by Charles Day
Flying ghosts, goblins with long claws, and other round and devilish freaky creatures seemed to be taking over. She knew deep in her old heart that, most likely, those punks in the neighborhood were responsible for the evil doings. Somehow, some way, they’d managed to produce a bunch of flying objects to scare the townsfolk. Nonetheless, she worried because, from what she heard from the safety of her porch—the yells and screams of passing neighbors, the beeping of horns from cars, the shrieks of cats and barking dogs—true evil had settled in her town.
“Mrs. Needlewhitter,” Samantha asked with a gentle voice, a voice that the old lady couldn’t resist. “Do you think we’re in trouble? I mean, with everything that’s happening?”
“Now, you listen to me, young lady. We’ll have no talk of such negative notions here. I’m bound to get to the bottom of this.” And then it came to her. “I just remembered. I put a key under my planter a year ago after I had locked myself out that day. I promised if it ever happened again, I’d have a backup plan. Thing is, with me getting older, my brain’s not recalling stuff as well as it used to. So I forgot.”
“Where is it? I’ll get it for you.”
Mrs. Needlewhitter pointed her bony finger at the planter. “Under that one, right by my mailbox, on the inside of the gate. You can’t miss her.”
Samantha ran off the porch, looking above to make sure one those flying ghosts wouldn’t come down upon her and scoop her up into the sky. She pushed the planter out of the way. There it laid, a rusty old key. She grabbed it, then raised her hand. “I got it.”
She handed the key over to Mrs. Needlewhitter. The old lady unlocked her door, and then walked inside. Samantha followed closely.
“Now don’t you worry about Baxter, he’s all bark. As long as you’re with me, he won’t bother you. Now get me my phone there in the kitchen, dear. We need to call the police.”
Nick’s street looked like complete chaos. Darkness mixed with evil, and the ghosts and goblins and a few unknown spirits were chasing the townsfolk out of their homes. People screamed, trying to find a way out of the whole mess.
There was less than an hour left before Halloween ended, but Nick knew an ample amount of destruction could easily happen in that short time.
He ran, with Jenny in hand, past Mrs. Needlewhitter’s house, hoping to catch up with Lou and his cronies. It didn’t take long to find them.
“That’s it, you crazies go back to where you came from!” Lou shouted as he held his pumpkin high.
Many of the ghosts and goblins shrieked at the sight of the pumpkin before turning to fly in the opposite direction. “Oh, yeah! Look at that, guys. It’s working. Ha, ha, ha!” Lou danced around as he held up his pumpkin.
Byron, Norm, and Ralph did the same. The spirits, ghosts, and goblins flew away, zigging and zagging to avoid the pumpkins. Nick watched, amazed, as a fat, green goblin grabbed hold of a ghost in a business suit, but since they were so close to Lou’s pumpkin, they were both pulled in, as if the pumpkin was a vacuum.
Nick and Jenny gasped as Ralph, then Norm, and then Byron sucked little ghosts into their pumpkins.
Nick ran to Lou and his boys. “The Pumpkin Thief, he has Maria. He said if we don’t bring these pumpkins to him before Halloween ends, he’ll keep her with him.”
Lou glanced in Nick’s direction. “Are you serious? Where is he? Let’s suck him in like the rest.”
“It doesn’t work that way. The pumpkins don’t affect him. He’s the collector!”
“Damn! You’re right.”
“Let’s get these pumpkins back,” Nick said. “You can suck up as many as you want on our way. Once Halloween’s over, these evil beings will be gone, anyway.”
Nick’s idea seemed workable. At least, he thought so. He wasn’t so sure that he’d convinced Lou, though. Regardless, Maria’s life was at stake, and if there was any chance of seeing her released safely, they had to work fast.
Just as Lou and Nick were turning toward the woods, the Pumpkin Thief appeared in the sky above them. He still had Maria by his side. He began his descent.
“I found you. Now give me those pumpkins.” He looked straight into Nick’s eyes as he approached. Maria squirmed in his grip and managed to free one arm. Lou jumped up, letting his pumpkin fall to the ground, grabbed hold of Maria’s arm, and pulled.
