In one house, a woman sits beside her window, waiting silently for the doctor to arrive. Her husband lies on the bed next to her. In the light of a single candle, she can see his thin face. He is in terrible pain, which even the drugs prescribed by the doctor cannot decline. She clutches his hand tightly, feeling the cold creeping through it. He is barely breathing now. She knows his time is near. One part of her is thankful, for she cannot bear to see him in so much pain.

Outside the house, the rumble of wheels and the clip-clop of hooves echo through the still night. The woman tears her eyes from her husband's face and looks out of the window, expecting to see the doctor's curricle pulling into the street. Instead, she sees a dark, closed coach with black gaping holes where the windows should be. The shafts at the front of the coach are empty, yet she can hear the sound of invisible horses' hooves, as the coach moves slowly down the street.

By S.E. Schlosser

She draws in a deep breath and exhales slowly. It is the Death Coach. Her husband had told her it would come for him that night, but she hadn't believed him. Hadn't wanted to believe him. Yet there it is, rolling slowly up to the front of the house to stop by the front gate. The sight terrifies her, and she clutches her husband's hand tightly. He opens his eyes and smiles feebly at her, trying to squeeze her hand.

"Is it here?" he asks, his voice barely a whisper. She nods.

"I love you," he says to his wife. She leans down and kisses him, feels his last breath on her lips. The grip on her hand loosens, and she knows he is dead. She straightens up, looking tenderly at his dead face through her tears.

A movement by the door causes her to look up. She sees her husband's spirit standing at the door. He gazes first at his dead body, and then smiles at her. Then he turns and walks down the stairs. She moves at once to the window, flinging it open and leaning out, hoping to see him again. The front door opens, and her husband steps out the front porch and walks slowly to the Death Coach. The door opens, and he pauses for a moment to look towards the window, knowing she is watching. He waves and she waves back, tears streaming down her face. Then her husband steps into the coach and the door closes behind him. Slowly, the Death Coach rumbles down the street, turns a corner, and is gone.

"Goodbye, my love," she calls softly, as the Death Coach disappears. Her husband's pain is over, but hers has just begun. With a heavy heart, she closes the window, and goes down the stairs to telephone the doctor and tell him her husband is dead.

She has been telling stories since she was a child, when games of "let's pretend" quickly built themselves into full-length tales acted out with friends. A graduate of both Houghton College and the Institute of Children's

Literature, Sandy received her MLS from Rutgers University while working as a full-time music teacher and a freelance author.

Sandy currently works as a Manager of Web Analytics for Consumer Reports Magazine, where she manages the web analytics applications and reporting as well as operations and project management for web editorial.

Sandy is the webmaster and writer of an award-winning, internationally-known web site called American Folklore (http://www.americanfolklore.net) that features retellings of folktales from each state. This site was created as part of a graduate study at Rutgers the State University of New Jersey in October 1997 and is used daily by

teachers throughout the world in lesson plans for students of all levels. Stories from the site have also been used in college text books and in Masters level programs.

Sandy spends much of her time answering questions from visitors to the American Folklore web site. Her favorite e-mails come from other folklore enthusiasts who delight in practicing the old tradition of who can tell the tallest

tale.

Along with frequent media appearances, Sandy also gives lectures and does storytelling programs for schools of all levels, professional conferences, storytelling events, and around the campfire. Sandy has books ranging from spooky stories to holiday season programs to lectures on historical folklore which she customizes for each of her

audiences.

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