by Lee Jones
In the reflection of Clay’s visor the Commander can see a dark figure behind him.
“Dragon we have an issue over,” says the Commander over the radio.
The lunar orbiter with another crew member is orbiting overhead is onboard. The pilot, Pilot Murphy. The Commander repeats again, “Dragon we have major issue over, it seems we’ve lost Clay over.” Nothing is heard in reply. The line is dead silent. Commander Walker is breathing heavily. He tries to look around in his bulky space suit.
He can’t see anything. But something catches his eye, down in the crater. The crater is miles wide and very deep and against the grey of the lunar surface is movement.
Suddenly there is a strike, a fireball across the lunar horizon falling to the lunar surface. A fireball erupts once the object hits the surface.
On his radio he now hears a blip and then static noise. “Dragon do you come in?” says the Commander in a frantic response. The commander comes to terms that they object that fell could of been the Dragon. He has no one way home and has lost two crew members.
Off in the distance where the crash was he can see an object ascend from a crater into space.
The commander gets back into the lunar buggy and drives back to the lunar lander. He needs to make an emergency transmission to earth.
He steps off the lunar buggy and notices in the mirrored reflection of the lunar lander is the same figure behind him.
The commander promptly climbs the stairs of the lunar lander and closes the hatch. He starts going through the lunar launch sequence. On touch screen in front of him he runs through checks.
A large bang is heard outside the lunar lander. The commander switches to his outside camera and sees it on the screen. The commander is now sweating and his heart is racing.
Another bang is heard outside. Towering about 10 feet tall, slender without any recognizable features is a shadow casting on the lunar surface.
The commander quickly enters a code into the touch screen to signal and emergency to earth.
The commander has finished the launch sequence and presses the button for launch. But nothing starts. He presses again, nothing.
He checks the outside cameras and can see dust billowing from under the spacecraft. There was some sort of damage.
He unstraps, and exits the Lunar lander. Outside there is a hole ripped into the lower portion of the lander. He can see there are large foot prints leading from the spacecraft off into the distance. But these are not the foot prints of boots, but of something else.
He grabs his tools and attempts to make repairs. The commander pulls out a specialized tool and attempts to repair. Something catches his eye. In the corner of his eye he can see the figure again. He tries to turn around but something is felt on his legs. He feels pain. Hi suit is rapidly decompressing and he falls to the ground gasping for air. His body in extreme pain. His vision is going dark and in seconds is dead. The cold overtakes his lifeless body and freezes ice crystals forming on his face.
The End…
PAPERBACKS AND EBOOKS
Check out the 2nd book in the series by Lee Jones. Available as ebook, audiobook or paperback on Amazon.
AUDIOBOOKS



AFTERWORD
There was inspiration from many sources in order to write this book. I always liked zombie fiction so I wrote The Undead. The Forest came from watching a show on the suicide forest in Japan. The ideas for Scarecrow & Blood on the Bayou came from theme park attractions.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lee is a short story horror
author. He Lives in Florida.

www.saturnpublishing.com
FEAR
A SECOND COLLECTION OF HORROR SHORT STORIES
LEE JONES
2018 © Lee Jones
2018 copyright. All rights reserved. Published by Saturn Publishing.
This is a work of fiction. While as in all fiction, the literary perceptions and insights are based on experience, all names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of all authors imagination or are used fictitiously.
www.saturnpublishing.com
INTRODUCTION
Six Short Stories Appear in this 2nd addition to the Fear Series. Beverly Mansion is about a haunted house built in 1835 in Mississippi. Unbeknownst, a family moves in unaware of the properties dark past. They experience things unnatural to this world and unravel the secrets of the past. Strangers of the Night is about a group of murderous strangers visiting a family of tourist in Florida. The Undead Volume 2 and 3 are sequels in the Undead series. It’s about four strangers who banded together to survive in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. Blood Moon is a young adult story about a werewolf ravaging a small town in Oregon.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FEAR
A SECOND COLLECTION OF HORROR SHORT STORIES
INTRODUCTION
TABLE OF CONTENTS
BEVERLY MANSION
DISCOVERY
DISTURBANCE
ATTIC
THREAT
PAST HISTORY
DANGER
PHOTO
WARNING
FUNERAL
PORTAL
STRANGERS OF THE NIGHT
MOVING IN
LURKING IN THE SHADOWS
KILLER
ESCAPE
THE HUNTED
PROLOGUE
NEW BLOOD
SITE OF THE MURDER
MARTINI
CLUES
THE BAHAMAS
HOSPITAL
SOUTH BEACH
ESCAPE
ON THE RUN
STORM
BODY
BLOOD MOON
FOOTBALL FRIDAY
BONFIRE
SECRET
AFFLICTION
FULL MOON
LIFE OR DEATH
THE CURSE
PAST
BLOOD MOON
THE UNDEAD: MASSACRE
PROLUGUE
MASSACRE
ESCAPE
AQUARIUM
SHOOTER
INJURY
OUTPOST
THE UNDEAD: DOOMSDAY
STOLEN
THE LAB
RESEARCH
REFUELING
AIRPORT
RUN TO SAFETY
NUCLEAR BLAST
More by the author
About the author
BEVERLY MANSION
DISCOVERY
A large white house sits overlooking an old plantation in Mississippi. The sun is falling and crickets are chirping. The Beverly Mansion was built in 1835 on a plantation. It contained two stories, an attic and a basement. It has a overgrown garden with statues. The house and property has just been purchased by Jim and he is renovating it. He is a middle aged man with two children and a wife. It was a steal of a deal for the price for such large amount of square footage. It’s a historical house designated by the state. So that limited to what could be done with it.