Nick saw his opportunity. He picked up the pumpkin Lou dropped and tossed it at the Pumpkin Thief, hitting him square in the face.
The creature let out a horrifying scream as he released Maria.
She fell through the sky, down and into Lou’s arms. He placed her feet back on solid ground and held her hand tightly while they ran away as fast as they could.
Just then, Samantha ran out onto Mrs. Needlewhitter’s porch and saw her brother. “Nick! Nick, what’s happening?”
“Don’t come any closer, Sam. It’s too dangerous.” He turned back to see the Pumpkin Thief ascending. Higher, higher, he rose while his arms lifted, grinning as the orange mist returned to surround him.
“I’ll be back next year. I’m coming for you and your friends, I promise you that. I’ve decided that your town needs another turn, and next time, I’m going to rain down a load of havoc on your townsfolk. So be prepared.” He let out a loud shriek, calling all remaining evil spirits to return to him. They flew out of homes and from behind trees; they zipped out of sewer drains and from under cars. Big ghosts, small green goblins, and other creepy Halloween creatures gathered to meet their leader in the orange mist.
Ralph, Norm, and Byron still had their pumpkins; they caught a few spirits, sucking them in before they had a chance to get to their leader. Jenny just stood there in amazement at how everything came about.
The Pumpkin Thief opened his hands and somehow lifted the three pumpkins away from the guys, as the last of the ghosts and goblins swarmed around him. He then swirled the orange cloud so that the mist covered him and his evil friends. Within seconds, they all disappeared.
Many of the neighbors came closer to Nick and Jenny Their faces showed confusion or fear. Some displayed anger; all watched the large orange cloud dissolve and then turned their attention to the sound of police cars’ and emergency vehicles’ sirens. Red and blue lights grew brighter as the vehicles approached. They turned onto Nick’s street, drove up to the crowd of neighbors, and parked. The officers quickly opened their car doors and jumped out, guns drawn.
Nick called for Samantha. Jenny held his hand, clearly still frightened.
His sister came off the porch. Mrs. Needlewhitter came out, too, nudging Baxter to stay inside. “Get back in there, you mutt. Last thing I need is you running around the yard barking.”
The sky above Nick, Jenny, and the rest of the neighbors showed stars and a bright moon; the orange mist was gone. The mayhem in their neighborhood had ended. Who would believe their story? By the time the cops arrived, there was nothing to show, and no one had had the chance to take pictures.
Nick told the police and the crowd of neighbors what had happened. The cops found Lou and questioned him, Maria, and the others who were around. The neighbors knew the truth. And they all had a new respect for Nick, including the police chief, who approached him as the crowd began to disappear.
“You did a great job, son. Once you get to high school and start deciding what you want to be in life, I hope you consider taking the police exam when you near graduation. We can always use someone like you on the force here. And you seem just the right type to serve and protect.”
Nick pulled Jenny to his side and held her, smiling at the police chief. “Will do, sir. I’m still a kid, and I have so much to do first, but sure, I always wanted to be a detective.”
The chief patted Nick on the head, and shortly after, he and his cops finished their business and left.
Nick agreed to walk Jenny home. He knew he’d passed his curfew for tonight, but it was well worth it. They passed Mrs. Needlewhitter’s house, then rounded the co
rner. Byron, Norm, and Ralph, trailed by Maria, came up behind Nick. As they came closer, Baxter ran out of nowhere, raced through the open gate, ran up to Ralph, and bit down hard on his rear. Ralph screamed like a little girl.
Nick turned to see what was happening.
Lou ran over and pulled Baxter off his friend’s backside The dog yelped and ran back behind the gate. Lou shut it quickly, then locked the dog back in his yard.
“Where do you think you’re going, Nick?” Lou asked, holding on to Ralph, who held his sore butt cheek. The dog growled at both boys, revealing his sharp white teeth, from the other side of the gate.
Mrs. Needlewhitter came out of the house with a rifle in her hands. She pointed it straight at Lou’s head.
