Fall was coming sneak-footed into Summer. Yellow and purple wildflowers lined roadsides, and evenings were turning cool. And, Halloween was just around the corner.
Thadeous Dooley was already planning his decorations - so realistic and frightening, they were bound to scare the annoying little buggers away. He was an unpleasant man, dour and thin-lipped. His huge bald head rode atop his skeletal frame in great splendor - frowning, accusing. Thick glasses hid the malevolence in his pale eyes.
Neighborhood children would overcome their distaste of him in order to reap the rewards of his chocolate treats. (He was the only one on the street wealthy enough to buy good candy for Halloween.) Otherwise, they would shy away from him when he walked his mean pitbull in the evenings. That dog would look at them with one eye and growl deeply as his master grumbled along.
Today he had put up a realistic skull with plastic worms crawling out of it on a fence post. Yesterday, he had set out a bowl full of red food coloring and rubber eyeballs. There was no end to his horrible imaginings. In fact, he planned to put fake cobras and rattlesnakes on his front steps, so the children would have to step over them to get to his doorbell.
Finally, the anticipated day arrived. Thaddeous was filled with glee, and zealous in his preparations. As he was setting out imitation body parts along his walkway, a small girl stopped to watch him. “Be careful!” she said. “You’ll attract the lost souls of the swamp!”
“Maybe I’m one!” he replied in a hateful manner, trying to alarm her.
“Well, you sure look like it!” She muttered as she went her way.
“Stupid child,” he said to himself.
On the fateful evening, darkening skies were punctuated with roiling cloud formations and a hint of thunder broke the silence. “If it rains, I won’t be able to terrify the children,” he moaned. Night brought a burst of rain and lightning. He was disappointed and filled with self-pity. Just as he was sitting down for a glass of brandy to soothe himself, the doorbell rang. Eagerly, he ran to the door, bowl of chocolates in hand.
He opened the door and there, before him, were the most desolate and raggedy bunch of kids he’d ever seen. One was missing an arm, and another was missing an eye. They were clothed in rotten shirts and pants, and smelled of death. The nearby swamp exuded an equally putrid odor as the rain let up. “Lost souls of the swamp,” he murmured, shivering. He choked as he offered the bowl to them, but before he knew it, they had run away into the night. A bolt of lightning lit up the obsidian sky, and Thaddeous could see the horrid creatures hiding behind some trees, watching him.
He decided to turn his dog loose. He felt uneasy and squeamish as he let the dog out. After bounding out the door barking, it returned, cowering and whining. When another flash lit up the sky, he could see that the monsters were gone. He turned out his lights and locked the door. “I’ve had enough!” he yelled, cowering in the darkness.
The next day, he went around gathering up the disgusting decorations. He would burn them so as not to summon those lost souls again. During the next years, Thaddeous Dooley would still hand out chocolate, but would put out friendly Halloween decorations instead of terrible ones. And those neighborhood children could get a bag full of chocolate without having to step over cobras and rattlesnakes. “Best Halloween costumes we ever had!” they would whisper among themselves later.
