Chapter 2 - Renald

Chapter 2

Renald

The sun was blazing down on the carpenter crew. The egg and sausage muffins that Chris brought back had been delicious as usual but the their energy level dropped every morning they ate them. Chris was no exception to the energy drain as he hoisted a pile of eight 2x4 wooden planks onto his shoulder. They fanned out and fell to the ground.

* * *

Ted baked red under the sun as usual, still seemingly nude with his light brown cargo shorts hidden under is beige toolbelt. He grabbed a nail from the front of his belt and pounding it into the inside frame of the wall. Will stood a just a few feet to the left of his brother’s hammering. He dropped a nail on the floor and he bent down to pick it up. Ted pounded another nail two inches directly above Will’s head. Instinctively Will jerked his body out of the way, shocked.

“Awe, just seein’ if you’re awake Boss that’s all.” Ted smiled.

Will slowly stood up, shaking his head and cupped his right ear. “…Yes, I’m awake! Brotha, your clownin’ around almost cost me my hearing. Wish you wouldn’t do that kinda stuff.” He lifted a nail to the wall quickly lining up the nail between his two left fingers, soft sides facing him. He instantly set the nail into place with a quick smack of his silver hammer in his right hand. He moved his left hand out of the way, swung his hammer and gave the nail a lightning quick pound driving it completely into the wood. He looked at the flush nail with intense anger for a moment.

Ted noticed the wave of the anger permeating in his brother. He shook his head, “Lighten up man.”

“Sorry, I can’t screw around and be silly like you all the time. I’m crew leader and things just don’t get done that way Ted.”

“Things don’t get done I don’t. Heck, you gotta have fun with this house, with all the changes and all,”

“How can I have fun when we’re on a two week deadline and the client keeps changing plans?” Said Will.

“…I think the plan’s changing you!” Said Ted with a slightly serious face.

“Is that what you think?” Will replied.

The sound of lumber scattering onto the ground could be heard. Will slowly turned his head Chris’s direction.

* * *

Chris was struggling to get the lumber back onto his shoulder. Will stepped up and stopped for a brief moment. “Um, well what happened here?”

Chris just looked down while stacking the 2x4’s on each other.

“Here Kiss, let me show ya how it’s done” said Will. Stepping besides him instantly scooping up the long square boards of lumber and placing them together almost in one sweeping underarm motion. He glanced back at Chris, “You juss do it, alright?”

When he was just about to turn back Renald approached.

“The owner sends his word!” Said the pale man who donned a pair of shades. He was middle-aged and wore a black shirt, dark blue jeans and had dirty blond hair.

Will sighed and plopped the stack of lumber onto the floor deck, turned, exhaled and put his hands on his hips “Speak of The Devil and he appears, don’t speak of em…well, he appears anyway. By the way, does that word include sorry for making this house a pain in my hinie?”

The Dark Blond put his his hands in his pockets. “You’re all getting paid, appropriately, just think of this as an extension to that pay.”

“Yeah maybe, but I know how far to push my crew and when to just move on to the next job site. He’s changing things a bit too much.”

“Yes well, it’s what the owners want that’s important. Here are the new blueprints…” Renald quickly pulled out a long rolled up piece of paper from behind his back.

“For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents, but Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. Exodus seven-twelve and one of these days you’re gonna show me how you do that trick, but if it ever turns into a snake you better get outta here.” Said Will with his severe lisp making the s’s turn into ‘th’. This also made the quote seem comical in contrast to his finger he pointed at the man.

“Ahh, but if I showed you it wouldn’t be magic.” The man smiled slyly.

“Maybe you practice the devil’s magic brotha.”

The Shaded Man gave a toothy grin, “I’d love to.”

Will picked up a stray 2x4 that Chris dropped, pointed it at the man.

“You tell him we’ll have all the framing done in two weeks.”

Renald smiled, walked a few steps backward, spun around, hands behind his back and walked away.

Will shook his head as he watched the black dressed man walk away. “What a silly little sucker.”

Dark Carpentry - Chapter 1 - A Summer Job

Chapter 1

A Summer Job

It was the summer of 1998 and I finally decided to go home for the summer. I enjoyed my last few years at Central Forest but that year was different, I gave my heart to Lucia. Her blond hair was like gold hay to me and I almost drowned a few times in her blue eyes. She was my drug of choice, my hit, and I needed another one.

