The Tavern Owner’s Secret | "The Feeder" Audio Drama based on Poe's classic story

0:00 Speaker 1: Hi, this is Winslow.

0:01 Speaker 2: This is Crimson.

0:03 Speaker 1: And if you like what we're doing, hit that like button. And if you want to hear more, subscribe.

0:22 Speaker 3: With this key, you unlock the world to your dreams. What lies beyond. Could be the doorway to nightmare.

0:35 Speaker 1: Come in.

0:57 Speaker 3: Welcome, I'm your host through the doorway to nightmare. The great American author and poet Edgar Allan Poe wrote many stories of horror and terror. One such story was about a man who was deathly afraid of being buried alive. Poe had a similar fear of such an ugly way to die. To be buried in one's own tomb, scratching and clawing, trying to get out.

1:39 Speaker 4: Oh, you don't know how relieved I am.

1:42 Speaker 1: Relieved? In what way?

1:44 Speaker 5: Well, surely this is a joke on your part. I'm sure we'll have a good laugh over a bottle of beer.

1:50 Speaker 1: At the bar. I will, that's for sure.

1:54 Speaker 4: So you're serious?

1:55 Speaker 3: Why?

1:56 Speaker 1: You really don't know.

1:58 Speaker 4: I must know why.

2:00 Speaker 1: What sort of friend are you anyway?

2:03 Speaker 6: Makes love to my wife and then doesn't even speak to me? It's as good of a reason as any, don't you think?

2:15 Speaker 3: Our mystery drama, The Theater, was inspired by the Poe classic, Cask of Amontillado, and written especially for Doorway to Nightmare by Winslow Swan and edited by Crimson McKenzie. Our stars include Ezra J.D. Emmons and Brenna Faith. It is sponsored in part by Swanage Press. I'll be back shortly with Act One.

2:43 Speaker 2: Hi, it's Crimson.

2:45 Speaker 1: And Swan.

2:46 Speaker 2: You want to hear some more episodes?

2:47 Speaker 1: Join our YouTube channel at Doorway to Nightmare.

2:51 Speaker 2: And don't forget to subscribe. Hit that like button and tell all your friends.

3:09 Speaker 3: Permit me to introduce Victor Clemens. a rather average-looking man who had the good fortune of marrying a very beautiful woman. Unfortunately, he suffers from an affliction that can sometimes be fatal, the disease of jealousy.

3:32 Speaker 6: I had no business being with Isabella. I was not handsome by any means. I was comfortable. Not well off, but comfortable nevertheless. I would often ask her while we were dating what it was about me that she would consider taking me as a husband.

3:55 Speaker 7: Oh, Victor, why does any woman want a man? I fell in love with you. There is no rhyme or reason. I just know that you captured my heart. Can't you simply live with that?

4:09 Speaker 6: And so we were married. And it was a happy marriage. However, I found myself brooding more and more. I questioned everywhere that she went. I wanted to know who she saw, what she was doing, at all times.

4:29 Speaker 7: Victor, jealousy does not become you.

4:31 Speaker 1: Do you deny it?

4:33 Speaker 7: I have nothing to deny. If you cannot see that I love you, and only you, then we have nothing more to discuss.

4:41 Speaker 6: No, but I could not let it go. I began to follow her around, watching her constantly. I slept a little, and I began to lose weight due to lack of eating. Then, I began to drink.

4:58 Speaker 1: All of the time.

4:59 Speaker 7: Victor, why must you drink so much?

5:02 Speaker 1: Because it makes me feel better. Feel better. You mean feel better?

5:11 Speaker 7: Perhaps you should get some rest.

5:13 Speaker 1: Rest?

5:15 Speaker 6: Since when do you think that I've had any rest?

5:18 Speaker 1: Oh, Victor. What's happened to us?

5:22 Speaker 4: Oh, I don't know.

5:28 Speaker 1: I wouldn't blame you if you left me tonight.

5:33 Speaker 7: I promise to be with you until death do us part. I always keep my promises.

5:39 Speaker 1: For a few months, we were happy again.

5:44 Speaker 6: I stopped drinking and was beginning to feel like my old self. Until Peter Van Doren came into our life.

5:59 Speaker 1: Excuse me, a soda, please.

6:01 Speaker 3: A soda?

6:02 Speaker 4: Did I hear that correctly? You ordered a soda at the bar?

6:06 Speaker 1: And what business is it of yours?

6:09 Speaker 4: Oh, please, forgive me. I meant no offense. I just find it rather strange that someone would come into a bar just to order a soda.

