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    Book Of Darkness: The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    Book Of Darkness: The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    Book Of Darkness: The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    Ebook147 pages1 hour

    Book Of Darkness: The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

    By Sophie Duncan and Natasha Duncan-Drake

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    About this ebook

    Ghosts, zombies and haunted dolls are just a few of the disturbing creatures you will meet in this volume of short stories and novelettes.
    In July 2012, Wittegen Press gave away a short story, or story part every day to their readers. Each story was only available for one day, but now the 6 horror stories from The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games have been gathered here into 1 volume.

    Sleep Of The Damned by Natasha Duncan-Drake
    How would you cope if you discovered your bed was haunted?

    BFF by Sophie Duncan
    New school, new best friend, but Karen discovers that Debbie has dark secrets.

    Just One Day by Sophie Duncan
    The house was a bargain and Georgie loves it, so she's not going to listen to the strange warning from the estate agent that for one day every year it is haunted.

    The Crosses We Bear by Natasha Duncan-Drake
    Shitty hotel, shitty team bonding weekend, but Lyle gets more than he bargained for when he removes the cross from above his bed.

    Queen Of My World by Sophie Duncan
    Alfred doesn't like people very much, but he knows how to use them to get what he wants and he wants Lissy.

    Dead Not Dying by Natasha Duncan-Drake
    Jo loves her cat, Tigger, but when he comes back from near death, Jo eventually realises that it might actually have been death itself.

    These stories, plus all the other stories from the Wittegen Press Giveaway Games can be found in one volume:
    - Myriad Imaginings: All The Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

    If you would prefer to select stories by genre, they are also available in five separate anthologies:
    - Book of Darkness: Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    - Beyond Our Horizon: Science Fiction and Fantasy Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    - Supernature: Paranormal Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    - Romantics: Erotic Romance Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    - Bright Young Things: Young Adult Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

    Also, if you are a particular fan of Natasha Duncan-Drake, or Sophie Duncan, their stories are also available in individual anthologies:
    - Half of Everything: Stories by Natasha Duncan-Drake From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    - The Other Half of Everything: Stories by Sophie Duncan From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWittegen Press
    Release dateJan 11, 2013
    ISBN9781908333421
    Book Of Darkness: The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games
    Author

    Sophie Duncan

    Half my time I am a project manager developing IT solutions. The other half, you'll find me scribbling away at many a story that just won't leave me alone. I've been writing since I was a wee thing, and publishing since I discovered the internet in 1994 or so.So what do I write? Contemporary and urban fantasy have mainly been my playground, but I have done some real world settings as well. I do like mystery and have been reading (and watching) Agatha Christie since I was a child. I've also been known to do a bit of poetry.Style: I have been told I do angst well, so if you want your heartstrings twanged, or your tummy to tie in knots until the end, then I'm your gal. I am, however, a happy ending junkie, although I do throw a hint of realism in there sometimes as well. I like a few twists and turns on the way in some of my plots, although I have written my share of PWPs as well. I have to admit a small obsession with eyes: I believe they are the seat of beauty in a person, so I play with them in creature fic and use them for expression in others - personal hang up, sorry. Also, I have never met a cliché I didn't like and I am a firm believer that cliché is fine if you do it right.Writing is a passion and there's nothing better than writing for an audience. Any writer who says they don't care about feedback must have had an ego amputation :) If you life my scribbles, I'd be very glad to hear from you.

    Read more from Sophie Duncan

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      Book preview

      Book Of Darkness - Sophie Duncan

      Book Of Darkness

      The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      by

      Sophie Duncan and Natasha Duncan-Drake

      Published by Wittegen Press

      Smashwords Edition

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favourite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Wittegen Press Giveaway Games 2012

      http://www.wittegenpress.com/

      Copyright © 2012 by Sophie Duncan

      http://www.wittegenpress.com/sophieduncan

      Copyright © 2012 by Natasha Duncan-Drake

      http://www.wittegenpress.com/natashaduncandrake

      Artwork by Sophie Duncan and Natasha Duncan-Drake

      All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

      ISBN: 978-1-908333-42-1

      Table Of Contents

      Sleep of the Damned by Natasha Duncan-Drake

      BFF by Sophie Duncan

      Just One Day by Sophie Duncan

      The Crosses We Bear by Natasha Duncan-Drake

      Queen of My World by Sophie Duncan

      Dead Not Dying by Natasha Duncan-Drake

      Afterword

      Also by Sophie Duncan: Death In The Family

      Also by Natasha Duncan-Drake: The Chronicles of Charlie Waterman

      Also from Wittegen Press

      Wittegen Press Giveaway Games 2012

      During July of 2012 Wittegen Press gave away one short story, or story part per day.

      Every morning a new short story was available at:

      http://www.wittegenpress.com/giveawaygames

      Each title was available for download for one day only.

      These titles have now been compiled into a selection of anthologies. This anthology contains all the horror stories written for the games.

      The anthologies available are:

      Myriad Imaginings: All The Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      Half Of Everything: Stories By Natasha Duncan-Drake From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      The Other Half Of Everything: Stories By Sophie Duncan From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      Book Of Darkness: The Horror Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      Supernature: The Paranormal Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      Romantics: The Erotic Romance Stories Fromt The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      Beyond Our Horizon: The Science Fiction and Fantasy Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      Bright Young Things: The Young Adult Stories From The Wittegen Press Giveaway Games

      ~*~

      Sleep of the Damned

      by

      Natasha Duncan-Drake

      This story is horror.

      Author's Note

      Sleep of the Damned was published 3rd July 2012.

      So if you've read the intro to Queen of Heaven you know this is the story I actually started writing first. I originally intended it to be a short little ghost story about a haunted bed, maybe 3 to 4 thousand words. The reason it was finished second was because it turned out to be a bit more complicated than that.

