Bad luck a gripping horr.., p.1
Bad Luck: A gripping horror story (The Cursed Manuscripts), page 1
BAD LUCK
CURSED MANUSCRIPTS
BOOK 5
IAIN ROB WRIGHT
ULCERATED PRESS
CONTENTS
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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
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Also by Iain Rob Wright
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Michael Pearse, Mark Ayre, Virginia Milway, Suzie Roush, Katrice Tuck, Adrian Shotbolt, Minnis Hendricks, Kelli Herrera, Terrie-Ann Thulborn, Phil Brady, Steve Haessler, Jackie Grocutt, Darrion Mika, Karen Lewis, Suzy Tadlock, Kaarin Chadwick, Mari Meisel, Jayne Smith, Susanne Stohr, CJMac, Stacey, Amanda Shaw, Connie France, Gillian Moon, Robin, Armando Llerena, Stephanie Everett, Linda Heafield, Ali Black, Elizabeth Thompson, Stainedglasslee, Stacey Guitarmangrg, Angela Richards, Diane Rushton, Stephen Moss, Jean Geill, Elizabeth Auclair, Adrianne Yang, Joy Perry, Linda, Leslie Clutton, Sarah Chambers, Sylvia Camposano, Kat Miller, Susan Crouch, Sara Boe, Carole, Nigel Crabtree, Becky Wright, Claire Taylor, Caryn Larsen, Leigh Hickey, Jenny Ibbs, Steve Griffith, Diesta Kaiser, Fiona Thompson, Cherise Fugue, Mark Horey, Gian Spadone, Mark Stone, Rachel LaFraniere, Deborah Shelton, Pauline Stout, Angelica Maria, Katie Potter, Jordan Rasmussen, Deirdre Lydon, Bobbie Kelley, Vicky Salter, Melissa Potter, Debbi Sansom, 44bats, Nicole Reid, Bruce W Clark, Carrieanne, Chris Viehman, Mark Harvey, Kristina Goeke, Mark Simpson, Graeme McMechan, Jacqueline Coleman, Vanda Luty, Ruth F Phelps, Donna Twells, Katie Warburton, Susan Kay, Nick Brooks, Stewart Barnes, Nigel Jopson, Gemma Ve, Steven Barnett, Andrew Moss, Sally Jayne Dainton, Tania Buss, Steve Irvine, Lee Ballard, Clive The Moose, Xya Marie, Robert Smith, Oscar Booker Jr, Trevor Oakley, Leona Overton, Susan Hayden, Jennifer Holston, Kelee S, Terence Smith, Michelle Chaney, Roy Oswald, Paul Weaver, Linda Robinson, Chris Aitchison, Michael Rider, Deborah Knapp
Bread, Beth Thurman, Cass Griffiths, Debbie Ivory, David Lennox, Zoe Lloyd, William Matthews, Hazel Smith, Gary Harper, Laurie Cook, Margaret McAloon, Paul, Neil Grey, Catherine H, Sherrie, Brian McGowan, Pam Felten, Carol Wicklund, Mary Meisel, Deborah, Lady Aliehs, Rachel Mayfield, Erica Lewis, Mary Stephenson, Maniel Le, Tara Enright, Andre Jenkin, Lawrence Clamons, Gary Groves, Mike Prankard, Dorothy Rushforth, Dan Garay, Lynn Mcvay, Rona Trout, Mark Pearson, Mary Kiefel, Emma, Karen lewis, Eddie Garcia, Caronda Bourgeois, David Humphries, Tracy Putland, Laura Monaghan, TheWeelou23, boy stio, Emily Haynes, Pam Brown, Sharon Campbell, Scott Menzies, Deirdre Gamill-Hock, Allison Valentine, Marika Borger, Joe Wardle, Kellie Collins, William Cahill, Candee Vaglica, Kristin Scearce, Lisa McGlade, Jay Evans, Janet Wilde, Mark Junk, Rafael Montes, Sarah Atherton, Trudy Bryan, Joanne Wheatley, John May, Stacie Jaye, Kirsty Mills, Louise, Kenneth Mcintire, Adam Thayer, Jonathan Emmerson, Susan Rowden, David Greer, Becki Sinks, Carole Wilson, Richard Sorden, Becki Battersby, Derek Titus, Phil, Clare Duncan, Julie Peacock, Rebecca Strouse, Stacie Denise, Sarah Powell, Paula Bruce, G. Stella, Michael J. Mulkerin, Sandra Lewis, Hawaii Lynn, Windi LaBounta, Stephanie Hardy, Janet Carter, Lisa Kruse, Gillian Adams, Lauren, Clare Lanes, Jacqueline Scifres, Cindy Ahlgren, John Best, Stacey Arkless, Nate Stephenson, Chris Jones, Jonathon & Tonia Cornell, Chris Hicks, Janine Hartley, Sandra Behrens, Carl Donze, Chris Nelson, Rigby Jackson, Linda Paisley, Karen Roethle, Carmen Hammond
CHAPTER
ONE
Emily was pulling on her jacket, about to leave, when she heard the scream.
