The Spider Queen

Sophie sat up straight and paused for a moment. She observed the interested expressions on Rachel and Cleo's faces as they waited for the story to continue.

A small smile flashed across the hybrid girl's face as she leaned in closer to the fire. The dark shadowy atmosphere of the night was the perfect time to tell a ghost story.

"There was a small part of Martin that knew that something was wrong," Sophie whispered in a hushed tone.

"Why would he walk towards what clearly seemed to be an abandoned shop? And yet… his feet kept moving in the direction of the shack.

Martin's fingers trembled slightly as he grabbed the doorknob and twisted. The door to the shop swung open and a cloud of dust slammed into his body.

The poor man coughed violently as the dust stained his clothes and went down his throat.

Martin's vision was blurry, and his movements were unsteady since he had been drinking for several hours prior.

He staggered through the open door and found himself in the strangest shop that he had ever seen in his life.

The shop vaguely resembled his favourite toy store when he was a child, but every single counter, shelf and display was empty.

There was an eerie quietness inside the store and Martin could swear that someone or rather… something was observing him.

The young man cleared his throat and curiously walked around the shop trying to see what had drawn him to enter inside.

He wandered around for several minutes but found nothing of note.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" Martin cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted. His voice echoed through the empty store.

Martin shook his head and laughed. He clearly had too much to drink and was losing it. The best thing to do now would be to go back home and rest.

"Can I help you?" a seductive voice whispered.

Martin turned around in shock and saw a pale-skinned man standing right behind him. The man wore an expensive black tuxedo and had a short hat on his heat.

There were strange metallic rings on his fingers that sparkled under the moonlight that entered through the store's windows.

The man was incredibly handsome.

Sharp angular facial features, high cheekbones and lips that were bright red. He appeared to be a Greek god come to life.

Martin was so dazed by the man's beauty that he did not even question how the man had managed to sneak up on him.

"Welcome to my shop dear customer?" the man smiled sweetly as he gestured with his hands towards a seemingly random location.

"This is your shop? But… why aren't there any goods?" Martin asked curiously as he stared at the man with confusion evident in his gaze.

"In this shop… we sell products that any customer would desire," the man replied in a strange tone as he rubbed his fingers together.

"Money… power… immortality… I suppose you could say that we sell wishes. Anything can be bought from my store… for a price…"

Martin giggled hoarsely and his laughter drew the attention of the handsome man who simply stared at him.

Wishes? He sold wishes?

No wonder this store looked so run-down from the outside. The owner had good looks but clearly there was something wrong with his brain.

"Don't worry you aren't the first not to believe what we have to offer…" the man spoke in a casual tone.

He snapped his fingers and Martin's vision went completely dark for a moment. When he reopened his eyes, he found himself sitting down in a park.

It was a bright and sunny day with not a cloud in the sky.

Children were laughing and playing in the distance while an ice cream truck honked its horn to get their attention.

"What are you looking at honey?" a sweet voice interrupted the tranquil scene.

"Betty?" Martin exclaimed in shock as he turned his head and saw his wife staring at him with their sons in her arms.

"No… you're dead… this… what is this?"

"Is something wrong?" his wife gently asked as she raised up her hand and touched the side of her husband's cheek.

Tears welled up in Martin's eyes as he grabbed his wife and children and hugged them tightly.

They felt real… this familiar warmth.

Suddenly he heard a loud cracking noise and the world disappeared.

Martin found himself back in the run-down shop as if what he had experiences was just a dream. The handsome shopkeeper stared at him with an intriguing smile on his face.

"What was that?!" Martin could not contain his emotions and yelled at the mysterious man.

"Merely an illusion but one that could become a reality… you can purchase an item that will allow you to resurrect your dead wife and children," the shopkeeper whispered softly.

"I want it. Give it to me. I WILL PAY ANY PRICE!" Martin desperately spoke as he got down on his knees and begged the shopkeeper.

