“You know, I don’t much like to keep people guessing ‘bout me, Silas. I’m pretty upfront… Most the time.” That gasping laugh, more sinister than it had been before the slaughter, surfaces as though the madman finds humor here.

He walks evenly, humbly over to the table, and pulls out the same seat he sat in back when he was still putting on, still pretending to be a desperate stranger in dire need. He sits down on it with a sigh, identical to the one that he let out back when he first rested on the stool in the mud area, so many instants ago.  

“I know you’re confused, scared, rightfully… Best I can do is explain. I owe you that much… But, you see it’s gonna take an open mind to understand, so before I waste anymore of my breath, I’m gonna need to know that you’re listening...”

Silas stares long, dead.

“I’m at least gonna need you to nod for me, friend. Can you do that?”

The tenant looks over Nolan’s shoulder at his hunting rifle lying helplessly on the counter, and nods. He is obedient now. And the drifter is cheerful when his audience abides.

“Good…

About the Author

nature, texture, iceland, moody, photography, otherworldly iceland, underground, underworld, otherwordly, woodland,

Bill Mullane is a novelist, screenwriter, and podcaster. 

While working as a freelancer, Bill acquired credits as a beat writer and contributing author to the NFL at PFSN, a features writer with work in USA Today, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Weed Times, and more, and a lead writer and senior editor for the legal marketing group, Actionable Agency. None of those ventures, however, were capable of satisfying Bill’s one aching passion… A twisted love affair with all things macabre…
Prior to freelancing, Bill authored three novels in three very different spaces; fictional biography/crime drama “Self-Serve,” gory psychological horror “Hamburger Kitchen,” and epic pre/post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller “Alignment: The Devils’ Guide To Benevolence.” In between these works and earning his BFA in Creative Writing, Bill also developed several short horror scripts, including “The Bishop” and “Eavesdroppings.”
Bill has also worked as a stone mason and gardener, and is a lifelong musician and songwriter. He has played music all over WNY and currently enjoys doing just that and much more on The Bill Mullane Show. 
Bill Lives in Clarence, NY with his 11-year-old daughter and 4-door Jeep Wrangler, “Black Widow.”

Bill Mullane