Watch (Novella)

"A Query for the Quarry"
by Russell Gray

Greg Waters smiled as he escorted his client through the hotel lobby toward the front parking. The woman was in full glow mode after the wrap meeting, her cheeks flushed beneath a light amount of makeup.
“Holding these meetings at a hotel was brilliant,” the woman said. “I never knew you could rent a ballroom. It beat sitting in a generic conference room each day, that’s for sure. The food was amazing—you were amazing. There’s no way I could’ve written ten articles in a single month without you.”
Greg chuckled, “I appreciate the thought, but I’m merely a translator of your thoughts on their way to the page. You’re the creative force behind the project.”
She swatted at his arm and pursed her lips in a wry smile. “Always so humble.”
“My wife trained me well.”
“Oh, do tell Betty hello for me. I swear, her show taught me more about cooking than my own mother.”
“She’ll be thrilled to hear that.” He held the lobby door for her and then reached for a business handshake. He accepted a full hug in its place.
“I’ll call you when I decide on my next project!” She climbed into her car with a small wave.
Another job finished, another satisfied client. Greg adjusted his tie and basked in the late afternoon sun. It was time to celebrate.

* * *


Greg breathed deeply, enjoying the rich smell of the quarry waters. The moon was full, making it a perfect night to navigate the surrounding woods and treacherous, rocky footing at the quarry’s edge. The quarry was no longer mined for limestone, but it had become a popular date spot for young folk to make out and skinny dip. Over the past five years, it also served as a dumping ground for victims of the Quarryman Killer. 
At this moment, the Quarryman was enjoying a night out at the theater, surrounded by alibis. In his place, Greg had acquired a girl with appropriately pale skin and dark hair, strangled her, removed her clothing and her eyes, then sank the body into the quarry depths.
As usual, Greg was only the workhorse for the project. The Quarryman was the creative force, but the artistry of it transfixed Greg. The pale skin sinking beneath inky black water, framed by cold and gray rock. He wondered if the Quarryman felt the same way. Or did all great artists eventually find their projects mundane?
Voices drifted and echoed across the quarry. Some giggles. Greg enjoyed one last moment under the moon and then faded away into the trees. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - "Watch (Terrifying TV_The 1960s)" is Book 3 of the Sinister Century Anthology series. I expected you run-of-the-mill shorts about strange TV shows and uncanny encounters via the black-and-white screen. I was pleasantly surprised to find three stories very different from what I imagined I'd find. The opening story, "A Query for the Quarry," by Russell Gray, worried me a bit, because it does not really depend on 1960s television; only tangentially does it refer to a cooking TV show - but its premise I found original and intriguing enough to enjoy the story and heartily recommend it to thriller fans. "Unsettled" by John Joseph Ryan wasn't horror, either, but it's an incredibly poignant and cruel story, about the patriarch of a family whose messy ordinary life (bickering, violence, child neglect) transpires in front of the TV, which is showing live a very important historical event of the 60s; the contrast was indeed unsettling. Finally, "Sorry Girls, He’s Married" by Trevor James Zaple, a family horror tale, has great writing and atmosphere, and did not disappoint at all as a terrific expression of the anthology's theme!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review. - Milt Theo (Goodreads)