All Hallows

by Christopher Golden

Nothing in these woods could be more dreadful, more terrifying, than the selfish cruelty of ordinary people.

A sadness existed in the universe that he could never have conceived, and it waited for him in the fire that burned in that abyss.

A kid in an old-fashioned scarecrow costume stood beside Steve, cocking his head like a bird and studying her as if sadness were something inscrutable, instead of simple and common, shared by the daughters of shitty men the world over.

So much of parenting seemed to be comprised of learning when to let your children see your true emotions, if ever.