Bewildering Stories welcomes...

Killion Slade

“Killion Slade” is the pen name of a husband-wife team. They met in the Horror Realms of Second Life and live in Montana. They’ve published articles on pagan holidays, search-engine optimization, parenting, and social media.

“Dead as a Doornail” is their first short story. It begins with a mystery: four colored nails that have been unaccountably preserved in an inexplicably rotten door. The trail of the mystery leads to a strange book of Liz’s Grandma Gertie’s. As a child, Liz enjoyed its pictures of various creatures.

Liz soon realizes that the creatures are mischievous, even cruel imps who must be confined to the netherworld. But the doornails have been removed, and it’s too late to head off the demons. After Liz’s husband Rick is fatally bitten by a viper planted in the shower, Liz opens a door that reveals her grandmother, Rick, and the night-goddess Hecate.

What a grandma: we thought she was just heading up a gang of petty thugs; little did we know she’d fallen in with organized crime. But others may read the story differently. I expect we’ll find out in due course. We’ll keep that door open... and our powder dry!

Killion Slade’s bio sketch can be found here.

Welcome to Bewildering Stories, Killion Slade. You’ve certainly contributed a... bewildering... story!