She made working through the winter semester tolerable. I remember when I finally got the guts to ask her out and got shot down. She was back with her boyfriend again.

Hey, at least she called me back to let me know.

It’s been hard for me to talk to beautiful girls my whole life. When I worked with her, she made it easy and I never felt intimidated by her beauty, not at first but as the winter stretch on into late March students left Mt.Keen and work at the restaurant slowed down. There was constant snow, it never let up. I felt like Jack Torrance, snowed in and driven mad by some misplaced sense of purpose, losing my mind at the Overlook Hotel. There weren’t many bussers or waiters around except a few of the older ones. My attraction to Lucia slowly crept over me day by day and glance by glance. I felt powerless to resist.

I wanted to draw her portrait for my art class. Drawing a portrait of someone you knew was the assignment. At first she said yes, but changed her mind later and I got called down to the office, down into the bowels of The Sweet Potato, down to what my fellow co-workers would affectionately come to call ‘The Sweet Dungeon’. I guess Lucia felt weird about the whole thing, so I told my boss that I wouldn’t go ahead with it. I didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable.

I was devastated and felt like a kind of monster after that. I confronted her one day while she was eating with her friend.

“I’m sorry you feel that way.” She said. In other words, too bad. Even though all of this tension, heartbreak and awkwardness occurred I still had feelings for her.

She graduated only a month after that. I still remember her smile on the last day, the day we hugged. She walked down the hallway and forever left me alone, muse-less. I got depressed, she was all I could think about. I had to get her out of my mind. There was nothing I could do, I lost…for all time.

I quit The Potato after three years and drove back home to Mt. Blu. I needed to be with my friends and family for support, lick my wounds you could say. Maybe they could cure me of this love sickness I had contracted.

Danny, my friend from high school offered to help by offering me a job.

* * *

Chris and Danny walked down the parking lot towards the lumber supply store. Danny Chris were to high school buddies. Chris sported black hair, was thin and slightly muscular, mid-twenties. Danny was a taller paunchy man in his twenties as well.

“It’s a tough job but it pays pretty good. Seven-fifty an hour.” Said his high school friend Danny.

“Well, that’s better then average,” replied Chris.

“We’d probably have you work under Will. He’s a pretty good guy.” Said Danny as they walked side-by-side to the lumber depot store

“I’ll take it, I need anything right now.” Said Chris.

“You sure? It’s hard work and you’re gonna sweat a lot.” Said Danny.

“That’s okay, I need it, trust me it’ll do me some good.” Chris replied in a blunt tone.

* * *

It was a hot, blazing, sunny day in June. Will had just finished raising a wall inside of a two-story colonial home. His brother Ted, had a bit of a red tan and blond hair also, to his immediate left. In the crane was Pete Osgood, a big, slightly overweight tanned man with spiky long brown hair that ran down past his shoulders. Steve was to Ted’s left and on his dark blue flip phone, he also had dirty blond hair with a slight golden brown mustache.

The wall was just about to sit straight up, Steve’s cell phone rang and he quickly answered it walking away from the wall, it fell backwards. Ted propped his body underneath it while Will grabbed the wall by its top. His face and arms were red as his teeth clenched together, his bulging arm veins pumped adrenaline and with some strength Will hoisted the wall straight up again. The nails were immediately pounded in the sides and corners to hold it in place.

Ted and Will finally let go. Will exhaled a deep breath and turned around to face, Steve who was talking and chuckling on his phone. He grabbed Steve’s phone threw out of the window portal.

“Hey!” yipped Steve.

“Next time you leave us during a wall raise you’re fired! Someone could’ve got hurt real bad and it’s not gonna be me and my brotha, brotha!”

“It was a business call!” Steve replied.

“When you’re here, make this your business.” Said Will pointing to the wooden deck they stood on.

Pete was moving the long steel crane carrying the triangle shaped truss to left just above them. Will quickly switched gears as he waved the truss in. He waved at Pete down below in the operator’s seat. Already the huge triangular lumber was coming on too fast. It waved in the air as the wind swayed it left and right.

Will quickly held out his open hand to signal for Pete to stop. Will and Ted got on top of their ladders as well trying to stop and grab the wavering truss holding it into place.

