The Headless Scarecrow

Beware what you find at antique stores...

Happy Halloween Month

What are you wearing for costumes this year?

Speaking of Halloween, I thought I’d drift away from what I usually write, try to do something out of my comfort zone and shoot my shot at a little “horror” story…

IT IS THAT TIME OF YEAR AFTER ALL!

We’ve got 4 more weeks of spooky tales, so I figured I’d get some practice now. So, without further delay, let’s start you right this Sunday, October 1st…

The Headless Scarecrow

Along a lonesome Kansas highway, fog settled low and wafted along the front edge of a corn field that stretched in front of an old farmhouse with a wrap-around porch. Ivory horizontal wood boards planked across with charcoal-colored shutters under an autumn red roof that sat guarded by willows and a small white picket fence that squared off a small front lawn in which stood an enormous oak tree inlet and strung with hanging market lights and hand-built humming-bird houses.

A corn maze and pumpkin patch sat to the right of the house before the corn fields began. The maze was Josie’s heart and joy. For months, during the summer, she’d prune and fix it up and re-shape the labyrinth, making it more complicated than before and different every year.

One late afternoon, driving through town, Josie’s eyes fell upon a figure of straw outside an antique store. Her husband, Sam, was spooked and was left uneasy from the start. A large, lonely farm was their only problem, until they brought that scarecrow home.

Clouds stretched across the sky and clouded the moon. Owls perched atop the house searched for rodents, then took off soundlessly on their hunt. A creaking of wood had awoken Josie from her sleep.

She listened for the noise again and then looked at the clock — 3 A.M.

She felt for Sam beside her, but the bed was hollow and cold. She got up, threw on her robe and slippers, then bound for the wood door with a copper handle — it was slightly ajar.

The front door slammed downstairs — Josie rushed to the edge of the stairs and peered down to see Sam’s figure leave the doorstep behind the paned windows.

He was already at the edge of the maze by the time she caught up to him. His tall frame silhouetted in the moonlight, shining through the sunken fog that danced on moist soil.

She called out to him with no avail, then walked over and grabbed his arm. He wouldn’t budge. She looked out to the maze to find where he had been looking, and when she did, she saw the headless scarecrow at the foot of the entrance with his gangly arms hanging by his side.

“Sam, did you move it? I thought it was further in the maze?” She asked. “Sam, are you even—”

And when she looked back up to him, his eyelids were shut and eyes darting back and forth behind them like a hatching egg.

She tugged his arm — he remained in his trance — she pulled harder and slapped his face, grabbed it, and turned it towards her — his eyes popped open, confused.

“Sam, honey, you were sleepwalking again?” Josie said.

“What, I—” Sam stuttered.

“It’s okay, c’mon now, it’s freezing, let’s get you back inside and in bed.”

The next time she found Sam, he was at the edge of the hallway on their second floor, staring out the window.

His eyes were darting again, but his mouth was wide open with a low growl rumbling from his belly and up and out to the corn maze.

His lips were starting to bleed at the crevices with the sheer force he used to keep his mouth pried.

Josie tried to wake, rattle, and shake him with her petite frame. Nothing worked.

She tried to close his mouth, but his jaw was of stone. Panic found her eyes, and she did the only thing left to do — shut the curtains.

Once darkness was shut in and thus the maze and scarecrow were shut out, Sam awoke almost immediately. He felt for his jaw, aching in pain. His eyes red and tired, then fell on Josie. He was afraid.

A loud crash and shattering awoke her the next night — Sam had broken through the same window with his head as he tried to break it entirely and free himself from their house's second story.

He clawed his hands into the sharp glass, trying to peel it back, but only peeled away skin. Blood had splattered the floor and was dripping down the flower-painted wallpaper below the broken window.

Josie shut the windows, and he sprang awake and hollered in pain, looking at the gashes in his hands. She tried to bandage them, but the blood kept seeping through.

She phoned 911, and they assured her they’d get to her as soon as possible. She knew that meant in an hour, at best. She ran back upstairs with more gauze and a first aid kit but Sam was already gone.

She followed the blood trail he had left down the back staircase and through the back kitchen door, then around the wooden porch that wrapped around the house.

A bloody handprint on one of the posts of the white picket fence and a smear along the giant oak tree.

“Sam?!” Josie called out. “Sam? Where—”

And then she saw him. He stood in the corn maze, but he was taller than ever.

The top of his head bobbed and wandered through the maze until it rounded the corner — blood streaked down the matted and gored straw body of the scarecrow as it towered over Josie, looking down at her with her husband’s head severed and fashioned to its body — sinister, spindly straw-claws reached out to grab her under a puppeteer expression forced across Sam’s used smile.

When first responders arrived, they found nothing but a blood trail through a corn maze. Once they got to the end, the two mutilated corpses of Josie and Sam sat in the middle.

A headless scarecrow stood over them. One of the first responders couldn’t take his eyes off it…

“This would look good in my yard.” He said as he reached out and touched it’s straw hand.

Not going to lie… I had no idea where I was going with it at any point — but I do know I will never be getting a headless scarecrow!

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT…

As I was editing this, I thought, maybe this should be in the present tense? It would give it that jarring and uneasy feel yet bring up that feeling of suspense. I feel like it could work for a short story like this but much longer it might become too uncomfortable. Thoughts?

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this weeks spooky story, and come back next week for another Halloween themed tale!

Also, if you haven’t already please like, subscribe, and share and check out some of my other stories if you wish! Here’s a popular one that’s a little spooky as well…