The car came to a sudden, jolting stop. It rolled off to the shoulder of the road, out of the way for the rest of the drivers who were missing from the road. Its current occupant sat in utter defeat at the wheel.
Her dirty hair had been pulled back into a tangled bun held by a measly brown band. Its dull yellow strands fell down in masses around her, proving how useless the band was to begin with. She brushed them away as she looked past the sprinkling rain outside. Lightning lit the sky, but the thunder had yet to make its own appearance. Soon, though, it would show.
Grabbing her messenger bag and jacket, she abandoned the car to the world and began down the dark road. Her mini, keychain flashlight lit the few feet in front of her. Still, she could see pretty well, especially when the lightning filled the sky and gave a quick burst of blue tinted light.
The forest around her did not give her the creeps though they reminded her of her isolation. Town, supposedly, was fifteen miles away. Hopefully, she’d catch a car heading in or one of the many homes that sat just on the edge of the town limits.
Drops had been hitting her head for a while but, as predicted, the sky let go all at once to drench her. Within seconds, the water had seeped through her clothes and skin. She threw her jacket on and pulled up the hood. Which provided little protection as the rain soaked through that too.
Her bag got drenched as well, but luckily, it came with waterproof material and therefore, all materials tucked inside should be safe. With her luck, water got in anyway and soaked through all her stuff including damaging her phone. No service could be reached out here but when she hit town, at least a bar or two should appear.
The stranded, young adult continued to walk, shivering as she did so. Thunder boomed overhead, her nerves already too shot to actually react. Lightning still lit her path as well as her flashlight which had yet to quit working.
A white fence appeared in the darkness. It came streaking out of the trees and took a sharp turn to lead her down the road. The fence hit a brick column only a little while later. That column had vines of beautiful, currently closed, flowers. It also attached to a black iron gate where a twin column resided on the other side.
Approaching with a new hope, she practically ran to the intercom and slammed down on the buzzer. No one answered. She tried several more times but no answer was the reply. Instead, after her fifth and last time, the gates creaked open to present the rest of the long, narrow driveway. It bended just beyond the trees to be cut from view. Not giving a moment of hesitation, she scurried up the way, not even glancing back at the closing gates.
The house still took a few minutes to walk up to. Despite the grand entrance, the home was a lot more down scale, but beautiful nonetheless. The storm gave out a gray setting, downplaying the surreal, natural beauty of the place.
No answer came to her knocks and jiggling the door handle, she found it to be locked. A little frightened, the woman stepped back. The gate had opened but with the storm, it could have malfunctioned.
A bench sat outside, just to her right, and looked out into the front yard. It was a loveseat with plush cushions and swung back and forth when she sat down. Being out of the rain, she took the time to check her phone which had no notifications. It read a quarter past midnight. Replacing the items in her bag, she nestled against it like a pillow and drifted off.
When she awoke to the morning rays casting beams of light across her face, a plump pillow had been placed under her head and the most softest of covers cocooned her. The mattress dipped under her weight but held firm enough to bend to the curves of her body.
Warm air filled the space she and the normal bedroom objects occupied, coming from a vent on the other end of the room. The fan quieted, leaving the air to settle.
She scooted off the bed and let her bare toes touch the cool hardwood floor. It sent tingles up her spine.
Cautiously, she grabbed her bag and freshly dried clothes-
She stopped, holding up her dry shirt before inspecting the jeans that still laid on the dresser. The same shirt and pair of jeans that had been soaked just the night before.
Looking down at herself, she wasn't wearing the clothes she had been wearing the night before. Those were in her hand. What she did wear was silky, cotton pajamas with a button up top.
Quickly, she locked the door and changed, folding the borrowed clothes and messily making the bed.
She slipped out the door with her bag strapped securely to her side and sprinted down the steps with caution.
The smell of eggs wafted through the air, but she ignored it as she rounded a corner and saw the front door within her sights. However, the smell of breakfast grew stronger as she had to pass the kitchen to escape.
