Funk-N-Fiction

Another treat from another returning Flash Fiction author for this afternoon!!! Morgan Brice has brought us a sneak peek from her upcoming Badlands novel!

A Trick-or-Treat excerpt from Thunder Road
(the upcoming Badlands novel)
By Morgan Brice

Simon had already set up a small speaker on the porch to play spooky music and turned on the orange-and-purple twinkle lights by the time Vic got home. He had added fake cobwebs to the bushes to add atmosphere. Strategically angled lights made the foam headstones in the fake cemetery look ominous.

“I was worried you wouldn’t get home in time to do the honors.” Simon nodded toward the large inflatable decorations, which lay in crumpled piles in their designated spots. “I already ran the extension cords.”

The blow-up dragon stood eight feet tall when set up, with mechanical wings that opened and closed. The life-sized hearse had a team of horses pulling a hearse driven by the headless horseman, and inside, a vampire rose and reclined in its coffin. Kids came for the candy. Adults took selfies with the inflatables.

Vic kissed him. “Thank you. Best Halloween hubby ever!” He gave Simon a quick once-over. “How are you feeling?”

“Better. I slept most of the day. It helped,” Simon replied.

Simon turned on music while Vic arranged the dragon and hearse before plugging them in, letting the built-in air pumps rapidly fill the decorations. Both were lit from the inside, making them stand out as daylight faded.

“And there we go!” Vic said triumphantly as the dragon’s wings slowly opened and closed. It took longer for the hearse since it was bigger, but several people paused walking their dogs to watch the inflatables take shape.

“Dinner is in the slow cooker,” Simon told him. “Corned beef and cabbage with potatoes and carrots. That way we don’t have to worry about it during trick-or-treat, and it’ll be done by the time the festivities are over. I queued up a playlist of horror movies we haven’t seen so we can do a marathon afterward.”

“With snacks?” Vic looked up with a hopeful expression.

Simon made an exaggerated sigh with a fond expression. “Of course. Charcuterie board with all the trimmings and lots of good crackers.”

Since Vic’s introduction to the real paranormal world, he discovered horror movies no longer scared him. He didn’t like gore fests or movies about human psychos and sadists because they were far too real to be entertaining. But he and Simon loved poking fun at the special effects and plot holes in movies about the supernatural.

It’s a strange, unexpected benefit for going up against dark magic, demons, and monsters, but I’ll take it.

They had the decorations up well before sunset and dumped bags of candy into a large bowl, ready for the onslaught.

“It’s time,” Simon said at six. “Bring on the madness.”

Over the next couple of hours, a parade of vampires, werewolves, ghosts, and robots came to the door, ranging from pre-schoolers to lanky college kids. Vic had to give props to the harried parents who shepherded groups of sugar-wired children while stealing a bit of grown-up camaraderie and conversation amid the madness.

“These are for the adults.” Vic walked up to the parents with a bowl of better chocolate, which was gratefully raided. “I hope you have something warm and alcoholic in your future.”

The night turned cool enough that Vic was happy for a sweatshirt, and he took over handing out candy to give Simon a chance to grab a jacket. The cold didn’t dim the enthusiasm of the pint-sized ghosts and goblins who swarmed the steps for candy.

“I love the costumes,” he told Simon as a gaggle of children walked away in search of more treats. “My brothers and I were always cowboys because it was easy.”

“I’m fine with ridin’ and ropin’, “ Simon replied with a wink that sent heat through Vic. “I was ‘that kid’ who came up with the very nerdy original costumes. I dressed up like famous scientists for several years.”

“I bet you made a cute Einstein.”

Simon rolled his eyes. “Everything’s relative.”

Vic elbowed him. “Ha, ha. Very funny.” He frowned when he realized that Simon had a far-away look in his eyes. Vic followed Simon’s gaze and saw only an empty street. “Simon?”

“It’s Maggie.” Simon evaded the next group of kids and left them to Vic while he headed toward the corner with one piece of candy.

Vic greeted the trick-or-treaters and gushed over the costumes, but he kept an eye on Simon, who appeared to be talking to empty air. Simon let the candy fall from his hand, and it vanished, then he smiled and waved before turning back to the house.

“Ghost?” Vic asked in between swarms of children.

“Yeah. Maggie got hit by a car back in the 1980s near that corner. As far as I can tell, she’s never pulled pranks or caused problems. I don’t know what she does the rest of the year because I’ve only ever seen her on Halloween,” Simon replied. “I bring her a piece of candy; it vanishes. She looks happy and fades out.”

“Good to know that even ghosts like chocolate,” Vic said. Simon’s talent to see spirits no longer made him uncomfortable. He saw it as a way of providing solace and, sometimes, absolution. Or in Maggie’s case, letting a young girl’s ghost know that she wasn’t alone in the Great Beyond.

The hoards of candy-seekers gradually slowed, and by the final half hour, only a few dedicated stragglers remained. Vic made sure they gave the last two kids most of the candy that was left because he didn’t want to be tempted to eat it himself. Vic knew that Simon had a bag or two of their favorites hidden in the pantry for later.

When they finally turned off the outdoor lights and closed the door, Vic sighed in relief. They left the inflatables lit and running until the timers shut them down at midnight. He would collect them in the morning.

“Dinner smells amazing, and I’m starved.” Vic locked up and followed his nose to the kitchen where Simon was plating their food.

“Grab and drink and sit down—everything’s ready.”

Over dinner, they recounted the most memorable costumes and those that had taken the most creativity.

“Store-bought costumes are fun, but I love the ones people put together on their own,” Vic said. “Some of those kids could end up being Hollywood costume designers. They’ve got the knack.”

“My favorite was the one that looked like a dinner table with a dome over a plate—” Simon began.

“—And then an arm lifted the dome, and the kid’s head was on the platter,” Vic finished, laughing. “That should have won an award.”

After leftovers were put away and dishes done, Vic and Simon headed into the living room, where extra blankets were piled on the couch, ready for their marathon.

“I prepped the stuff for the charcuterie board when I made dinner, so when we’re peckish, I can just bring it in.” Simon plopped on the couch while Vic reached for the remote.

“And I made a horror movie playlist and queued it up,” Vic turned on the television. “So bring on the thrills and chills!”

When midnight rolled around, they had watched four movies and polished off most of the cut-up meat and cheese along with several glasses of wine. Vic and Simon snuggled close beneath the blankets as they watched the heroes battle vampires, werewolves, zombies, bad witches, malicious ghosts, and a seriously malevolent possessed house.

Poor special effects made them laugh. Incorrect lore had Simon cringing and pointing out what was wrong. Vic took exception to weaponry mistakes. But the really scary parts had them snuggling close, glad to be safe and together.

“C’mon—let’s go to bed,” Vic said, tugging at Simon’s sleeve. “I’ve got some ideas about ending tonight right.”

Thunder Road, Book #7 in the Badlands series, will be out in late 2024. Be sure to check out the first six books about a skeptical homicide detective and a psychic medium who team up to stop supernatural killers in Myrtle Beach and end up falling in love.