Who Knows What Evil Lurks? : We do. Think killer mushrooms. Think crafty spiders. The winning entries in our scary story contest will leave you begging for more. : Hairy Palms

Sammy ran through the dark, thick forest, feeling the creature’s hot, musky breath on the back of his neck.

“Leave me alone!” shouted Sammy.

Sammy started running faster. He thought he was gaining a bigger lead. Then, just as he thought he saw the city through the thick fog, he tripped over a root.

He turned around and the last thing he saw was Dracula’s hairy palms reaching for him before he woke up.

Sammy sat bolt upright in bed, sweat pouring off his brow. It was just a nightmare! It must have come from the great description from his best friend, Erik: “Dracula has yellow slits for eyes, black rings around his eyes, and an exaggerated widow’s peak. But the most scary thing about him are his hairy palms.”

Sammy relaxed. It was only a dream. Then he saw the window. It was broken and there was a piece of black cloth hanging off it. He looked at the cloth. It was made of silk. The only things Sammy knew of that were made of silk were ties, boxers and those antique capes his grandma had. Nanna said they were from Transylvania. But his Nanna hadn’t been at this house since last Christmas.

“Oh no, Dracula must have been real,” thought Sammy.

That night Sammy slept with a cross in his hand and garlic all over his room. The trouble was, he really didn’t remember his dream anymore. Actually, the more he thought about it, the sillier it sounded. Dracula coming to get him at night and making him believe it was all a dream. Yeah, right.

The next day Sammy had to wear sunglasses all day. The sun was hurting his eyes terribly. He also got sunburned all over his face and arms.

He went to sleep that night without any “vampire protection.” This time, when he had his nightmare, Dracula almost got him.

When he woke up, there were paw prints going out of his room, down the stairs and out of the house. They looked like dog prints.

At school, he wore 45 SPF sun block. He got a sunburn anyway. He also was very tired. Mrs. Jones, his math teacher, had said he looked very pale.

Sammy went to bed with a cross hung over his bed that night. It took him four hours to get to sleep.

When Sammy finally did get to sleep, he had the same nightmare. Only this time, Dracula caught up with him. As the vampire lord’s teeth sunk into his neck, Sammy felt hair where Dracula gripped his arms.

Sammy woke up screaming, bringing his mother running to his room. Sammy felt his neck and felt two small pinholes. He looked at his hands and saw a soft, black fur starting to grow.

“Sammy, my baby, are you all right?” asked his mom.

“Yes, it was just a nightmare. But I’m really thirsty.”

“OK, I’ll get you some water.”

“No, Mom, not water. Come here and I’ll show you what I want.”