Wind blew through all the band members’ hair and Carlisle chuckled. It reminded him of a shampoo commercial.
“Hey, pal, good morning,” Roger called out to the local man.
“Roger,” Mitch said with a warning tone.
“What? I’m just saying good morning.”
“Watch it.”
“Whatever, man.”
The local man limped closer. He was only ten feet away when Carlisle swore he heard a growl.
“What’s wrong with him?” Leanne asked.
“Hey, stay back, man,” Jorden warned him.
The local man didn’t listen to the warnings. He kept coming.
“He’s bleeding,” somebody in the group said.
“Nah, he’s really fucked up,” somebody else said.
“I’m going to need you to back up,” Pete ordered.
But the local man kept coming. His growl grew louder.
“What’s wrong with his hair?” somebody asked.
That was the last thing Carlisle heard before the PFFT sound. What appeared to be a black cloud burst forth from the local man’s head and spread out over the entire crowd of band members.
“What the fuck!” Mitch yelled.
Everyone was swatting at the air. Then they were smacking their own heads, then clawing at them. Roger was the first one to scream. He shrieked like he was mad. Then the others followed. Everyone was screaming and scratching at their own heads. Some of them fell over, some dropped to their knees, and some clawed at the others.
And there was blood.
So much blood.
Carlisle replaced the nozzle on the gas pump, closed the gas valve on the bus, and then backstepped slowly toward the bus door. It was either get on the bus or run toward the gas station. He chose the bus. The gas station attendant was on his own.
Mitch was the first to slam into the bus door. He slapped at it and growled, foam oozing from his mouth. His hair had been torn back from the front of his head, revealing a bloody mess beneath. Carlisle looked at him for a second and couldn’t believe that only a couple minutes before he’d been talking to him, having a normal conversation, and now this.
The other band members reached the bus and banged against it. They slapped the windows, clawed at the siding, and tried climbing onto the bus. Carlisle had no other option but to leave them here. He started the engine, he put the bus into drive, and he gunned it. He left the gas station in his rearview mirror and pulled onto the highway while the crazed band members walked slowly after him in the direction of Virginia.
It finally occurred to him why they’d seen the Army vehicles, but if the Army was headed toward Clydesville, they were going in the wrong direction.
Thank you so much for reading Scalp. I hope that ladybug ending helped relieve some of that head itching. I hope you liked the story enough to take a look at my other work. You’ll find a list on the About the Author page coming up.
If you haven’t already, you should definitely check out A Foreign Eviclass="underline" Diablo Snuff 1, Passion & Pain: A Diablo Snuff Side Story (where you first meet Kong), The Grindhouse: Diablo Snuff 2, and keep your eyes open for The Maddening: Diablo Snuff 3. That one will be on its way soon if it’s not already published by the time you’re reading this. You might also want to check out my full-length novel, Grad Night, which loosely mentions Diablo Snuff.
Thank you again for reading, and if you have a chance to review this book, every review is always so appreciated.
About the Author
My name is Carver Pike. Since as far back as I can remember, I’ve been fascinated by everything horror. I’d sit cross-legged in front of the TV and watch The Texas Chainsaw Massacre while devouring a bowl of Kaboom cereal. I always wished the ghost at the end of each episode of Scooby-Doo wouldn’t be just another man behind the mask. I wanted real ghastly ghouls, dastardly demons, and malevolent monsters.
At some point, I knew I couldn’t sit back and keep watching this horror world from the stands. I wanted to be in the game. So, now I wield this virtual pen and sling ink onto this page with the hopes of someday being a major player. I want to create those worlds you visit, feed that fear that keeps you up late at night, and entertain you in ways only the greatest storytellers can.
I’m currently living in West Virginia where there is plenty of spooky stuff to write about. When I’m not writing, I’m usually watching horror movies, reading a good book, or interacting with readers on social media.
Hopefully, we’ll form a great author-reader relationship and you’ll come to trust that Carver Pike will always keep you entertained.
Check out http://www.carverpike.com for more info.
Also by Carver Pike
Be advised, some of the other works by Carver Pike are graphic in nature and should only be read by a mature audience. Make sure you read the blurb first to see if a book is for you.
Twisted Mirrors
Figments of Fear
Seed of Sin
The Fractured Fallen
A Foreign Evil
Passion & Pain: A Diablo Snuff Side Story
The Grindhouse
Slaughter Box: A Diablo Snuff Story
Grad Night
Redgrave
Shadow Puppets: Scarecrows of Minnow Ranch
Scalp
We All Fall Down: Quills and Daggers 2 (Episode 10)
Discovering Ivory in a Charcoal Cave: A Journey to Beat Depression
Copyright
Copyright © 2020 by Carver Pike
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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