The following short story, The Mirror, is part of a series from my soon-to-be-published new book of horror shorts, Unleashed Nightmares: From the Depths of My Soul.

“The truth is, we all, as human beings, fear different things. I have never been overly fearful of the serial killer with the knife or axe. Or, overly terrified of monstrous beasts made of fangs and claws. You can measure these tangible monsters with your five senses and determine a course of action: fight or flee. No, what I fear most is the half-seen, the indescribable beasts and monsters- the ones you catch a brief glimpse of from the corner of your eye. The demons who visit your dreams but never fully reveal themselves, the intangible beasts. If a monster cannot be fully measured or described, then it is limited only by the boundaries of my imagination.”

~ Dr. Thomas Davison, author

*****

The Story…

The Mirror

“We have now left Reason and Sanity Junction. Next stop, Looneyville.”

~ Jim Butcher

*****

Joshua and Virgil:

My name is Joshua Price, and I have become an amateur detective. I am 44 years old. I have a bachelor’s degree in sports science and am a personal trainer for wealthy, bored folks in L.A.

One year ago, my younger brother, Virgil, was murdered!

Although the cause of his death was reported as influenza, I know better. I know that he was killed. I have zero doubt someone murdered him.

I had no choice but to learn how to investigate Virgil’s death independently. The Police from the small town where he was murdered, like most midwestern small towns, are no help at all.

Fortunately, because of the nature of my job, I am in decent shape for a man my age. I know how to handle myself. My father left home when I was a teenager, and my mother found solace with alcohol. She was never really present, so I became the man of the house.

I practically raised Virgil by myself.

I loved that kid. Now, he is gone. I intend to find his killer or killers and make them pay. I will avenge poor Virgil.

Influenza, my ass!

One year ago, my baby brother died in a hotel room—a hotel in the small town of Ravens Corners, Ohio. I spoke to Virge on the phone 24 hours before he checked in. He was perfectly healthy.

I’ve grown tired of researching long-distance from my home in Los Angeles.

I followed Virge’s footsteps and came to the town of Ravens Corners. I checked into the same hotel, Raven’s Claw, and the same room, number 33.

What did they do to you, my brother?

The town is gray and drab. It looks, smells, and feels old and tired. The sun seems weak and feeble. The inhabitants of Raven’s Corners are equally drab and weary. Everyone is dressed in dull, worn colors, like an old black-and-white photo.

I plan to investigate the room and check around town in the morning. Eventually, I will talk with the town constable in person, but I want to poke around anonymously before revealing who I am.

While checking in, I was amused when the clerk handed me a skeleton key attached to a key ring shaped like a raven’s claw.

 I didn’t think anyone used real keys anymore?

The hotel looked like a dark, haunted mansion from the movies. The floorboards creaked and groaned with every step I took. The hotel’s decor was outdated and as dull and dreary as the rest of this miserable town.

The hotel clerk is a nondescript little gray man.

The most distinguishing thing about the room is the Mirror. The entire right side of the room has a single decoration: the Mirror. The large looking glass is four feet tall and three feet wide. A dark wood-carved frame surrounds it. It is unusual to see something so huge in a hotel room.

The looking glass is ugly!

It doesn’t have the bright, shiny surface you see on a modern-day mirror. It’s more of a milky, murky surface—not a true mirror at all.

After such a long drive, I should have fallen quickly into a deep sleep. Instead, I tossed and turned for an hour, when I first heard a noise.

It was a faint, raspy sound.

 I strained to listen to the noise more clearly from my place on the old four-poster bed. I swear it sounds like whispering. Yes! Someone is whispering.

I am sure of it.

The sounds emanated from the room’s right side—where the weird-looking Mirror hung. I stood up and tentatively approached the glass.

Okay, be honest with yourself, Joshua. Admit it, you find the damn thing spooky. More than spooky, you think it’s downright scary.

I leaned closer until my ear was inches from The Mirror’s opaque surface. I could make out a few words, then a few more. It wasn’t a conversation. What was it? It was more like…chanting. The evil, raspy-sounding voice was chanting!

What the hell?

