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Swamp
Last Updated:
2024-08-09 11:49:31
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Whispers of the Devil All Fall Down
TannerI don’t believe in ghosts.At least, that’s what I tell myself as I linger in the backyard of the old Gregory place. The swamp stretches out before me, the ancient cypress trees cloaked in green haze beneath the overcast sky. From where I stand with the house rearing up behind me, I can almost taste the fetid stench of the mire. It’s the smell of decay and rotting things, a primal scent that sets my nerves on fire.It reeks of danger and death.But is there something more out there, lurking amidst the sunken tombstones? My mind drifts back to the figure I followed into the swamp and the face I saw in the mirror, and I have my answer.“Stay the fuck away from us,” I mutter. Even though my voice is low, I have a feeling that the thing in the marsh will hear me anyway.I turn away then and traverse across the brittle lawn back toward the house.The structure is very nearly finished. The new materials of the exterior are pristine, though I know that nature will render them dull and
Last Updated : 2024-08-09Whispers of the Devil Make It Go Away
Bailey“Holy shit!” I whisper.I’m sitting at one of the computers in the Hahnville Public Library, which doubles as the town’s historical records center. After arguing with Tanner this morning, I’m now determined to find something, anything, to explain the things we’ve been experiencing. With the article that’s currently on the screen in front of me, I think I may have just hit the jackpot.Twenty-seven murders have been connected to the property in the better part of the last century.I’m no expert in homicide statistics, but I’d bet good money that that number is way higher than the average.As I skim the cramped text of the article, which is published on a sleek-looking true crime website, a pattern starts to emerge. Most of the victims were men from out of town. The vast majority of suspects were women, and all but six of the alleged murderers ended up in psychiatric facilities. The others had committed suicide before the police could catch up with them. All of the people involve
Last Updated : 2024-08-09Whispers of the Devil Something’s Out There
TannerThree stories is a hell of a long way down.I’m standing at the window Henri fell from, my feet planted where his must have been less than twenty-four hours before. I imagine the pressure of two hands on my shoulder blades, of the sudden weightlessness as gravity takes hold. Had Henri been afraid while he was falling? Or had been too surprised to even realize what was happening? What would it feel like to fly for just a moment?Why don’t you try it and see?The thought scratches at the edge of my brain, and before I can even process it, one of my hands reaches out toward the closed frame of the window.“Tyler?” a voice calls from the room behind me.I jolt, the sudden sound tugging me back from the window. My mind races as I realize what I had been doing, and I try to keep the fear off my face as I turn to the speaker.Jack, the new owner of the Gregory place, is standing in the doorway with his arms crossed. Anger radiates off him in sour waves, and I can’t help but judge him
Last Updated : 2024-08-09Whispers of the Devil Visions of Evil
BaileyThis can’t be real.My heart thuds against my ribs as my eyes dart around the familiar space. Everything is the same as it was before the fire. The wallpaper, lovingly restored by Dalton, is fresh and vibrant. The surface of the dining room table gleams as though it’s just been polished. Warm yellow light spills down from the chandelier, the crystal beads clinking delicately amidst a backdrop of suffocating silence.It’s Miss Penny’s dining room at the old Gregory place.Logically, I know I can’t really be here. Here doesn’t even exist anymore. I watched the flames consume the house, tearing at the old wooden frame with a thousand grasping fingers. The heat was unbearable, and I coughed for weeks afterward from breathing in so much smoke.So how am I here?The last thing I remember is going to sleep after coming home from my night shift. So this must be a dream. There’s nothing else it can be. And yet…I stare at the table, which should be burned to a crisp along with the rest
Last Updated : 2024-08-09Whispers of the Devil Chat with the Devil
Tanner“You want a hand with that, boss?”I glance up from the section of wall I’m measuring in the kitchen and smile thinly at Jose. “Nah, I’ve got it,” I tell him. “Thanks though.”“If you’re sure.” The foreman shrugs. His eyes flicker to the window and the setting sun beyond. “Do you at least want some company? Being alone in this place in the dark would give me the creeps.”“I’ll be fine,” I assure Jose with confidence that I don’t quite feel. In truth, I would rather not be here at all, let alone after nightfall, but the contract is on the line. I can’t afford for Jack to come up for a surprise visit and find the kitchen wall still scratched up. He’d probably fire me on the spot.The foreman doesn’t seem quite convinced, but still he turns to leave. “Just call me if shit gets weird,” he throws over his shoulder. “See ya on Monday!”“Later,” I toss back.I lean against the wall and listen as Jose bustles out of the house, crunches across the gravel driveway, and gets in his truck.
