Read Online Tandem of Terror by Eric S. Brown - Free Book Online

Winchester from where
it rested in his lap only to have it slip from his fingers. He
watched it plummet through the darkness to land with a thud on the
dirt below.
    The man was almost on him.
    Struggling to draw his pistol, Daniel felt an
icy hand grab his thigh. Its jagged nails cut into the flesh of his
leg through the tough material of his pants. Daniel fought against
the hold of his safety rope, trying to get his legs into a kicking
position. The heel of his boot lashed out smashing into the dead
man's face.
    The blow shattered the thing's nose. Black,
stale blood seeped from the wound. The thing appeared to smile and
at him with renewed fury. Daniel knew his situation was hopeless.
Still unable to free his pistol, he panicked snatching a knife from
the top of his boot. With a quick slash, he cut the rope holding
him in place and fell from the tree. Daniel landed on his left
shoulder to sound of breaking bone. His scream was long and thick
with pain.
    Before he could right himself, a heavy weight
landed on top of him. Gnashing teeth tore away the better part of
his right ear. His own warm blood wet his hair and ran down his
neck. He hurled himself over slinging the thing off of him. Daniel
drew his pistol as the man leapt onto him again. He shoved the
barrel of the weapon under the man's chin and squeezed the trigger
as the nails of a grasping, rotting hand tore slashed down his face
from his forehead to his chin. The nails scratched his eyes
horribly, leaving him unable to see as the thing toppled over onto
the dirt.
    Daniel sat still, his breath coming in gasps.
Tears of blood rolled down his cheeks as he sobbed knowing his life
was over. He heard movement in the trees and the distant snarls of
more of the dead as they drew closer. He smelt the stench of decay
and death all around him. Several pairs of cold hands latched onto
him, shoving him face first back down into the dirt. He screamed as
the first set of teeth ripped a hole in his chest, taking away a
chunk of his skin and meat. Daniel kept screaming until one of the
things bit through his wind pipe and his heart finally stopped
beating.
     
     

 
     
    Special Delivery
    John Grover
     
    Cameron Vesner filled his watering can to the
brim and walked into his living room to begin his daily ritual.
    His home was filled with plants of every
variety and size, a veritable greenhouse without the glass walls or
solar panels built into the roof. Ivy, Ferns, African Violets,
Dusty Miller, Creeping Myrtle, every type of hanging and potted
plant lived here with him, from prickly cactus to little bonsai
trees. Even one entire side of his house grew thick with ivy and
fungus.
    He tipped the nozzle into a myriad of pots
and let the water trickle gently. He murmured softly to some of his
plants while others he stroked as if they were pets, even the
prickles of the cactus. "And how are my beauties this morning?" He
cooed. "So beautiful. I love you all. I'll get your food in a
moment but how about some music?"
    Cameron switched on his radio just as the
doorbell caught his attention. Without much of a fuss, he opened
the front door to greet the smiling face of a deliveryman dressed
in forest green from head to toe. He held a clipboard in one hand
and a small cardboard box in the other.
    " Special delivery," the man
announced as he glanced down at his clipboard. "For Cameron
Vesner."
    " But I didn't order
anything," Cameron said, puzzled.
    " This is 23 Malloy
Road?"
    " Yes."
    " And you're Cameron Vesner,
right?"
    " Yes."
    " Well, this is for you. I
just read the form and deliver the packages. So if could just sign
here?"
    Cameron took the outstretched clipboard and
signed the form with the attached pen. "Okay." Cameron signed while
taking the box into his free hand. He watched as the deliveryman
hurried back to his truck. The side of it read "Earthly Pleasures,
Inc." Cameron had never heard of it.
    Before he had finished closing the door, the
delivery truck had vanished down the