The Dark Deadly Hidden Secrets of Christmas

I first got this story idea by talking to someone I will call Patti. Patti swore she saw something around Christmas that had nothing to do with Christmas. What she told me, which is too much to share, should have occurred on Halloween. And to give her kudos, I suggested she write it out and make it an urban legend. She fired back and asked, “What if what I said is true? Should I still write it as fiction?” I said, let me ask you a question. “Had you been hitting Eggnog hard before you saw what you saw?” She laughed and said, maybe. Anyway, she gave me the idea for this post. Enjoy the story.

What Comes With Christmas?

People see Christmas as a time of celebration and being with the ones you love. But there is a darker side to Christmas. Many cities, states, and federal officials would like to forget that part. Some of the largest cities have scars from the dark side of Christmas. They have experienced it. They have no need or desire to discuss it.

December 25, 1820 – New York, New York, suffered the worst ice storm in its history. There was no warning of its arrival. Witnesses said the day was a typical thirty-five to forty degrees Fahrenheit. But before anyone noticed it, the temperature dropped one hundred below.

What cannot be explained is why New York City’s 123, 706 residents were the only ones who experienced the ice storm. Twenty-five thousand people froze and died in midstep.

Mother Nature was unforgiving, even to those who ventured out to rescue the stranded. The lungs of the rescuers and those in need filled with ice crystals. Then their lungs froze and cracked into pieces inside their flesh. Many people fell to the ground. Their frozen limbs broke off from the impact.

People stood inside buildings helpless. They watched as their loved ones, friends, and neighbors struggled against the elements to get inside. Many onlookers ran out to help those in need. The weather quickly overcame them. The overpowering winds mercilessly beat people down. Unless they were five feet from an entrance, they did not survive.

The residents of Weehawken, New Jersey (also known as NoHo, New Jersey) claimed to have heard human cries from New York City residents. They said it was unsettling. But they were not close enough to help.

Some residents of New York City beat the odds and saved themselves. Winds battered everything in sight and destroyed a lot that was uncovered. Metal whined and made cracking sounds. Wooden structures bent, buckled and leaned. Some just cracked apart. New York City seemed ready to come apart at the seams.

Then the noise stopped. No wind. No whining from the buildings. Except for citizens crying, the whole city was quiet.

What broke the serene atmosphere was a harsh ringing of a bell. It was not joyous. The ringing was more of a heavy dong. Twenty-five times, those heavy rings rang out. What followed them was a guttural laugh. Some say it could only have come from deep inside the depths of hell.

Look, I have a new book out. I wrote it for Christmas. But you can enjoy it any time. It’s called Sleigh Ride. It is a good dark story about the night before Christmas. It’s on Amazon. Click on the cover below. Buy it and enjoy the story.