Last Updated : 2024-08-09Whispers of the Devil That's Not Tanner
BaileyTanner didn’t come home last night.It’s evident as soon as I step through the front door after my night shift at the Wilson’s. At barely past 6:00 in the morning, I should hear him snoring away or bustling in the kitchen getting breakfast ready, but my ears are met only with silence.“Tanner?” I call, even though I know in my bones that there’s nobody here to answer.Unease creeps beneath my skin as I hang up my purse on the hook beside the door and kick off my shoes. There’s still no movement in the depths of our home, and as I wander from room to room, I realize that nothing’s changed since I left the night before. The bed’s in disarray, the sheets tangled and the comforter crumpled halfway onto the floor. The dishes in the sink are untouched, food in the fridge uneaten. Emptiness hangs in the air, vacant and suffocating.Where could he be?I stop in the doorway to the bedroom. Even my phone is still on the bedside table, plugged into the outlet. After it kept playing that h
Last Updated : 2024-09-09Whispers of the Devil Memories Gone
TannerWhat the fuck happened last night?I’m lying in bed–alone. There’s a terrible taste in my mouth, like I’ve been sucking up swamp water through a straw. My head is pounding, and when I try to open my eyes, my left lid won’t budge. Every muscle in my body aches as though I went toe-to-toe with a semi-truck and lost.Groaning, I roll out of bed in spite of my body’s protests. I’m so thirsty. All I can think of is downing a nice, cool glass of water.I stumble into the bathroom, half-blind, and after one glance in the mirror, it’s immediately apparent why I can’t see properly. One of my eyes is bruised and blackened, the lid entirely swollen shut. When I press my fingertips to my cheekbone, I wince in pain.“What the fuck?” I mutter, squinting at my reflection. The shiner isn’t the only injury I have. There’s blood caked around my mouth and down my chin, and my lip is split. Below that, mottled purple bruises creep over the skin of my neck and collarbone.I feel like I’ve been in
Last Updated : 2024-09-09Whispers of the Devil Lured
BaileyHow did everything spiral so far out of control?I ask myself that question for the thousandth time, but I still don’t have a good answer.At least I can lose myself in my work. After rotting in bed over the weekend, I’m relieved to escape my childhood home and my mom’s knowing, silent stare. I don’t have any of my scrubs with me, but I’m able to track down a clean change of clothes packed away in a box in my old closet. My shoes are presumably still sitting in the hallway of the house I’d fled. I wasn’t about to go back to retrieve them, so I’ve settled on wearing a pair of borrowed flip flops.One glance in the mirror reveals that I look more like I’m going to some backyard barbecue than a nursing night shift. Shame washes over me at the sight of my reflection. Professionalism has always been very important to me. I guess that’s just one more way in which I’ve failed.My mom gives me a tight hug before I head out, promising to have some food ready for me when I come back earl
Last Updated : 2024-09-09
Latest chapter
Whispers of the Devil The House at the Edge of the Swamp
JuliaIt’s hard to believe that a whole year has passed since peace came to the house at the edge of the swamp.I roll over in bed, blinking lazily in the golden sunlight that filters in through the windows. Zeke, already awake beside me, smiles.“Good morning, beautiful.” He greets me in a voice that’s husky with sleep. He scoots closer to press a kiss to my lips.It’s chaste at first. But as the grogginess of slumber flows from my veins, the warmth of his body against mine starts to become awfully distracting. A stirring between Zeke’s legs shows me that he’s no more immune to our current situation than I am.The kiss deepens as Zeke rolls on top of me, caging me in against the mattress. His body is deliciously firm against mine. No matter how many times we do this, I can never seem to get enough of him.“You’re insatiable,” he murmurs against my lips.“Only for you,” I counter.Can he really blame me? After so many years trapped with Jake as my partner, I didn’t exactly get a chanc
