The Dead #2 Cover Novels & Stories

“Every detail he chose for you is flawless.” I was about to reply when the news anchor’s voice from the TV in the studio caught my attention. “We interrupt with breaking international news. Chicago mob boss Axel Thorne was murdered late last night on his private dock. The killer has been identified as his former mistress, Seraphina Croix. Both fell to their deaths in the Chicago River…” I froze.

Then she walked up to me, viciously grinding her foot into my wound, using my blood as ink to press down her handprint. After finishing all this, she revealed a cruel smile. "Let him go," she ordered the security guards before saying to me, "John, you know? Your look of despair was just like your mother's before she died. On the day I went to court to declare you dead, I deliberately delivered the good news to your mother. Who would have thought that she'd be so frail? She passed away due to a heart attack." Nora did not have an ounce of pity on her face, only provocation.

he asked, pointing to the book. "Of course..." Vinnie said, handing him the brochure. Thane scanned the cover, his eyes narrowing as he looked closely at it. The cover depicted a drawing of a werewolf, a vampire, and witch, in a savage position, poised to attack a helpless human sprawled at their feet. A red danger sign was crossed over the three supernatural creatures, with the caption "The Imminent Threat of Non-Human Entities - A fight for the preservation of Mankind" written boldly on top of it.

Images of the nose of a gun, big and small, littered page after page of her notebook. He had to rotate the page as the story unfolded in front of him. In the middle was a man with his gun raised and pointed at a woman at the end of the page. The scene was dark, not only by the image it predicted, but because it was covered in black ink. Everything on the page was shaded except for the characters, which seemed to be in a spotlight. And on their feet were limbs and bodies weaved around each other. ‘Dead. These people are dead.’

I am dead…. ****

And just like that, the covers of all four books–Nyllan’s complete works–were suddenly before me. The first book held the cover image of a seedling, a plant in its infancy; at birth. The second cover showed a green, growing bud, finding its potential and bursting through the surface of the earth. The last had been a withering blossom, brown and decaying in death. In tandem, they represented birth, growth, and death. An unassuming, unsophisticated testament of the life cycle.

“Hello.” “....” Silence. There’s no answer from across the phone. “Yeobseyo.” “....” Suddenly the caller hung up. Tiara just fell silent while staring at the phone screen. Weird. “Is it trying to scare me?” Tiara put the phone back down. Her hands are moving to clean up the old book. The book with the cover of ‘The Power of Darkness’ has a unique shape. The carving of roses with minimalist style on the cover looks real. Tiara’s never seen a book cover like this before. She tried to open the book, but it couldn’t open.