Category: Horror Publisher: Donald H Sullivam
Type: Fiction
Pages: 25
Copyright: 2011
A young couple inherit a house in the western North Carolina mountains. They laugh at local stories of a werewolf who roams their valley. But as the full moon approaches strange things begin to happen, and the wife has good reason to believe that her husband will himself become a werewolf.
Peggy and Phil Vasko recently moved into a beautiful old house in the North Carolina mountains that her husband inherited. While hiking in the forest, Phil is bitten by an animal. The locals believe that a werewolf roams the valley, and that he has been bitten by a she werewolf seeking a mate.
Peggy pooh poohs the idea, but as the full moon approaches, Phil begins to act very strangely, and his actions finally convince her that the locals are right. She desperately seeks a way to escape before the moon is full.
Excerpt
"Pete, I wonder if you would tell me more about this werewolf thing. I'm just curious."
"All I know is what I've heard the old folks say about it," he said. "The werewolf is a normal person until the night of a full moon. It could be anyone who lives in the valley, or maybe even someone here in Arcos. It kills mostly livestock, wild animals, and pets. But they say it prefers the flesh of humans."
He cleared his throat. "Maybe you'll think I'm nuts, but I've seen and heard of enough strange things in this valley to think there's something to it."
"I understand," she said.
He went on. "Anyway, it's immortal. It cannot be killed except by a silver blade or silver bullet. But if is killed, it can assure that its kind will go on. It can do that by biting another victim."
She felt the blood draining from her face. "And the new victim also becomes a werewolf?"
"Yes. In human form it seems completely normal, but is always under the spell of the werewolf within."
Peggy was speechless for a long moment. "This is all such nonsense," she said. "I don't know why I bothered to ask."
"I know about Phil getting bitten by an animal," said Pete. "I don't blame you for being concerned. Don't feel embarrassed."
"It was a raccoon bite," she countered.
"All the same, I'd be cautious if I were you. If he was bitten by the wolf, he would be under its spell. He certainly wouldn't tell anyone.
"The moon will be full tomorrow night, Peggy. Don't be afraid to come to me if you need help."
~ ~ *~ ~
When she returned home, she spotted Phil's pickup parked in the carport. She did a double take when she saw a goat tied to a stake in the front yard. She hurried into the house.
"Phil, what on Earth is a goat doing in our yard?"
He seemed irritated. "Look, I'm going to start raising livestock as a hobby, okay? Got to start with something."
"It's just that I was a surprised to see a goat in our yard," she said. "But I wish you'd wait until we fence off a place behind the house."
"Sorry I snapped at you," he said. "Guess I should've told you before."
That night she couldn't sleep. Her mind was in turmoil. She fought to convince herself that werewolves were mythical creatures. It was all nonsense, and she was foolish to even think about it. But then she would think of the facts.
It was a fact that Phil was bitten by an animal. It was a fact that he had taken a sudden interest in werewolves. It was a fact that he had a live goat tied in the yard…in anticipation of feeding when the change came?
And it was a fact that the entire village was convinced that a werewolf roamed the valley. Even Pete, a seemingly practical and well educated young man, was convinced.
She thought of the goat, and was horrified to think of Phil, in wolf form, attacking and feeding on the poor creature. Or worse, what if he, as a wolf, decided to feed on a human? And she would be convenient, lying next to him.
Pray for the light. Pray that you last that long. The Long Hour Before Light is a classic collection of Horror tales, re-mastered by Champagne Book Group
The fortunate inherit riches, prestige, positive notoriety. Those not so lucky bear legacies filled with poverty, infamy or, worse yet, the unhinged insanity and murderous urges of their ancestors.