Whispers of the Devil Yours for Eternity
JuliaThe whole house feels different now.For the first time since moving here, I’m not plagued by the sensation of being watched. No more creaks or bangs plague the endless rooms. The laughter and running footsteps of ghostly children no longer echo through the halls. All of the noises I attributed to the settling of new construction are gone.It’s quiet now.Empty.“They’ve all moved on,” Zeke explains when I ask if he notices it too. “They gave everything to help defeat Amos.”“Moved on?” I repeat, morbidly curious. “To where?”Zeke shrugs. “Heaven, I guess. Or maybe another dimension. I don’t really know for sure. I suppose if there were bad ones, they got sucked down into the portal with Amos.”It strikes me that these spirits must have become family to Zeke over the last century that he’s walked this land. Even the annoying or unpleasant ones must have grown on him.“Do you miss them?” I ask gently.The glimmer of sadness in Zeke’s honeyed eyes confirms my suspicions. “I do,”
Whispers of the Devil Through His Eyes
ZekeI’ve been given a tremendous gift.I hover for a moment next to the vacant body that floats limply in the mud and glance down at the harrowing scene below.The ghoulish red glow emanating from the gaping maw of the portal illuminates the tableau, though I see a soft white light as well. Jake’s soul, now cleaved from his flesh, is dragged ever downward into the abyss in Amos’s wake, but I’m hopeful that change in the light means his last act redeemed him enough to save his soul.As much as I despise Jake for having harmed Julia so deeply, I’m also filled with a grudging sense of respect for the dying wish he imparted onto me. I have no doubt that he understands that he wasn’t capable of coming back and living a life that would make up for all he has done. Offering me his body wasn’t for him, not one bit.This is for Julia, a final act of the love that once flared between them.I’ll do my best to honor Jake’s last request. But can it even be done?I’ve never heard of a spirit inha
Whispers of the Devil So This is Death
JakeFor once in my life, I’m absolutely sure I’ve done the right thing.I can’t believe that I fell for Amos’s empty promises. Even now, I wonder how much influence it exerted over my mind and actions.Every shout, every slap, every nasty thought about Julia swims through my brain as my soul is torn to pieces. How much of that was Amos? I shudder to think about how much was me.Because I do hold a hell of a lot of blame, don’t I?None of this would have happened if I’d been stronger.But I was weak, and now, I have a terrible feeling that Amos knew that from the start.As soon as I struck that deal in the driveway, Amos invaded my mind. The process itself was horrible. My brain and body was only big enough for one soul. The ordeal of adding another passenger wa sunbearably painful, and though my memories are hazy, I’m pretty sure that I passed out.At first, it wasn’t so bad, not after that first part. Amos promised me anything and everything, and I had stupidly believed it.It wove
Whispers of the Devil The Sacrifice
JuliaThe whole world spins.The driving rain is relentless, sloughing down my skin in cold rivulets. My hair hangs limply in a sodden curtain around my face, blocking my view of everything except the swirling muck below. There’s a rank taste in the back of my mouth, and I understand dimly that I must have bitten my tongue when Amos hit me.The place where the branch slammed into my skull throbs with every step the demon takes. Even though I can’t see it, I’m pretty sure that I’m bleeding. My vision swims as I’m drawn deeper into the swamp.“I’m going to break you on your husband’s cock,” Amos croons as it carries me over its shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “I’m going to fuck you until you plead with me to release you from your sorry life.”There’s nothing I can do to block out the filthy, horrible things that spill from its twisted mouth. Instead, I fight against its hold, kicking my bare feet into the torso of Jake’s body and pounding my fists against its back.But my efforts don’
