This one comes from all the way back on October 30, 2009. It's not a horror story, per se, but some of you who hate venturing out on Saturday afternoons might find it to be. I hope you enjoy this one!
Pumpkin Patch of the Damned
by Eric J. Krause
Why the hell
wasn't this ever an easy process? And every year Daisy had to come
during the game. Just because there were games morning, noon, and night
on Saturdays didn't make it any better. Think of all the great plays he
was missing.
"Daddy, can I go in the bouncy house?"
He
looked over at the purple balloon structure shaped like a haunted house,
complete with a blow-up Frankenstein and a few sheets with eye holes
cut in them glued to the side. Those things used to be a huge treat when
he was a kid, but nowadays you couldn't go a city block without
bouncing into one.
"No, we're going to grab a pumpkin and get out of here."
"Don't listen to your father. Go have fun, baby."
"Yo, Dad, a corn maze. I'm gonna go check it out."
A
corn maze? In the suburbs? He'd been in a corn maze once when he was a
kid. His parents drove he and his brothers an hour and a half out of
town to get to a farm in the country. Now here was one in this empty lot
that'd probably be a Denny's or a Walgreens by this time next year.
"No, we're just here for a pumpkin. Go grab your sister and pick one out so we can get on home."
"Pish-posh. Go have fun, sweetie. Don't get lost!"
He
turned to Daisy, ready to tell her off. She'd promised him fifteen
minutes, half-an-hour tops. Now here she was sending the kids off to
pointless activities instead of what they were here for: to find a
carving pumpkin.
Before he could lay into her, her eyes sparkled. "Ooh, a craft fair. You don't mind, do you honey?"
Holy
hell, a craft fair? How could this lot hold so much crap? Were there
even any damn pumpkins in this pumpkin patch? None that he'd seen. Next
year they'd just get one at the megamart down the street. If they'd done
that this time, he'd be on his way home by now to watch State versus U.
"No, Daisy. Come on. You promised. Get the kids, let's pick out a pumpkin, and we'll get out of here."
Of
course she paid him no mind and wandered over to the half-dozen or so
booths, her hand already in her purse to snatch out her wallet.
He
found a random bale of hay and took a seat. His eyes scanned all three
attractions, but he couldn't spot the kids or his wife. Would he ever
see them again, or was he stuck forever here in this pumpkin patch of
the damned?
