October 31
st
appears on every calendar in every year. Halloween is celebrated by most small towns across America. Only one
lives and breathes
Halloween twenty-four seven from October 1
st
to November 1
st
. That darkly magical place is known as Divinity's Hollow, Kentucky. It had not always been this way of course. As the name suggests the town was a quiet god-fearing place for most of its nearly two-hundred-year history. That's not to say the town was totally supernatural free. The grand old Kato Banks Hotel sat proudly up on the nearby mountain. After the gas leak that claimed all inside back in the '50s people claimed the abandoned hotel was haunted.
It had been nothing more than a local novelty until a bored pastor's daughter by the name of Dana Peterson wrote the blockbuster novel
Divinity's Hollow
all about it. The mix of horror, romance, erotica, and a splash of comedy put the town on the map. Not wanting the scrutiny of the townsfolk for writing such a thing she published it under the penname Contessa Swadlow. It sold so well she ended up publishing more and more stories. Her nom de plume became so popular that she was asked to host a late-night horror movie show from the old hotel.
That show became an obsession for the boys of Divinity's Hollow. Kolten Vaitones was one such boy, his imagination set aflame every time he watched it. The old movies sent ideas running through his head. Paths the characters should have taken. Better ways the stories could have gone. They soon spilled from mind to page. These short little bouts of what one might call fan fiction were soon replaced by an ever-growing tale of terror. A novel was being born.
Something else was birthed by that series. A boy's celebrity crush. Peterson quickly lost her aversion to attention and whole-heartedly embraced her new life of Contessa Swadlo. For the author's photo and later the show she went full-on spooky sensual. She wore the high-necked vampire cape and a little bat pendant necklace. A black miniskirt showed off her impressive and powerful legs. Though those were not the feature that caught the eye at first glance. That honor went to an impossibly oversized rack she loved to put on full display is a striking corset. That was the outfit she wore on the stage before him at that very moment.
"The Divinity's Hollow Halloween Festival has officially begun!" the mayor announced. "So let's hand things over to our Mistress of Ceremonies. The countess of Kentucky herself: Contessa Swadlow!"
The Contessa grabbed the microphone as her theme music played over the sound system.
"Let's get this haunting started people!"
The crowd cheered.
"I got my literary start right here in the Hollow and this year I'm returning the favor. Last month we had local writers submit the rough draft of their horror novels. The three finalists are here on stage with me today."
She held up a small bronze bat necklace like her own.
"In third place, and winner of $250, is... Madisynn Wong."
She placed the necklace around the girl's neck and gave her a check from her publisher. She then held up a silver necklace.
"In second place, and winner of $500 and an advance copy of my next novel
Ragnarok's Ravine
, is..."
Kolten held his breath. This would be a good prize. It was the one he was most likely to get now. He knew his story was good but not great.
"... Lincoln Preston!"
She placed the necklace around the boy's neck and handed him the book and the check. Wait, that meant... no, it couldn't be. She held up a gold necklace.
"And our grand prize winner, who will receive not only $1000 and work with me for the rest of October to edit the second draft and have it published under
both
our names, but he will also be my partner for all events for the festival is Mr. Kolten Vaitones!"
He nearly passed out. Kolten had to force himself to step forward. She placed the necklace around his neck and handed him the check. She then followed that up with a quick kiss on the lips. That sent the crowd into a cacophony of applause.
The rest of the day was spent with concerts, speeches and photos for the papers and various other media. Kolten bemoaned the fact he could spend no more time with the Contessa. The feeling of her lips on his remained with him the rest of the day.
The next day, bags packed, Kolten paced nervously on his front porch. Part of his prize was a stay at the Kato Banks which Peterson had purchased and was fixing up for a grand reopening. The hotel was her home and given the distance from town it would be easier on them both for him to stay with her as they worked on his novel. His breath caught in his chest as the Contessa's iconic neon pink Hearse rolled up. The passenger's side door was pushed open as he approached. The action gave him another good view of her breasts in her lowcut black top.
"Let's get you to my parlor," she said.
Blushing hard, Kolten slipped inside, and the car was off. He was too nervous to say anything as they moved through town. He honestly still couldn't believe all of this was happening. As they began their accent of the mountain, she finally broke the ice.
"I'm so glad you won."
"You are?"
"Of all three of you, Kolten, you are the cutest."
To emphasize this, she patted his knee causing him to blush even harder.
"Yes, Boy, I'm going to enjoy having you in my clutches this month."
She had always been flirty to the audience of her show but to have it directed at him personally made the situation feel so much more... electric.
"That's not why you chose my story is it?"
"Oh no, I didn't know whose story was whose until I announced them on stage yesterday."
"That's good."
"Now, I have to ask, how are you with intimacy?"
"What?!"
"I'm a very affectionate person. I love to hug, to touch, to kiss. I generally have no real concept of personal space. That's not going to be a problem, is it?"
Hell of a time to mention it if it was.
"No, no, that's fine."
"Good. I'd hate to chase you off before we even got to the fun parts."