Whispers of the Devil Fight for Domination
ZekeI’m not strong enough.After Amos tossed me like a ragdoll from Jake’s body, I barely have any energy left. Still, I won’t stop until there’s nothing left of me. I have to fight for Julia. I can’t let Amos take her.As Julia runs outside into the storm, I square up to the demon. It’s wearing Jake’s body like an ill-fitting suit. While it’s clumsy and uncoordinated, its movements are still powerful.“I told you not to get in my way, Hezekiah,” Amos growls. It doesn’t seem in any rush to chase after Julia. What game is it playing? Whatever it is, I don’t want to find out.“I won’t let you hurt her.” I stand firm, unwavering beneath its midnight stare.“I will destroy you,” the demon threatens as it stalks forward. “I will devour your very soul.”I parry to the side as it attempts to dart around me, blocking it from pursuing Julia’s retreating form. “You can’t kill somebody who’s already dead,” I snarl.Amos laughs. The sound is something that a human throat shouldn’t even be able t
Whispers of the Devil Back to the Swamp
JuliaThis is a terrible idea.Every nerve ending in my body screams for me to turn around, but it’s way too late for that.I’m already here.The house on the edge of the swamp rises up before me, blotting out the overcast sky. Clouds the color of fresh bruises creep overhead, threatening rain. It’s barely evening, yet the darkness is already encroaching.There’s no sign of Jake. I’d half expected him to be waiting for me in the driveway, but the whole place seems deserted. I can only hope that Amos is lurking out in the swamp and is unaware of my arrival.I survey the building in front of me. It looks like years have passed since I was last here, though it’s only been a few hours. It looks like it could crumble into the swamp at any moment.The front door hangs open, as though it’s been waiting for me this whole time. I approach it cautiously, scanning for movement within, but everything is still.Waiting.“It’s just a house,” I whisper to myself, though I know now that it’s much mor
Whispers of the Devil Ganging Up
ZekeI’m going to kill Jake.It’s all I can think about. I didn’t have the energy to intervene as he hurt Julia and shattered their relationship beyond repair. I’d tried to manifest myself, to fight against Amos’s hold on Jake, but it was no use.I wasn’t able to protect Julia.I failed her.A powerful surge of anger flows through me as I think about how distressed she was as she snuck outside, jumped into the driver’s seat of Jake’s car when he wasn’t looking, and sped off into the rainy night. Even though I desperately wanted to go with her, I’m unable to cross the invisible line marking the boundary of the property. I can only hope that she’s taken refuge somewhere safe, some place where Jake can’t follow.It’s morning now, and there’s no sign of Julia. Jake lays in the driveway amidst a mess of mud and gravel, unconscious. I’m itching to kick him, but I’m still too weak to summon my corporeal form. Instead, I spare him a scathing glare as I bypass his prone form and head toward th
Whispers of the Devil An Open Door
JuliaIt’s over.There’s no room for doubt as I drive through the worst of the storm. I feel violated, all the way down to my soul. My face is red and streaked with tears, and my lungs constrict with every breath I take, as though my chest is trapped in an immovable vice.Jake’s actions are unforgivable.And it had been Jake, not Zeke. I’m absolutely sure of that. Aside from the fact that Zeke would never treat me so horribly, we’d simply spent so much time together during Jake’s absence that the ghost was all but drained of energy by the time my husband returned home.But there was something else wriggling through the back of my mind, insidious and full of venom.How had Jake even known about Zeke in the first place?He didn’t look at all surprised when I spoke the spirit’s name aloud. In fact, he played along with it, lulling me into a false sense of security until the point of no return.Only then did Jake reveal himself.Somebody must have told him about Zeke. Somebody must have p
