Rayne's Realm: a True Creepy Experience

A scary adventure (involving cats, a dog, and a possible pervert). Revealing the winners of the writing contest.

A Creepy Experience

Two days ago, on a sunny afternoon, I went for a walk in the lush green countryside, accompanied not only by my dog Ginger, but also my cats Sulu and Chekhov. Where we live in rural Bulgaria, it’s safe for cats to be outside. Sulu enjoys going for long strolls with me, exploring new sights, sounds and smells. Young Chekhov, who normally only comes on short walks, chose to join us for the first time.

This photo shows my three companions during our walk: Ginger the dog, and Chekhov and Sulu. The creepy encounter took place further down that path.

Birds twittered and chirped, bees hummed. Tall grasses and wildflowers swayed in the soft breeze. A stork slowly rose at our approach and glided overhead. Nature surrounded us with lush abundance and fresh green.

Ginger bounded happily, but the cats grew tired. Sulu is already a senior and doesn’t have as much energy as he used to, and young Chekhov wasn’t yet used to long walks. The sun shone on their black coats, and the heat added to their exhaustion, and they walked with their mouths open. So I led my little flock to the edge of a woodland where the kitties could rest in the shade.

The cats curled up under a shrub. Ginger the dog ran off to frolick in the meadows. I just stood there and watched my cats sleep. I enjoyed the sunshine and gazed at the landscape of gently undulating meadows and fields.

Then I heard a sound.

A strange sound like a sharp banging of wood on wood in the forest, to sharp to be caused by wind or a passing animal.

Again, several times. Then another sound, like human footsteps.

They were coming in my direction.

Why was someone walking through the forest, far from any path? I could think of several explanations: gathering mushrooms, perhaps, or taking photos of nature. I expected the person to emerge out of the forest in a moment.

But nobody appeared, and the noises ceased. I assumed I had been mistaken. I kept watching my cats, and I took photos of the beautiful wildflowers at my feet.

At least ten minutes passed… and then I heard a noise again. Footsteps. Too close mistake for anything else.

At this moment, Ginger returned to me. And he heard the noise, too.

He didn’t hesitate, but ran towards it, with a bark and an angry growl.

I saw a a man move, very fast. First, to back away from the dog. Then, to take cover behind a tree.

I saw the man for one second only. But Ginger stood there, his body low, his legs braced, growling.

There might be good reasons for a man to walk through a forest, away from any paths.

But there was no reason whatsoever why a man should stand behind a tree in the forest, hidden and unmoving, for ten minutes, to watch a woman. Unless he intended something bad.

I knew I had to get away from the trees, into the open, where I could see and be seen.

As I stepped away, I called loudly and cheerfully, in broken Bulgarian: “Just a moment, Georgi, I’m coming. Wait for me.” Georgi is a common Bulgarian male name. Let the creep think that I’m with a man.

Then I called my dogs. Not only Ginger, but three fantasy dogs named (in Bulgarian) Ripper, Killer and Wolf. “Come, Killer, let’s go!”

The would-be attacker had already confronted by one angry dog, he would easily believe the existence of several beasts.

Ginger followed me immediately, and so did Sulu.

But Chekhov still lay curled under the bush. To get to him, I would have had to crawl below the branches, close to the lurking creep. This was too risky.

I reckoned Chekhov was safe, because whatever the creep intended, it was not about the cat. I trusted that his natural feline ‘geo-positioning’ would guide him home.

Once on the path, I casually whirled my sturdy walking stick like a bo fighting staff, to signal that I knew martial arts. (Readers of my dark epic fantasy novel Storm Dancer may remember Merida using a staff as a weapon.)

I walked home along the path, between meadows and fields, turning occasionally to make sure nobody was following me.

Back home, the first thing I did was to give Ginger a treat (several treats, actually) and lots of praise. He’s my hero! Then I gave Sulu his favourite meal, and sat down for a cup of tea and ice cream.

When Chekhov hadn’t returned by nightfall, I worried. This had been his first major excursion. What if his feline GPS didn’t work, what if he was frightened, lost?

In the middle of the night, I woke to something soft and furry brushing my cheek, and felt a warm body press against my face. The happy purr belonged unmistakeably to Chekhov. All had ended well.

I’ll never know who this man was and what he intended.

But I’m so glad Ginger was with me.

And as a writer of Gothic fiction, I see this true experience as practical research. My mind is already buzzing with ideas for creepy yarns.

Have you ever had a creepy real life encounter you couldn’t make sense of?

Announcing the Winners of the Writing Competition

The judges have made their choice!

1^st place: Cold Blooded Murder by P.A. De Voe

2nd place: Songbird Lane by Troy Seate

3^rd place: The Dark in the Light by Vivienne Moles

Runners-up:

‘Arctic Horror’ by Nicole Duffeck

‘Echoes’ by VJ Knipe

‘Shiver the Whole Night Through’ by AJ Payler

‘The Black Beast’ by Charbel Torbay

‘Mind Your Manners’ by Robin Knabel

‘Babe in the Woods’ by Veronica L Asay

In this blog post, Lee Murray explains how she chose the top winners.

The contest called for short stories with Gothic elements, on the theme of ‘Very Cold Weather’, written entirely without AI. This is to encourage authentic, skillful writing without plagiarism and fake. This post discusses the conest and the winning entries.

Maybe you can leave a comment on the blog? That would be great!

https://thegothicwanderer.wordpress.com/2025/05/27/revealing-the-winners-of-the-gothic-fiction-writing-contest/

What Do You Prefer?

In my newsletters, I’ve always tried to present a mix of topics: something about writing, something about my pets, something about my life in Bulgaria, plus an announcement about a book or event. This approach makes my posts very long, and so I don’t write them very often.

I’m wondering if I should do it differently: instead of one long newsletter every few weeks, post shorter, more frequent posts.For example, I could share personal experiences (like this creepy encounter) once a week if I didn’t have to wait until I have time for a big combination post.

Let me know what you think.

Greetings from Bulgaria

from Rayne, Ginger (the hero), Sulu, Chekhov and the rest of the crew