Flash... The Surgeon

by Michael Seese

To whet your appetite for Halloween, here is a spook tale courtesy of Indies Unlimited. The photo prompt (it's a little hard to see) is a jack-'o-lantern. 

 




















And here is "The Surgeon."

“Shhhh!” I whispered. “Lie still, or he'll hear you.”

No need to say who he was. He was “The Surgeon.” The bogeyman that we as children talked about, and our parents tried to play down, for fear we would find out the truth.

That he is real.

The legends varied, though they contained common threads. Around this time every year, The Surgeon would come, searching for victims to whisk away to his operating theater, where he would…

Footsteps crunched through the leaves. I held my breath, terrified and blind beneath the moonless sky.

Closer...

Closer...

Closer!

“A-ha!” cackled the maniacal voice. “I've found you.”

I didn't feel the blade. But I heard it slice the air.

“Help! Help me!” I screamed as he dragged me away. No one moved.

I must have passed out. When I awoke, bright lights warmed me. I felt good. For a moment. Then...

THUNK!

The knife cut into the top of my head. There was no pain. Just an uncomfortable tug as he began sawing. Up and down, around and around.

Then his hand dove in and began yanking out my insides.

SPLAT!

They landed in a bucket below him.

“Yum! Tasty,” he said.

What kind of sick animal is he? I wondered.

The knife then dug into my face. My eyes. My mouth.

I now had them. It ended when he stuck a lighted candle inside me.

“Kids!” he called out. “All done. Let’s get it on the porch, and then roast some seeds.”

What scares you on Halloween?

And remember, vote HERE tomorrow (Wednesday) between 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. EST.