Doctor I.B. Howler here,

Oh, my, it's Halloween,
and time for a brand new Bedtime Story.
So, turn the lights down low,
lay your little head down on your soft, comfy pillow,
close those big ole peepers of yours,
and enjoy this frightfully good one
I wrote especially for you.

No hiding under the covers allowed now!


*************************








Collateral Damage

To him there was nothing sweeter smelling
Than the aroma of a dead man's feet
That was the primary reason
He accepted a position
In the Coroner's Office

Cadavers excited him
Made his juices flow
And, If he had to kill his victims
To satisfy his lustful obsessions
So be it

In his mind they were nothing more
Than collateral damage

The little village of Hammer Mill
Was getting spooked
And not by the ghosts and goblins
That would soon be calling
At their front doors begging for candy

In a ramshackle cabin
On the outskirts of town
He stashed away his collection
Of scalpels he had gathered
For harvesting human organs

Especially hearts and livers

Delicacies he would pan fry
And dine on by a flickering
Candlelight
His chalice full of human blood

Some times he would even
Treasure the eyeballs
He gouged out of sockets
For a tasty snack

There was nothing wrong
With the human body
Anatomically speaking
He had dined on every part of it

Knew to sizzle the brains
To a golden crunch
Filet the torso
And make steaks out of the loins and thighs

Indeed, he was a fancy
connoisseur of the anatomy

Kept two freezers
Out back of the shed
Well stocked full of flesh
All varieties of it
Men, women, and children

He feasted on all of them

After he completed an autopsy
Which behind closed doors he did
On every stiff that entered the morgue
He always ensured the casket
Was closed so its empty contents

Could not be observed

At least fifty of them
Adorned the graveyard
And no one ever suspected
Their loved ones garnished his table

He operated his funeral parlor
In just that fashion

Once he even kept a severed head
High up on his mantel
That was until he finely
Tossed the thing into
A blazing fireplace one night

After it rotted

Now, it was Halloween
And he was throwing a party
He knew it would be
The talk of the town

Or, what was left
Of it afterwards
Which in his twisted mind
He didn't plan would be
Very much

His fun games would include
Bobbing for apples
...with razor blades in them

Oh, he would also pass out lots of candy
...cyanide-laced of course
He decided that should keep
His freezer full
For some time to come

Everybody in Hammer Mill
Would come to his party
For being the town's Coroner he was very popular
But, they would never leave again

After he poisoned the young ones
With his specially prepared candy
The old ones would be ripe
For the pickings
With his carving cutlery

One by one
He would attack them
He knew the spiked drinks
He served would render them
Defenseless

And, the mushroom-induced trip
They would be on would carry them
To their unforeseen destination

Jack o' lanterns
Possessing a wide
Variety of scary faces
Adorned his property

The pumpkin patch
Was full of pumpkins
The hayride was set
And the guests were
Steadily arriving

He stood on the front porch
Of his run down shack
With a mile wide
Grin on his face that said

"So very good to see you!"

If only his
Unsuspecting guests
Knew the fate
That awaited them all


Happy Halloween to all my little readers out there in Nightmare Land.


Doctor I.B. Howler
Nightmarologist


Until next time

Too-da-loo!