Fire black and smoke all red, the sun shone ‘gainst the West.
Glint in eye an’ tale in head, Old Jack sized up his guests.
There warn’t much to impress ‘im ’bout the two who stared ‘im back:
City-boys, all barn and raised, with city-boy rucksacks.
“Ah’m tellin’ yuh, an’ ah don’ lie,” Jack told ’em, face set stern,
“You’d best watch out when sunset’s red, when sand feels like to burn.
“The ‘eadless ratt’ler’s comin’ out –Look! Behind yuh now!”
An’ shore enough, those tenderfoots, yelped like they’d jus’ learned how.
An’ Jack, jus’ laughed.
“Ah gotcha now!”
©2020 Chel Owens
Told ’round a campfire for Carrot Ranch‘s prompt this week:
October 22, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a spooky tale told around a campfire. It doesn’t have to include the campfire; it can be the tale. Go where the prompt leads!
Respond by October 26, 2020. Use the comment section [on the site] to share, read, and be social. You may leave a link, pingback, or story in the comments. If you want to be published in the weekly collection, please use the form. Rules & Guidelines.
Chel Owens 
‘All barn and raised.’ Wordplayed!
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Yup! 🙂
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Does a headless rattler have teeth? If so, where does he keep them?
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In…. his…. TAIL!
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Ah! Like a scorpion…
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Yes. … maybe I should have gone for The Headless Scorpion.
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Well told with meter and rhyme.
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Thank you, Frank. I need a few more words to even that meter out nicely.
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Well done, Chelsea. That’s a spooky tale around a campfire.
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Thank you! 🙂
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Well-told, this tale around the campfire.
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Thank you!
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Yep, well told in rhyme, a real fine ‘gotcha tale’.
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Why, thank yuh!
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That’s was great. Just told Hawklad that. He liked it. Asked me to read it again. So must be so good.
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That is the best praise, indeed!
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