The wind picked up with a final gust rocking it backwards once more but Will and Ted’s immense hand and arm strength managed to hold the huge piece into place.

They hammered both ends locking it into place. Afterward, Ted shook his head in relief and smiled at his brother, “Ain’t that new guy supposed to be coming in today?”

Will looked down at his watch. “He’s got twenty minutes.”

* * *

Chris pulled up in his burgundy Pontiac 6000 and hoped that the third wooden skeleton of a house was where he needed to be.

He could see a couple of carpenters already. Pete was wearing his big black sunglasses as he laid out some plywood on a bench and picked up his saw to cut it in half.

To Chris’s amazement a semi-naked tan man with seemingly only a toolbelt on, ran around the corner of the house waving at him. As the beefy man turned the corner, Chris exhaled noticing that he was wearing small khaki shorts under the belt.

This must’ve been it, he though. It was the only work-site with workers actually tending to it. The sun was still rising in the east as Chris approached a huge stack of 2x4’s.

A stocky figure walked upon the top of the stack of wood to his right. He was mostly covered in shadow.

“Hello?” Chris asked.

“Good Morning, brotha. How you doin?” Asked Will.

“Good! Is this The Deirsing Brother’s worksite?” Asked Chris.

“Why, yeth it is,” Will said with a slight smile. “You the collage kid?”

“Yep.” Chris replied. Right away, he couldn’t help but notice the slight lisp in the man’s pronunciation.

His yes sounded like ‘yeth’. He also noticed that somehow the tone of his heavy voice sounded slightly feminine. Some would quickly throw him in a gay category right way for the trait, Chris thought.

Will crouched down on the stack of 2x4’s and shook his hand. It was like shaking shredded leather with a hint of sandpaper in the palm. “Glad you could make it,” he leaped off the stack of lumber, like a gymnast planting his feet into the ground after a body twisting leap. He quickly faced Chris, “Welcome to Deirsing Brothers Carpentry, we’re gonna put ya to work today,” he said with a grin showing his white but slightly crooked front teeth. “Hope ya don’t mind too much.”

He also couldn’t help but notice the deep lines on Will’s face, deep canyons ran from both sides of his nose to his mouth. The lines were also deep across his forehead and crossed each other several times under his eyes. These lines broke up the tan complexion. His blue eyes shot out from under his thick eyebrows and his dirty blond hair had a military-esque sensibility as it was short on the sides and back but stood up on top with a few hairs jetting wildly left and right in rebellion. Indeed, this was a man who had spent many days, perhaps one day too many, under the blistering sun heaving heavy wooden boards and hammering many, many, nails.

Chris walked side by side with him as they walked towards the house in progress.

“Let’s do it! I’m hungry for the work.” Said Chris.

“You took the words right out of my mouth, I like ya already. What’s you’re name again?” Said Will, stopping to turn and look at Chris for a moment.

“Chris.” He said.

“Kiss?” Replied Will.

“Chrr-isss.” He exaggerated for clarity.

“Right, Kiss. Speaking of hungry, can you make a food run for the crew? It’s juss right up the street. Here’s a lisp, I mean list.” Said Will.

The lisp sure sounded right to Chris.

A piece of paper about a foot long unfolded out of his tool belt pouch. To Chris, the list might as well have been as long as Santa’s naughty and nice list.

Dark Carpentry - Prologue

                    

                   Transylvania

                       

                      1896

A dark black cloud floated over the gray castle. Because of the clouds it seemed like there was going to be a storm but there was no rain, no lightning, not even thunder. Up the winding dirt path which eventually let to the entrance were five men with crossbows in their hands. In the lead was Abraham Van Helsing, who sported dirty blond hair with only a little bit of stubble on his jaw. To his right was his brother Ned Helsing and to his left was Petrich Osvonovich, a larger burly man with long hair. Directly behind him was Stephen Anderson a tall, thinner man with blond hair and a mustache and to the right of him was their old writer friend Bram Stoker.

About two years earlier, Bram followed Abraham during his final confrontation with Dracula, witnessing the destruction of the man-beast. The events inspired him to write his first novel of the same name. No one believed that his seemingly fantastic tales were based in truth. Bram had agreed to pay the men their share of the books profits afterward. Recently they had heard reports of another vampire terrorizing the villages yet again. They asked him to come along for the experience of hunting down Dracula’s brother Dragos and to write down the events in a new novel.

