True Tales of the Supernatural & Unexplained: Volume 2

By Cindy Parmiter

This book features real-life accounts of haunted dwellings, an Old World vampire who made California his hunting ground, a cellphone number that allegedly carries with it a curse, a demon that has terrorized a remote African island for decades, a waking nightmare that occurred during a power outage, an unidentified species that once inhabited the Appalachian Mountains, a predator who used candy to lure victims into their lair, a suspected lycanthrope that gave an Ohio town a summer it would never forget, a hotel that never forgets or forgives past wrongdoings, a famed writer's uncanny window into the future, and much, much more.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cindy Parmiter
• Release date: Sep 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215646601

Book preview

Introduction

The world of the supernatural infringes on our own more often than most of us would like to believe. While it is easy to look the other way or search for reasonable explanations for every odd occurrence, there are times when the puzzle pieces simply don’t fit, despite our best efforts. This book takes a look at a few of those occasions.

Included are real-life accounts of haunted places, a town that was visited by a creature thought to exist only in the world of fiction, a predator who set their sights on the most vulnerable among us using candy as bait, an unidentified species that once inhabited the Appalachian Mountains, a city where paranormal happenings are the rule of the day, strange encounters that have occurred during space travel and much more.

Now that you’ve had a glimpse of what’s to come, let us proceed.

The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the Unknown.

-H.P. Lovecraft

Chapter 1:

The Werewolf of Defiance

Defiance, Ohio is a small Midwestern city located just south of Toledo. While on the surface, it appears no different than any other community, a little digging into its past proves that looks can be deceiving. As locals will cheerfully tell you, there is more to this picturesque slice of Americana than meets the eye.

It all began on July 25th, 1972 when a couple of railroad workers assigned to the overnight shift were performing routine brake inspections. As they toiled away, one of the men, Ted Davis, heard a rustling noise in the distance. When he looked up to see what was going on, he observed a menacing figure approaching from only a few feet away. By the light of the moon, he could see that it was completely covered in a coat of thick fur and standing upright on two legs. He also couldn’t help but notice that its mouth was open, revealing fangs that resembled those of a large canine.

Not knowing what else to do, Davis had shouted at the interloper with all his might. Startled by the outburst, the creature had turned and fled into the nearby woods. As it lumbered away, the stunned workmen noted that it had a peculiar lopsided gait that reminded them of how cavemen moved about in movies.

Realizing that they had witnessed something extraordinary, Davis and his coworker made a beeline to the police station to report the encounter. Even though he listened to the wild story with a straight face, the officer on duty didn’t put much stock in the outlandish claim. It was only when similar accounts began to filter in that law enforcement sat up and took notice.

Within days of the first sighting, other railway workers came forward to say that they had seen something they described as a werewolf lurking near the tracks during the night.

From there, things really took off. The steady stream of people phoning in reports of brushes with a massive beast of unknown origin overwhelmed local authorities. They would later recall that there hadn’t been enough time or manpower to investigate every alleged sighting.

Among the residents who filed complaints was a grocery store owner who told of being set upon by a half-man, half-animal that was carrying a large piece of wood in one if its clawed hands. Knowing that he was no match for the fearsome presence, the man had high-tailed it inside and barricaded the doors until the coast was clear.

Another incident involved a motorist who claimed that he had come dangerously close to hitting an extremely large wolf-like creature that had run in front of his car on a dark roadway. Much like all of the other encounters, this one had occurred on a moonlit night.

News of the werewolf in their midst soon made headlines in the area’s hometown paper, the Crescent-News. As word spread, the Toledo Blade picked up the story and ran with it. Before long, nearly everyone in Northwestern Ohio knew about the strange goings-on taking place in Defiance.

While not everyone in the department had been on board, Chief of Police Donald Breckler had taken the complaints seriously from the get-go. Although he hadn’t necessarily believed that a werewolf was at large, he had taken an oath to protect the community and aimed to do just that.

Even though he had left no stone unturned in the search for the elusive wolfman, Breckler was never able to catch him in the act. Despite the fact that he and his officers followed up on the sightings as quickly as possible, the culprit was always long gone by the time they arrived on the scene.

And then—just like that—it was over. After weeks of being on edge, everything abruptly returned to normal. For reasons that no one could explain, the phenomena ended as quickly as it had begun. To everyone’s relief, the entity that had turned their lives upside down had retreated back into the shadows, never to be seen or heard from again.

Fifty years later, residents of Defiance still speak of those harrowing weeks in 1972 when they were afraid to venture far from home after nightfall. It was a time that, for them, will forever be known as the summer of the werewolf.

Chapter 2:

The Candy Lady

The tale of Clara Crane is a sordid one indeed. After spending several years confined to a psychiatric facility for the premeditated murder of her husband, she was released back into society. The path she took from there gave rise to one of the most enduring urban legends the state of Texas has ever known.

Born in 1871, Clara’s childhood was seemingly unremarkable. After graduating from high school, she wed an