"There is no need for that my dear customer… I am more than happy to serve," the man gently spoke as he helped Martin up from the ground.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a faint red amulet that glowed with a hypnotic light that made it hard to look away.

Martin reached for the amulet and took it in his palm. It felt very warm as if something was heating up the amulet from the inside.

"Do we have a deal?" the shopkeeper asked as he stretched out his hand for Martin to shake.

Martin stared at his palm and for a brief moment he considered dropping the amulet and running out of the store but his desire to see his wife and children again made him freeze in place.

"We have a deal," Martin solemnly whispered as he shook the handsome man's hand.

He could feel something crawling from the mysterious stranger's palm into his flesh.

"Thank you and please come again soon…" the shopkeeper cheerfully spoke as he snapped his fingers once more.

He disappeared and once again the shop was completely empty. Martin looked around trying to find the man but there was no one present in the room.

He staggered to the door and reached into his pocket to get his phone. He stumbled slightly as he dialed for a taxi to take him home.

It was now five o' clock in the morning and Martin felt a wave of tiredness and exhaustion hit him all at once.

The amulet was still tightly clutched in his hand since he had no idea how to use or how it would bring his family back from the dead.

It took around ten minutes for a taxi to show up and Martin got inside.

He did not exchange a single word with the driver and just waited silently until they stopped at the entrance to his apartment.

Martin gave the taxi driver a generous tip and then walked towards his home.

He opened the door and entered inside the apartment that looked as if a hurricane had passed through.

After losing his wife and son… Martin no longer cared about keeping his place neat and clean, so messy stacks of paper and trash were scattered on the ground.

Martin let out a heavy sigh as he slumped down on the couch and looked at the amulet that was still glowing.

Knock! Knock!

"Honey! Honey I've just picked up Jake and Luke… let us in!" a familiar voice yelled.

"Betty? Betty where are you?" Martin jumped to his feet and hurriedly ran in the direction of the voice.

"Daddy…. Daddy come and find us!" one of his young sons yelled cheerfully.

A relieved smile surfaced on Martin's face as he heard his precious boy call out to him.

Knock! Knock!

The knocking sound got louder and louder as if someone was banging their fists against the apartment door.

Martin walked towards the door and peeked through the spyhole. He saw three figures standing in front of the door.

One of the figures was feminine while the others belonged to young children who could not have been older than seven.

It was them. The shopkeeper had not been lying.

Martin swung open the door… and screamed in terror. His wife and sons were standing before him but…

They were only technically alive.

The flesh on their bodies had already begun to rot and flies swarmed around their bodies making faint buzzing noises.

Their limbs were broken from the accident, and they walked in a way that was more of a shuffle than a regular stride.

"Honey? Why are you looking at us like that?" the wife whispered softly as she stretched out her rotting hand and grabbed Martin's clothes.

"We will be a family again…"

"We wont ever leave you again daddy," one of his sons chimed in with a mischievous laugh.

Martin opened his mouth to yell for help, but a firm hand covered his lips. He could do nothing but watch in horror as his wife dragged him inside the house.

In a few days one of the neighbours would complain about a rotting smell that was coming from Martin's apartment.

When the police entered inside, they would find Martin's rotting corpse in the tight embrace of his wife and children."

Sophie's voice trailed off and she leaned against a nearby tree with a proud smile on her face.

Honestly the ending wasn't so great but Sui Meng's memories didn't have much horror stories so this was the best that she could do.

"So did you like it?" Sophie asked lazily.

"It was alright…" Rachel hesitantly spoke as she hid her trembling hands behind her back.

"I was very scared," Cleo exclaimed loudly in an obvious fake tone. The princess rushed towards her girlfriend and hugged her tightly.

"Please stay with me tonight… I might need the comfort…"

"You…" Sophie laughed as she pressed her lips against Cleo's forehead. Her girlfriend really knew how to get what she wanted.