Tales of the Dark Castle

By L. E. Doggett

An exciting series of short stories. Fourteen tales each one takes place at a castle at night. There are general fiction here, a thriller, science fiction, fantasy urban fantasy, weird western, alternite earth, dystropian, a spy story and more. There are many tales with action, strange happenings and danger. A couple with a touch of humor. All enjoyable. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: L. E. Doggett
• Release date: Apr 19, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201962562

L. E. Doggett

I am an older writer and Indie publsiher. I write both short stories and novels, in various genre.  Soon to be four novels published.  I live in Central California where it is Hot during the summer and many times we have Fog: thick pea soup or Tule fog. 

Book preview

Other books by L. E. Doggett

The Vibrations series, 

a urban fantasy series: 

Above Her Pay Grade X 

Learning Curve X2 

The Adventures of Lance Starhammer

Tommy Tuckernocker: Shadow Warrior

The Courier: number one in a series

The Adventures of Lance Starhammer

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A set of five tales 

Western short stories

Deputy US Marshall Gray Dobson

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All can be found online at the usual places that sell paper books and E-books.

Forward 

A few years ago I was part of a group  on what was then a social media know as Google+.  It has changed now but back then it was much like facebook. Anyway, a group of writers followed a guy who put up a SF picture every day. Done by different artists with different Science Fiction and fantasy scenes and some had both. Some of the writers who were in this group started to put up very short stories or part of a story. 10 to 50 words usually. I joined them even though I found it hard to keep it under a 100 words.

I forget all of the details but some one suggested something to do with other genre. I knew I could do other genre and said so. I decided to do a couple other stories. I had done that before with other ideas but this time I got carried away and just kept going. I made a list of 10, I think, but by the time I got those done I had three more. Some genre I had not done before. The post dystopian tale, and The Messy Castle. One takes place—the weird western—with the same hero and time as another story I did a few years ago, and a novel I did for NANOWRIMO in 2020. Two years ago from when I write this. The thriller is the second one I have done on that genre.

I wrote thirteen of these tales a few years ago but the last one—Safety Castle—was done a few months ago when I started to organize the stories to publish. For some reason the tales needed one more so I decided on that type which, as I have stated already, I had not done before. I did two Science Fiction because I decided the first one I wrote wasn’t quite what I had pictured in my mind. The story I did was okay but not what I wanted.

Some are longer, at the bottom of the novelette size range, while others are barely over the top range for flash fiction. Many are Science Fiction or fantasy, some are kind of whimsy, while others are serious and nail biting. No sad ones though. You may get tired of the description of the castle but did it that way because it is the same castle in each tale, even though I did vary the way I described it in certain stories. 

I hope you enjoy them.

THE SPY CASTLE

This is my first story set in this genre, an action packed spy thriller. It takes place in the 1960s during a cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union. East Germany was part of the Soviet Union at that time. The Communist Soviet Union, is no more even though Russia is still around, but at that time the two countries were rivals and enemies. They spied on each other and competed in various ways. I am not sure how many times something like this happened in real life, but it was a popular genre for a while. Many readers still like it.

Enjoy:

Carl shifted gears in his speedster, the adrenaline caused by high speeds coursing through his veins. The car looked like an average gray Studebaker four door sedan, but the stock engine had been replaced with something with more horse power. No other cars appeared ahead of them, which meant no reason to downshift; they needed speed for this case.

He continued his race over the desert landscape; it was near dusk on a well paved road. The last meant even more speed. Cacti zoomed past on either side.

Wind from their passage blew in through the semi-open driver’s window. From the corner of his eye, he could see shapes close to the sand, coyotes from their size. It looked like one winked at him. Must be his imagination.

Ron, in the shotgun seat—an appropriate name for that seat in this car — said, Hey, that Coyote winked at us.

Carl resisted the urge to turn his head to stare at his partner. They had been together far too long if Ron knew what he was thinking.

He shrugged. Trick of the light.