It was a full moon in the middle of September. Bats could be seen in front of the bright orb. Abe had drawn out a map and a plan of attack earlier back at his home, however planing and doing were two different things. Bram was excited at the story possibilities this adventure would bring. It was dangerous like the first time, but it would also cultivate the ideas for his sequel.

                         * * *

Abe entered this chamber through the drawbridge which was surprisingly open. Petrich and Ned kept their crossbows high into the air searching for any bizarre beasts that defied the natural world. As soon as they thought of the idea, unearthly bright eyes with a spinning orange glow peered from the darkness. A huge drooling wolf-like creature pranced out of the shadowy corridor under the left stairway. It growled, salivated and faced the five of them. The furry black beast must’ve weighed two-hundred and fifty pounds easily. It cast a large shadow crept towards them along the wooden floor. It stood in front of the large fireplace with hellish yellow and orange flames.

Abraham threw a wooden cross shaped dagger directly at the gray sneering wolf. The throw was lightning quick. It jumped into the air in an attempt to dodge the stake but as it did the stake lodged into the creatures shoulder. It gave off a large yipe. It was hurt but it would take much more to put the creature down.

“Je ziet Stephen? Je doet het gewoon!” He pounded his fist in his hand.

“Jullie beiden naar links en rechts. Come now, shut the doors!” Abe pointed with his hands right and left. “Up the stairs! Get the higher ground! He turned his head to Stephen and Bram. Come together and pound right down the middle. Flank the beast from the sides…” Abe pounded his fist on his open palm. “You just do it!”

As Petrich and Ned walked up the stairs aiming their crossbows as the wounded creature. Ned tripped on his way up. The bloody wolf curled up and hair seemed to shed all around it as it transformed into the body of a nude man. He slowly stood up holding the stake in his left shoulder. “You killed my brother, now you want to finish off my bloodline completely.”

“That’s the idea, yes…” Abe then took out a long wooden cross which was sharpened at each end. He ran up and swung the stake over his shoulder but Dragos was able to block in time preventing the stake from coming down all the way to its heart.

Before Abe’s two men were able to pull their triggers two female vampires, one with blonde hair and the other with red, shot out of the black hallways next to them. One grabbed Petrich’s right shooting arm and bit deep into it. Petrich yelled and tried to shake her off. The other pushed Ned down the stairs with its immense strength.

The creature put its hand around Abe’s neck and lifted him off the floor. The cross dropped to the ground.

“Now it’s my turn to survive and your turn to die.” Said a grinning Dragos.

The only crew members left in Helsing’s crew were Stephen and Bram.

“I don’t get paid enough for this. It’s not even my real job!” Stephen said and gave his crossbow to Bram and quickly left. As he ran down the drawbridge, another huge gray wolf chased and pounced onto his back ripping into his neck. Bram could hear his blood curdling scream.

“Ah, no matter! He was…only part time.” Abe managed to say.

Bram now stood, shaky crossbow pointed at Dragos.

The vampire turned its head to Bram

“Stay out of this and I promise you your life, but not his.” Dragos said.

“Bram! Stop observing and shoot!” Abraham yelled.

Bram continued to stare as his heart beat fast. The crossbow was unsteady.

The vampire glanced over to him as the two beautiful long haired vampires descended the stairs smiling.

Dragos’s eyes locked on Stokers. Its pupil’s turned in orange spirals. Bram heard its voice in his head. I can see into your soul…ah, fame, it’s what you lust for. Don’t worry, after this you’ll have a popular novel on your hands. I can help you with your career as well, give you eternal life. You’ll write the best novels for the rest of time that humanity has on this earth. Now tell me…do you think that’s worth it?…Do you want to die?

He continued to stare and shake as Dragos laughed louder and louder. The laughter echoed throughout the castle walls, through the forests and even into the small village nearby.

“Bram! Bram! Just do it!” Helsing yelled then managed to pull out a small hidden stake from under his jacket, hoisting it into the air but losing the strength to bring it down into the vampires heart.

                           * * *

A shiny metal hammer landed onto a small silver nail slamming it flush into the wood. “You juss do it!” Said Will Deirsing. He was frustrated by Steve Abott’s lack of initiative when pounding the 2x4 into the wall.

