"The Maze" A short story by Craig Zimmerman

Every year, Jenny looked forward to going to the Halloween festival at The Miler Farm. The Miller's always had the best corn maze in the area and Jenny couldn't wait to try the new one.

After picking out a good Pumpkin, Jenny asked her Mother if she could go through the Corn Maze. Her Mother nodded, and Jenny ran toward the entrance.

Jenny walked slowly through the corn rows finding one dead end after another. Finally, she appeared to be on the right path when a man in a Werewolf  costume stepped in front of her. Jenny pretended to be afraid and ran from the actor.

Eventually, Jenny stopped to rest. She should be just about through the maze, but it was hard to tell, the corn rows all looked alike. Jenny looked at her watch, she had been in the maze for two hours! 
Her  mother should  have been looking for her, but she didn't hear anything. 

Jenny tried to stay calm. The maze was only about an acre in size and should only take a few minutes to walk out of. Jenny chose a direction and began walking. After a half-hour, she still had not found a way out.

Jenny used her cell to call her mother, but there was no answer. She then called every number she knew. There was no answer from anyone. Jenny yelled for help several times, but there was only silence. There were mobs of people around before she entered the maze, where did everyone go?

Jenny sat down and started to cry. Suddenly, the Werewolf  guy was standing over her. Something about him scared her and she started to run, but he stopped her and pointed at a path through the corn rows. Jenny began walking in the direction he pointed and she was soon out of the maze.

"The Diner" a short story by Craig Zimmerman

Brian had been driving for hours and he was ravenously hungry, but all he had seen lately is empty countryside.

Suddenly, he noticed a dim neon sign in the distance that said "Desert Cafe." Brian pulled over into the dirt parking lot and went in the crumbling building.

The place was surprisingly full so Brian took a seat at the counter. A creepy-looking waiter in a dirty uniform showed up. "Can I get a menu?" Brian asked. "Would you mind answering a couple of questions first? It's kind of a local custom." The waiter said.

 Brian shrugged "Sure why not."  "How much do you weigh?" The waiter asked with a weird smile.  "About two hundred." Brian answered. "And how tall are you?" "About six-two" Brian replied. 

"Just one more thing and then I will get a you a menu." The waiter said as he brought up a camera from behind the counter. Brian  grimaced as the waiter took the photo. He was rapidly losing patience.

A few minutes later, the waiter returned with a menu.  Brian opened the menu to find his photo under the dinner menu. "As you can see, we do things a little differently here. At the Desert Cafe, the patrons are on the menu."  The rest of the people in the Cafe turned to look at Brian and the waiter smiled, revealing sharp teeth.