The car roared on, and he flicked on the car’s lights, shifting gears again. The car purred as it picked up even more speed. He wished for a cigarette, or better yet a cigar, but told himself that it would take too much concentration while driving at this speed. 

He took a moment to be glad he had shut the windows most of the way, the wind which he was glad about; the stream of air that rushed through the open windows always took his breath away. At the same time, he enjoyed the smell of the desert and the feeling of the car running smoothly at top speed. It took all of the car’s horsepower to get this heavy vehicle up to a good speed, but the horses did it. He needed that speed, either to get away or, like now, to make it on time.

A moment later they could see their destination. Only a blob right now. Within  minutes it turned into a castle, one on top of a small hill. It had tall towers and looked narrow, all gray with an outer wall with a small village inside the wall. He didn’t know who had built it. A rich Arab, or a millionaire who just liked castles? As far as he knew no one had ever lived there, though it had been used as a warehouse. Guards and workers had lived in the village inside the walls. Now, though, it lay abandoned.

After a long moment, he gave his partner a quick glance. Ron sat there with a smile on his face, either because he enjoyed the higher speed, or he knew he had gotten to Carl.

A glance through the windshield showed him that the moon had started to rise. Right behind the castle, he noticed.

He still wanted a cigarette or cigar. He had given up the first when the smell on his clothes had given him away on one case. Back then, he hadn’t realized that American cigarettes had that much of a different odor than Europeans. He had barely escaped that night, and only with the help of Darla. He had grabbed his extra gun when he bent over to check an injury on his right leg. His attempt at a bluff didn’t work though and he ended up running, or rather limping, but he still managed to bash through a door hard enough to send two guards flying and knocking a third almost out cold. Darla must have heard the shots and came to see what was happening. She grabbed a gun, and shot two guys who were about to pepper him while he was bent over, picking up another weapon. She then waved him toward her. He painfully limped her way, and she led him out of the building. They came out of a side entrance in an alley. Evidently, they hadn’t expected him to go that way.

Darla would not come with him though. She told him where to go and went back inside. Before she could disappear, he had said, Hey, be careful.

She turned and said with a playful smirk, I always am, but I need to finish my mission. 

He watched her go inside, the door clicking shut behind her. He expected to hear gunfire or cussing in German, but he hadn’t. It looked like she made it back to her seat in an office, without being seen. He ran down the alleyway, and when he came out of the mouth of it, he turned to the right like she had told him. Civilians and a couple in the gray uniforms of the Communist army walked around, but they were headed for a store or to town for a party, etc., not looking for him. Therefore, they didn’t pay attention to him.

He straightened and walked like he knew where he was headed. After ten or so minutes, he managed to reach the spot where he would be picked up. By then more soldiers had started a search for him, but they didn’t seem to check everyone. Even though he knew the right place his pick-up could show late or not show up at all. He saw the two benches in small park; no one sat in them.

As he started to go over contingency plans in his head, a car pulled up. He let out a sigh of relief when he recognized the driver. Once he was safely back at headquarters, he asked around to see if she survived. No one seemed to know about her. She may have changed her appearance for the assignment or used another name. Also no one would admit that US Intelligence used women in dangerous missions. Of course, she might work for a friendly country, or one of the civilian organizations like the one that used steam laundry storefronts to hide the entrance to their bases.

Over a year later, they had  worked together on a case again, so he knew she had survived. On another case she had just shown up again with no comment about who she worked for or her goal for the mission. However, in a moment of rest, Darla had explained to him that she had made it back to the office she had worked in without being seen and acted frightened by the gun shots and people running. It had worked and she made the deal the person she had come has would have made. She had shown up another six times over the years since. Still, he had to idea of who she worked for.

