Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, Greg Weeks, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Weird Tales October 1936. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed. [Illustration: "One hand closed on his thin neck, and the other, a rock-like fist, made a bloody ruin of his mouth."] Isle of the Undead By LLOYD ARTHUR ESHBACH _A gripping, thrilling, uncanny tale about the frightful fate that befell a yachting party on the dreadful island of living dead men_ * * * * * _1. A Horror from the Past_ A drab gray sheet of cloud slipped stealthily from the moon's round face, like a shroud slipping from the face of one long dead, a coldly phosphorescent face from which the eyes had been plucked. Yellow radiance fell toward a calm, oily sea, seeking a narrow bank of fog lying low on the water, penetrating its somber mass like frozen yellow fingers. Vilma Bradley shuddered and shrank against Clifford Darrell's brawny form. "It's--it's ghastly, Cliff!" she said. "Ghastly?" Darrell leaned against the rail, laughing softly. "One cocktail too many--that's the answer. It's given you the jitters. Listen!" Faintly from the salon came strains of dance music and the rhythmic shuffle of feet. "A nifty yacht, a South Sea moon, a radio dance orchestra, dancers--and little Clifford! And you call it ghastly!" Almost savagely his arms tightened about her, and the bantering note left his voice. "I'm crazy about you, Vilma." She tried to laugh, but it was an unconvincing sound. "It's the moon, Cliff--I guess. I never saw it like that before. Something's going to happen--something dreadful. I just _know_ it!" "Oh--be sensible, Vilma!" There was a hint of impatience in Cliff's deep voice. A gorgeous girl in his arms--dark-haired, dark-eyed, made for love--and she talked of dreadful things which were going to happen because the moon looked screwy. She released herself and glanced out over the sea. "I know I'm silly, but----" Her voice froze and her slender body stiffened. "Cliff--look!" Darrell spun around, and as he stared, he felt a dryness seeping into his throat, choking him....