6:15 Speaker 1: Oh, well, I stopped drinking some time ago.

6:19 Speaker 4: Now that is a crime. Never trust a man who doesn't drink. Are you trustworthy, sir?

6:24 Speaker 1: Well, drinking has nothing to do with it.

6:26 Speaker 4: Then please let me buy you something. No, really, I don't... Hey, Joe, pour this gentleman a glass of wine. Or burgundy, perhaps?

6:34 Speaker 1: I really don't need... Oh, come on.

6:36 Speaker 5: It's just a glass of wine. Let me introduce myself. My name is Peter Van Doren. I just so happen to own this establishment.

6:44 Speaker 1: Victor Clemens.

6:46 Speaker 4: Well now, Victor, a toast to new friendships.

6:50 Speaker 1: Well, it is quite good wine.

6:53 Speaker 4: Only the best for my friends.

6:58 Speaker 6: Oh, show me the way to go home. I'm tired and I want to go to bed.

7:08 Speaker 1: I had a little.

7:10 Speaker 6: Drink about an hour ago and it's gone right to my head. Steady there.

7:21 Speaker 4: Let me knock on the door.

7:26 Speaker 7: Oh, Victor, not again.

7:27 Speaker 6: Oh, hello, my beautiful wife.

7:33 Speaker 1: You must forgive me. My friend here has Had a little too much wine. I was helping him home. Right, friend? Let me introduce. Introduce... What was your name again?

7:56 Speaker 4: Good evening, dear lady. I'm Peter Van Doren.

7:59 Speaker 7: Isabella Clemens.

8:00 Speaker 4: Charmed.

8:01 Speaker 1: Isn't he charming, Isabella?

8:06 Speaker 3: Oh, pardon me.

8:08 Speaker 1: Uh... I don't feel so well.

8:12 Speaker 7: Let's get him to bed. Would you care for something, Mr. Van Doren?

8:20 Speaker 4: Won't you call me Peter?

8:22 Speaker 7: All right, Peter. Would you like something?

8:25 Speaker 4: Has he always been this way?

8:27 Speaker 1: No.

8:28 Speaker 7: There was a time when we were quite happy.

8:30 Speaker 4: Well, seeing him and seeing you, how did you ever marry him?

8:35 Speaker 7: Would you believe me if I told you that I was in love with him?

8:38 Speaker 6: No.

8:39 Speaker 5: Believe what you like but he's a toad and a drunken one at.

8:43 Speaker 7: That i believe that i shall have to ask you to leave.

8:47 Speaker 4: No i don't think so what are you.

8:49 Speaker 7: Doing take your hands off.

8:51 Speaker 1: Of me you need a real man how dare you.

8:56 Speaker 4: Oh i dare to do it again oh.

9:00 Speaker 6: Peter oh isabella.

9:05 Speaker 3: How could you It seems that Mr. Clemens was not as passed out as he appeared, and now he knows that his wife is not the devoted spouse that she appears to be. What goes through a man's mind when his heart is being ripped to shreds? Perhaps the answer lies within Act Two.

9:35 Speaker 2: Mystery Horror.

9:38 Speaker 1: Thriller.

9:39 Speaker 4: Suspense.

9:41 Speaker 2: Novels and short story collections from Winslow Swan, now available from Amazon.com.

10:00 Speaker 3: It has been six months since Peter Van Doren began to see the Clemens. There were dinners, the theater, and much drinking. And, of course, Isabella was delighted to find such a proper gentleman.

10:20 Speaker 6: A proper gentleman? No, there was nothing proper about Mr.

10:26 Speaker 1: Van Doren.

10:28 Speaker 6: I had seen them together that very first night. Isabella made excuses for going out, always making sure that I had something to drink before leaving. And I confess I found solace in the.

10:46 Speaker 1: Bottle until the night. that a seed of a plan entered my brain. It coiled its way around my head, and when it fully grew, I laughed at the sheer deviousness of it.

11:10 Speaker 3: Well, Victor.

11:11 Speaker 4: It's been a long time.

11:13 Speaker 1: Ah, come in, Peter. Come in. Let me get you something.

11:16 Speaker 4: And where, perchance, is the lovely Mrs. Clements?

11:19 Speaker 1: Isabella?

11:20 Speaker 6: Oh, she's visiting her family this weekend. So I thought that, well, it has been such a long time since you and I have had the chance to talk.

11:31 Speaker 4: You know that you're always welcome down at the pub.

11:34 Speaker 1: Oh, I know, I know.

