Shiver

By Cassandra V. Wyatt

~~~ THE GOOD NEIGHBORS ~~~

Before you agree to buy your next house, you might want to take a closer look at your neighbors.

~~~ THE PRICE OF BEAUTY ~~~

A story about cosmetic surgery gone horribly wrong and a cautionary tale about what happens when you don’t read the fine print.

~~~ THE FEAST ~~~

Watch how quickly a boss’s dinner invitation goes from being one woman’s dream to her worst nightmare.

~~~ OBSESSION ~~~

The desire for a love that lasts into eternity becomes reality, but with a twist.

Explore these and sixteen other chilling tales of the macabre and enter a world of the strange, the gruesome and the grisly.

Be warned, many have entered, but few actually return.

Cross these thresholds and enter at your own risk.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cassandra V. Wyatt
• Release date: Aug 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005305277

Cassandra V. Wyatt

Cassandra V. Wyatt is a native New Yorker (the Bronx, born and bred), and Florida transplant. She is a mother of one and a lover of most things four-legged and furry. She lives rather quietly and simply with no exciting hobbies like parasailing or skydiving. A lifetime lover of reading and writing, she has written and self-published 14 novels and a few short stories with more on the way. Her favorite genre is horror although romance, psychological suspense and action/thriller have infiltrated her repertoire. She believes she does each very well but that’s for you to judge.

Book preview

Shiver

By Cassandra V. Wyatt

Copyright 2017 © Cassandra V. Wyatt

Smashwords Edition

Cover image by Jane Spaulding from Pixabay

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

Thank you for downloading this eBook. This ebook remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or non-commercial purposes. It is licensed for your personal enjoyment only and is not to be re-sold or given away. If you enjoyed this ebook, please encourage your friends to purchase and download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. Thank you for your support.

Table of Contents

Introduction

The Twins

The Story of Meagan Rogers

The Crutchfield Museum

The Feast

Shadow Dancers

The Vault

Obsession

Emily Ann McKinney

Something’s in My Room

Trapped

The Woods

Tattoo

Dark Angels

They Crawl

The Good Neighbors

Arrowpoint Cove

The Sacrifice

The Price of Beauty

The Beasts of Abomination

Half Past Dead

About the Author

Other Works by Cassandra V. Wyatt

Connect with Me

Introduction

Come take a walk with me. I know we haven’t formally met so let me introduce myself. I’m your personal guide into the dark shadows of the unknown and the unexpected; the bizarre and the inexplicable. I’m here to hold your hand and try to make you comfortable on what should be a very uncomfortable journey. You’re about to enter the world of the peculiar, the abnormal and the extraordinary.

Something special awaits you beyond the threshold of each door.

So, sit back and relax. Put your feet up.

There’s no need to fear the darkness; but you should pray for your safe return.

The Twins

What time is it? Alison asked irritably.

It’s almost 3:30.

Alison was done with this road trip almost before it began. She loved her brother, Raymond, more than life itself which is why she often indulged his frequent flights of fancy. But this was one time she was starting to wonder if maybe she should have just indulged her desire to curl up in bed with a good book until she read herself to sleep.

She looked out the passenger window of the old black pickup. Idly she wondered when the vehicle had been last touched by water. The dirt and grime that covered the windows made it virtually impossible to see anything other than your reflection from the inside. Even the windshield was soiled. The only clear areas visible were the arches made by the windshield wipers.

She glanced at her brother. To say that he was handsome was an understatement. A mop of curly dark brown hair framed his perfectly oval face and strong jaw. His smoky grey eyes were sultry and always held a bit of mischievous intent. One side of his thin lips seemed to be curved into a perpetual smile and suggested that he alone was aware of some joke that no one else was privy to.

He’s a looker alright and he knows it, she thought. And to think, we’re identical twins.

Alison and Raymond Cox were born to Christopher and Alicia Cox one fateful Saturday morning, twenty-six years ago. After a particularly difficult pregnancy that called for their mother to be bed-ridden during her third month, she awoke to soaking wet sheets and pain of indescribable proportions.

After calling the hospital, Christopher hustled his wife out the door and into the car. Then he raced, Indianapolis 500 style, to the hospital.

It was 4:00 a.m. when they arrived. Several hours later, Alison and Raymond gained entry into this world. Alison came first with Raymond following on her heels two minutes later.

