Captain Stanley walked out of his office and headed for the kitchen. He stopped just outside the door, almost his entire crew was in the truck bay. Mike and Roy were playing a game of ping pong, Marco and Johnny were watching.
"What's going on?" he asked as he walked over.
Roy looked up from the game. "It's quieter out here," he said.
"Oh, No! Not again?" Cap groaned.
"Yeah," said Johnny, "This time it's 'The Crawling Hand' or something."
"Cap," Marco said, "we gotta do something about Mr. Murder in there. He's driving the rest of us crazy."
Stanley sighed and headed for the kitchen to get some coffee. He found Chet sitting with all the lights off, glued to the TV. He had recently become obsessed with suspense and horror stories. That's all he'd read or watch on the tube. But what was driving everyone nuts, was that it was all he'd talk about also. You couldn't have a conversation with Chet without the horror stories coming up after a couple of minutes. And the closer it got to Halloween, the worse he got. Stanley turned on the lights.
"Hey! What do you think your doing?!!" Chet yelled without turning around. "Shut the lights back off."
"I'm getting some coffee," Stanley said. "That is....if it's alright with you, Kelly?"
Chet cringed. "Oh, sorry, Cap." he said sheepishly. "I thought it was one of the guys."
"Chet, what is it with you and these monster movies?" Cap asked, as he filled his cup.
"Horror movies," Chet corrected. "I'm just getting into the holiday spirit.....so to speak," he grinned.
"Well, do us all a favor," Stanley said. "stop harping on them. Not all of us enjoy these things the way you do."
"Okay, Cap," he said.
"And, Kelly....." Cap said. "leave the lights on. I don't need anyone breaking a leg because they tripped over something in the dark."
"Yes, Cap," Kelly said dejectedly.
As soon as he was sure the Captain was gone, Chet got up and shut off the lights.
* * * * * * * * * *
John sat down on his couch. He was tired. Chet's constant talk about ghosts, goblins and the undead was really starting to give them all the creeps. And none of them were sleeping very well thanks to it. No one wanted to be around him.
While he sat there, trying to unwind a plan started to form. He smiled and reached for the phone.
* * * * * * * * * *
No one was looking forward to working Halloween. They would almost certainly be busy. But, this year they would also be forced to work with Mr. Murder. At least John and Roy weren't trapped on the engine with him. They felt really sorry for the others.
As expected they were gone most of the day and early evening. But as the night wore on, the runs slowed down. Eventually, the guys were able to get something to eat and hit the rack. As soon as they were sure that Chet was asleep, the others got up quietly.
* * * * * * * * * *
KJ had slipped into the station about 15 minutes after the lights went out. She was in the kitchen when the others came in. She about jumped out of her skin.
"Shit!" she whispered loudly. "You guys just scared the hell out of me. I thought it might have been Chet."
Everyone laughed quietly. "Sorry about that, KJ," Cap said.
"We better get a move on if we're going to be set up in time," she said. The others nodded, grabbed the boxes she had brought and headed for the truck bay. Everyone was praying they wouldn't get a run.
* * * * * * * * * *
Chet woke up feeling chilled. He looked over and saw Maro sleeping in the next bunk and he could hear the sounds of the others in the dorm. "Why is it so damn cold?" he asked himself.
He got up to get another blanket. As he passed the door to the truck bay he thought he heard a noise. He stopped and listened, but it was quiet. He got his blanket and headed back to bed.
He stopped again. He knew he'd heard something that time, a rattling sound. He did a quick check to see if it was one of the others. All the beds are occupied. For half a second he thought about waking the Captain, but decided against it. Cap could be a real bear when you woke him up. And if it turned out to be nothing, he'd be on bathroom duty for the next year.
Chet quietly opened the dorm door and snuck into the truck bay. It was dark and quiet. He made his way slowly toward the front of the station. He jumped as he heard a noise off to his left. He swallowed hard and shook it off. "Just your imagination, Kelly," he said to himself.
As he turned to go between the engine and the squad, the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. There was a fog building inside the station. It was coming out from under the trucks and it was quickly filling the bay. He turned and ran for the light switch, but it wouldn't work. Chet was about to yell for the others when he saw something in the mist. He froze, unable to move or make a sound.