11:35 Speaker 6: But I thought perhaps a more private meeting is in order. I'm so happy that you could come out tonight.

11:42 Speaker 5: Well, my business does keep me quite busy during the daylight hours.

11:46 Speaker 1: Oh, I'm sure that it does. Now here, try this nice claret.

11:52 Speaker 3: Very good.

11:53 Speaker 4: You have an excellent cellar.

11:55 Speaker 1: Oh, you have seen my collection of wine?

11:58 Speaker 3: Well, not personally.

12:00 Speaker 5: I was told by your lovely wife about your penchant for collecting only the best of wine.

12:05 Speaker 1: Well, I thank you for that. Here, have another glass.

12:09 Speaker 4: Oh, I really shouldn't, but if you insist.

12:12 Speaker 1: Oh, but I do insist.

12:13 Speaker 4: To your long life.

12:15 Speaker 1: I have a better chance of that than you do.

12:18 Speaker 3: Pardon?

12:19 Speaker 1: Oh, just musing, talking to myself. I tend to do that.

12:24 Speaker 4: A very good wine, but I feel as if.

12:29 Speaker 1: as if....

12:34 Speaker 6: Just can't hold your wine? Well, I shall take good care of you.

12:50 Speaker 4: What is going on?

12:51 Speaker 6: So, you're finally awake. I thought I might have overdosed you. Didn't want you to sleep through the whole thing.

13:00 Speaker 3: James... Why am I chained?

13:05 Speaker 1: Oh, well, I don't want you to get away, do I?

13:09 Speaker 4: What are you doing, Victor?

13:11 Speaker 1: Well, what does it look like I'm doing? I'm walling you up. But why? You mean you really don't know? I'm murdering you. And you don't know why?

13:26 Speaker 4: I must know.

13:28 Speaker 6: What kind of a friend are you, anyway? makes love to my wife, and doesn't even talk to me.

13:34 Speaker 4: You have no idea what I could do. I promise you, Victor, you will regret this.

13:40 Speaker 1: The one thing that I will not regret is watching you take your last breath.

13:54 Speaker 7: Victor, you seem distant tonight. Is there something wrong?

13:58 Speaker 6: No, no, not with me, Isabella. Is there anything wrong with you, my dear?

14:05 Speaker 7: No. I wonder what has happened to Peter.

14:08 Speaker 1: Who? Mr.

14:09 Speaker 7: Van Duren. I wonder why he hasn't come around.

14:15 Speaker 1: Perhaps he never left.

14:25 Speaker 7: What do you mean by that, Victor? He never left? And why do you spend so much time in the cellar? You just stare at this wall for hours. I've seen you do it. What could be so interesting about a wall that fascinates you so? A loose brick. Now we can see.

14:47 Speaker 1: Oh, my God!

14:48 Speaker 4: Isabella.

14:49 Speaker 7: Peter, you're still alive?

14:51 Speaker 3: Barely.

14:52 Speaker 4: I need something.

14:53 Speaker 7: I'll get this wall down and let you out.

14:55 Speaker 3: No, no.

14:56 Speaker 4: Don't do that. Not yet. I need something now. I barely have any strength left.

15:04 Speaker 1: What can I do?

15:05 Speaker 4: Make the hole a bit bigger so that you can come to me.

15:09 Speaker 7: Yes, my love.

15:11 Speaker 4: Now make sure that you can put them back so that Victor doesn't notice them.

15:15 Speaker 7: But why?

15:16 Speaker 4: Isabella, do you truly love me?

15:19 Speaker 7: Yes, I truly do.

15:22 Speaker 4: Then come in further and kiss me.

15:27 Speaker 3: Isabella crawls through the small gaping hole that she has made. She removes the chains from Peter as he wraps his arms around her, his open mouth moving closer to her lips and neck. We shall move closer to Act 3 shortly.

15:56 Speaker 6: If you're enjoying these stories, come over to our YouTube channel, Doorway to.

16:03 Speaker 2: Nightmare, where we add a few pics to color your imagination. See the faces behind the voices, too. Come on, you know you wanna.

16:24 Speaker 3: I cannot think of a greater fear than being buried alive. The torture of trying to claw and escape, each breath possibly being your last. Perhaps Peter had these same thoughts until he saw Isabella.

16:48 Speaker 1: Isabella was correct.

16:51 Speaker 6: I would spend hours staring at that wall where Peter Van Doren was chained. I wondered how long it would take for him to die.

17:04 Speaker 1: Had it been quick? Perhaps his heart gave out from sheer fright.

17:11 Speaker 6: Or had it been a slow and painful suffocation?