“So, you think throwing pumpkins at a defenseless old lady’s house is cool? You dirty rat punk. Well, guess what? I’m not defenseless with my dead husband’s Winchester in my hand! Now, back away from Nick and don’t you ever mess with him or me again, or I swear I’ll send Baxter here to do my dirty work.”
Samantha and her friends crept closer.
Lou seemed a bit worried with a rifle pointed at his face, but before he could take off, everyone grabbed hold of him, then pushed him to the ground. Samantha sat on his back. Jenny jumped on his shoulders. Maria sat on his legs, and the creature from some other planet walked around the front and looked down at Lou, who wasn’t going anywhere.
The creature took off his mask to reveal who he was.
Lou gasped.
“Trevor, what are you doing, man? Why are you hanging out with Nick’s sister? Help your brother out and get these brats off me,” Lou begged his brother.
“Sorry, Lou, but Samantha and I are friends now, and, and, I-I-I like her, her.” Trevor stuttered like always, but tonight, it seemed to come out of pure excitement.
Nick sent his sister, Trevor, and their friends on their way home.
One of the police cruisers on patrol came up the street, pulled up to the scene, and parked. An officer got out. “Now listen, Mrs. Needlewhitter, go and put that rifle back in the house where it belongs.”
While the officer spoke to the old lady, Ralph, Byron, Norm, and Maria melted into the darkness.
The officer turned his attention to Lou.
“Lou, you keep this up, and I’ll lock you up. Trust me, you don’t want to go down this road with me. In fact, I’m going to keep a close eye on you. And when you eventually get your license and a car, keep looking in your rearview mirror, because I’ll be coming to check on you.”
That scared Lou enough to promise he’d be good. Then he left, without looking back.
Mrs. Needlewhitter went inside with Baxter.
Halloween night was over.
Nick and Jenny, looked at each other, happy they had met.
“What a day, huh, Nick?” Jenny smiled with a soft, tired grin.
Nick agreed. “Let me get you home.” He reached out to take her hand.
When Nick and Jenny arrived at her house, her parents were up, annoyed at the late hour. “Let’s go, young lady,” her mother said.
Jenny told Nick not to worry. “I’ll deal with them later.”
Nick gave her a gentle kiss on her cheek. “What a crazy Halloween, right?”
“No one will ever believe us, except our friends who were there.”
“I guess the work of a detective never ends. Do I have a new team member?” Nick asked, as he stepped off her front porch.
“You sure do, Detective Nick.”
“Okay then, I’ll see you in school Monday.” Nick waved goodnight as Jenny went inside.
As Nick walked home, he thought about all that had happened. For some strange reason, he knew the trouble wasn’t over. The Pumpkin Thief said he’d return. Although Nick worried, he felt he had more than enough time to prepare, should the Pumpkin Thief keep his promise.
He also still had Lou, Norm, Ralph, and Byron to contend with as he continued to live in Chesterville. They weren’t leaving, and his parents had no intentions of moving to another town,. Nevertheless, he felt the bullies would tone it down a bit now that Lou realized he was going to be watched by the police; otherwise, he would eventually be behind bars. Nick knew the life of a bully would only get you in trouble with the law, eventually. And once you’re in the system, you’re tagged a deviant. He’d learned this from his mystery novels.
Nick was glad he’d gotten a feel for what it’s like to be a detective, solve crimes, and protect the innocent. This incident in his town, though, this was all too surreal for him. A supernatural evil had passed through. And, of course, although the locals might’ve believed what they saw, to the outsiders, the city folk and the rest of the country, the Pumpkin Thief would still only remain a legend. There were no photos taken, no evidence to prove this Pumpkin Thief even existed. Or was there? He’d have to investigate that. It would be a huge plus for this still-open case. And, if that threat from this evil were to come true, then how would he deal with it? He wasn’t sure he was ready for that. But he knew the Pumpkin Thief’s weakness, how to battle him again, should he come creeping back to this neighborhood. Something inside told Nick that he would return. So, with that thought, Nick knew he had only another twelve months to get ready for his return next Halloween.
