Read 'The Hole' FREE right now
To celebrate the impending release of my book Daydreams & Nightmares—it will be out this week—I am making the first story, The Hole, available for free in advance to all of my subscribers.
The hole is only about six feet across but it feels much larger, and the roots of the trees and the blades of the long grass curl over the ragged lip, reaching down inside as if they are being drawn there. Or, perhaps this whole forest has slithered up and out from the hole, and has bloomed as an extension of its energy.
I find myself becoming very confused because I don’t remember ever seeing this place before, so I don’t know what’s going on. Buddy is just going crazy at this thing—yapping and frothing—and he can’t take his eyes off it.
And nor can I.
I step forward and grab Buddy’s collar, clipping the leash on. I rub his neck to reassure him, and I do feel him calm down somewhat. He’s staring into the soul of that thing in the ground, and where the roots curl over the lip of its mouth the light falls off so sharply that it doesn’t feel natural or comfortable. The hole is filled with a captivating pure black nothingness, and to my horror I start to wonder if it exists by devouring even light itself.
And yet somehow, in the hole’s presence, I feel calm. Like the longer I stare into the darkness the more I feel like everything is going to be okay.
Use the links below to read The Hole in either PDF or EPUB format.
Enjoy!
H.J.