“I was going to but…”

“Ah, but nothin'. Stop thinking about what you’re gonna do and juss do it. If I stopped and thought about everything I did in life I’d get nowhere, now get it done so we can keep it movin on this house.”

With that, the tan, dirty blond haired carpenter walked off the deck and towards his van for a bottled water.

Writer 2.0 Podcast

Writer 2.0 with A.C. Fuller!

        Lately I've been thinking about giving back to people and the influences that have been feeding my creative fire.
This is a good a step as any, especially after the holidays.
I like to listen to a lot of podcasts that are dedicated to a certain genre but usually end up straying off the beaten path and usually to comical results.
       Well, the Writer's 2.0 podcast doesn't really stray too far and for better or worse doesn't get too comical, but it stays focused on the subject of writing very well.
If you are a beginning writer or a more advanced one you will get something out of A.C.'s show.
       He talks about the process of using or not using an outline, rewriting and editing your story. The pains of doing a 3rd or 4th draft. How to market your book and the different paths to go about doing that, whether taking it to bookstores or pushing it online.
      He's also had some killer guests on from all ranges of publishing, from new writers that have just broken out to established ones that have been in the business quite a while. You can learn so much about the writing and publishing game from these interviews. Some writers have been burned by the sometimes lengthy waiting process of publishing to taking off right away with their work. These interviews tell you of the struggles and obstacles that can plague any writer.
       I highly recommend to anyone who writes, teaches English in class or privately to listen. Each episode is an amazing lesson in writing stories, staying inspired to write, and the challenges that writers face as well. It's invaluable information that we're lucky to get for free. I don't even have the heart to erase his podcasts off my phone because they feel that important me.

Writer 2.0 with A.C. Fuller
Do it to it 😁

Here's the link to the I-Tunes Page:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/writer-2.0-writing.-publishing./id924980625?mt=2

The Halloween Store - Chapter 3

The Halloween Store

(c) Chris Calderon 2016

CHAPTER 3
LUCY

Lucy was also fresh out of high school she had long black hair and wore jean short shorts. She was nice, courteous to her coworkers. Both John and Andre thought She was a quiet and they assumed she was introverted because of her thick rimmed glasses.

* * *

Gary, was from Australia, he was the taskmaster for a very busy Friday night in October. “C’mon guys stop talking! You have to keep it moving! There’s plenty to do, straighten out isles six and seven. He grabbed a few vampire costumes and tossed them to Jen and Andre. One of them fell from Jen’s arms.

They all quickly scurried away like ants to put them away.

* * *

Lucy was given the assignment to look for a missing clown costume in the back of the store. She got the shivers as she walked down a hallway with mirrors on both sides. She had a scary feeling from the lower part of her body work its way up top. The mirrors seemed to watch her as she walked past them.

Gary told her some clown costumes were accidentally left at the dark end of the long hallway. She was quickly walking down. At the end of the dark cornered hallway was yet another mirror, however, this one was different it had an old Victorian-style design.

Pointy corners resembled horns in each corner of the mirror. To her it was just another creepy artifact in an already super creepy hallway. Of course she spotted the boxes behind the long skinny mirror. The Mirror almost seemed to her to drag her in. Lucy didn’t want to look into it and see mirrors reflecting mirrors. Endlessly into oblivion. She knelled down and grabbed the brown box behind the mirror. She opened the box with a slice of the box-cutter she took out of her back pocket. The box opened to reveal a white painted face with a big rubber red nose and a typical multi-colored clown suit. Everything on the cover was normal except for one thing, the smile, the insane smile on this jester disturbed her very much. It seemed to stare directly at her. She looked straight back up into the mirror again. She looked at the mirrors within the mirrors and the deeper she looked she swore she saw a red boot front a costume. She turned and didn’t see a red shoe on the ground. Suddenly she heard some giggling in the mirror in front of her.