Wow, what a Halloween it had been. However, the best part of the whole crazy holiday ordeal was that he’d found Jenny. She was a sweet person. He hoped they would become more than friends. Looks like I might finally have a nice-looking girl with a great attitude to take to my high school prom. Sweet!
The End
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and most important, I need to humbly thank my wife, Rachelle, and my seven-year-old daughter and precious angel, sweet Abigail, who put up with all my private time, banging away at the keys while talking out loud with my characters in the confines of my small office.
This story I wrote has a personal history for me. Although there was no supernatural creature chasing my friends or myself on Halloween, thank goodness, many of the craziness we experienced as children growing up in my neighborhood certainly resonates in my storytelling. We had to deal with bullies, an old lady on our block with her devil dog, and other creepy stuff I’ll save for another story.
I want to thank all my mentors who were there for me over the last 5 years, and of course Georgia McBride, and all her wonderful staff at Month 9 Books for seeing this book through to publication. And it doesn’t end here. There is more to this legend. My characters have me hashing out new adventures to come. Evil has not gone away. It has only grown stronger.
And finally, to you, my readers, who have my novel in your hands. Thank you for selecting Legend of The Pumpkin Thief. I hope you enjoy it. I totally loved writing this novel. It was so much fun to be there with Nick, Lou, Samantha, and, of course, my favorite character, The Pumpkin Thief. Enjoy, my friends! Welcome to my Halloween.
—Charles Day
CHARLES DAY
Charles Day is the Horror Writer Association’s Mentor Program Chairperson, Co-Chair for the NY/LI Chapter, and a member of the HWA Library committee. He is also a member of the New England Horror Writers Association, the American Library Association, and the Young Adult Library Services Association.
He is also the Bram Stoker Award® nominated author of the YA novel, THE LEGEND OF THE PUMPKIN THIEF. He’s also published his first adult novel DEEP WITHIN and the first book in his Adventures of Kyle McGerrt trilogy, a YA western heroic fantasy, THE HUNT FOR THE GHOULISH BARTENDER, and his first coauthored novel with Mark Taylor, REDEMPTION
His forthcoming publications and projects in development for 2014 include a comic book series based on the Adventures of Kyle Mcgerrt trilogy, his first middle-grade series, THE UNDERDWELLERS, and his third YA novel, IMMORTAL FAMILY.
SAMPLE CHAPTER:
MCGRAVE’S HOTEL
Chapter One
The Fortune Teller
“McGrave’s Hotel,
” said Miss Frobish as she inserted a telephone jack into her switchboard. Cords crisscrossed the panel like strands of a spider web.
“McGrave’s Hotel,” said a second young lady. “Reservations.”
“McGrave’s Hotel,” said a third. “To whom may I direct your call?”
Behind them, James Alexander Elliott, now almost twelve and wearing a smart bellhop uniform, listened to the chitchat as he strolled past. His uniform was dark green, and three columns of shiny brass buttons decorated the front of his jacket.
“McGrave’s Hotel,” a fourth young lady said. “Oh, hi, James,” she said over her shoulder. “Sorry, no calls for you today.”
“Same here,” said a fifth switchboard operator. “Sorry, James. No messages.”
A sixth young lady merely shook her head as he passed by.
James took the negatives in stride. He inquired at least daily, ever since he’d come to McGrave’s, and the answer was always the same: no messages. This was December 1936, so it had been what? Almost a year now, he calculated. Almost a year since he’d come to McGrave’s.
It was hard for James to fathom that nearly twelve months had passed since his parents had died. It happened when he and his family had lived in London, in a little settlement called Kingston upon Thames. They were staying in a friendly pub with rooms attached, and James and his mom and dad had just decorated the room with a three-foot-tall Christmas tree. They had hung red glass balls all around it and topped it with a foil-covered cardboard star.
Then there had been a brief mission into Germany.
“We’ll be away for two days, kiddo,” his mom had said. “Three tops. Be nice to Mrs. Clarke.”
His dad hadn’t really said good-bye that last time, had merely reached out and ruffled James’s hair. James always thought his dad looked heroic because he wore an eye patch.