She hurried out of the stockroom and onto the shop floor, where she found her Rube’s News coworker, Katie, clutching her left hand and shrieking like a wounded gazelle. Droplets of blood spattered the white vinyl tiles around her feet like a macabre art project.
Emily’s heart caught in her throat. “What is it? What happened?”
“M-My hand! I cut myself.” Katie was shaking like a leaf, her face devoid of colour as she stood in front of the humming drinks refrigerator. Several bottles of wine lay scattered at her feet. One of the bottles was broken, a bloody shard lying next to it in a pool of glistening alcohol.
“Okay, okay. It’s okay!” Emily gathered Katie into her arms and tried to calm her by shushing and rocking her. “I got you, babes. You’re all right. Let me see.”
Katie tried to cling on, but Emily eased her back. She clutched her hand against her chest but offered it gingerly for inspection, closing her eyes and looking away.
Emily’s stomach turned. Oh God!
Katie’s palm had split in two. Pearls of pink-white tissue bulged around the wound’s edge like uncooked sausage meat. Oddly, there was little blood, but the wound was undeniably deep.
She needs stitches. And vodka.
Emily glanced towards the cash register. It was nearly nine o’clock, so they had been about to close. Thankfully, there were no customers.
“What’s all this racket?” John stormed out of the office, shoes clip-clopping on the tiles. When he saw the two of them huddled together by the refrigerator, his eyes narrowed behind his glasses and his upper lip curled upwards. “What are you two doing?”
Katie moaned. “I-I cut my hand.”
“What? How?”
“I slipped. I-I was holding a bottle of wine and I landed—”
John glared at Emily, his unkempt eyebrows like two angry black caterpillars. “Why was the floor wet?”
She shrugged. Why is he angry at me? “I don’t know. I was on my way out.”
John elbowed her aside so that he could inspect Katie’s palm. “Maybe if you’d been in less of a rush to leave, Emmie, this wouldn’t have happened.” She went to argue, to tell him it wasn’t her fault, but he cut her off with a sharp hiss. “This is bad, Katie. We need to get you to A & E.”
Katie panicked. “No, no, no.”
Emily grabbed her by the shoulders and got her attention. She could smell the mint on her panicked breaths. “You’ll be fine, Kat. Want me to come with you?”
Katie nodded, but John shook his head and moved Emily aside. “No. I’ll take her, Emmie. You need to stay here and cash up for me.”
“What? No, but I—”
John glared at her again, his eyes like saucers behind the thick lenses of his specs. “Will you stop thinking about yourself and be a team player for once? You don’t have a car, do you? What are you planning to do? Take her on the bus? Look, I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay?”
Katie snuffled, trying to keep from sobbing. “S-Sorry, Ems. I… I…”
Emily smiled to reassure her. “It’s not your fault.”
“Can I rely on you?” John asked her. He had his arm wrapped around Katie’s shoulders, and his hand was inside the sleeve of her work shirt, touching the bare skin of her triceps. Emily had felt those same creeping fingers on her own flesh many a time. John had a way of brushing past you a little too closely, or giving you an encouraging pat on the lower back that sent a shiver up your spine. His aftershave smelled like cat litter, and his slicked-back brown hair glistened like he’d just got caught in the rain.
“Of course.” Emily nodded. “Just take care of Katie.”
