Release date: October 28, 2020
Subgenre: Horror
About Within the Fog:
The same ancient evil that killed 115 people at Roanoke, Virginia in the
late 1500’s has arrived in a small eastern Colorado town. A fog covers
the small town and closes in on Tom Benton and his family. The evil that
lurks within the fog feeds on humanity but has special plans for those
with anger deep inside. Tom Benton’s son Bobby has seen the face of evil
outside his bedroom window in the darkest hours of the night. The man
who appears at his window offers a veil of redemption to those holding
onto anger and rage. As the fog wraps around the Benton family home
there will only be a narrow chance at survival. Can Tom Benton and his
family escape the issues of their past in time to save themselves from
Croatoan?
Excerpt:
He
is about to clear the last of the hedge and move to the tree line that will
lead to the garage when Tom pauses. He will be in the open for at least ten
steps when he heads for the trees. Listening carefully, he hears nothing. There
is no movement. The fog seems settled and stagnant, and that’s as good a sign
as he will get to move forward. Stepping out from the protection of the hedge,
he reminds himself that slow and steady will win this race. Counting his steps
is a way of keeping his imagination in check. One, two…three. As he sets his
right foot down for his fourth step, the fog thins. Ahead of him, squatting by
the garage, he can see the shape of a man. He knows that what he sees is not a
man, but instead one of the vampires. Clad in black, he can see the white skin
on the side of its neck and face. This one has a head full of black hair. Tom
locks himself in place, knowing that he cannot move at all. He prays that Sin
is right about the blankets being enough to shield his body heat from the
vampire’s senses, or he will soon be dead. Without taking the risk of moving
even the position of his head, he focuses his eyes on the shape of the vampire.
It sits on its haunches like a dog, sniffing at the mist in front of it. It
faces away from him to his left. It sniffs, looks about, and sniffs again. It
crawls forward, sniffs again, and lightning-quick turns in his direction,
leaping through the air. The vampire lands three feet in front of him. It takes
every ounce of Tom’s inner strength to keep standing still. If the vampire is
smelling him, he is dead. If he moves at all, he will be dead. He holds his
breath. The vampire lifts its head, and it is close enough that Tom can
smell the reek of death and see how black its eyes are. They are the black of a
starless night in the middle of winter. There is no life within them, and no
light from them. They are a void, an empty bottomless pit of despair. He is
fascinated by them and feels a little like he is losing his focus. It sniffs
again, tilts his head away from Tom, then looks in Tom’s direction, sniffs the
air one more time and jumps, landing on top of a white and tan rabbit. The
rabbit squeals once, and then it is dead, half of its body in one of the
vampire’s claws, the other half caught in its teeth.
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About Charles Welch:
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