Thirteen Reflections by Maxine Douglas ~ A Friday the 13th Horror Short Story

Another story in the Friday the 13th Horror Series…

Blurb:

On the night of Friday the 13th, in the eerie halls of the infamous abandoned Ravenclaw Manor, a dead body is found in front of an antique mirror, shattered into countless jagged shards. The police call it a tragic accident. Carousel Ryder knows better. As she digs into the Firestone past, she uncovers a sinister family curse, whispered rumors of a haunted mirror, and a string of mysterious deaths stretching back generations.

Jackson Firestone Clairmont, the last surviving member of the cursed bloodline, races to help Cari unravel the truth before the mirror claims another victim. But when the reflections begin to shift—showing glimpses of the past, the future, and something inhuman lurking beneath the glass—Jax realizes that breaking the curse might come at an unspeakable cost…losing the woman he is meant to love for eternity.

Because some mirrors don’t just reflect the world. They trap souls. And once you look in… something else might be looking back.

Excerpt:

Cari peeked around a window frame, her gaze scanning the large empty room with a huge vacant China cupboard until she glimpsed the chalk outline on the foyer floor. She held back a small sob. A shadow caught the corner of her eye and she sprung away from the window, a breath lodged in her throat.

Counting slowly to ten to calm her racing heart, she chanced looking again in time to see Jax go to his knees and begin cleaning up the outline of the victim. As he continued scrubbing, Cari’s gaze traveled over to the mirror behind him. A shadow reflected eerily in the antique glass when a cloud moved across the sun behind her.

She gasped. For a fleeting moment, she could have sworn there was a face staring back at her from deep inside one of the fractured pieces of the mirror. When she blinked, the image was gone as quickly as it had appeared.

“I have to get a look at that mirror,” she whispered, backing away from the window. Creeping down the stairs, Cari made her way across the yard to her car. Slipping into the driver’s side, she sat back and waited until she saw Jax leave.

Knowing this was possibly her only chance, she planned to steal her way back to Ravenclaw Manor like a cat stalking a mouse.

About Author:

Award-winning author, Maxine Douglas writes in several genres, including American historical romance, contemporary romance, and cozy mysteries. A Wisconsin native, Maxine resides in Oklahoma. While Maxine may miss her family and friends in the north, she loves the mild winters Oklahoma has to offer.

Having found love in 2001 and then losing the love of her life in 2018 to cancer, Maxine hasn’t given up on believing in true love. She hopes that she expresses that feeling of hope with every story she brings to life through her writing.

Maxine is a current member of the Oklahoma Writers’ Federation, Inc. and its affiliations Central Region Oklahoma Writers and Oklahoma Romance Writers Guild. She is also a member of the Friends of the Chickasha Library and serves as a Board Member of the Chickasha Area Arts Council.