They were both robust and healthy; the picture of newborn perfection.

Unfortunately, unlike other mothers, Alicia didn’t get to see her baby boy and girl. She had initially planned for a natural birth but had to be anesthetized due to an emergency C-section.

Even more unfortunate was the fact that Alicia never awoke from the anesthesia. She suffered a massive heart attack and no amount of resuscitation was able to bring her back. After trying for twenty minutes, the doctors finally pronounced her dead.

When the doctor informed Christopher about what had happened; he completely broke down. Alicia had been the light and love of his life and now she was gone. Grief-stricken and racked with sorrow, he was eventually taken to see his now deceased wife. When he reached her side, he collapsed over her body crying uncontrollably. Inconsolable, he had to be sedated and admitted to the hospital for observation while the newly born twins were cared for by the pediatric staff.

Thus began the life of Alison and Raymond Cox. Two innocent children destined to never know the touch of their mother’s hand, the warmth of her skin or the sound of her voice.

Instead they were cared for by a once kind man who incorrectly blamed them for the death of his wife and their mother. While it might seem to some that leaving these two innocents with someone who harbored the level of animosity that he did toward them was akin to tempting fate, the children were in no immediate danger.

If asked, Christopher would have probably, and quite bluntly, told you that he often thought of killing those two children in much the same way they had killed his wife. However, he had decided that letting them live and suffer would be a much more appropriate punishment for taking away his beautiful Alicia.

As babies, they could not speak about the neglect or abuse they suffered at the hands of their only surviving parent. As they got older, they were forbidden to do so; fear of the punishment that they would receive kept their silence.

From the beginning, their father felt no remorse for all the times that his babies would go unloved and ill-attended. After an unusually serious case of diaper rash caused doctors to question his abilities as a caretaker and prompted them to contact the authorities, he became crafty in his neglect.

He was able to explain away the rash by stating that as a new father, he was not well-versed in the care of infants. He told the doctor and authorities that he thought the rash was simply a natural irritation possibly brought on by an allergic reaction to the soap or bath wash he used. He lied and said he thought the rash would go away on its own after he changed the brand of wash he used and when it didn’t, he brought it to the attention of the doctor. He argued that his lack of knowledge about such things did not make him a bad parent just an inexperienced one.

Because there were no other indications that anything was amiss, the children were allowed to remain in his care. What the doctor and the authorities could not see was the emotional scars that were being inflicted as a result of Christopher’s neglect.

They didn’t know that Christopher never held his babies even when he fed them. He knew of the bond that twins shared and purposely placed them in separate cribs in separate rooms. He wanted them to feel the same pain of absence he felt due to the loss of Alicia.

The twins would cry; no doubt for each other and for love they innately desired and never got. If questioned, Christopher would again lie and state that they suffered from colic. As difficult as it was, he was just toughing it out. This garnered the sympathy of those who asked and silenced the questions.

As toddlers, the emotional neglect continued. They remained separated from each other and their father only took them outside when he had to go to the store. Because Christopher and Alicia had been quite well off, Christopher had quit his job right after the birth. Not because he wanted to be a dutiful and attentive father, but because had he continued to work, he would have been forced to hire someone to care for the babies.

This he deemed unacceptable because whoever was entrusted to their care would no doubt do just that, care. He did not want these infantile murderers, as he was fond of calling them, to know what it was to be touched out of love, to be kissed or held or to know any type of affection.

What Christopher also didn’t know was that his mistreatment of the twins was creating an environment for something over which he would one day find himself powerless.

As Alison turned to look back out of the filthy window, Raymond gave her the side-eye. He knew his sister was irritated and probably rightfully so but she had agreed to come with him, so she just needed to sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.

Raymond also knew that she hated his old pickup. She was old and she rode rough but she got him wherever he needed to go and that’s all that mattered to him. Even so, he was not completely insensitive to his sister’s feelings or her discomfort.

We’ll be there soon sis; just hang in there.

It seems like we’ve been on this road for hours.

It’s only been an hour and a half. Maybe it seems longer because there’s really nothing out here to see.

Alison looked out the window. He was right about that. Other than the dirt road they were on and the trees, there didn’t seem to be anything out here except them. She couldn’t remember how long ago it was that they had passed a house. With all this ‘nothing’ to look at, the journey did in fact feel longer than it actually was. She just wanted to get out of this old rust bucket and be done.

