The story behind a mysterious midnight light on the coast.
A red and white wooden mansion sits on the rocky Maine seaside. It rots from within as nature takes over and reclaims what was once hers.
You can hear the beach waves hit the shore as a hawk flies to her nest in the attic. There is a large mahogany staircase that is missing a few stairs and black mold climbs onto the once white walls.
The morning mist gets in as does the night fog and yet somehow the lightbulb on the top floor always flips on at exactly midnight.
This is the love letter light.
Back when Peppermint House was grand, a young footman named Freddie used it to let Louise know to come over. She was a maid in a mansion just up the shore. When she saw it, she would sneak up the rose trellis to meet him. They would share conversation, kisses, and half-drunk bottles their employers wouldn’t miss.
But one night Freddie didn’t turn on the light. Vanny, the beautiful young lady of the house, found him first. She smirked at the midnight picnic for two.
“You thief!” She squeezed his arm tight. “Go on. Steal a kiss.”
And for whatever reason, Freddie did.
They were still kissing when a burst of fireworks made Freddie jump. He turned to see Louise, a full bottle slipping from her hands. Bubbles and broken glass sprang into the air, along with a terrible clarity. Freddie had drunk from the wrong glass.
“Louise! I —”
But Freddie’s plea was cut short by a bolt of lightning streaking across the night sky – and into his heart.
The saddest ghosts are the young ones.
Freddie knows now what he didn’t then, and asks forgiveness the only way he can.
With a light in the dark.
Arthur DeHart (he/him) is a trans Appalachian writer now living in a cornfield. He has been published internationally in many magazines. Some of his books include LEAST FAVORITE//ONLY CHILD, The Sitch, CHAOS and The Eternal Existence of Atticus Bright. He is the lead writer for audio dramas Dreadwood Press Radio, Hiker Gothic and The Delivery Boy. He is also the EiC of Naked Cat Lit with his husband. You can find him on twitter @artjuldehart. His website is artdehart.net.
Larissa Zageris (she/her) is the author of My Lady’s Choosing: An Interactive Romance Novel, For Your Consideration: Keanu Reeves, and Taylor Swift: Girl Detective. Her short film, Not Bloody Mary, screened on Shudder as part of Nyx 13 Minutes of Horror. She also writes comics, games, and scripts. Favorites include "The Wicked + The Divine: The Funnies," and "Betty Boop and The Heroine of Hearts." Larissa has been published by Mythic Picnic, McSweeney’s, and SYFY. She writes about pop culture for looper.com. You can find her on twitter @larissa_z. Her website is larissazageris.com.
Larissa and Arthur wrote this story before ever speaking to each other, in an “exquisite corpse” style. Ghost stories have a way of bringing people together, and so does Icebreakers Lit. Larissa and Arthur would like to thank the spirits at that publication for conjuring up this collaboration.