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    Danger Dreams
    Danger Dreams
    Danger Dreams
    Ebook76 pages1 hour

    Danger Dreams

    By Willie McRae

    ()

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    About this ebook

    A collection of short stories - tales of high adventure, grim horror and quirky fantasy.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBookBaby
    Release dateDec 1, 2016
    ISBN9780995637412
    Danger Dreams

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      Book preview

      Danger Dreams - Willie McRae

      Phoebe.

      MORNING VULTURES

      Sweat stings my eyes and a salty yearning in my throat - something beyond thirst - tells me I must act soon or die.

      Vultures buzz above me, screeching to each other across the cloudless sky, their circling shadows providing moments of cool respite. They protect me from what is real; the sun, that glorious source of truth - it will blind you if you look at it.

      I count the birds - there are three - with shabby beaks, scrawny necks and murderous eyes. They have understood me for what I am; hungry, weak, desperate. There is no urgency in their cries. They wait for my death, for my mind to succumb to the stress and tedium of my wasted existence.

      But they don’t know that I intend to kill them. Every single one.

      I load the crossbow slowly with careful and deliberate movements. Half closing my eyes, I lay sprawled on the rocky ground under the blazing sun, and wait. I am bait.

      I focus on the flapping of wings and movement of air above me. They are watching me now. I remind myself they are stupid, but I am surrounded. So what does that make me? A vulture’s beak is strong and if they go for my neck I am in trouble.

      They are on the ground now. I smell one approach from the left. I raise my left arm,  grabbing the stalky, leathery neck, and smashing the head into the ground. In the same movement, I roll up onto one knee, clutching at the neck of the bird to my right. I squeeze as hard as I can while stepping up to stand on the scrawny stem of the first vulture, pinning it to the ground. My nose fills with the acrid stink of angry vulture piss as I release a primal war-cry.

      The third and largest is trying to escape. With my free arm I aim the crossbow and fire a single bolt into its side, wounding it in what I hope is a painfully mortal way. It crashes to the ground, shrieking in pain. A bird in the hand is worth one underfoot and one dead on the ground with a crossbow bolt in its lungs.

      I stand up, walk to my desk, and begin writing a collection of short stories.

      COLD BLACK MAGIC

      I despised my office job, but could not bring myself to leave it. Like a carefully scripted reality TV show, there was enough drama to keep me coming back. Plus, I was addicted to being paid, needing large sums of money to live my selfish, irrelevant life and pay the power bill for my internet fridge. My life was a puzzle, the picture was boring, and I couldn’t find an edge piece. I hated myself. Things had to change.

      And so, when I was handed a card at the top of the stairs in Covent Garden station, instead of throwing it in a bin, I stopped to read it;

      MR OLEK

      A naturally gifted from God Spiritual Healer following a family history of over 10 generations in the Healing.

      No matter how difficult your problem is there a solution to it. Problem concerning black magic, love, voodoo, sexual impotency, business transactions, exams & court cases. I can help you reunite with your loved ones, split unwanted relationships. For all your problems Mr Olek is the answer. No disappointment.

      Quick Results Guaranteed!

      PLEASE DON’T REMAIN IN SILENCE WITH YOUR PROBLEM SEEK HELP FROM MR OLEK

      Something about the spelling and typesetting spoke to me of authenticity. It was a refreshing change from the slick communications I endured at work. I can’t picture the person who gave it to me, having learned to block out the swarms of people I moved through every day. They were just shapes, blocks of ice in a vast sea, to be avoided in case of jagged edges under the surface. When I looked back to check, there was nobody there.

      The next day I made up an excuse to skip work. Instead, I went looking for Mr Olek. What could I expect to learn from such a man? How would he treat me? As I pondered these questions, life felt fun, exciting and dangerous.

      Predictably, I had never been to the neighbourhood where Mr Olek lives and works. Although close to central London and recognisable on all the maps, it is forgettable or at least easily ignored. I felt like an outsider, under the scrutiny of local kids who rode their bikes in lazy circles around the streets. They laughed at me. Not knowing how to respond, I kept my eyes down and my mouth shut.

      The man himself greeted me at his door. Mr Olek was tall and thin. He wore a black t-shirt that said in large pink letters ‘Which Doctor?’

      You been looking for me? I been waiting for you! he said, following with a loud laugh. He smelled strongly of marijuana. Come inside and let’s get down to business. I followed him along a dark hallway, which led into a dimly lit lounge room.

      He continued, Now, before we go any further, you have to take your shirt off, ok? I found myself nodding numbly,

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