Horror Stories: A Macabre Collection Read Online Free PDF Page B

easy task if it had to go down that
way.
    He and the dogs had only been in the basement
mere minutes, though to Carter it felt like an eternity. How had a
completely ordinary morning gone so rotten?, Carter wondered. Lucky
looked sickly after a few minutes. Her continued licking resulted
in clumps of hair coming off with the slightest dry lick of her
tongue. Her breathing was labored and raspy, as if ready to cough
or fade away entirely. Carter looked at her with what must’ve been
the saddest set of eyes his face had ever held. Bee-bo and Rusty
kept their distance, their faces sad, yet stern.
    A few more minutes passed and Lucky breathed
no more. Carter went over to her, his eyes red and rimmed with the
salty tears of his sorrow. The other dogs began to bark furiously
as Carter stepped closer to Lucky. Lucky raised her head, still not
breathing. Her jaw hung slack and her dried tongue dangled over it.
Carter breathed a sigh of relief and turned back around. Behind
him, Lucky managed to stiffly get to her feet. Bee-bo and Rusty
barked with venom as Lucky staggered forward. Carter turned, and as
he laid eyes on Lucky he jumped—she looked terrible, lifeless.
Bee-bo lowered her head and hunched her shoulders back. He was
ready to pounce on her to protect his master and friend. Rusty was
in a similar stance but his was not as urgent or as angry—Rusty was
hesitant. Lucky continued to close the distance and as her foot
touched ground once again, Bee-bo lunged at her. He charged head on
and knocked her to the side. He slammed her against the side of the
staircase. She didn’t huff, and didn’t seem phased in the
slightest. She had no emotional response. She turned her attention
to Bee-bo, as he was ready to pounce again. He rammed her with his
head, knocking her back once again, but not eliciting any response.
Rusty stood hesitant in the background, and Carter stood
dumbfounded next to him. They watched as Bee-bo attacked Lucky once
again. This time he bared his teeth and bit into her throat. Lucky
shook like a doll between the massive vice of his jaw. Thick, soupy
blood dripped from her neck and trickled down Bee-bo’s throat. He
wrestled her to the ground, where she lay only momentarily before
getting back to her feet. Carter couldn’t believe what he was
seeing. He grabbed the old baseball bat and readied himself to
swing. Bee-bo stopped fighting, sensing that something was wrong
within his body. He backed away from Lucky, whimpering in defeat—he
had lost.
    Carter swung the bat over Lucky’s head. She
slumped to the ground without making a sound. Carter’s eyes filled
with tears and began to flow as he brought the bat down a second
time, and a third, and a fourth. Rusty whimpered behind him,
bringing his body to the floor and covering his eyes with his paws.
Carter dropped the bat on the ground. He sobbed heavily. Lucky
didn’t get back up. Bee-bo continued to whine. Carter returned his
rump to the warm spot on the stairs where it had been before, his
head in his hands. He dreaded the moment when he would have to put
Bee-bo down the same way. Minutes later, Bee-bo stopped breathing,
yet he rose to his feet. He had the same lifeless look that Lucky
had. Carter put him down for good, splintering the bat many times
over, until it was useless. He turned to look at Rusty, who
remained on the ground with his paws shielding his eyes from the
horror in the room. Carter sat next to him, patting his head.
Neither of them had ever looked worse. Carter stared at the
ceiling, listening to the noise of the many creatures roaming
around his house. He wondered how long he had before they found a
way down to the basement, or how long before he had to venture out.
Maybe someone will come and get me out of here, he thought, then he
laughed. He laughed for a good long time.
     
     
    * * * * *
     
    Traveling Terrors
     
    * * * * *
     
     
    His knee popped under the terrible strain of
the beast on his back. He fought to remain upright but