He shook those thoughts away, and drove on. The castle grew; since they traveled on a flat desert, he was able to keep it in sight at all times. He watched the full moon rise behind it, illuminating the castle. He didn’t take the main turn-off to the front entrance, however. Even in the early moonlight he could make out the main gate into the building with its ornate door. He assumed most visitors parked on this side of the gate and walked in. At the end of the castle wall, he made a sharp turn and drove along a smaller, older road that was not used often. Once he had a clear idea of where the road went, he flipped off the lights and downshifted to a speed that produced less noise. Tires crunched small pebbles and dirt. This road turned out to be very bumpy and made him wish for an army Jeep. Again, he slowed down, this time to avoid hitting the ruts hard. He bounced, even with his hands on the steering wheel, and his buddy grunted occasionally. Even with the large, solid stone wall next to the car as a distraction, he kept an eye out for other cars, but didn’t see any. Halfway around that side, he executed a quick braking, and the car jerked to a halt, Dust flying upward. He doubted the car could be seen from the road and it would hard to noticed by anyone on the top of the wall.

Ron said, If anyone was in one of those towers, they probably saw us.

That’s a possibility, but that is one reason I drove past the main gate. Anyone up there may think we were just driving by, then a quick turn too close to the wall for them to see us.

You really think that worked?

Carl shrugged. Maybe not, but it gives us more of a chance; especially when we enter the village by this gate instead of going around to the side with the main gate.

He got out, coughing as he inhaled the dry dust still in the air. He walked around to the back of the car and opened the trunk. Ron followed only a second behind. Carl got out two hand guns and two shoulder holsters, giving one to Ron. He put the remaining holster on, and checked his forty-five and ammo before holstering it again. He picked up another smaller weapon and wished he had a Tommy gun, they needed to be discreet. This one, though, had some fire power at least.

He glanced at Ron who had just finished going through the same routine with his gun. Ron nodded, signaling it was time to move toward the wall. Carl looked at it, studying the dark cracks between the rocks. Most of the rocks looked to be the same size, though there was some variety. He took out a small flashlight and turned it on. The light brightened a small section of the wall. He also listened for footsteps that would reveal the spies knew that the two men were there. Carl would, of course, also be listening.

Nothing; not one sign or sound broke the night air. That did not guarantee that they were not someplace around here. He moved closer to the wall, scrutinizing it further

There, around that very small stone. It looked like it was stuffed into the wall between two larger ones.

That might be the one I want, Carl thought.

He reached up and felt around. Something clicked, and Carl couldn’t help a small victory grin. He curved his hand over the rock, and pushed his fingers down. He took a moment to hope there were no spiders in there. A section slid outward, and with his other hand he reached into a new crack that hadn’t been there three heartbeats ago. He pulled outward, and nothing happened at first. He repeated the motion pushing harder, and with a screech, a door opened. The hinges definitely needed oil. A dark space showed. He turned to Ron and Ron held out a flashlight he must have carried in a pocket.

Carl gestured and Ron flicked the on switch. A dull light shone and Ron pointed it at the opening. A spider web infested tunneled greeted them. A musty odor came out of it. A second later he noticed the dust odor—this smelled different from the sand dust the car had stirred. Carl stood to one side for a long moment, hoping what little wind there was would blow into the hallway.

He again checked his weapons, and saw that his partner did too. He followed Ron inside, and closed the outer door until it clicked. They moved as quickly as possible with Ron’s light leading the way. There were lumps on the floor Carl didn’t want to look closer at.

The hallway felt eerie. Spider webs dragged along his face and head. Some looked fresh, though most were covered with dust and what might be long dead bugs wrapped in webbing. Even though he could see that the hallway was barely wide enough for him or Ron, it looked like it had darker corners that anything could jump out of. He could hear rustling, Ron breathing, and their footsteps.

There could be snakes in here, he thought with a grimace.

Their feet  kicked up enough dust to have it float through the air. Carl cleared his throat, coughed, and wished for a canteen of water to wash out his mouth. A moment later a solid wall blocked further passage.

Good, as he had been promised this hallway hadn’t taken long to go through. 

He hoped this wall wasn’t as solid as it looked. He grabbed Ron’s hand, and shined the light around to make sure the hallway didn’t make a sudden turn. He saw large black spiders move back out of the bright light.

