Walttriznastories's Blog

UNHOLY GROUND, A HORROR SHORT STORY, CHAPTER VI

July 31, 2025 at 2:32 pm Leave a comment

UNHOLY GROUND

Chris Walters, fourteen, was a recent arrival to the rural town of Pinebrook.  His dad, Bob, and mom, Rachel, were originally from the area.  Shortly after they were married, they decided to move to Philadelphia and start a new life.  They created a new life; his name was Chris.  In the meantime, their dreams of life in the city were in shambles.  They both had high school degrees but found their education lacking and the city unforgiving.  Bob stumbled from one job to another.  And being the most recent hire, whenever there was a layoff, he was the first to go.

Rachel found work as a secretary, until Chris came along, then the cost of daycare was more than she earned, so she quit her job and became a stay-at-home mom.

Then Bob’s father died unexpectedly.

After Bob received the news, he sat with Rachel in their tiny kitchen and discussed their future.  “You know, Rach,” Bob said as he put down his coffee cup, “we’re not living the life I thought we would.  I’ve got to be honest.  We’re not making it here.”

    Rachel responded, “You are your dad’s only living relative.  His farm will go to you.  With the money we should get for it, we could build that better life.”

“Rachel, the money won’t last long.  Then we’d be back to where we are now.  I don’t want to sell the farm.  I want to work on.  The land is good, and I helped my dad enough years that I could manage it and make it pay.”

There were many more discussions about their future, and gradually Rachel weakened.  In reality, she was not all that fond of Philadelphia.  And Bob was right.  The money would not mean much of a change to their long-term future in the city.  The more they talked, the more she discovered how much she missed her family and friends.  One night, as they lay next to each other, Rachel said, “It’s hard to admit defeat, but maybe we should move back to Pinebrook.  I think the move would do us good and it would be good for Chris too.  He’s been spending time with some bad company lately and I don’t like the direction he’s heading.”

Bob smiled at his wife and then caressed her.  “We’ll tell Chris in the morning,” Bob said.

They made love as a full moon illuminated the bedroom.

Entry filed under: free science fiction and horror stories, free stories, PUBLISHED WORKS, READER'S OPPORTUNITIES, READERS AND WRITERS FORUM, Walt Trizna, Walt Trizna's Stories. Tags: family, fiction, graffiti, horror, legends, life, love, Native American legend, short story, Walt Trizna, writing.