This didn’t make sense. Room 33 was at the end of the hotel. On my left side was room 31. To the right side of my room was nothing. Nothing but a wooded area. The voice wasn’t coming from within or outside the walls.

It was coming from that damnable Mirror!

Josh, don’t let an inanimate object frighten you. The strange Mirror can’t be whispering at you. It’s impossible. There has to be another explanation.

I had heard enough. I was done listening to this nonsense. As I turned my ear away from The Mirror, I saw a reflection from the corner of my eye. What was that? More accurately, who was that?

It was a blurry outline of a face.

I stared intently into the murky Mirror’s depths. Slowly, the mysterious face came into focus. No! It can’t be. Virge?

The face belonged to my dead brother Virgil.

My reaction was immediate. I shouted at The Mirror. “Virge! It’s me, Virge. It’s Josh! Can you hear me, bro?”

Virge’s face inside The Mirror nodded, signaling he could hear me. The face was speaking, but I could hear no sound.

I shouted, “I can’t hear you, Josh! Sorry, bro!”

My brother’s face in The Mirror contorted in frustration. He exaggeratedly mouthed the words and pointed toward the hotel room door,

“G-E-T—-O-U-T—-N-O-W—-J-O-S-H.”

I vigorously shook my head. “No way, baby brother. I’m not leaving you, man.”

From his pleading face,

“H-U-R-R-Y—-P-L-E-A-S-E—-G-O—-N-O-W– –B-E-F-O-R-E—-H-E—-C-O-M-E-S”

I stubbornly refused to move. “Before who comes, Virge? Who are you talking about?”

My little brother’s face inside the evil Mirror began to weep.

“I-T-S—-T-O-O—-L-A-T-E”

The scratchy Voice spoke in a loud, booming tone that echoed from the walls, the floor, and The Mirror. The demonic Voice spoke of the infinite, the abyss, and the creeping darkness in men’s souls.

I clapped my hands over my ears to shut out the madness that came with the Voice, but it did me no good. The Voice penetrated my very soul, and I soon understood what He told me.

There is only the thinnest of veils between sanity and madness, and that veil is whisper-thin.

Now, I could see the abyss the Voice spoke of. There it was! It was yawning before my feet. One step, and I would fall into its infinite depths.

No light from the sun or stars entered the eternity of blackness that was the abyss.

I stood frozen, incapable of moving or speaking, afraid I might slip into the pit. I felt the creeping darkness that the Voice had spoken of spread through my mind, thoughts, and fiber of my soul.

I tried with all my strength to fight against the darkness that seeped inside me, to no avail. It slowly, insistently progressed more profoundly and much deeper.

I became convinced that I was not alone in my room. Uninvited, shapes and shadows had come to hang from the walls and ceiling. They were watching and waiting—waiting for what?

Then, a tiny voice in my mind spoke, “They are waiting for you to join them, you fool!”

I spoke aloud. “Join them. Join them where?”

I heard laughter coming from the dark, shadowy shapes. More of them seeped from the walls. How many more? There were dozens at first, and now hundreds were crowding into the small room.

I could sense the horrid shapes were gleeful and gloating.

They were waiting for me to go over the edge of the abyss. The dark shadows were watching and waiting for me to succumb to the madness that now lurked within me. They wanted me to rip the thin veil and allow the craziness inside.

Welcome the ignorance of insanity.

I can see the hellish Mirror. Its surface is rippling at a faster pace. I can barely make out my brother’s face; it is so distorted by the waves. Then, Virge’s face is gone in the blink of an eye.

Another image appears in the hellish Mirror and slowly comes into focus.

The visage is horrendous!

It’s too ghastly to peer at directly. The Beast has red, burning eyes that I can feel sear into my brain. I struggle to turn away but remain frozen. I want to turn away and flee this room from the pit of hell and nightmares.

I must escape from these horrors that are now firmly planted in the depths of my mind. In my heart, I knew it was too late. The power of the malevolent force held me like a helpless bug stuck to fly paper.

I realize that I am teetering on the edge of madness.

There, I have torn the veil. It is over. I fight no longer. I embrace it fully. I will spend the rest of eternity with Him.

I can hear The Mirror Shatter as He steps forth and reaches out for me…

END

What are your fears?

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