Kristal Shanahan resides in Kansas with her husband of nearly 20 years and their two daughters. She has loved reading and writing since early childhood. As a tween, she read Firestarter by Stephen King, which ignited her love of the horror genre. She is a certified high school English Language Arts teacher and she is certified in Special Education. Kristal recently started a Bookstagram account on Instagram and the focus is primarily horror but she reviews multiple genres. She is a member of the Horror Writers Association and is currently writing a novella and a collection of thematic horror-inspired short stories which will hopefully be published in the next year or two. Connect with Kristal here: @getlostinlitbookstagram.
A FALLEN CHRISTMAS
by
Kris Shanahan
Lodgepole pines stand tall and dense near the cabin deep in the Rocky Mountains. Snow plows no longer are clearing the roads due to the next impending storm and the drifts are several feet tall as of last night. In front of the cabin, the snow was unblemished and sparkled like the stars in the Colorado skies.
Greg and Mia Winters are spending a quiet holiday at their family cabin. As they pulled up to the front of the modern rustic cabin, their excitement was building. Mia went ahead to freshen up the cabin while Greg got the bags from their new Bronco. Mia was hoping for a romantic week and the openness from Greg to connect on a level they haven’t yet; agreement on having children.
“Honey is everything out of the car?” Mia really didn’t want to go back outside as it was dusk, frigid, and the skies were darkening to the west.
“Yep, I got everything, we’re good.” Greg said with intrepidation.
He was looking forward to relaxing and getting away from all the craziness of the mundane daily life. He looked up at the trees that held shadows and secrets while the darkened skies were inching closer. Greg shuddered in the cold. He hoped that they wouldn’t be here longer than expected.
After Greg got the fireplace going and turned on the Christmas tree lights on the beautiful Douglas fir, he and Mia snuggled up with each other and set out a bottle of red wine to share. Greg poured the wine and proposed a toast.
“May this respite be everything we dreamed of and more!” Greg said.
“Cheers, babe!” Mia clinked her wine glass against his, and they drank.
The wind picked up outside and howled like an ancient beast coming to life. They looked at each other, then out towards the wall of windows facing the forest in the back of the cabin. Snow had started to fall again with delicate flakes drifting to the ground below. Mia rose and went to the frosted glass to admire the beautiful forest and falling snow. In the recesses of the trees she saw what she thought was a shadowy human form.
“Hey Greg, come here.”
“What is it?” Greg joined Mia at the windows.
“I think I saw someone near the trees back there, —“ She pointed to the area where she saw someone.
“I don’t see anything, are you sure? Maybe, it’s just the darkness playing tricks on you.”
“Greg, I’m sure.”
“Well it looks like they're gone now, he said, then looked back at the coffee table. “Whew. We really polished off that wine. It’s been a long day, and I think I’m going to head for bed. Care to join?”
They headed to their beautiful sprawling bedroom. Mia changed into cozy clothes but found herself drawn to the window again, this time in the bedroom, just looking out. A shadow was out there, something that stood out from other dark recesses in the woods, and it seemed to stare back at her just as she stared at it. It looked human adjacent, similar to the bloodthirsty mutants from the movie I am Legend, but ghostly, gray, and shadowy in form, nearly translucent. It opened its mouth wider than it should naturally have the ability to and let out a scream that sounded like tires screeching at the drag races.
It was a reflex; Mia screamed, too.
Greg ran in from the bathroom, looking at Mia with confusion. He saw something climb up to the cabin’s roof near the window and then understood Mia’s reaction and her words earlier; he should have believed her. He made sure the locks were secure on the front door and the windows alike, and the fireplace was roaring with life.
Wishing it was Santa’s reindeer on the roof instead of what he knew was up there, the noises persisted. Each growing moment felt like an eternity as the sounds vibrated throughout the cabin. More than one shadow creature is now on the roof. Mia and Greg have no idea how they will survive this Christmas Eve night.
#
Greg and Mia held each other in front of the fire since the power went out exactly at midnight. Greg wasn’t sure how they could protect themselves, because a gun didn’t seem like it would kill the things outside. Even worse was the silence that had come with the shadows. Sounds of winter like wind, owls, or wolves were absent from nature; there was nothing.
“Mia, I’m going to check the doors to make sure nothing is trying to get in. Use the heated fireplace poker as a weapon if needed. It’s the only thing we have.”
“Please hurry back, Greg, I’m scared!”
Greg went to the door in the guest room. He could hear the two shadow creatures waiting patiently behind it as they were whispering about a sacrificial lamb and Greg’s reward—a promise of survival. He felt compelled to open the door and couldn’t stop himself even though his brain was screaming not to. He wanted to tell Mia to run, but then stepped aside so they could enter. They promised him it would be quick.
He was about to yell out at Mia so she could get away, but they turned to him instead. They pulled and tore at Greg, shredding him like cooked chicken. The shadow creatures were competing for the meat and didn’t want to share. Greg was being cannibalized and devoured by greedy creatures that haven’t consumed anything other than woodland animals, so this was a celebration for the evil that walks among us. They not only ate most of the meat on Greg’s body, but they stole his soul, and he now walked the woods at night alongside them.