The Shadowy Figure at the Corner of Main Street

In October 1993, Rutherfield’s Main Street was lit by nothing but the blue glow from the phone booth where a shadowy figure stood, back turned, every night at 11:17. Shop windows frosted over within seconds of its arrival, and the streetlamps above flickered even though the power lines were untouched. People crossing late reported a metallic scent stinging their noses, and every attempt to call the police from that payphone failed-the receiver blasted nothing but loud static. When Officer Dwyer and his partner tried to approach, the temperature dropped fifteen degrees on their patrol car’s thermometer, and every radio in the cruiser went dead. By the time anyone dared to step closer, the shadow slipped around the corner, leaving a set of dry footprints on rain-soaked asphalt. The only photo ever taken shows a smear in the shape of a person, but the film developed with a hole burned straight through the figure’s face, as if the camera itself had recoiled from what it saw.