In 1940 a young German fighter pilot is shot down over the Essex marshes outside London and is never seen or heard from again.
Until now!
In September 1940 a Luftwaffe pilot is shot down over the Essex marshes and he is unable to escape from his crippled aircraft, which crashes in a field near the town of Melford Priory. Neither he nor his aircraft are recovered, and he is classed as Missing In Action.
Seventy years later, when an ancient German aircraft and its spectral pilot begin to appear near the scene of the crash, it comes to the attention of the local constabulary, in the form of Detective Constable Derek Lee. In the space of a few days, several sightings are reported, prompting Derek to investigate further.
Excerpt
He stood there, transfixed, as an area some seven or eight metres in diameter rolled and bubbled. At the same time, the smell became stronger, stinging the back of his throat and making him gag.
Then, slowly, the centre of the patch of grass began to rise. Leonard stepped back in surprise as the hump in the middle of the circle grew longer, and the dark shape rose from the bubbling mass. As it emerged from the damp oozing ground, Leonard recognised it. He stood there open mouthed as the ancient aircraft came to rest, bobbing up and down on the wet surface of the field, the soft mud dripping from its fuselage and its wings.
The smell was now almost overpowering, and Leonard held his handkerchief up to his mouth and nose in an effort to stave it off, and all the while, his streaming eyes were glued to the scene in front of him.
In the light of the moon, he could see the faint white outline of the black cross painted on the side of the aircraft, underneath the mud. It was obviously an old German fighter of some kind, but what was it doing under a field in Essex, and why had it appeared now.
Leonard's head was spinning, partly from the smell but more so from shock at the scene which was unfolding before him. He looked back toward the black clad figure at the sign post. It was still standing there, looking at Leonard, but pointing in the direction of the dripping hulk in the field beyond. As Leonard looked at him, he realised that the dark leather clothes that he was wearing were not motorcycle gear at all. They were the kind of clothes a pilot would have worn seventy years ago.
He looked closer, and thought that he could just make out the silver eagle on the figure's leather jacket, just above the right breast.
Leonard swayed slightly as the full impact of what he was seeing struck him. He looked across at the aircraft, the German aircraft, still sitting there in the middle of the field dripping mud. He looked back at the figure in the pilot's uniform, the German pilot's uniform, standing at the sign post pointing at the aircraft.
At this point, Leonard's brain, unable to cope with what it was seeing, decided to put itself on hold for a while. His knees began to shake uncontrollably and his ears began to buzz. At the same time his vision began to blur, and everything started to go dark as the ground suddenly came rushing up to meet him.
After Satan negotiates a pact with God and unleashes his army of demons, a secret sect battles a diabolical prophecy that threatens humanity.
Release Date: November 21, 2018
WEIRD RHODY is a short story collection featuring five strange tales all set in Rhode Island and written by five Rhode Island authors. The anthology is a tribute to H.P. Lovecraft, the Ocean State's famed author of pulp horror.