      I very much enjoy writing horror, even though it isn't my primary genre. The freedom to do nasty things to characters is quite liberating, although I have a horrible habit of liking my characters too much to be really terrible to them :). I'm not going to give away whether this one ended up like that or not.

      Why a haunted bed I hear you ask. Well, frankly I can't think of anything much more frightening. A place where you lay down to sleep that is supposed to be safe which turns out to have unwanted occupants makes my skin crawl. Hence I decided to share this revelation; I'm generous like that ;).

      Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy my little outing into the ghostly realm.

      ~*~

      Cup of tea? Jessica asked as Will heaved yet another heavy item up the stairs.

      You angel, was Will's tired, but smiling response.

      Will would have made the perfect boyfriend except for two facts: firstly he was technically her brother (although she was sure that didn't count because her dad had met his mum when she and Will had become friends at uni, so it was all backwards) and secondly he was gay. If he hadn't been so nice he would have been annoying. What with being gorgeous and apparently happy all the time, just occasionally Jessica wanted to punch him.

      House clearances are the best, she said as Will hauled her last purchase into her loft apartment for her and she wandered over to put the kettle on.

      I can't believe how cheap all this stuff was, Will agreed and flopped down on the sofa, or how heavy.

      She gave him a smile for being so gallant.

      You've done a marvellous job, thank you, she said.

      Being five foot nothing and built along the lines of a waif, Jessica was not good at picking up large things. She was strong enough for her size, but, most of the time, her arms just weren't long enough.

      And I have choccie biccies as a reward, she said and grabbed the packet from the cupboard.

      That was another annoying thing about Will, he seemed to be able to eat anything and not put on a gram of weight. Jessica only kept biscuits in the place when Will was coming because everything went straight to her hips.

      Arch angel, definitely, Will said as she threw herself onto the sofa next to him and handed over the prize.

      Kettle won't be a minute, she promised and watched him struggle with the little tab that was supposed to help open the packet, but had somehow been stuck down, then we shall have the nectar of the gods.

      Tell me again why you bought a bed. You have a perfectly good one over there, Will commented and then crowed in victory as he finally tore into the wrapper.

      Because it's amazing and I had to have it, she replied, looking at the big brass headboard that was propped up a few feet away. I mean, just look at it.

      It was what she would have called gothic, although she wasn't an expert. It was ornate and looked like someone had been trying to emulate a briar patch in brass and a silver metal for the beautiful, wild rose type flowers studded through it. When she had walked into the bedroom at the house sale and seen it she had known she had to buy it. The frame that came with it was heavy duty as well and it had the look of a very sturdy bed built for the ages.

      Well it's definitely you, Will agreed, just a little freaky.

      She swiped him on the arm for that comment and he just grinned.

      I ordered a mattress from that 'order before lunchtime delivered before bedtime' shop, she said, so you can help me put it together after tea.

      I am ever your dedicated servant, Will replied grandly.

      Jess rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out of him.

      Your classical education is showing, she said.

      In the end, taking the old bed down and piling the bits in the storage corner took longer than putting the new bed together. After that there was nothing to do but poke through a couple of boxes of miscellaneous she had bought and wait for the mattress to show up. After it finally did and she was sure she had a place to sleep that night, she and Will ended up ordering takeaway and sitting on the sofa watching bad Saturday night TV.

      No, you can't be serious, she said as her favourite was voted off the show they were watching.

      It's about singing, not his arse, Will pointed out, although I will give you that he does indeed have a great one. If only I was there to console him.

      He might not be gay, she said and Will just lifted an eyebrow. Okay, okay, your gaydar is never wrong. Now it's time for bed. Since I have a huge new one you're welcome to the other side if you want.

      Thanks, but I'll stick with the pull out, Will replied.

      But you're six foot three and have to curl up like a pretzel, she said.

      Ah, but I make it through the night unmolested.

      What? she asked in her best innocent tone. That was only once and we were both drunk which is how we ended up in the same bed in the first place. I thought you were Steve.

      Right, he said, and it took you three gropes after I pointed out I wasn't Steve just to make sure.

      Drunk, remember, she replied and stood up, and I bags the bathroom first because you take forever.

      Some of us have a sensible skin regime, he replied and she just laughed at him and headed off to clean her teeth.

      Her loft was completely open plan, since most of the time she was the only one who lived there, so by the time she came back from the bathroom Will had already changed into his night things. He was also just finishing off making the fold out sofa into a bed and she took a moment to admire his very fine rear end as he bent over.

      Ninja Turtle pyjama pants, really? she just couldn't help herself.

      Dan bought them for me when he was in the US, Will replied and did a twirl as he stood upright, I think they're adorable and Dan has this thing ...

      She held up her hand before he could say more.

      Enough, I do not wish to know about your boyfriend's 'thing', she said in as overly dramatic a tone as she could manage, which made Will laugh loudly.

      But it's such a ...

      No, she interrupted and he disappeared into the bathroom giggling like a school girl.

      As he closed the door it was funny, but a shiver ran up her spine. If she hadn't known it was ridiculous she would have said the temperature had just dropped a couple of degrees. Shaking her head at her imagination, she walked to her bedroom area and pulled a huge t-shirt from one of her drawers. It only took her a second to slip out of her day clothes and into the shirt.

      Her new bed looked positively splendid in its position, all grand and imposing and she liked it a lot.

      Kawabunga, she yelled loud enough so Will would hear it in the bathroom and then she threw herself onto the bed.

      For a split second as she landed on the mattress she felt ice run up her spine and it made her squeal.

      You okay? Will stepped out of the bathroom, toothbrush still

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