At age 10, Alicia wrote her first ever romance (featuring a hero who looked just like Elvis Presley and who shared the name of Elvis’ character in the movie, Tickle Me), and she still has the tattered, pencil-written copy. Alicia lives in Edmond, Oklahoma, where she enjoys reading, writing, MLB, NFL and watching (and rewatching) her favorite television shows like Dexter, Justified, and Breaking Bad. Some of her favorite authors are Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane, Lee Child, Lisa Gardner, Ridley Pearson, Joseph Finder, and Jonathan Kellerman…to name a few.
Crow Girl ~ A Friday the 13th Horror Short Story
by Alicia Dean
I am in awe of how smart crows are. Crows can not only form
affectionate bonds with people who treat them well (as did the little girl in
the below Mr. Ballen YouTube video), but they can also hold grudges against
those who don’t. A team from the University of Washington tested how well the
birds could identify human faces using two Halloween masks (one resembling a
caveman to be used as the aggressor, the other resembling Dick Cheney for the
control).
At five sites, a scientist donned the caveman mask before
catching and banding some wild crows. Getting trapped is never a fun
experience, and upon their release, the crows loudly scolded their assailant
with threatening caws. Seeing this, other birds swooped down to harass the
captor. Over several years, researchers wore the masks on strolls through all
five test spots. The crows—including many who’d never been captured or
banded—scolded and dive-bombed the “caveman” while ignoring “Dick Cheney”.
The younger crows, who were born after the initial
experiment, also scolded the “caveman.” The grudge had been passed on.
I went a bit further than simple grudges in my latest release, CROW GIRL, A FRIDAY THE 13th STORY. 😊
About CROW GIRL
Ten-year-old Twyla Gillette was abandoned by her mother and
placed in an abusive foster home. Teased unmercifully by her classmates, she
has no friends—other than the crows. As a toddler, she shared her food with the
birds and they befriended her, bringing her gifts and always looking out for
her, protecting her.
When the teasing turns to vicious bullying, and her foster
family’s abuse becomes more relentless, Twyla relies on the crows to make
things right.
It’s not that she wants her friends to hurt
anyone…but sometimes wicked people have to learn a lesson.
Excerpt
He was alone in
the woods…with nothing around except the psychotic birds. They wouldn’t
actually hurt him, though, would they?
He stumbled back
and turned to run but tripped on a tree stump and went flying, landing on the
ground with a painful thud. He was getting to his feet when something hit him
from behind. He grunted and fell to his knees. Looking back over his shoulder,
he saw the birds…so many of them…swarming, diving, swooping at him. Then they
were on him, pecking his face, his head, his chest. He tried to cover his face,
but there were so many birds and…how were they so strong? They weren’t that
big, but they were in some kind of vicious frenzy, and they were relentless.
One of the birds
drove its beak into his ear. Warm, wet liquid dripped down the side of his
neck, and agonizing pain ripped through his head. The fuckers had punctured his
eardrum. The screeching caws rang out, echoing his terror, drowning out his
sobs. Birds continued to attack…tearing him to pieces.
“Help!” he shrieked.
“Somebody help me, please!” But he had a feeling only one person could stop
this…and he’d locked her up and left her there…all alone in the dark. And now
her friends were making him pay. If he could take it back, he would. But he
couldn’t do anything except lay on the ground, sobbing and begging for mercy.
Find my story everywhere except Amazon
(Amazon terminated my account due to false accusations they made against me) https://books2read.com/CrowGirl
Find All 13 of the Friday the 13th #5 Series Here
Thank you so much for hosting me. October is one of my favorite months. I love spooky Halloween and all things related.
ReplyDeleteI love the spooky too! This is a great story.
ReplyDeleteThank you SO much, Laura!
DeleteThe book sounds like a spooky tale, which is what October is all about. If you enjoy spooky, you’re gonna want to get this book!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Tena!! I appreciate you stopping by.
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