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    3 Day Nightmare
    3 Day Nightmare
    3 Day Nightmare
    Ebook84 pages1 hour

    3 Day Nightmare

    By Hugo Dexter

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Plunged into three nightmarish days, an average man tries, in spite of his very real fear, to solve a mystery which turns his ordinary life upside down. He finds the woman of his dreams, or is it just part of the nightmare? Is anything really what it seems?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHugo Dexter
    Release dateMay 5, 2012
    ISBN9781524282325
    3 Day Nightmare

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      Book preview

      3 Day Nightmare - Hugo Dexter

      This book is a work of fiction .

      Names, characters, places and incidents either are

      products of the author's imagination or are used

      fictitiously.

      Any resemblance to actual events or locales or

      persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

      Don't forget to check the Author's Note at the end of the book

      to pick up your gift books.

      Prologue

      I leaned back against a crumbling brick wall and listened carefully, trying to still my own breath so as to pick up every sound. 

      There!  Over there, I could hear a strange, mewling sound.  I felt my scalp crawling and a wave of nausea almost overwhelmed me.  My nerves were stretched nearly to breaking point, how much more could I take!

      There was that sound again!

      The dark street seemed deserted. That made the sound even more shocking.

      There was not a soul around,  where had that gurgling, strangled cry come from?  Shivers ran through me as I pressed myself against the wall.

      With an enormous effort I forced myself to walk over to where I thought the sound had originated – the battered old skip at the side of the road, just a few feet from me.

      I gingerly lifted the lid.

      The hideous sight that met my eyes was so terrible my gorge rose.  A horrifically mutilated body, twisted, weltering in blood, feebly reached out a bloodied hand.

      With a cry ( and may God forgive me), I backed away from that pleading hand,  reaching out to me for help!  I staggered back, revolted, and retched violently into the gutter. 

      Heaving with nausea and trembling violently, I looked frantically around for help.

      Not me, not me!  I just can’t do it!  I searched feverishly in my pockets for my phone. I pulled it out and tried to call for help, but the battery was dead.  It was useless!

      Where was my car?  Where was it? My mind was blank: I could not remember. The shock of what I had seen immobilized me. I wanted just to turn around and escape the unspeakable horror of my discovery.

      Chapter 2

      I first met Anna at the opening of an art exhibition in a gallery in a fashionable part of the town.

      My sister Jenny insisted on my company at the exhibition..  She's an artist with a growing reputation and a very forceful lady.  She knows her own mind and always thinks she’s the best judge of what I should do.  She considered my cultural life was being neglected, and as my older sister she would remedy this!

      The gallery was in a lovely old building, but as soon as we stepped inside, the stark, modern interior shocked me.  Clearly, a stack of money  had been spent on remodelling it, but to my mind it showed a stack of poor taste.  It was stark and ugly, like most of the exhibits displayed in it.

      I felt completely out of place as I strolled about, keeping well away from my sister and her artist friends.  I was an estate agent, for God's sake, what did I know about art!  I looked around wondering.  Who could think of  buying these paintings, or hanging them on their walls.

      The place was buzzing with conversation, with the usual scattering of genuine art lovers among a crowd of others attending.  I imagine many of them were only trying to improve their social status or perhaps stave off terminal boredom.  Anna was with a few friends admiring a particularly revolting painting, and as she turned away she stumbled and literally fell into my arms. 

      She laughingly put it down to her impossibly high heels, but vanity made me hope it was deliberate.  Anna was tall, elegant and absolutely captivating; I was completely hooked.  She was wearing something silky and clinging, in several shades of violet.  She looked good enough to eat. 

      It's very hot in here, let's find a bar and have a drink, she purred.  Then you can tell me all about yourself. 

      Sitting in the bar with this beautiful woman I felt ten feet tall – she was so interested in me.  She looked deep into my eyes and seemed to find what I did for a living absolutely fascinating.  I must admit, that seemed a bit odd to me, and at first I thought she was making fun of me - my work is not at all glamorous.  However, I wasn't complaining, just so happy to be in her company.

      She said that she was a director of her father's company and was actually a chartered accountant.  Brains as well as beauty!  As her father's firm didn't take up too much of her time she also did a certain amount of free-lance work for an entertainment company.  This company owned clubs and casinos.  From the way  she spoke this work seemed far more interesting to her than her work with her father.  Her face positively lit up when she spoke about the entertainment company; she loved her work there.

      I thought this evening would be simply a one-off event.  I didn't flatter myself that a woman like Anna could be serious about me, could she?

      Then, at the end of the evening, as we were waiting for her taxi home to arrive, she turned to me: Hugo, I've had a lovely time.  Will I see you again?

      I went back to my apartment walking on air.  I felt the luckiest man alive.

      Chapter Three.

      ––––––––

      From that evening on I thought of no-one but Anna.  She invaded my dreams.  I pursued her with single-minded devotion, and was overwhelmed when she seemed to feel the same way about me.  I'd never been so besotted with any woman before.

      To be honest, I found it difficult to believe that she could be interested in me.  After all, why would she?  A woman like her?  I'm an ordinary guy, with an ordinary job as an estate agent.  Yes, one of that unfortunate group of people – so often the butt

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