Dead Branches
Page 28
How about I’m sorry that I thought you were a monster.
“Hey, Thomas, my boy.” His voice is still loud, but it has a quiver of weakness.
That’s what he used to call me, ‘my boy’.
We chat about everything. We chat about nothing. At some point he says, “I hear you’ve got a boy of your own now.”
“Do you want to meet him?” I ask.
He smiles, and I remember that he used to do it all of the time, before that summer when he was so worried about trying to protect Will and me.
“Charlie,” I call, and he comes flying up the steps.
“This is your Granddad,” I say.
Charlie reaches out a hand and takes my father’s. “Pleased to meet you,” he says. He takes a second to assess my dad, and then reaches across to hug him.
Moments later Mum comes in. She had to check that we were all okay, like she always has. “Made you a tea,” she says, and rests a hand on my shoulder. I’ve missed that.
“We’ll be back,” I say to Dad.
When he tries to reply, a cough catches in his throat, and I don’t know how many opportunities I’ll have to make it right with him.
I take Charlie by the hand and lead him down the stairs. I may not be able to make it right with Dad, but I can with Charlie. As we re-enter the kitchen, Granddad stirs in his chair.
“Granddad,” I say, “why don’t you tell Charlie how you lost your eye?”
“Farming accident,” he says with a frown.
“No Granddad,” I say, giving him a very obvious wink, “tell him the real story.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Benjamin Langley has been writing since he could hold a pen and has always been drawn to dark tales. He has had short stories published in over a dozen publications including Crescendo of Darkness, Deadman’s Tome, and The Manchester Review. He has also written Sherlock Holmes adventures that have featured in Adventures in the Realm of H.G. Wells, Adventures Beyond the Canon, and Adventures in the Realm of Steampunk. Benjamin has also written comedy sketches that have been performed on stage, radio and television.
He lives, writes, and teaches in Cambridgeshire, UK, where he also studied at Anglia Ruskin University. He was awarded the prize for best Major Writing Project while studying for his BA in Writing and English. He completed his MA in Creative Writing in 2015. An earlier version of Dead Branches was part of Benjamin’s final project. He has recently finished work on a second novel, a supernatural horror titled Is She Dead in Your Dreams? and is now working on a third called Normal.
ALSO FROM
BLOODSHOT BOOKS
THE SPECIMEN (THE RIDERS SAGA #1)
From a crater lake on an island off the coast of Bronze Age Estonia...
To a crippled Viking warrior's conquest of England ...
To the bloody temple of an Aztec god of death and resurrection...
Their presence has shaped our world. They are the Riders.
One month ago, an urban explorer was drawn to an abandoned asylum in the mountains of northern Massachusetts. There he discovered a large specimen jar, containing something organic, unnatural and possibly alive.
Now, he and a group of unsuspecting individuals have discovered one of history's most horrific secrets. Whether they want to or not, they are caught in the middle of a millennia-old war and the latest battle is about to begin.
Available in paperback or Kindle on Amazon.com
http://amzn.to/1peMAjz
WELCOME TO THE BLACK
MOUNTAIN CAMP FOR BOYS!
Summer,1989. It is a time for splashing in the lake and exploring the wilderness, for nine teenagers to bond together and create friendships that could last the rest of their lives.
But among this group there is a young man with a secret-a secret that, in this time and place, is unthinkable to his peers.
When the others discover the truth, it will change each of them forever. They will all have blood on their hands.
ODD MAN OUT is a heart-wrenching tale of bullies and bigotry, a story that explores what happens when good people don't stand up for what's right. It is a tale of how far we have come . . . and how far we still have left to go.
Available in paperback or Kindle on Amazon.com
http://bit.ly/OddManKindle
I KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE HEARD ABOUT ME
You say that I am a madman. You say that I am dangerous. You say that I am the one who has been abducting women, slaughtering them, and burying their corpses all around this city for years. You are wrong, because only part of that statement is true…
I AM NOT A KILLER
I know that you probably won’t believe me. Not now. Not after all that has happened, but I need to tell my side of the story. You need to know how this all began. You need to hear about the birds, but most of all, you need to understand…
I AM NOT THE BOULEVARD MONSTER
Available in paperback or Kindle on Amazon.com
http://bit.ly/B0ulevard
A TERRIFYING HAUNTING
This is the place where the harrowed ghosts of a dozen generations whisper in the shadows of their ancestral home, where one family’s dreams of a new beginning turned into a nightmare that ended in tragedy.
A CURSED BLOODLINE
This is the place where a line of witches bound themselves—in blood—to a primeval entity. Here, nightmare and reality meet beneath frozen skies, and even time and space fall under the power of the demonic being that rules this remote northern wood.
A CHANCE ENCOUNTER
This is the place where the path of a tormented survivor meets that of an unknowing innocent. Past and present collide, and secrets long buried crawl back into the pallid light of day as the shadow of the Beast falls over them both. But even the bloodiest dreams of that demonic being may pale in comparison to what lies buried within the human heart.
This is the place where evil dwells… ABODE
Available in paperback or Kindle on Amazon.com
http://bit.ly/Ab0de
ON THE HORIZON FROM
BLOODSHOT BOOKS
2019-20*
Jimmy the Freak – Mark Steensland & Charles Colyott
The October Boys – Adam Millard
Dead Sea Chronicles – Tim Curran
The Hag Witch of Tripp Creek – Somer Canon
Behemoth – H.P. Newquist
Dead in the U.S.A. – David Price
Blood Mother: A Novel of Terror – Pete Kahle
Not Your Average Monster – World Tour
The Abomination (The Riders Saga #2) – Pete Kahle
The Horsemen (The Riders Saga #3) – Pete Kahle
* other titles to be added when confirmed
READ UNTIL YOU BLEED