Horror Stories from Horrified - Volume One (2)

w ir e shopping basket, dr essed in the r egulation cr ofter ?s outfit of boiler suit, w ellies
and cloth cap. Yet w hen Wullie opened his fr ont door , he looked a lot less
anonymous.
Wow , Lachie thought. Wullie?s a cow boy.
He w or e a Stetson hat, a fr inged buckskin jacket, a denim shir t w ith a bolo tie, a
pair of Levi?s and embr oider ed black boots that climbed to his knees and taper ed
for war d to shar p points. Admittedly, Wullie?s face spoiled the effect. It was the
same unexceptional face you?d see in the Costcutter , r ound and coar se, his small
mouth, nose and eyes cluster ing at its centr e.
The small mouth opened and said, ?Aye??
Jimmy piped up. ?We w er e dander ing past. Thought w e?d stop and w ish ye the
best for the year ahead. Happy New Year !?
Wullie?s small eyes w er e suspicious. ?And??
Befor e they could r eply, the w ind that was sur ging dow n the br ae caught the br im
of Wullie?s Stetson, r ipped it fr om his head and flung it into the cr oft?s inter ior.
Wullie spun ar ound and r ushed after the hat, leaving Lachie and Jimmy at the door.
They exchanged looks, Lachie nodded and they follow ed Wullie inside.
They found themselves not in a hallway but in the fir st par t of an L-shaped r oom
that disappear ed fr om view ar ound a cor ner. Wullie cr ouched near the cor ner. He
snatched his Stetson off the floor and jammed it onto his head again, though not
befor e Lachie and Jimmy saw the smooth, bar e dome of his pate.
Jimmy explained, ?What w e meant to do, Wullie, was fir st-foot ye and shar e a
dr am.? And he r aised his w hisky bottle out of its bag.
Wullie?s eyes gleamed at the sight of the bottle. ?Oh? I guess that?s alr ight, then.?
Lachie saw w hat was hanging on the walls. A metal sign shaped like the state of
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