by Jonathan Tolstedt

The contractor pointed out three places where nails I had driven into studs had broken through the sides of the noggins. Three nails out of how many thousands I had put into this house?

He told me to fix them and went on about how he puts a part of himself into every house he builds.

“I understand, Terry,” I said. I picked up the nail gun, pressed it to his forehead, and drove three 3” ring shank nails into him.

And, true to Terry’s wishes, I left a piece of him in every house I built from then on.

Jonathan Tolstedt

Jonathan Tolstedt is a patent agent by day and evolving writer by night. He has previously published a short horror story (2018) and had three of his 100-word horror stories accepted for publication in recent Dark Moments calls for Black Hare Press (2024).