Jim is finishing work on the wood flooring in the living room. The family has already moved in and is living in other rooms of the house. Boxes line the walls inside the house. Unpacking is still being done. Anna his wife walks in, “dinner is ready.”
“I’ll be right there,” says Jim. In The kitchen is a southern affair laid out on the table family style. Fried chicken, collard greens, corn bread, sweet tea, southern mashed potatoes and gravy. The kids are looking at their phones under the table. Jim comes to sit down, “ Let’s says grace.”
Everyone holds hands and Jim says a prayer. The family was not very religious but prayed at dinner.
Jim was raised on old values and has tried to instill that into his children. “So how much work do we have left in fixing the floor?” says Anna. Jim starts speaking with food in his mouth,”I’m almost done with it, once I’m finished with the floor I need to start work on the roof. I gotta get into the basement.”<
br />
“The realtor said the basement hasn’t been opened in years,” says Anna.
After dinner the kids return upstairs to their rooms. Anna is cleaning up the kitchen. Jim has to go into the basement to finish work on the floor. He has a key. He hasn’t really been in the basement and it’s been left unopened for years. He grabs a flashlight. He inserts the key and tries turning the knob. It has a lot of resistance it has been rusted inside.
He pushes and bust through the door. Dust blooms in his face and he waves in front of his face to push the dust away. He coughs then turns on his flashlight. He points it down stairs into the dark abyss. As he walks down the stairs the wood creaks who knows how stable it will hold up he thinks. His foot touches the bottom and splash. There is a slight puddle of water on the floor of the basement. Cobwebs are thick between the support beams. Not much is down here.
He walks around to see the floor above then almost falls into something with his right foot. He steps back and points the flashlight down. There’s a hole in the basement floor.
It appears there is a secret room. Jim shines his light around inside then looks up at the floor. He can see the floor needs a cross support beam.
He heads back upstairs to Anna in the kitchen.
“I found what it needs, but I found a secret room in the basement. The realtor didn’t mention that,” says Jim.
Anna shakes her head, “well, this house is so old who knows what else we will find?”
DISTURBANCE
A few nights later Jim has almost completed the flooring. Everyone is asleep upstairs. The house is quiet. Jim is sound asleep when he suddenly wakes up. He heard a thud. Anna wakes slightly but turns around on her side and falls back asleep.
Jim gets up and puts on a robe and slippers. He walks outside the room closing the door not to wake anyone. He stops to listen. He can hear what hears like footsteps downstairs.
There’s a pump action shotgun in the closet in the hallway. He goes to grab it then creeps down the stairs slowly. He gets to the bottom of the steps and notices the front door is closed. He checks the windows and those are closed. He goes into the kitchen and flips on the light.
He hears a unintelligible whisper in his right ear. It’s very low but catches his attention and he turns around. He walks back out the kitchen and notices the door to the basement is open. He raises the gun and slowly creeps down the stairs to the basement.
Inside the basement using his flashlight he looks around and nothing is there. He gives a sigh of relief and walks back up stairs to bed.
ATTIC
The next mourning Jim is up working on the roof. He climbs down the ladder to the ground dusting off his hands. He is looking up admiring the work done on the roof and notices something in the attic window. Some movement, who could be in the attic?
Anna walks out with some glasses of lemonade in hand and gives one to Jim.
“Where you in the attic?”
“No, why do you ask?” says Anna in confusion. He looks up again and sees a young girl in the window staring back at him. “The kids are in school?” says Anna.
“Look!” says Jim pointing at the attic window.
The girl figure quickly turns away and disappears.
