Fright Night II

By Tunbridge Wells Writers

Fright Night II is the second collection of Horror and Supernatural tales for Halloween from The Tunbridge Wells Writers. Within the virtual pages of this free e-book you'll find seasonal ghosts and ghouls aplenty, along with some more unusual takes on the traditional Halloween themes. Whether collecting your car from the multi-storey at midnight or collecting blackberries on the moor on a sunny Sunday afternoon the forces of evil are never too far away. Probably wisest, then, to stay in bed and hunker down under the duvet with your e-reader of choice and take time out to enjoy a good book. Just remember not to look under the bed... ...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tunbridge Wells Writers
• Release date: Sep 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370618705

Tunbridge Wells Writers

Tunbridge Wells Writers is a writers collective operating from the beautiful spa town of Tunbridge Wells in England. Formed in 2010 it is made up poets, fiction and non-fiction writers, bloggers and other waifs and strays.

Book preview

FRIGHT NIGHT II

Stories for Halloween

By

The Tunbridge Wells Writers

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

Published by Tunbridge Wells Writers Publications

Copyright © (2016) for individual stories remains that of the named author.

All rights reserved.

While offered freely for personal use the stories in this collection should not be reproduced without the permission of the relevant author(s). All unauthorised commercial use is expressly prohibited. Links for the Tunbridge Wells Writers website and social media pages can be found in the introduction to this book.

Thanks once again to Peppy Scott for her practically perfect proofreading. Any remaining errors will be those of the editor, artistic license on the part of the contributor, and/or the vagaries of the Smashwords Meatgrinder.

Cover image: Castle by Streamline69. Used with kind permission under Creative Commons License 3. Available for non commercial use from DeviantArt.com

CONTENTS

Tunbridge Wells Writers: An Introduction

A Brief Outline of the FRIGHT NIGHT II Project

THE STORIES

The Stairwell – Sue Marlow

All Souls’ Eve – Philip Holden

Blackberries – David Smith

The Lost – Karen Tucker

Pet Food – David Hensley

The Dead of Winter – Peter Tonkin

The Flowing Finger – Paul Bright

Through the Door – Carolyn Gray

This is Where I Died – David Burrows

The Letter – Philip Holden

Trick and Treat – David Smith

The Three Tales – Sue Marlow

The Gnome of Doom – Karen Tucker

Further Reading from the Tunbridge Wells Writers.

TUNBRIDGE WELLS WRITERS

An Introduction

Tunbridge Wells Writers is a small collective of aspiring writers living in and around the much-maligned town of Tunbridge Wells in Kent. We meet once a fortnight to discuss all aspects of writing, to offer mutual support and encouragement, to swap ideas and writing tips, and, on occasion, to work together on group projects like this one. Several of us, in the great writer tradition, also like to take the opportunity to down a few glasses of wine and/or beer, which is one of the reasons we meet in a local pub.

Neither a fondness for alcohol nor residence in Tunbridge Wells are prerequisites for membership of the group, however, so if you, dear reader, have similar literary ambitions but prefer soft drinks or live elsewhere please feel free to join us either in the flesh or through our website or Facebook page which are found -

Here: http://tunbridgewellswriters.org.uk/

And on social media: http://www.facebook.com/groups/twellswriters/ and https://twitter.com/TWWriters

A Brief Outline of the FRIGHT NIGHT II Project

Each year, on or around October 31st, The Tunbridge Wells Writers gather together to share dark tales of haunts and horror and other fiendish goings on to honour the spirit(s) of Halloween. Fright Night II, as you have undoubtedly already surmised, is the second collection of stories to come from these events. Sadly, ghosts in the machine and gremlins in the works (or possibly a hard drive failure in tandem with a somewhat lackadaisical approach to document backups) have seen the past two year’s worth of stories reduced to the slim volume of thirteen tales now clutched in your virtual hand. We hope you enjoy them.

This year’s FRIGHT NIGHT event will, spirits willing, be taking place on November 1st 2016 at our usual meeting place of St John’s Yard, where, to paraphrase Bela Lugosi’s / Tod Browning’s Count Dracula, we will bid welcome all comers, whether readers or listeners. The new stories shared during the evening will, in readiness for next year’s festivities, make their way into a Fright Night III, so don’t forget to check back next year, and collect your free copy. And while you’re at it, why not browse to the links at the end of this volume for the first Fright Night collection and our other free e-books.

The Stairwell

Sue Marlow

She hated this car park. Unlike the one in the centre of the town where the levels led into the shopping precinct this one stood in isolation with an air of menace. The few small shops at its base had long been empty. Through the grime of the windows, fading posters and crumpled paper could be seen strewn on the floors and spider webs swung from dust covered counters and empty shelves.

It was only because she had something heavy to carry from a shop at this end of the town that she had been forced to park here.