The Kato Banks always looked so out of place when compared to the rustic town at the base of the mountain. The massive cream-colored wooden building was the pinnacle of Victorian elegance complete with it's steepled orange roof. It was probably that contrast that helped kill it. It was too expensive for the town below to afford to visit, and the town was too poor for the wealthy to deem the hotel a viable vacation spot. The lack of funds led to lack of upkeep which led to the gas leak. As they arrived that day the lack of care was apparent.
The paint had nearly all chipped off on about half the building. The other half was in the middle of being redone. The roof was recently repaired but demanded a painting of its own. It was half crumbling, half repaired. Half arrived and half dead. The perfect home for the Bluegrass's vivacious vampiress.
"The hotel rooms are still in need of replacement," she explained, "so you'll be shacking up with me in my penthouse. Just so ears don't get wagging make sure to tell people it has three bedrooms."
"Must be nice."
"It is, but it will be far better with someone to share it with for a while."
The dark and dusty lobby, furniture covered by white sheets, made Kolten feel like he had stepped into the Tower of Terror. She led him into an old elevator which slowly carried them to the top floor. The penthouse was a marvel of Victorian design. He recognized it immediately as the main set from her show. She led him over to the antique desk that faced the window.
"Let's get you set up."
He pulled out his laptop and got to work. He couldn't help but notice two little metal arches on either side of where the computer sat.
"What are these for?"
"These."
She hooked one end of two different pairs of handcuffs to the arches. On the other end of each was a fur-lined leather shackle. She snapped them in place over his wrists. She did the same to his legs, connecting them to arches under the desk he had failed to notice.
"What the hell?!"
"You came here to learn my method, right? Well, this is it. I cuff myself to the desk to avoid any distractions."
She leaned over his shoulder, breasts pressed into his back, and pointed at a line on the screen.
"Now if you look here..."
He should have left. As soon as she unlocked him for lunch, he should have called the whole thing off and left. That would have been the smart thing to do. The reasonable thing to do. He should not stay for lunch. He should not let her lock him back in for a couple more hours to make up for the late start. Then why did he? He had never made so much progress at once, so her tutorial was helpful. He also liked the way it felt to have her breasts press against him like that all morning. To have her arms wrapped around his chest like a warm hug. To have her head on his shoulder, mouth touching his ear as she whispered instructions like an in-person ASMR. More than that he liked being helpless. It was a thrill. One he rarely got to experience.
He trusted her. For reasons he couldn't understand he felt completely safe in her care. Somehow, he knew she want to take care of him, not hurt him, and to be honest he wanted her to take care of him. So, he stayed.
That night she fixed him a nice cup of her personally brewed tea. Another part of her method she had explained. He climbed into bed and fell right to sleep. His dreams were... strange. He lay there looking at the bed as the door slowly opened. The Contessa, now in her costume again, strolled in twirling a piece of hay in her fingers. He tried to move but found he could not. She sat at the foot of the bed and pulled off his socks. Somehow knowing what she planned to do he tried to shake his head. It wasn't working. She traced the tip of the hay over his soles and between his toes. The brush sent jolts through his nerve endings causing the unmistakable sensation known as tickling spread through his prone body. No matter how hard he tried to laugh nothing came out.
When he woke the next morning, he ripped back the covers. His socks were still on. Such a strange dream. Maybe it was the tea. That turned out not to be the case. He drank each night that week and the dream did not return.
He found he was getting used to being chained to a desk far quicker than he could ever imagine. It even ended up becoming his favorite part of the day. Maybe he would try it himself when he went back home.
As the weekend arrived so did the events. Friday was the opening of the annual haunted train ride at the park. The Divinity Flyer as it was called was a yellow and red model mini train ride designed really for kids. Most of the year it was just for little kids and their parents. Not in October. Not at night. The normally peaceful track was decorated with fiendish glee and costumed performers hid around every curve ready to jump out and frighten you. The Contessa slid in first followed by Kolten. The train filled up behind them. Two to a car. Too bad there was an odd number of riders. A shy young man stood disappointed at the gate.
"Now that won't do," the Contessa said.
Before Kolten knew what was happening, she pulled him up into her lap and gestured for the boy to join her. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed like a human safety belt. This ended up pressing him into her giant tits. He could live with this. As they made their way around, she gave a playful little squeeze whenever someone jumped out at them. He swore when they were in the pitch-black barn tunnel, he swore he felt her give his junk a little squeeze. She never gave any sign that she did, however. He must have imagined it.
Saturday was one of the most fun events of the whole month. The Coffin Race. Now they weren't real coffins of course. That would be too expensive. They were instead soap box cars designed to look like the classic six-sided cartoon vampire coffins. Riders would race down the 8
th
street hill. Kolten and the Contessa arrived a few hours early. Before dawn early. They were camped out in her vehicle waiting for others to arrive. Kolten had not slept well the night before. The dream had returned. The poor boy looked ready to pass out.
"Why don't you take a little nap?" the Contessa asked.
"No offense but this hearse isn't exactly made for napping."
"I've got it."
She took his hand and lead him into the back, closing the door behind him. She opened the lid to their 'coffin'.
"In there?"
"See any place better?"