That decided him. He needed out of there as quick as possible. He brushed webs and dust away from where the controls were. Only a flat stone. He looked around, but still nothing.

The light dimmed. Damn, they hadn’t been in there that long. The batteries must have been partly dead. He shook his head, glaring at Ron, then went back to his search. A sudden sneeze from Ron echoed in the hallway with a second one following close behind.

There, that lump. He brushed the dust away and squinted, trying to get a better look.

Ron let out a low, Hey! when Carl grabbed the flashlight to move it to the right place.

Yeah, that was it.

He listened at the crack carefully. No sounds made their way through. That might mean someone was waiting for them to come out, or it could be no one waited for them at all. He readied his gun and knew that Ron did too.

Carl took a deep breath; it went dark as Ron flicked off the light. He stood there for a long moment, letting his eyes adjust in the dark before pushing the door open. He moved through the open door quickly, then to one side. Ron came out and went in the other direction. He had seen darkness when he opened the hidden door but it took several seconds to confirm no one was there. He welcomed the clear air after all of the dust. He was almost disappointed, though that no spies were here. He had been ready all night for a fight, against enemy spies. He bushed dust and cobwebs off of himself, wiped dust off his face but spat three times when he realized he had gotten spier webs in his mouth. George watched Ron go though the same routine minus the webs in his mouth.

He glanced at Ron then nodded. They took off across the room they had come out in. Carl’s first impression was that they arrived in a house, but as they infiltrated in further he mentally changed that to church. He couldn’t make out any furniture, but the shape of the rooms just had that feel.

They found the door that led outside and after a quick check for guards, Carl stepped through it to the outside. Little light illuminated the street, even with a full moon. Again, Carl felt disappointment that no one waited for them. He wanted to fight and capture some of these Communist spies even if they were from East Germany instead of Russia.

The castle proper was closer than he had expected. That must be from the village being built before the walls. He jogged along one side of the cobblestone street that lay more in darkness, Ron following close on his heels.

By then Carl had his gun out, and he knew so did his partner. No one was about. He heard no noises except for the slither of passing snakes, probably hunting rats and ground squirrels that lived in this area of the desert. Shadows existed everywhere, but when he studied one nothing popped out. With the sun almost completely down, the temperature began to drop. The unkept cobblestones twisted his feet, but after a few steps he managed to figure out the best way to step on them.

The village looked dated and in need  of restoration. From what he could see with quick glances, all of the stores looked empty and dark. Some had missing glass, and from what he could make out, dust and cobwebs covered the entrances and windows. He smelled decay, sand, and small animal droppings too. Except for their footsteps, he heard nothing beyond what he thought to be snakes. Carl licked his lips, a bad nervous habit he couldn’t seem to break.

Carl stopped in front of a larger three-story building with many windows he thought could have been an inn, but this close to the castle  could easily have been an overflow building for rich visitors to stay in if the castle rooms were filled. He motioned to Ron to stop, approaching the structure. He tried the door and found it unlocked, but he still had fight it open enough to create a space large enough for him and Ron to slip through. From what little he could see the inside had been vandalized. Probably looters. But they didn’t need any furniture to find what the two of them had been tasked with.

He sneezed again, muffling the sound with his sleeve. Damn, this place had dust everywhere.

After a look around the ground floor, he hurried on as fast as possible with only the one flashlight; less chance of someone seeing the light if they only used one. Two or more lights would make things that much brighter.

Carl cried out once when he bumped a black lump he didn’t notice.

Ron snapped, Hey, quiet, even if you did smash your shin.

Next time it’s your turn to go first. Carl snarled in reply, rubbing his probably bruised shin.

Carl went on, half-expecting someone to jump out at them. No one did, though.

He led the way to the right room and the specific corner. He motioned for Ron to shine the light up on the wall. He did, but before he could properly take in area, the two spooked at a noise behind them. His heart rate increased, and sweat broke out on his forehead. Ten deep breaths later, he relaxed when nothing jumped at them. It may have been a rat, but it could also