Cemetery Of The Dead

By Mortaza Tokhy

The waning crescent moon cast an eerie pale glow over the desolate cemetery, its feeble light only serving to exaggerate the jagged shadows thrown by the crooked tombstones jutting from the earth like gnashing teeth. A whisper of foreboding seemed to hang in the still night air, punctuated only by the distant murmur of a nearby creek carrying on a ceaseless, whispered conversation with restless spirits. 

It was into this ominous setting that three teenage boys - Kevin Bradley, Lamont Harper, and Dale Erickson - ventured with a sense of trepidation yet undeniable excitement. Members of a secret society known only as the R.I.P. Club, they had come to explore the shadowy mysteries and untold tales that lay sleeping among the grave markers on this night. The wrought iron gates closed behind them with a mournful creak, their individual shadows blending into the murky darkness as they pressed onward.

 

Kevin's heart pounded with a heady mix of exhilaration and primal fear as he glanced sidelong at his companions. "Whose turn is it tonight?" he murmured, barely above a whisper so as not to disturb the slumbering dead. Dale responded with a sharp elbow to Kevin's ribs - a silent reminder of the pact they had made long ago by the light of the full moon to take turns sharing stories in the hallowed ground of the cemetery. 

 

But as they approached a solitary figure perched atop a crumbling grave marker, the hairs on the back of Kevin's neck stood on end and his voice trailed off into stunned silence. The slight boy, appearing to be around their age yet with eyes that were twin dark pools of emptiness, regarded them with an unsettling, challenging stare - as if daring them to once again raise the dead on this night.

 

From that night forward, a dreadful chain of events was set in motion as the boys became unwitting pawns in the restless spirit's quest for vengeance...

• Language: English
• Publisher: True American Publishing
• Release date: May 11, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224131020

Mortaza Tokhy

Mortaza Tokhy is a child author with an astounding gift; At the tender age of twelve, he holds the title of the youngest published horror fiction author. With astonishing skill and creativity, Mortaza has crafted diabolically thrilling tales of paranormal, sci-fi and horror that captivates readers around the world. His razor sharp writing leaves many mouths agape in disbelief that someone so young could be capable of such works.

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

The crisp autumn air hung heavy with an eerie stillness as Kevin Bradley, Lamont Harper, and Dale Erickson ventured into the heart of Garden Cemetery. Members of their secret society, the R.I.P. Club, the three teenagers had come to explore the mysteries that lurked within the ominous grounds, as was their solemn tradition.

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A pale crescent moon cast its ghastly glow upon the jagged tombstones jutting from the earth like gnashing teeth, while the gentle murmur of a nearby creek whispered of restless spirits. Trepidation gripped Kevin as they passed through the wrought iron gates, their shadows blending into the inky darkness. Whose turn is it tonight? he asked in a tremulous whisper, for it was their pact to share haunting tales beneath the full moon's light.

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As they approached a solitary figure perched atop a grave marker, the hairs on Kevin's neck stood on end. The eerie boy, eyes like dark pools of emptiness, dared them with his haunting gaze - a silent challenge to raise the dead once more. Hey, man, what are you doing here? Kevin called out, his heart pounding violently. The boy turned slowly, the dim light accentuating the hollows beneath his sunken eyes. Just...visiting my parents, he rasped, bitterness and sorrow etched into his tone from years of neglect.

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Suspicion laced Lamont's voice as he probed further about the boy's deceased parents. 1967, the stranger gritted out, unable to meet Lamont's gaze as pain flashed across his features. The realization that this mysterious figure may be a ghost from the past gripped the three friends with icy fear.

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The boy's nod was deliberate as he confirmed their worst fears - he was Seth Harris, a former student of Broad River High School, the institution that burned to the ground in 1975, taking countless lives. Unease settled in Kevin's core as they stood in the presence of one who had perished in that tragic event decades ago.

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Determined fury burned in Seth's eyes as he marched towards the foreboding woods, each step slow and purposeful. The friends watched in stunned disbelief as his form flickered like a ghost before dissolving entirely into a thick, swirling mist that swallowed him whole.

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Kevin's breath caught as he traced his fingers over the name Seth Harris etched into a once-blank gravestone, the engraved dates confirming the boy had died at only sixteen years old in 1967. The darkness of Garden seeped into his bones as he realized the grave next to Seth's belonged to Ritta and Jeremy Harris - his parents who had perished that same year.

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An unspoken agreement hung heavy between the three friends as they retreated from the cemetery that night, vowing never to utter a word of what they had witnessed. The R.I.P. Club soon disbanded, their bond shattered by the weight of the haunting secret. 

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Though time marched on, the memory of that chilling encounter clung to Kevin, Lamont, and Dale like a suffocating shroud. No matter where life took them, they could never escape the ghosts of their past in Garden.

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Decades later, as Kevin lay on his deathbed, the repressed trauma of that fateful night in the cemetery resurfaced with a vengeance. Wracked with fever dreams, he found himself transported back to the grounds where Seth's tormented spirit still lingered.

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This time, however, Seth did not remain a silent specter. His anguished cries pierced the veil between worlds as he recounted the horrific details of the Broad River High fire - a tragedy not born of accident, but of human malice. Seth's family, along with countless others, had fallen victim to a racist massacre, their lives extinguished in a blaze of hatred.

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As the full truth unveiled itself, a chilling realization dawned upon Kevin's addled