As he stared wide eye'd, a cowled figure took shape. It had a woman's body, but only a dark, empty space where the face should have been. The apparition didn't make a sound, it just seemed to glide toward him. As it got closer, it slowly raised it's arms. Pale white hands with extemely long nails extended from the sleeves.
Chet started backing away. He opened his mouth a couple of times to scream, but nothing came out. He felt his back touch the wall and realized he couldn't go any further. He wanted to run, but his feet were frozen in place.
He watched in horror as the creature moved closer and closer. He closed his eyes and tried to become part of the wall. He opened them again just as creature’s hands reached his neck.
The touch was ice cold. He could feel the nails as they lightly scraped against his skin and then icy water dripped down his back.
At that moment, Chet rediscovered his ability to move. He screamed and ran for the captain’s office. It was the nearest room with a door. He practically dove inside and slammed the door behind him. He stood with his back pressed up against the door, praying that whatever that was couldn't pass through walls.
* * * * * * * * * *
The others had been watching from behind the engine. As soon as they heard the door slam, they quickly grabbed the buckets of dry ice and water out from under the vehicles and set them outside the back door. KJ ran out the same door and stripped off her costume. As she moved past Johnny, she ran a cold, icy hand down the back of his neck. He jumped.
"Damn, you're cold!" he said.
"Like ice," she said with a smile. "You owe me, John. Big time!"
"I know," he said, grinning, "but it was worth it."
"Good!" Now get back in there before he heads for the dorm," KJ said. "If he catches you, it'll ruin the whole thing."
As Johnny disappeared inside, KJ was laughing to herself. "Man, I wish I could be a fly on the wall for the end of this," she thought. She quietly gathered up their props and headed for her car. It was after midnight and she still had to work in the morning.
* * * * * * * * * *
John had barely made it back to his bed when Chet tried to sneak back into the dorm. But in his haste to get back to his bunk, he kicked something and sent it skidding across the floor. Capt. Stanley rolled over and looked at him. It was all he could do to keep from laughing. He had never seen Chet so wide eyed before.
"Kelly, what are you doing up?" he asked. "You weren't watching horror movies again, were you?"
"No, Cap," Chet said quickly, "I wasn't watching television. I swear it."
"Then, what are you doing up?" he asked, looking at his watch. "It's after midnight."
For half a second, he thought about telling the Captain what he'd seen, but stopped. NO ONE would ever believe him. He wasn't sure he believed it himself.
"Nothin, Cap," he said quickly. "I just couldn't sleep."
"Then, would you please try to be a little quieter so those of us who are asleep can stay that way."
"Sure, Cap," Chet whispered. And he quickly got into his bed and pulled the covers over his head.
Hank couldn't help smiling to himself. He hadn't thought they could pull it off, but they had. Maybe, now, they'd all get some peace and quiet.
* * * * * * * * * *
The guys had had the hardest time not bursting into laughter when Chet had been confronted by Capt. Stanley the night before. And the next morning it was obvious that he hadn't slept too well. He was also noticably quieter.
"You look terrible, Chet," Marco said.
Chet made a face at him and said, "You don't look so hot yourself, Marco."
"Someone get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" Johnny asked with a smirk.
"Can it, Gage!" Chet snapped.
"Okay, that's enough," Stanley said, as he entered the kitchen. "Can we try to make it to shift change without any blood shed?"
Everyone quieted down. Kelly didn't notice the smirks that were passing among the others. He knew he hadn't been dreaming the night before, he just knew it. But, he swore to himself, that he would never watch another horror movie again.
* * * * * * * * * * *
After he left work that morning, Gage headed for Station 18. He had promised to fill KJ in on what happened after she left. He laughed out loud as he drove, she was going to love this.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Authors Note: This is based on a true story. There really was a "Mr. Murder". In the late 1920's or 30's he was stationed on board one of our lightships off the Washington coast. Sailors are a superstious lot anyway and when someone will only talk about ghosts and murder, it quickly gets on their nerves. Well, the crew fixed his clock in much the same way as the "A" Shift fixed Chet. Enjoy!