“Good girl. I’ll be back as soon as I can. And clean up that mess by the refrigerator.”
She rolled her eyes. “Righto.”
Emily watched the two of them disappear into the nearly night outside. The heavy fire door swished closed behind them, but not before a wave of muggy air blasted inside the shop.
She took off her jacket and draped it over the back of the swivel chair behind the cash register. Then she sat and commiserated with herself. Cashing up would take at least half an hour, and there were several end-of-day emails that needed to be sent to head office in Cambridge. After that, she would have to sit and wait for John to come back and set the alarm. She wasn’t going home for a while.
This sucks. I’ve been here since noon.
It’s not Katie’s fault that she hurt herself. I hope she’s okay.
But John can kiss my butt.
She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out her phone. The cracked glass covering the display made her think about the broken wine bottle, and the pink, stringy flesh spilling out of Katie’s palm. It made her shudder. Her coworker had clearly been in shock, but Emily realised now that she was pretty hyped up too. She took a moment to calm down, breathing steadily and rubbing her fingertips together. A self-caress.
Katie’s going to have one hell of a scar.
I know from experience.
At six years old, Emily had fallen from a tree. That might have been bad enough, but she had landed on a muddy copper pipe that some previous kid must have been using to dig with. It had gone right up he
She spent three hours with me at the hospital and then we got ice cream.
The doctor said I was lucky it wasn’t worse. I haven’t climbed a tree since.
Emily opened up a message box on her phone and selected her best friend, Lily. She typed out a text: Touchy Feely left me to close up. U will have to have fun without me :-(
She pressed send and let out a sigh. Then she went and fetched a mop to clean Katie’s blood up off the tiles.
Emily let out a sigh of relief when John returned at ten minutes past ten.
All the lights inside the shop were off except those at the front, creating a gloomy atmosphere that had been starting to freak her out. She’d cashed up the tills and locked the rear exits, so John just needed to set the alarm and lower the shutter. He stood now on the customer side of the checkout, leering at her through his glasses. “I’m sorry you had to stay late, Emmie. I’m grateful.”
“It’s fine. You weren’t that long. How’s Katie?”
“Getting stitches. Her mum’s with her now.”
Emily leant forward on the counter. “Bless her. I’ve been worried.”
He reached across the counter and took her hand. “I’m sorry I yelled at you earlier. It’s been a long day.”
Ew! Don’t touch me.
She pulled her hand back and folded her arms. She’d already put her jacket on, ready to leave. “Everything’s done, so I’ll see you Tuesday, yeah?”
The way he winced wasn’t encouraging. “Actually, I’m going to need you to come in at ten tomorrow. Katie won’t make the early shift now, so I’m going to be on my own.”
“What? Oh, John, come on! I haven’t had a day off since Sunday. I’m tired.”
He shrugged as if it were out of his control. “I know, I know. Look, I’ll make sure it’s a nice easy shift, okay? There’ll be a cup of coffee waiting for you first thing, and I’ll stay on the shop floor with you all day.”
She shuddered. I’d rather you didn’t.
“I’m begging you, Emmie.” He put his hands together in prayer. “I’m desperate.”
Yeah, desperate is exactly how I’d describe you.
“Okay, fine.” She deflated, and a heavy lump in her stomach made her want to lie down and moan. “But we need to get another member of staff, John. I’m only supposed to be doing thirty hours a week.”
He reached over the counter again and this time clasped her elbow. “I promise, as soon as head office approves some extra hours in the budget, I’ll take someone new on.” He let go of her and stood back, fidgeting awkwardly with the silver cufflinks on his shirt cuffs. “So, um, what are you doing now? You need a lift home?”
“No!” She moved out from behind the counter and dodged past him, holding her breath to avoid sniffing in his stale aftershave. “The bus will only be a minute. I’ll see you at ten.”
“Or earlier, if you can make it.”
“I’ll do my best.” She shoved open the door and stepped out into the balmy night. Summer was her favourite time of year, but hot nights could make sleeping a bitch. She feared hearing the birds chirping by the time she nodded off tonight.
I’m going to be exhausted.
She turned left and headed for the bus stop on the corner of Edward Street, but a voice called to her from the other side of the road. “Hey, Emmie! Where ya going?”