Whatever was in the mirror was getting closer. She spotted a red and yellow clothed leg step behind a mirror, if that was possible. She meant to run out of the hallway but was fully entranced. Her arms fell to her sides as she felt absolutely powerless to stop what was now happening. She couldn’t look away as a clown with a jester’s hat appeared in front of her in the mirror. He or it laughed hysterically. Lucy couldn’t help but giggle too. It was as if a force was making her laugh against her will but then it felt good to her. He was now laughing hysterically. Suddenly, the jester’s arms shot out of the mirror. Lucy hardly had time to realize what was happening and her thin waist was pulled into the mirror as if its surface was made of water. Her jet black hair strands were the last to follow.

The Halloween Store - Chapter 2 - Two Weeks In

                           CHAPTER 2

TWO WEEKS IN

John had been making great progress with the locations of the costumes. They were nearing the end of September and the store had seen plenty of traffic and sold lots of costumes and plastic props.

Andre, a short, plump, goateed sales rep had been boinking his fellow employees on their heads and arms with his squeaky, rubber, caveman club. Stacey, who was destined to be a Playboy Playmate in the minds of her male counterparts, had recently graduated from high school about a year before.

Jennifer, was a freshman at Burbank’s Community College. She also played softball there and was a decent outfield catcher.

Megan just moved to Los Angeles so she was considered a transplant along with John. She had come a longer way though, all the way from Ireland along with her friend Laura who also moved with her to make a cd and record label. John had talked with Megan about why she moved to LA. She wanted to get work as a nature photographer but most of all get out of the cold rainy climate she had grown weary of over the years. They had both had that in common with each other. Michigan had similar weather, where one didn’t know what to dress for from day to day.

Star, was one of the first original sales reps to be dressed in costume and what a costume it was. The blue Alice skirt stopped close to her rear, exposing her legs with black-net stockings. The dress also left open a generous portion of her cleavage. The outfit also included a multi-colored skirt. John was a big fan of her occasional exposed cheeks when she bent over and even when she didn’t.

She even had a tattoo of a star on the back of her neck. John tried flirting with her on several occasions over the weeks but she was stiff and not very talkative at least not to him. He still found himself occasionally looking at her as she put the plastic bagged costumes away. What could break her social ice wall that she put up? “Cheer up! You only have two-hundred more bags to go,” said John.

“Heh…” Star replied and stared dead ahead.

John walked on to his next task of getting some more costumes for the racks himself.

The next week they hired another girl John didn’t mind staring at for several minutes as well. Her name was Lucy.

The Halloween Store - Chapter 4 - The Next Day

The Halloween Store

(c) 2016 Chris Calderon

CHAPTER 4
THE NEXT DAY

The red and blue lights flickered on the cobwebbed pained glass door. Gary and Allen opened the door to greet the officers. John, Andre and the rest of the girls stood inside watching the two managers talk to the men in blue. They looked like two young kids trying to explain where their younger brother or sister went. Allen waved both arms and hands above his head in a Y. This always reminded John and a few others of Richard Nixon when he would put up his arms with two peace signs in both hands. Instead of peace, Allen’s gesture always signaled frustration. The girls whispered to each other wondering who was to blame.

Allen came back into the store and waving his arms once more, “Everybody, get back to work, c’mon!” He tossed out costumes to everyone, “C’mon, let’s get movin’.”

* * *

As it was getting closer to Halloween they gave the reps a chance to promote the store by recieving a free costume to wear while working. It was good for the store because the customers would see how the costumes fit on a real person as opposed to a picture. John wore a Ghostbuster costume. He had been an immense fan of the film ever since he was a kid. He knew just about every line from the comedy. He used this eccentricity to his advantage by always quoting various dialog from the movie. He donned an inflatable proton pack complete with the particle thrower.

Campy Halloween music played on repeat for the rest of the night. Campy kids, Halloween music to Micheal Jackson’s Thriller. To the crew, Thriller was definitely the best some of the bunch.

John put some of the cavemen costumes together. Andre donned a viking horned helmet and nudged John on the shoulder.

“Hey, take a look at those!” Said Andre pointing at Stacy donning a leopard spotted almost-a-bikini top. She also wore a matching headband around her dark black hair. Her brunette hair seemed to frame her huge round breasts. Their gaze fell upon her as she bent forward vacuuming back and forth. Andre chuckled as John continued to watch.

Andre hit him on the head with his squeaky rubber club and laughed. John shook his head and walked around the store.

