Nov 17, 2025
The Mourning Tree
In the hills above a quiet frontier town stands a solitary black walnut tree—twisted, ancient, and never bare, even in frost. No one planted it. No one remembers it being young. They call it The Mourning Tree because grief clings to its bark like moss, and rumor says anyone who rests beneath its shade will dream of their own funeral that night. For schoolteacher Samuel Finch, it begins as a dare…