The Shortcut--a Very Short Story

It was darker than usual. Thick storm clouds gripped the harvest moon. The cold hard rain nearly blinded Desiree's view of the road as she drove slowly to the rhythm of the wiper blades. Suddenly there was a loud bang, and Desiree knew instantly that she had a flat tire.

"Not now," she cried out loud. "Not now. Not here!" All the stories she'd heard about this shortcut flooded her mind with dread. Sweat broke out on her feverish brow.

Desiree did not have the tools to change the tire and knew it could be days before another car travelled this lonely country road. Knowing there was no other choice, Desiree got out of the car hugging her thin cotton coat around her and headed into the driving rain towards town.

There was a sharp screech causing Desiree to turn and stumble on the broken roadside breaking the heel of her right shoe and twisting her ankle. Then came a loud groaning sound. It was so loud, it could be heard over the lashing wind and pelting raindrops. Frightened and shaking, Desiree decided to leave the road and seek some kind of shelter. Cold and limping, Desiree forced herself to forge ahead hoping to find some protection from the haunting night. A night unlike any she'd ever seen.

She thought she saw a light off to her left and quickened her pace in that direction. Branches lashed her face and thorns tore at her clothes. She barely felt the warm blood oozing from the scratches on her legs and face or the thorns embedded in her thigh. A spine-chilling scream filled her ears, and Desiree knew the sound was ripping from her own throat as she plummeted into the pit in her path.

As she fell, she coud only wonder what horror waited for her at the bottom of this cold black hole.