Kevin Mulligan was scared shitless. He was twelve now. Twelve was the age you started cleaning the cobwebs. Kevin grew up hearing stories about the spiders. There was always a spooky tale for campfires or sleepovers. Ben Watson told one at Tim Rollins’s house just before his dad came in to say lights out. Ben… Continue reading The Cobwebs
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The Allen Affair
Luther Balor was woken from his dozing by the hard strike of a match. The faint smell of burned sulfur lingered as he blinked hard and turned his eyes to the butler hovering beside him: a young man dressed sharply in the customary tuxedo of a servant; a white tie knotted snugly around his throat.… Continue reading The Allen Affair
Midnight Ferry With Vending Machines
The ticket blepped out the machine like a tongue. Laughing to himself, giddy with jetlag, Rory used both hands to take hold of it. One hand would be impolite in Japan. Written in English: Midnight Ferry with Vending Machines and onboard Entertainments. The waiting room was empty, and too bright, with pale gray walls and wan… Continue reading Midnight Ferry With Vending Machines
The Overlooked Pioneer Who Invented Modern Horror
When we think of modern horror—the kind that unfolds in suburban living rooms, that transforms everyday objects into instruments of terror, that locates dread not in ancient castles but in the psyche itself—we inevitably think of Stephen King. King’s sprawling novels have defined the genre for generations, his name synonymous with contemporary American horror. But… Continue reading The Overlooked Pioneer Who Invented Modern Horror
Pork Chops
Although he couldn’t save his wife, Matthew said he was lucky to escape the woods. Later, it came out that, on the first day of the hike, he hit her on the head with a stone and pushed her off a cliff. Apparently, it was planned all along. Her body struck the rock wall twice,… Continue reading Pork Chops
Winter Trial
“And so the little girl, well-warned against the wolf and snug in her bright red cloak, skipped along into the woods to see her grandmother…” Guilhaume Barthélémy wiped his balding pate in consternation as he listened, the nursemaid’s thick Germanic accent now lilting lightly over the words. Her new fluency hardly registered, however, in the… Continue reading Winter Trial
Princess
Marcy and her thirty-two-year-old son, Ricky, were sitting on the couch watching the evening television. In front of them was a small table with food, both on the plates and scattered around. The program was a soap opera that they rewatched numerous times. Cigarette smoke dimmed the already weak lighting. The peeling wallpaper was adopting… Continue reading Princess
Macabre Magazine
Dark Harbor Magazine Becomes Macabre Magazine For nearly a year, Dark Harbor Magazine has been a home for horror. We published stories that lingered, work that carried weight, and voices that shaped the character of the magazine. In that short span, readers returned issue after issue, and writers trusted us with their best work. The result was… Continue reading Macabre Magazine
The Stranger on the Train
Something is wrong. There is a stranger in the back of the train. Someone I have never seen before. Sitting alone, among all the daily commuters I see every day. Perhaps I never noticed him before. Though he has a distinct look I would have noticed. His face is smooth and there is not a… Continue reading The Stranger on the Train
Beast
At dusk, he carried a small backpack into the park, unfurled a one-man pop-up tent near the ablutions of the main camping ground. The tent screamed vivid yellows and blues—jarringly incongruent with his craggy face and deadpan expression. Until recently, it had been his son’s. From the many times they’d come here together. Way back… Continue reading Beast