Scary Short Stories †

four

The manager of a store was watching a woman pass his shop. He saw them all the time, their faces, tired and blank. He was one of the lucky ones who still had his money and grocery coming in. She came one day into his shop, carrying two empty milk bottles, and placed them into the counter in front of him. He took the empty bottles and replace them with full milk bottles. She took the bottles and left the shop. He might have gone her to demand his money, but did not. Her need was in her face, and he always felt a little guilty at being one of the lucky ones with the money and a job, she was a migrant worker, he decided. She was back the next day with two empty milk bottles. He replaced them with two full milk bottles and watched her hurried through the door. If she came back, he would offer her a job cleaning the store. She came again the next morning, and exchanged her empty bottles for full without saying a word. He tried to talk to her, to ask if she wanted a job, but she practically ran from the store with the milk. He followed her, wondering what he could to help, he headed away from the migrant camp outside of town. She went instead of the graveyard. She hurried up to a stone maker and then disappeared into the ground. Then he heard the cry of a baby. It was coming from the ground at the stone maker where the woman disappeared. He called the police, and within minutes, the workers started digging up the grave. When the casket was opened, they saw the woman who had visited his store dead within it. In her arms, she held a small baby and two full milk bottles. The baby was still alive.