Peeking inside, a man stood, shirtless, at the stove with a spatula and a skillet filled with nearly done eggs. The yellow-white fluff made her mouth water, especially when he added cheese on top.
She swallowed a large gulp of fear that made her stomach queasy. It hadn’t been the large size of the man, though that had been up on the top three, that scared her the most. It was the tattoo on his back that rose her fear to new heights.
His tattoo, consisting of a crow, stretching from shoulder blade to shoulder blade, perched on a detailed skull in the middle of his back and the words expendable tattooed below it, strangely reminded her of a prison tattoo.
“I can smell your fear and hear your stomach rumble. I’m not going to hurt you. At least, sit and eat before you head off.”
Jumping ten feet in the air, the young woman revealed herself, a hand on her stomach.
It hadn’t been that loud, had it?
He peeked at her over his shoulder, the corner of his mouth turned upward. Plates sat beside him, where he easily slid a hefty amount of eggs onto each, before carrying the plates to the bar.
The man left the plates to pour two glasses of milk. He gestured to the bar stool as he sat down, not bothering to look at her. He didn’t wait on her either, just dug right in.
“Who are you?” The young lady skittered around him, coming to sit next to him.
“Not important. Eat and I’ll give you a car to take into town.”
At his command, she ate quietly, cleaning her plate clean.
The man set the dishes into the sink, not bothering with them, before showing her to the garage. On their way, she noticed a scratched up doorframe, the door swinging on one hinge.
Looking further in without getting his attention, her eyes widened at the sight of the completely trashed room. Claw marks lined the walls and the large monitor sets where the house, woods, barn, and gates could be seen. Chains littered the floor.
A hand grabbed the collar of her shirt, forcing her forward as he practically dragged her to the garage and to a Chevy truck. The red paint had been freshly waxed from the way the sun glinted off in steady rays.
“Here.” He shoved the keys into her hand before throwing her into the driver seat. “You'd didn’t see anything. You never saw me. You never come back here, okay? Just keep the truck.”
“But-” The door slammed shut and the mysterious man disappeared back into the house. “Well… Thanks, I guess.” The woman started up the car and backed away from the lot.
As soon as she reached town limits, she whipped out her phone, calling up the local repair shop she had seen on a billboard.
“Hi, my name’s Ashley Dunce. My car broke down on the highway coming into town… Yes… Uh, yeah. It's a white Honda, 2003... Of course… Yes, I currently have a ride and can meet you at your shop… Thanks so much!” Ashley tossed the phone onto the passenger seat, pulling up to the shop not even five minutes later.
•••
A red, Chevy truck drove through the cloudless night, the moon seemingly leading the way to where a large iron cast gate stood proudly between two beautiful pillars of sleeping flowers.
It had been a whole month until she had finally been able to retrieve her car, fully repaired, and give back the truck she had been loaned.
Ashley parked the car, pressing the red button once more. The gates didn't budge.
Rolling her eyes at what she had expected, she was prepared to leave the keys just behind the front tire and walk back to town, but then, the gates creaked open. A sense of foreboding fell over her, the clear skies and guiding moonlight did little to calm her. If anything, they added to the anxiety she felt.
She nervously returned to the truck, pulling it through the gates and parked it just a yard within the drive. Ashley left the keys on the windshield, hopeful he’d come to retrieve it once he saw her leaving via the monitor.
Ashley jogged to the gates, wanting to make it before they closed. They were slow, but still, shivering waves ran through her spine, stronger than the last set, the longer she stayed within the drive.
A twig snapped behind her, momentarily distracting her. Heart beating to an impossible speed, Ashley bolted for the gates. Making it, she turned down the road as fast as she could, hearing the cling as the gates locked themselves.
Once Ashley had put a few yards between her and the creepiness, she slowed down to a calmer walk. That was a mistake.
The growl came to her left, just beyond the white fence.
“Shit-”
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