Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Maggie and I had shown up early for the party on that Halloween night. Like all celebrations in this town, the event was sure to be full of fun and joy. We were like one big family and never missed an opportunity to reconnect with each other amidst wonderful food, music, drinks, and any other merriment we could come up with.
But that year, Maggie was hosting an activity for the kids in her store, Something Special. She’d changed it to Something Wicked shortly after everything happened.
We’d greeted everyone as they arrived, and the festivities had kicked off with a bang. One of our locals, Dr. Boris Karloff—whom Maggie and I had nicknamed “the mad scientist”—was known for the unusual and highly anticipated concoctions he brought to parties.
He’d promised the beverage—which he’d called Frankenpunch—would add a little sparkle to our already merry event. The homemade brew tasted awesome. Like orange sherbet and whipped cream, my favorite dessert. Although Maggie swore hers had tasted like chocolate-covered cherries, which happened to be her favorite treat.
Then the town bell tower had tolled midnight, and our world shattered into something frightening. Monsters emerged. Friends I’d grown up with suddenly screamed in pain as their bodies shifted into grotesque shapes, some with tusks, wings, scales…all manner of creatures.
My sister had fallen into my arms weeping as her sweet, round face became longer, the angles sharpening, especially a noticeably pointed chin. Her beautiful auburn hair turned black, her skin bubbled as it turned bright green, her nails lengthened and turned sharp—almost like talons—and her body vibrated with dark magic.
I’d looked at the chaos and then down at myself, wondering why I had remained the same. Why had I been spared this monstrous fate?
Maggie’s blue eyes were full of anguish when her transformation was complete. I placed a palm on her cheek to reassure her that things would be all right but snatched it back when a shock zapped between us. We assumed it was the magic filling her and avoided touching again.
Pandemonium had broken out. People were scared, hysterical, and crazed. Unused to their new features, people stumbled, flew, slithered, and crawled in every direction. When a pair of stone wings snagged on a power line, it brought the pole crashing to the ground. I knew that the exposed conductor would easily start a fire if I didn’t get it under control.
I looked around for something to cover my hands so I could safely touch the wire, but I couldn’t find anything. So I’d yanked off my shirt, ripped it in two, and wrapped the halves around my hands. The thin material wouldn’t protect me completely, but I had hoped it would at least keep me from being electrocuted.
Running over to the spot with the most damage, I bent over to examine it. Suddenly, electricity zapped between me and the power line in a visible arc—like lightning. However, instead of going into cardiac arrest, my body seemed to absorb the current. I pulsed with the heavy voltage, and the power line went dead.
It didn’t take long to realize that I was now a walking, talking battery. Maggie had followed me and witnessed the change. Then she reached for my hand, which was still covered by my shirt. When she touched me, her body was hit with so much energy that she flew backward and hit the ground.
The voltage should have killed her. I supposed if there was one silver lining, it was that the dark magic inside her had kept her alive.
That was the last time we touched with anything less than thick leather gloves between us.
A few days later, I was working to help clean up the carnage in town when I overheard a scream. I was installing a new outside light beside the front door of my sister’s shop, and I peeked around the corner of the building to check out what was causing the ruckus.
My sister was plastered against the wall with tears overflowing from her eyes while Miss Gulch ran toward me. The crotchety spinster always looked like she’d been sucking lemons, but as she neared me, I was taken aback by the malice in her expression.
“She’s a monster!” Miss Gulch screeched, pointing at my sister. “A witch!”
Rage exploded inside me, and I grabbed her wrist to stop her from going around me. I intended to give her a piece of my mind, but instead, I was forced to release her when she shuddered violently and fell into a heap at my feet.
“Oh shit!” Maggie yelled as she dashed over to the woman and checked for a pulse. “Shit, shit, shit.” She laid Miss Gulch flat on her back, then Maggie closed her eyes and put her hands on the spinster’s chest. Green and black mist rose from the ground and swirled in the air. Miss Gulch suddenly jackknifed up into a sitting position and screamed at the top of her lungs.