A half hour later, Raymond pulled into the driveway of the old family house. They both sat silently looking at the house where they were raised, each deep within their own thoughts. Finally, in unison, they got out and walked up to the door. Christopher pulled out the key and they entered the house.

They stood in the foyer and looked around. Even though their father had never laid a hand on them, they had still suffered horribly at his hands. The result was that they had no one they could realistically call friend and no significant others. They were unable to connect with others on any emotional level and spent their years unable to form any valuable or meaningful relationships with anyone.

In spite of the fact that their father had determined in his heart to destroy the bond between them by isolating them from each other, they had still retained that unique and mysterious connection that only twins knew. Consequently, the only companionship they had or needed was their own. In fact, it often seemed that the separation imposed on them by their father had only strengthened their connection as adults.

As one mind they climbed the stairs and entered the individual bedrooms where they had been sequestered as children. After standing in the center of each of the rooms for several minutes, they slowly climbed the stairs to the attic. Outside the door, they hesitated, their eyes fixated on one another as they communicated in the silent language that only they knew or understood.

Raymond opened the door and they entered as one unit.

The attic space was dank and gloomy. The one small window had long since been covered over with wooden planks allowing only slivers of light through the seams of wood. Millions of dust motes floated in random patterns in the musty air. In the far right hand corner was an old metal cot and next to the cot sat an old wooden chair.

Raymond and Alison walked over to the bed. It was here that their father would force each of them to sleep at different times. Alone in the dark, they would cry for a mother they never knew and a father that had no love for them. But mostly they would cry for the twin they knew was somewhere nearby.

Alison sat in the chair while Raymond stood by her side. They looked at the lone, terrified figure on the bed.

Christopher Cox lay tied to the bed with his mouth securely gagged. His body was so wasted and emaciated that even if they had removed his bonds, he would have been much too weak to achieve, let alone attempt, a successful escape.

His face was all hard, angular ridges as the bony structure beneath his skin poked through. Because all fat and muscle tissue had been broken down, nearly every bone from his collar to his toes were clearly visible underneath the thin layer of skin.

The bony protuberances of his knees stood out in stark relief against his stick-like thighs and calves. Each of his 24 ribs was clearly visible above his sunken stomach as was his pelvic bone.

After being systematically starved of food, light and human contact for several months, Christopher Cox had been reduced to nothing more than a human skeleton. This was the result of a carefully executed plan conceived by his unapologetic twin son and daughter.

~~~~~

By the time Raymond and Alison turned 18, they had lead a very carefully constructed and sheltered life. Having been homeschooled by their father, their whole world consisted of literally nothing but him and an awareness of each other’s presence somewhere within the dwelling.

Christopher was confidently arrogant enough to believe that he had successfully broken his children and eliminated any possibility they had of finding any type of happiness in the world. It was his intent to send them out on their own with no coping skills, no ability to function independently and no positive sense of self.

Having depended on him for so long, he was sure that the twins would be incapable of finding any type of satisfaction, contentment or happiness beyond the walls of the family home. Once set free, their eventual downfall and destruction was guaranteed. Except for one thing of which he was unaware.

Raymond and Alison harbored within them an incredible psychic connection that was virtually unheard of and unparalleled amongst twins. Whether it was some sort of genetic anomaly or the result of their individual seclusion is unknown. The one thing that their connection allowed for was the ability to communicate with each other without ever speaking a word.

As toddlers, they each knew exactly what the other was thinking and doing. It confused Christopher when he would leave one twin and then find the other doing the exact same thing as the twin he had just left. He chalked it up to some weird thing with twins and gave it no more thought. Maybe if he had, he would not find himself in the predicament that would later signify the end of his life.

By the time they turned 16, Christopher believed that it was safe to allow them to have contact with each other. He operated on the mistaken belief that because of the many years that had passed, they would be no more than strangers; uninterested in each other and untrained in any type of ability to get to know each other in any significant way.

It was during this time that Raymond and Alison began to formulate a scheme that was borne out of a desire for vengeance from two children who were incapable of simple human emotions like sympathy, compassion and love. Except for how they felt about each other, these emotions were completely foreign to them. Christopher thought he had designed and orchestrated the most perfect plan