‘The Curse of the Clock’ A ghost story by Harry Riley

(This story is fiction and resemblance to anyone living or dead is coincidental)

George Kendal was a creature of instinct. Now as he drove through the little Derbyshire village he spotted a bric-a-brac store called “Twice Used Emporium” and thought it was worth stopping off for a quick browse. His business was restoring old clocks and selling them for a big profit. His large house was full of timepieces he’d renovated. They came in all shapes and sizes.

Today he wandered into the dusty old shop with a casual air and gazed around. Most of the items were rubbish but his eyes eventually lit upon a long-case clock in a corner, covered in a thick layer of dust and almost completely obscured by piles of rubbishy furniture, tables, chairs and discarded books etc.

The owner, a shifty looking old man wearing a dirty brown overcoat, badly in need of a shave and a surly expression on his yellowish face, gave his visitor a brief nod which seemed as much as he could manage, then perched himself awkwardly on the corner of a rickety trestle table. His eyes furtively watched George’s every movement as the visitor examined various pieces of mild interest. On his way out again, turning to face the shopkeeper he asked: “Just a thought but how much might you be asking for the grandfather clock?”

The shopkeeper wiped his runny nose with a deft flick of his cuff and replied in a surprisingly deep and rasping voice: “Sorry mate, it’s not for sale. It’s a family heirloom and you couldn’t pay me enough to part with it.

If you come back next week I’ll have another one. This has only been stored here while I’m repainting the house.”

George thanked him and said he would call back. He knew the man was tricking him and would immediately start cleaning and polishing the clock to demand a better price. When-if he returned, he would be offered the same one again, patched up and in the guise of another.

George had experienced most trader’s tricks as he’d wandered about the country searching for bargains and was quite prepared to haggle for this item as he recognised it was almost certainly a genuine antique long case.