17:17 Speaker 1: I laughed at the thought of his demise. But then I saw it. It was almost hidden from view. One of the bricks was loose. Had Peter somehow found a way to survive? Not without help. That was for sure. Now, what were you doing in the cellar?

17:50 Speaker 7: Was I in the cellar?

17:51 Speaker 1: Yes, my dear, you were.

17:53 Speaker 7: I hadn't noticed.

17:55 Speaker 1: Is there something down there that fascinates you? Perhaps something about the wall?

18:03 Speaker 7: No, I don't think so.

18:05 Speaker 6: Well, you have been going down there every night for the past three days. You really should get outside. You're growing very pale. I sincerely hope that you.

18:17 Speaker 1: Are not sick.

18:18 Speaker 6: No.

18:19 Speaker 7: I don't feel sick.

18:20 Speaker 1: Well, that's good.

18:23 Speaker 6: I wouldn't want anything to happen to you.

18:33 Speaker 1: Isabella, what are you doing?

18:37 Speaker 7: It's ten o'clock. I must go down.

18:40 Speaker 1: But why? There is nothing and no one down there.

18:45 Speaker 7: I must go.

18:50 Speaker 6: So, my dear loving wife, you must go down there. Perhaps you have found your dead lover and wish to be with him. Even in death, you have to be near him.

19:12 Speaker 1: Well, I can.

19:15 Speaker 6: Fix it so that you will always be near him.

19:21 Speaker 1: Permanently. Isabella? Are you down here? I have a surprise for you.

19:40 Speaker 7: I'm over here, Vincent.

19:45 Speaker 1: What are you do. Oh, I see. You've torn down the wall. My.

19:55 Speaker 6: Peter looks very well for a dead man.

19:59 Speaker 4: Who says that I'm dead? What?

20:02 Speaker 1: No. No, that's impossible.

20:06 Speaker 6: Oh.

20:07 Speaker 1: Oh, unless... Oh, yes, of course.

20:10 Speaker 6: My wife must have been feeding you, keeping you alive.

20:16 Speaker 4: In a manner of speaking, she was helping me feed. You see, it wasn't food that I needed, Vincent, but blood. Human blood.

20:27 Speaker 1: What are you talking about?

20:29 Speaker 7: He didn't want to take me before. He fell in love with me, and I with him. He wanted me to make the choice. You, dear husband. made the choice for both of us.

20:42 Speaker 1: I don't understand.

20:44 Speaker 4: I told you that you would come to regret your actions.

20:48 Speaker 5: A vampire can survive for quite some time, but without blood, he's doomed.

20:55 Speaker 4: Isabella saved me. Now, she needs something to sustain herself.

21:02 Speaker 3: No.

21:03 Speaker 7: Come to me, Vincent. Come to me, my dear husband.

21:07 Speaker 3: No. Come. Isabella smiles, her fangs extended. Peter smiles as she buries her teeth into Victor's neck, his blood flowing into her open, hungry mouth. I shall return shortly.

21:42 Speaker 2: Hi, it's Crimson. We're hoping you're enjoying these stories and do you want to hear some more? Join us on our YouTube channel, Doorway to Nightmare.

21:51 Speaker 1: If you dare.

22:05 Speaker 3: Isabella and Peter feasted on the blood of Victor before sealing him up inside the wall. As far as I know, no one has ever found him. And remember the old legend? Those who feel the vampire's bite cannot come out into the light. I wonder how Victor is faring in the cellar. He must be very hungry. Our cast included Brenna Faith, Ezra J.B. Emmons, and Winslow Swan. The entire production was under the direction of Winslow Swan, and the story was edited by Crimson McKenzie. And now, a preview of our next tale.

23:01 Speaker 1: I swear.

23:03 Speaker 2: I swear that I saw something over there in the corner.

23:05 Speaker 1: Did you see it?

23:07 Speaker 4: Elizabeth, it's only a shadow. Nothing more or less.

23:11 Speaker 5: The moonlight simply shining on that old bookcase and making a rather weird shadow on the wall.

23:16 Speaker 2: No, Jason. I saw something moving in there. And I think it saw me.

23:26 Speaker 4: Maybe it was a spider or perhaps a mouse.

23:30 Speaker 2: No, the shape was larger than that. And when it looked at me, I felt sick inside, like it was something.

23:39 Speaker 1: Evil.

23:40 Speaker 3: This is your host, inviting you to return with us through the doorway to nightmare for another adventure into the world of your terrifying imagination. Until next time, slumber peacefully. Epilogue. The butler did it.