Unforgivable: Haunted Coal Ridge, #15

By Chuck Sperati

A series of intertwined supernatural stories that will make you wonder where the darkness ends and the light begins. All small towns keep secrets, but in Coal Ridge when the secret gets out, it begins to feed…again.

Story 15: Unforgivable

We all mess up sometimes. For most of us it's a mistake or bad decision that carries some degree of consequence. For Nick Densico, it was much, much worse.

After twenty-seven years, he's returned to his hometown. Things have changed. Many of the places he used to know are gone. The town has moved on, but Nick is still trapped in his worst moment, unwilling to let go of the past. The problem is, in Coal Ridge when the past catches up with you it is unforgiving.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Writing Distracted
• Release date: Jun 21, 2019
• ISBN: 9781646390007

Chuck Sperati

Among other things, I'm a writer--with some published experience--whose been mostly quiet for the past few decades, mostly because I let life get in the way. I've long had a creative outlet at the gaming table and recently found another when I started building a website. With this new outlet also came inspiration. Right now I'm working primarily on a series of short stories that has received some very positive feedback, so I'm sharing. If you enjoy anything I've written, check out my website at https://www.chucksperati.com, where you can find more things that have crawled out of my imagination.

Book preview

Dedication

Coal Ridge is based on Ohio's Finest Village. It was a great place to grow up and continues to be a remarkable community to which I enjoy returning to see friends and family. For those who live there, take a moment, look around, and be wary of the shadows.

Preface

A series of intertwined short stories that will make you wonder where the darkness ends and the light begins. All small towns keep secrets, but in Coal Ridge when the secret gets out, it begins to feed...again.

Set in a small, somewhat geographically secluded town in the Midwest, the blue-collar people of Coal Ridge are friendly and laid back, enjoying block parties, gossip, and the simple joys that come with being a close-knit community. Because everyone knows everyone else, secrets are hard to keep, but some are so well hidden that they've been forgotten.

These short stories explore a supernatural awakening that will test the bonds of family and community.

Unforgivable

Coal Ridge, July 1991

A noxious cloud filled the air over the crumpled hood of the faded silver coup. Coolant leaked onto the grass from the torn hoses and cracked radiator where the car had smashed into the thick maple. Wind moved through the leaves in the tree above, adding a pleasant rustle to the harsh hiss of escaping steam.

Officer Vince Gregory wiped away a tear as he leaned down to the driver’s side window. Nicky, man, you did it this time. We all tried to help, but ain't nobody gonna have your back now.

Inside the car, the driver turned towards the voice, his head waving back and forth. Although the man standing outside the car had lived in the same town and gone to the same school, Nick Denisco had pumped his veins so full of heroine that he might as well have been a stranger speaking a foreign language. Struggling to keep his head from falling left or right, he smiled and tried to nod, but ended up hitting his forehead on the steering wheel.

Dropping his eyes to look at the ground, Vince tried to shake away the horror of the situation. When that