Anna looks at Jim in confusion.
“What’s going on? I’m going to go to the attic,” says Anna.
Anna goes into the house and walks up the stairs. Jim follows with a ladder. They place a ladder and Anna climbs inside the attic. She coughs from the dust in the attic air. It probably hasn’t been visited in a while. There are boxes of old things and vintage antiques.
“What is all this stuff? “
Anna picks up an old photograph. A hand written date is on the back 1857. Its a silver plate a daguerrotype. It’s a portrait of a man posing in a chair. She picks up another photo and dust it off. It’s a black and white photo of a family. The date written is 1875. It’s a man, woman, boy and girl.
“Wow., this stuff has been up here for years.”
There’s an old grandfather clock, vintage toys, creepy looking doll collection in the corner.
“You should see all these antiques, could be worth something you know?”
Anna packs some things in a box to bring down.
“Well did you find that what we were looking for?” says Jim.
“No, but here is this,” she hands Jim the box of antiques. “Huh? well we learn something new about this house everyday don’t we?” says Jim looking through the box.
THREAT
It’s nighttime and the house is quiet. The daughter Emma, 8 years old is sleeping in her bed in her own room. She hears a thud and it wakes her up. She looks around her room is so dark and the corners are black. The moonlight seeping through the blinds. Across the room from her bed is the closet door. It pops open in front of her eyes. The door knob turns and creaks the door open leaving a slight gap. She gasp, what’s going on?
Emma is curious and she gets out of bed to see what it could be. She slowly walks up to see what it is. Looking inside the gap in the door it’s completely dark. She grabs the door and pulls it open and walks in further. She looks around and see’s nothing.
Emma is suddenly lunged forward and grabbed by something. She screams. Two glowing eyes appear in the darkness. “Help! Help!” she screams. She finally after is a few seconds is left free and she backs out and slams the door shut.
Her brother Eric 12 years old, runs in and finds Emma in the middle of the floor crying.
“Whats going on? Are you okay?” he says.
Jim finally walks in, “Whats going on here?”
“There’s something in the closet,” Emma points to the closet. Jim notices red scratches on her arm. He grabs her arm to take a look further.
“Where did you get these scratches Emma?” Emma continues crying, “I don’t know I don’t know!” Jim and Eric look at each other and Jim pickup Emma and brings her to her bed. Eric opens the closet door but nothing is there but clothes.
“Nothing is here, don’t worry nothing is going to harm you,” says Jim. Eric brings some items to clean up the scratches on her arms. He tucks the sheets over her and they turn off the light leaving the door open.
Jim goes back to his room and Anna turns over in bed. “What was that all about?” she says.
“Nothing, she was just having a nightmare,” says Jim.
PAST HISTORY
Anna is typing on the computer. She works from home. She diverts from work and heads to Google to do a search. The real estate agent said this was a historical house with a lot of history but did not go into detail as to what. They were so excited about the price at the time that they did not bother to ask.
She googles,
Beverly Mansion
Plenty of results are available. She scrolls through the search results and clicks on an article. She glances through the words then reads it thoroughly after the initial words she read shocked her.
The house was apart of a slave revolution in the early 1800’s. Two slaves made it north but were hunted and killed. When word got out the remaining slaves at the Beverly plantation were captured or killed.
At dinner it’s just Anna and Jim at the table. They sit across from each other. “Don’t you have a feeling that something is wrong here? Do you wonder what ever happened in this house?” says Anna. Jim looks up and stays silent then continues to eat.
“Today I did some research, there’s more to this house then we thought. It was apart of a slave uprising in the early 1800’s. Many were captured and killed,” she says.
“I lost my appetite,” says Jim. He gets up and heads into the other room. “Jim?” says Anna in confusion. She chases after him and grabs him by the arm. He turns around. “There is something very unnatural going on in this house,” she says.
“What are you implying? That this house is haunted? Those type of things don’t exist,” says Jim. He shakes his head.
“Listen, I know it’s hard to believe, but where did
Emma get those scratches from?” says Anna.
“I don’t know, she could of fell out of bed and scratched herself!” says Jim.
The new mourning Anna gets up and looks for the business card for their realtor. She calls the number. Ring, ring, ring no one picks up so she leaves a message.
“Hey, this is Anna you sold us the Beverly Mansion a couple of weeks ago. This may sound strange we have been experiencing some weird things but, can you tell me about the past owners of this house?”
A few hours later she gets a call from the realtor. She picks up her phone.
“Hello? This is Anna.”
“Hello Anna. The house is as you know is very old and has a lot of history. The original family owned the house up until 2000 when the last remaining family member died. They all died in that house Anna.”
