Release date: May 23, 2023
Subgenre: Horror, Ghost story
About The Headless Boy:
Reeling from the loss of a child, Maggie finds her job at the local daycare unbearable and errands around town impossible. She knows every child, every single parent, and they're all reminders of what she's lost. Unable to heal, she sinks further into the grip of grief and depression.
Jake is a good guy, a great husband, and wants only the best for his broken wife. Therapy and medications aren't helping, and a change of scenery makes perfect sense. A new home. A fresh start. He is nothing but patient, giving Maggie the space and emotional support needed to move on.
But once they've settled in, Maggie offers him an alternative. And though Jake doesn't believe in ghosts, he plays along with the charade in the name of helping his wife. Until he discovers it's not a game.
They are not alone.
As the subtle activity grows violent, Jakes realizes the thing in their house has chosen Maggie as a surrogate mother, and it does not want a father figure. Jake and Maggie's fresh start has become a battlefield, and he's no longer sure which side his wife is on.
Does Jake have the strength to save them both?
Jake is a good guy, a great husband, and wants only the best for his broken wife. Therapy and medications aren't helping, and a change of scenery makes perfect sense. A new home. A fresh start. He is nothing but patient, giving Maggie the space and emotional support needed to move on.
But once they've settled in, Maggie offers him an alternative. And though Jake doesn't believe in ghosts, he plays along with the charade in the name of helping his wife. Until he discovers it's not a game.
They are not alone.
As the subtle activity grows violent, Jakes realizes the thing in their house has chosen Maggie as a surrogate mother, and it does not want a father figure. Jake and Maggie's fresh start has become a battlefield, and he's no longer sure which side his wife is on.
Does Jake have the strength to save them both?
Excerpt:
CHAPTER ONE
DR. GRANT PUSHED the curved end of the handheld Doppler probe into the gel on Maggie’s engorged stomach and slid it around with expertise to outsmart a wiggling fetus. “So, you two decide on a name yet? You’re cutting it kind of close, you know?”
“We still have five weeks.” Jake sat up straighter, his chair nudging under his movement and squeaking against the pastel swirls of the exam room wall.
“Technically, sure, but it could happen at any time now.” The doctor paused the motion of her hand and seemed to concentrate for a moment before moving it again, gliding the handheld heartbeat Doppler unit to the other side of Maggie’s impressive baby bump.
“I want to name it after Jake’s dad, Malcolm. It’s a good, sturdy, proper name. Sounds important.” Maggie winked at Jake.
“Sounds like a mouthful.” Jake rolled his eyes.
“But I like your dad.” Maggie emphasized her affection, knowing Jake would get her meaning, while the doctor wouldn’t understand how much she did not like her own father.
“I love my dad, but his middle name is easier. Robert. Not such a—”
“Maggie?” The doctor interrupted. “When did you last feel the little guy moving around?”
“Um…I don’t…” Maggie looked over to Jake. “Olympic tryouts were last night, right?”
Jake shook his head, a wide grin spreading across his face. “Nah, that was the night before. You should have seen him, Doc. You could make out his tiny hands and feet poking for freedom.”
Maggie chuckled at Jake and looked up at the doctor, her laughter stopping abruptly at the doctor’s expression. “Why? What’s wrong?”
Maggie tried to sit up and look at the monitor next to the exam table. The paper hung from the end of the machine, waiting for someone to hit print and hand over proof of life for proud parents to bring to the office and show off, or stick to the refrigerator at home.
“Dr. Grant?” Maggie’s voice cracked as she spoke, and horror filled her eyes. “What’s wrong with my baby?”
Jake stood from his chair and was at Maggie’s side in two steps.
“I’m gonna go grab the ultrasound equipment and see how he’s laying in there. I think he’s blocking the signal.” She left the room with concern rather than curiosity on her face.
The baby was not blocking the signal.
Maggie listened with a slack jaw as Dr. Grant told her their baby was gone. Dead. For no discernable or obvious reason. The doctor explained how these things do happen, even in the modern world—a horrible tragedy—and how Maggie didn’t do anything wrong and should not have any guilt. Maggie overheard other doctors and medical staff as they gathered outside her door and discussed her options. She vaguely registered someone speaking to Jake in hushed tones about organ donation. Nothing seemed real. And every sound for the next two hours was muffled as if she were underwater. Jake said things to her she knew she understood, but couldn’t remember minutes later.
The whole time, her hands never left her stomach.
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About Kelli Owen:
Kelli Owen is a member of both the Horror Writers Association and the International Thriller Writers, and has spoken at the CIA Headquarters in Langley, VA regarding both her writing and the field in general. The author of over a dozen books, including THE HEADLESS BOY, TEETH, and the Wilted Lily YA series, her short fiction has appeared in Bram Stoker Award-nominated anthologies alongside Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Robert McCammon, F. Paul Wilson, and Josh Malerman, among others. Born and raised in Wisconsin, she now lives in the dark woods of Pennsylvania. For more information or social media links, please visit her website at kelliowen.com.
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