* * *

More and more people started to file in. John, Andre, Stacy, Star and Jen kept helping the wandering customers. John couldn’t take his eyes off a beautiful brown-haired girl. She stood next to her mom. She was dressed in the popular Cinderella costume. The long curly brown hair fell down to her bare neck. He felt the urge to go and chat her up but the mother was a major obstacle to him.

* * *

Jennifer had to go into the back of the store wearing tons and piles of brown boxes which contained lots of back-up costumes for the front, most of them were not priced yet. Allen told her to check in the piles of boxes for a vampire costume. After opening several boxes and not finding any costume that even came close, she started checking the boxes in the back. She tripped and fell over the mound of brown cubes in the middle.

Soon, she found herself swimming in them. She couldn’t find her balance and footing. The boxes fell on top of her and became heavy almost to her as if they were pushing her down on purpose. Her body was fell towards the floor in a quicksand of large brown boxes. The only thing she could get out of the cardboard was her right hand. She seemed to descend for an absurd thirty seconds. This depth was way beyond the actual store floor. Time seem to slow like Alice falling through the rabbit hole.

As she slowed her hands and legs shot out in an inverted Y. Below her was a very old black wooden coffin. She panted as the door creaked open. There was nothing but darkness. Then a pale, finely clothed man opened his eyes, smiled, showing his long two-inch fangs. Jen screamed in terror.

Outside the mound of boxes just a mere muffle could be heard if someone was near that area.

“I heard you were looking for my clothes.” Said the ghoulish, red-eyed, vampire. Her scream slowly died into a whimper as she stared into his hypnotic eyes. Her mouth stayed open as she slowly descended into the pale man’s arms. His fangs plunged deep into her soft neck and the coffin lid fell over her. The coffin knocked just once at the last bit of struggle. The boxes fell back on top.

Meanwhile, Allen was still getting grief from an impatient customer. “Andre! I need you to check up on Jennifer and see if she found that Dracula costume yet, it’s been about five minutes.” He glanced at his watch.

“Yes sir,” Andre said saluting and smiling at him. He strutted down to the back of the store and to the storage room.

Allen raised his hands in the air and waved his hands. “Hurry up! Got customers waiting!”

Andre turned his head slowly, smiled, walked backwards, turned and kept strutting at his usual pace. When he finally arrived he opened the curtain to reveal the usual mountain of boxes, but to his surprise they had been perfectly stacked on top of each other so that they took up almost half of the room. Only one box remained on the top layer. Flabbergasted at the organization, since he only measured five foot three he took the top box just above his shoulders, and opened it using his box cutter. He saw the word Dracula and instantly snatched the first one without thinking to look at the rest of tge package. He jogged forward just a few seconds then went back into his usual slow strut. “Man, you were so quick!” Said Allen. “Lightning quick! I tell ya.”

Andre only cracked half a smile and held out the bagged plastic costume. The angry woman rapidly grabbed it from his hand. She gave it a glance and quickly slammed it on the counter “forget it!” She snapped and promptly left. Allen picked up the costume, shook his head. “Y’know you might want to read the whole title.” Said Allen as he held and showed Andre the costume. It read, “Bride of Dracula.” He threw the costume on the glass cashier table with plastic vampire teeth memorabilia under it. “Now go put it back were you found it and go get Jennifer. Wherever she is.”

“Right boss,” Andre replied.

* * *

The second time the police showed they thoroughly searched the store from front to back. No trace of blood was found to back room. No trace of blood was found or piece of clothing. They searched throughout the room throwing all the boxes aside only to reveal a regular light blue carpeted floor.

John and Megan watched Gary and Allen talk to the police once again with Gary cross armed and shaking his head while Allen hands predictably shot up into the air again. Megan was dressed as a clown with a huge round waist as big as a trampoline.

The yellow striped pants were followed by huge red shoes. “It’s so weird what’s been happenin’.”

“I know, it’s like their here one minute and then they’re gone.” John said while watching the police officers.

Andre had been looking around trying to stay busy. He grabbed the rejected costume from the glass display desk.

He looked down at the cover and gave a second look.

He walked up to John and Megan and handed them the costume. Megan looked down at it and screamed instantly dropping the plastic package to the ground. John picked it up instantly and turned pale.

The title was The Bride of Dracula. Jennifer pale and with two blood holes in the side of her neck stood in a long black outfit. They thought, either she had a twin as a model or somehow it was her.