Everyone knows that when you reach your limit, you cry out "Uncle!" for instant escape. Got an arm twisted behind your back? Shout "Uncle!" Pinned to the floor by your older, bigger sister? Shout "Uncle!" However, people forget that if you say "Uncle" three times, you summon the ghost of Uncle Darren.
The kiddies call him Dark Darren, but in changing his nickname, they leave out the most important warning: do not say "Uncle" three times. When he's not called Uncle Darren, it's easy to forget that rule. Of course, he's not my real uncle. He's my great-uncle, my grandmother's mischievous brother who disappeared in mysterious circumstances some time around the turn of the century.
He's not the kind of ghost you want to summon. Some ghosts are benign and harmless; they drift around and bemoan their fate, but they leave the living alone. Uncle Darren is far from harmless. In the last fifty years, there have been nearly 200 unsolved murders in Jericho County: that's all his work. According to Grandma, he was dangerous in life, and he remains dangerous in death. Decapitations, drownings, dismemberment--all by Uncle Darren.
So be careful how often you back out of a tussle. If you say "Uncle" three times, it'll probably be the last thing you say.
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