to the sense of disquiet she felt as she made her way home. That guy had really spooked her. She could still remember his cold, unwavering stare. He had wanted her desperately and made no attempt to hide it. His scar had made him uglier than he already was; just the memory of him leering at her made her shiver.

She considered calling Nathan to pick her up, but it was only a five-minute walk from the bar to their apartment and he was probably fast asleep already. She smiled at the thought of sliding into bed and snuggling up to him. She hurried on. Just a couple more minutes and she'd be home.

She turned into the alley that led to her neighborhood. The ding-a-ling of a beer bottle tipping over made her jump. She spun around instinctively, whipping out the pepper spray with practiced efficiency.

No one.

Phew, she breathed a sigh of relief. Must’ve been a cat.

She slipped the pepper spray back in her purse but quickened her pace, half walking and half jogging down the silent row of pawnshops and laundromats.

Her footsteps echoed ominously, making it seem as if there actually was someone else in the alley, tailing her. She swallowed and walked faster, reaching into her purse and gripping the pepper spray tightly just in case.

Right then, a callused hand clamped over her mouth.