Horror Stories from Horrified - Volume One (2)

Against that, w hat could he do? What w ould you do?
So, the w ind r ose. And the scr aps of paper , w hite in the late autumn sun, blew
closer to the house.
8.
It was December of that fifth year , and the w ind dr opped.
He w ent out for the evening same as usual. Dow n the r oad to the pub, and the
night was clear and ver y still. All evening, w hen he dr ank and played and laughed
he listened out for the shaking of the w indow fr ames; but ther e was nothing. His
mates took the piss on the way back to the house.
What?s up, big guy? Off the planet tonight?
He laughed. Aye. And no far away enough fr om your shite. But the calm bother ed
him. No pr essur e on the side of his face, no voices, no names.
He got them in thr ough the door , and it was just like it always was. Come tw o in
the mor ning they w er e filleted and dr aped acr oss the fur nitur e. He looked at them
and tur ned off the light. Feeling uneasy, and feeling sober.
But the mor ning was the same. As he cooked the br eakfasts, and made the dr inks,
and got them moving it was just the same as it had always been. He watched the
last man go and as his mate disappear ed dow n the r oad back to Uig he felt, for the
fir st time in a day, the w ind r ising ar ound him. And a low voice, car r ying his name.
He cr ept ar ound the side of the house, so he could look out at the sea. And as he
tur ned the cor ner , he felt something settle, slow and infinitely soft, on the skin of
his face. For a moment, he couldn?t move. Then he lifted his hands, to feel the paper
w her e his skin should be.
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