Emily frowned. Someone was standing in front of Barney’s Chippy. It was almost dark out now, so the flickering marquee cast them in a ghostly orange light. “Lily? What are you doing?”
“Coming to get you, silly.” She cupped a hand around her mouth as she shouted. “Did you think we were going to party without you?”
“Oh, babes. It’s late and I have work in the morning.” She glanced back at Rube’s, making sure John wasn’t stepping out behind her. “Touchy Feely sprung a shift on me.”
Lily shouldered her handbag and trotted across the road. She’d added a pink streak to her black hair since they’d last seen each other, and a new nose stud glinted in the moonlight. “Screw him! Tomorrow’s Sunday. You don’t need to be in early, right?”
“Ten, but I’m exhausted. I told you to have fun without me.”
Lily looped her arm around Emily’s elbow and pulled her in the opposite direction she wanted to go. “We’re not having a get-together without our little Emmie.”
“Please don’t call me that.”
“Only if you come hang out.”
Emily could feel her eyelids getting heavy, and she was still shaken by Katie’s accident earlier. She just wanted to go home and sleep the day off. “I’m really not—”
“Matt’s coming too. He’s bringing Harry.”
“What? Where?”
Lily smirked, her freckles peeking through the pale foundation she always slapped on a tad too thick. “They’re meeting us at the Rock. Ross and Kaley are bringing the booze. Come on, girl. Just call in sick.”
“I can’t. John’s on his own.”
“So turn up with a hangover. You’re doing him a favour, right? If he gives you shit, report him for groping you.”
Emily glanced back again. John was still inside the shop, probably checking she’d cashed up properly. The guy didn’t have a life. “He doesn’t grope me, Lil. He’s just… not good with boundaries.”
“He’s a disgusting perv and you should tell him where to go. How old is he, anyway? Forty?”
She shrugged. “Thirty-five, I think.”
“Gross. Anyway, forget him.” She winked. “Harry awaits.”
She’s not going to give up, is she?
I love her.
“Okay, okay.” Emily put her hands up in surrender. “I’ll hang out for an hour, but then I have to go get some sleep.”
Lily hopped up and down, various chains attached to her clothing and canvass handbag jangling. About a year ago, she’d turned to the dark side, dying her brown hair black and piercing herself all over. Months had gone by since she’d worn shoes other than Doc Martens. Fortunately, she was still the same upbeat bestie she’d always been. “Let’s get crunk, girl,” she said in a Californian accent.
Emily rolled her eyes but couldn’t keep from smiling. She stepped off the kerb to cross the road. “Calm down, Lil. I’m only going for—”
“Whoa!” Lily dragged her back onto the kerb just in time to avoid a speeding bus. The driver beeped his horn angrily. “Jesus, Ems! Watch where you’re walking.”
Emily grabbed her chest and gasped. “Holy shit! You just saved my life.” Was lack of sleep now causing her to sleepwalk into traffic? “Like, literally!”
Lily looked like she was about to burst into tears. She shook her head, unblinking. “If I hadn’t been looking… Fuck, that was so lucky.”
“I think I need that drink now.”
“Maybe make it two?”
Emily chuckled, her voice a little shaky. “Y-Yeah.”
A beeping sound caused them to spin around. John was typing the alarm code into the panel.
Emily grabbed her friend by the arm. “Come on, Lil, before Touchy asks to join us.”
“Ew, gross!”
They raced across the road, but this time Emily checked both ways.
I almost died!
CHAPTER
TWO
Boole-on-Sea was a shitty town, most residents would agree. It had one of the worst crime rates in the South East and one of the highest teen pregnancy rates. But it also had a kick-ass beach. A two-mile stretch of clean, protected sand with a raised promenade running alongside it and a small wooden pier at one end.
Emily loved the salty breeze that came off the sea at night. Even after having lived her entire life near the beach, she’d never fallen out of love with it. There was just something about staring off at the empty horizon that calmed her, made her feel insignificant – and her problems too. Sometimes she dreamed of saving up for a tiny sailboat and drifting away until she could no longer see land in any direction. No one to bother her. No one to pester her. Just the gentle swaying of the waves and the slosh of saltwater against the hull.
