Abstract Based on combined VHF interferometer and fast/slow antenna measurements, we document an abnormal bolt‐from‐the‐blue lightning flash, which included two strokes. There are four successive attempted dart leaders following the first return stroke. The last detected downward leader stopped advancing at approximately 94 m and decayed. Then, a fast upward breakdown initiated 2.29 ms after it stopped, developing along the preexisting channel toward the cloud, propagating with a speed of 4.9 × 107 m/s along the vertical portion of the channel. Electrostatic field changes revealed that negative charge transferred by previous attempted dart leaders had accumulated within the decaying channel. The accumulated charge was comparable to that later transferred to ground by the delayed return stroke, which itself was accompanied by a long continuing current. We term this event ‘delayed return stroke’. This phenomenon illustrates the independent influence of residual charge within the decaying channel on later discharge processes.